I have written quite a big about Learner Agency and enjoyed adding to my knowledge when I read the following article:
Teaching Strategies That Cultivate Learner Agency, by Paul Emerich France.
In this post I want to share key points from the article and ideas that some of my colleagues have synthesized from the article.
Why is Agency so important? By designing for, and nurturing agency, we increase student independence. This helps them feel a sense of efficacy and belonging. Learning can go deeper and be more meaningful.
“Empower learners so that their minds and hearts become the engines that drive learning in our classrooms.” – Emerich France
The article suggests 6 main ideas. I will summarize them below along with ideas from my colleagues.
- Make time and space for quiet. Slow down and give wait time for students to think. Our schools tend to move at a very quick, urgent pace. When we slow down we provide students a sense of calm, which opens them to deeper reflection and learning. This also enables us to focus on the process and tools/strategies of learning, not just the content.
- Provide specific praise and guidance. When we slow down and step back, we provide space for productive struggle where students strive to find their own solutions. By stepping back and observing, we can question/prompt with intentionality, in order to provide just enough scaffolding. This specific feedback can help students feel seen and empowered to make their own decisions. When we summarize for them what they did, they develop a narrative of being problem solvers.
- Cultivate a sense of efficacy. A sense of efficacy develops as students increase awareness of how their efforts and strategies lead to progress; they want to take risks because the learning and improvement matter to them. Teachers can provide reflection opportunities throughout a lesson for students to celebrate and notice what strategies are working and if they need to adjust strategies.
- Develop language around what success looks like. Effective assessment begins with a clear understanding of what success looks like, for both teachers and students. The teacher models and reinforces precise vocabulary related to the processes and content, and how to reflect and revise. Self-reflection tools such as rubrics, exemplars, and checklists can be co-developed to support growth. Students ask: Where am I compared to where I need to be? and What action steps can I take to get there?
- Ask questions. As noted in the second point above, asking effective questions based on observing where a student is at and what they are trying, gives students the opportunity to think and develop solutions. They have agency as they explore what tools and strategies to use in order to get “unstuck”.
- Let students know you trust them and believe in them. Zaretta Hammond describes a Warm Demander as someone who tells students, “I believe in you and know you can have success with this experience. I am here to help when you need it and you can do it!” (Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain). Letting students know you trust them is huge, especially when they know you are there to support and that it is okay to make mistakes. We learn by reflecting on mistakes and how to do differently next time.
As I come to the end of this post, I am reminded that all of these ideas are good for students AND for teachers. In order for transformational collaboration to occur, we need all of the strategies above. When we slow down, give each other specific feedback, develop proficiency by engaging in opportunities that matter, self-reflect, ask questions, and trust each other we maximize our sense of community and the ideas that will reinvent our schools for success for all students.
Resources:
Teaching Strategies That Cultivate Learner Agency, Paul Emerich France
Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students, Zaretta Hammond