Educators’ perspectives on supporting student agency

The literature on student agency is missing the voice and perspectives of teachers. Although theoretical and empirical research aims to explore student agency by observing and documenting the structures and supports involved in fostering agency, the field knows little of what student agency means to teachers who currently teach and who have experienced the highs and lows of recent educational reform efforts. This article includes three practicing educators, teaching in various contexts (region and grade level), to discuss student agency from their perspectives. These educators examine their classroom practice and develop a definition of agency rooted in reflections of classroom experiences, vignettes, and student and teacher dialogue. Teachers reflect on the obstacles they experience in their efforts to construct agentic spaces in their classrooms and the ways in which they harness their vision to continue to modify their instruction to fit a variety of learners and experiences.