Burman, Lisa
The term agency is widely used, but often misunderstood as "giving children choice." Agency is far more than this, and the most powerful learning happens when personal agency is connected to community agency: we are only as strong as each other. These connections form the heart of a democratic education: one that values the rights of the child and empowers participation, shared power, respect for diversity, and self-efficacy.
Her framework for supporting a culture of agency has five pillars: Relationships, Rituals for belonging and identity, Language of agency, Environment, and Learning Contexts. Using this framework along with the book's guiding questions and goal-setting tool will help you bring intentionality as you build your classroom culture to support children's agency and learning.