Learner Agency

Why do we develop

Learner Agency at OAS?

• Agency is interdependent. The learner is not working in isolation doing their own thing and what suits them, there's connectedness.

• Agency includes an awareness of the responsibility of ones own actions on the environment and on others. Every decision a learner makes, and action she or he takes, will impact on the thinking, behaviour or decisions of others – and vice versa.

Learner agency has been part of the curriculum since it was updated in 2007. Here, it is called the Key Competencies. “The capabilities that young people need for growing, working, and participating in their communities...The school curriculum should challenge students to use and develop the competencies across the range of learning areas and in increasingly complex and unfamiliar situations” (Ministry of Education, 2007, p. 38 ).

These key competencies are, "about developing the dispositions and sense of agency that not only empower the individual but help them better understand and negotiate the perspectives and values of others, contributing towards more productive and inclusive workplaces and societies” (NZC Online ).

Teachers in our senior school noticed that many students need support even when given learning guides, to understand how to create personal deadlines in order to meet the final ones for NCEA assignments (Year 11 - 13 national qualification).

The skills developed in agency enable students to make clear decisions around set tasks, understanding their strengths and using these to complete work more independently. They take ownership over their schedule and form strategies to deal with situations they find challenging.

Students learn to recognise the strengths in others as well as themselves, and gain confidence at approaching and selecting people in their community, who can help them achieve their goals.

How do we build Learner Agency?

• Give them the opportunity to discover what resilience is, how to fix challenges and find solutions.

• Give the students responsibility for their environment.

• Allowing them opportunities to make the right choices and working alongside to support them when they need it.

• Openness to be honest about whether they are doing the right thing.

• Encourage them to drive their own learning.

Your children are all unique individuals, work in different ways and have distinctive learning styles. Developing their learning style and how they retain information best, is an important aspect to experiencing greater success.

Why are there Agency Plans?

"The beauty of student agency, is that instead of teachers instructing the key competencies, they are discovered as students make decisions around their learning. Identifying their needs, initiating new learning, planning, monitoring and assessing learning and reflecting on their own learning goals and pathways."

Maxine Pattinson (Team Leader & Y5/6 Teacher)

These plans include the following:

• Must do activities

  • Literacy - specific targeted with activities that often cross the curriculum, working as a class and in smaller groups.

  • Numeracy - group/classwork and tasks that support the learning of the individual.

  • Inquiry - Encouraged to be student led from a particular focus, leading to active learning that crosses the curriculum into Science and Technology.

  • Self monitoring - Students are in charge of ensuring they complete tasks, supported by the teacher. Greater Agency earns greater independence.

  • Fitness - To be taken daily as a Can Do and/or PE classes.

• Can do activities

  • Maths / Reading games.

  • Creative activities - art based activities, construction, dance, drama.

  • Fitness - Outdoor activities such as basketball, netball or field activities.

  • Personal exploration into a topic driven by the student.

How are we assessing knowledge?

With Agency students become more aware of the steps in their learning, and with support, to independently use a learning matrix to guide them on the journey through the curriculum. As they gain proficiency in this, they are able to include and reflect on choosing tasks more independently, extending their learning. In this way, students are able to grow at their own rate, achieving and expanding their knowledge and are measured on the growth in their skills. Our main Learning Hubs contain these matrices that support student knowledge, link to the curriculum and are reflected on in one to one student conferences with our students.

Assessment is not an entirely independent activity. Progress of a student is measured with others in their peer group, reflected on in discussions and shared with family on the online app, Seesaw. Students and teachers are responsible for reporting to parents and reflecting on their progress, encouraging deeper knowledge and reflection of their learning. This process enables greater communication around student learning and helps parents to have relevant conversations around agency and skills with their child.