equity themes > student agency and voice
Student Agency and Voice
Aligned LCFF Priority: Priority 5 Pupil Engagement.
The Problem
As students go through the grades, there is a predictable, well-documented downward trajectory in student engagement. According to a 2016 Gallup poll, about three-quarters of 5th-graders — an age at which students are full of joy and enthusiasm for school — report high engagement in school. By middle school, slightly more than half of students report being engaged. By high school, only one-third of students report being engaged. To address this issue, asset-based systems cultivate student agency
and voice.
The Definition
Student agency refers to high-interest, meaningful, student-led learning, including guidance from teachers. Student choice is key to building agency and voice.
In order for educators to really value our experience as a Black learner, they have to learn how to value our experience as Black people first.
- San Diego County student
OPPORTUNITIES TO BUILD STUDENT AGENCY AND VOICE
- Create intentional, systemic, and ongoing spaces to listen to students
- Develop and cultivate healthy feedback loops between students and adults that validate student experiences
- Hold high expectations and provide multiple entry points for students to enroll in rigorous coursework (UC/CSU "a-g," International Baccalaureate, and Advanced Placement)
- Ensure the smallest student populations have supports and resources, even if they do not appear on state data for the school or district
- Increase understanding and honor the identities and cultures of students, including youth culture
- Create intentional and ongoing opportunities to connect across different cultures to better recognize and appreciate differences but also connectedness
- Design ongoing, active engagement to study, analyze, and discuss policies and structures (e.g., dress codes and restrictions on cultural regalia, mascots, logos, etc.)
It's not about remembering history; it's about acknowledging it.
- San Diego County student