ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book aims to emphasize the breadth and scope of learning and the development of a sense of belonging alongside strong expectations of high standards and achievement as children and adolescents participate in everyday and special events. It highlights their creativity, intentionality and expertise, as they exercise agency over how they construct knowledge, come to make sense of the world, morally and emotionally. The book shows how they understand the role of religion in their lives alongside family members, religious leaders, teachers and other community members who are dedicated to their learning in and through religious practices. It demonstrates the ways that children and adolescents' agency is shaped by institutional, social and ideological forces as well as political and historical processes of migration, globalization and post-colonialism.
