ABSTRACT
Drawing on interviews, focus groups, and innovative research activities with case study pupils, this chapter examines four key themes that emerged as a result of our analyses of children’s agency: choice, subject hierarchies, social dynamics, and formal structures like School Councils. The findings reveal how children’s agency operates as a complex interplay between institutional structures and individual experiences. While choice emerged as fundamental to children’s sense of agency and engagement with learning, its manifestation varied significantly across schools. Subject hierarchies powerfully mediated children’s agency, with traditional educational priorities often constraining their choices and preferences. Social dynamics proved crucial, with children’s sense of agency intimately connected to peer relationships and teacher interactions. The effectiveness of formal mechanisms like School Councils varied across settings, highlighting that institutional structures alone cannot ensure meaningful agency. These findings demonstrate that children’s agency emerges from the complex interaction between school structures, social relationships, and embedded practices.
