At Heritage Middle School in North Carolina, a group of eighth graders noticed something small but important. Every morning, dozens of plastic bags from the school breakfast program were being tossed in the trash. It didn’t sit right with them, so instead of looking the other way, the students decided to take action.
What started as a simple observation turned into a student-led recycling program that grew across the school. They collected hundreds of bags, shared their concerns with school leaders, and helped spark a change in how waste was handled on campus. Along the way, they built communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills and discovered the power of their own voices.
This is student agency in action.
Student agency is about students seeing themselves as capable, curious, and empowered, able to shape their learning and make a real impact on the world around them. When schools nurture agency, students gain confidence, motivation, and the future-ready skills they’ll carry long after they leave the classroom.
This post explores what student agency looks like and how educators can help create the conditions under which it can flourish.
Student agency is a learner’s ability to take action, make decisions, and influence their own learning journey. It’s students saying:
“I have ideas. I can make choices. My voice matters.”
The foundation of student agency rests on four essential elements: voice, choice, ownership, and self-efficacy. Each one plays a unique role in helping students lead their learning in meaningful ways.
When students are able to share their ideas, questions, and concerns, they feel respected and heard. Voice might look like:
Voice is often where agency begins, just like the Heritage students who spoke up when they noticed the growing waste problem.
Choice gives students options for how, what, or even when they learn. This could include choosing:
Choice doesn’t mean unlimited freedom; it means thoughtful opportunities for students to practice decision-making with support.
Ownership grows when students set goals, track progress, and reflect on their learning. When students see learning as something they’re actively shaping, not something that happens to them, their engagement deepens.
Self-efficacy grows through small wins, encouragement, and opportunities for students to see their efforts pay off. A student who believes “I can do this” is more likely to take risks, persist after setbacks, and stay motivated.
When these four elements come together as agency, students develop the confidence and skills to make meaningful choices in their learning—skills they’ll use throughout their lives.
At Heritage, students demonstrated all four:
Their journey shows the power of authentic agency and the growth that happens when teachers trust students to lead.
Voice and choice play important roles in learning, but agency goes deeper.
A student can have voice, like sharing an opinion, without influencing what happens next. A student can have choice, like picking a book or project, without feeling empowered to act on what they care about.
Agency is when students use their voice, make meaningful choices, take ownership, and believe in their ability to make an impact. It’s the difference between noticing a problem (voice) and designing a solution (agency).
Understanding how voice, choice, and agency intersect helps teachers design experiences in which students:
Student agency doesn’t appear all at once; it grows as students do. Here’s how it typically develops across grade levels.
Agency begins with simple, structured opportunities that let students see that their decisions matter. Students might:
Teachers model decision-making, encourage reflection, and help students connect their choices to outcomes. These small moments of ownership build this belief: “My actions influence what happens next.”
Middle schoolers are ready for greater autonomy and responsibility. They may:
Heritage’s recycling initiative is a strong example of agency in action. Students identified a need, designed systems, communicated with others, and solved challenges along the way—demonstrating ownership, persistence, and real problem-solving.
As students mature, their agency becomes more self-directed and tied to their future goals. High schoolers often:
Teachers serve as mentors, helping students reflect, set goals, and connect their decisions to the impact they want to make in the world.
Across all stages, the goal is the same: helping students see themselves as capable leaders in learning and in life.
For students to take initiative and lead their learning, they need strong cognitive and social skills. These durable skills—what we also call global competencies—help students thrive in school, in their future careers, and in life. They grow through practice, reflection, and supportive guidance.
Students benefit from skills like:
Teachers can nurture these skills by modeling reflection and helping students break goals into small steps.
Agency also relies heavily on interpersonal skills:
When students feel heard and learn to collaborate, they gain the tools to succeed in school, their careers, and their communities.
The Heritage recycling project brought these skills to life as students planned, communicated, adapted, and collaborated.
Here are simple ways educators can nurture student agency at any grade level.
Students naturally observe the world around them. Invite them to share:
Use these sparks to fuel projects that connect local observations to global challenges like food waste, clean water, or community safety. Making these connections to global and local challenges empowers students to explore their questions and find solutions through their learning.
Ask students to reflect on how they like to learn. Do they like to read, listen to audio, watch videos, etc.? Once students recognize how they learn best, they can choose a way to demonstrate their learning that truly reflects their strengths and creativity.
Offer different choices in format—such as video, essay, model, podcast, or presentation—provide models, set clear expectations, and allow room for creativity.
Self-awareness lays the foundation for student agency by helping learners recognize what supports their success and where they want to grow next. You can help students build this foundation by supporting them to:
Self-awareness builds confidence and helps students take ownership of their learning. When students take time to notice what helps them thrive—whether it’s a quiet space, a hands-on task, or working with a partner—they begin to understand what they need to do their best work.
Student agency doesn’t mean abandoning standards or curriculum goals. Instead, offer choices within clear boundaries. Students can choose how they research a required topic or how they present their understanding while staying aligned with standards.
Look for signs like students asking thoughtful questions, setting goals, seeking feedback, and taking responsibility for their learning. You might also notice students being more engaged, demonstrating a willingness to take on challenges, and advocating for their learning needs.
Start small. Some students need more guidance at first as they develop self-direction skills. Offer scaffolding and gradually increase opportunities for choice, releasing responsibility as students build confidence.
The students at Heritage Middle School went beyond reducing plastic waste. They discovered their capacity to lead and influence change. Their story shows the heart of student agency: Helping learners see themselves as capable of shaping their world, one idea and one action at a time.
When schools nurture agency, they create conditions for deeper engagement, stronger relationships, and lasting impact. Students feel more connected, confident, and ready to take on challenges. They build competencies like curiosity, empathy, collaboration, and reflection that will serve them throughout school and into their future careers.
Whether your students are just beginning to explore independence or are ready for complex problem-solving, the path to agency starts with intentional, student-centered teaching. And with the right support, every school can build a culture in which learners feel empowered to take action and lead their own success.
If your school is ready to strengthen student agency, build durable skills, and stand out in a competitive landscape, our white paper From the Inside Out shares data-driven insights to guide your next steps.
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