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Collective Transformative Agency: The Power of Ordinary People to Create Systemic Change

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Title: Collective Transformative Agency: The Power of Ordinary People to Create Systemic Change
Language: English
Authors: Dian Mawene (ORCID 0000-0003-3908-3942), Elizabeth Schrader
Source: Teachers College Record. 2026 128(2):130-160.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 31
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Education Level: High Schools
Secondary Education
Descriptors: Educational Policy, Power Structure, Stakeholders, Intervention, Educational Change, School Districts, School Administration, Teacher Participation, Student Participation, Parent Participation, School Community Relationship, Equal Education, High Schools
DOI: 10.1177/01614681261433290
ISSN: 0161-4681
1467-9620
Abstract: Background: The design of educational policy is typically dominated by those in positions of power, such as elected officials, education departments, school districts, and administrators. However, ordinary people, such as students, parents, and community members, who are often perceived as passive recipients of policy, do have rights to educational policy design. It is essential to address cultures of exclusion as a foundation for a transformative co-design process that honors and leverages the knowledge, experience, and expertise of ordinary people who are typically sidelined and silenced in educational policy design. Purpose: This paper explores how a diverse group of stakeholders, including school and district administrators, teachers, students, parents, and community members, form their collective transformative agency--their ability to challenge and break away from traditional rules and norms about expertise in education policy. Specifically, the study looks at how these stakeholders address cultures of exclusion that have historically marginalized certain groups in the co-design process. Through the use of the Learning Lab methodology, this paper examines how Lab members formed a collective transformative agency to co-design a district-level policy. This process allowed them to create an inclusive, student-centered protocol that challenges existing power dynamics and fosters a more equitable approach to policy co-design. Research Design: This qualitative study was conducted in the Aleph School District (ASD) in the U.S. during the 2022-23 academic year. The Learning Lab intervention involved 16 members. After the intervention, we conducted individual interviews with Lab members, and we analyzed the emergence of their collective transformative agency. We analyzed data from Lab meetings and interview recordings, along with ethnographic memos, to explore how transformative agency manifested within the Learning Lab. Conclusions: Collective transformative agency is critical for achieving a truly inclusive co-design of educational policy that moves beyond incremental and tokenistic efforts toward inclusion. In ASD, transformative agency gradually fostered the development of a new, inclusive culture within the district that extended beyond the Learning Lab. District leadership began to seek out the valuable knowledge, expertise, and power that students and families bring to the district decision-making processes. As a result, students' perspectives and the voices of parents and the community are now seen as legitimate contributors and knowledge creators in educational policy development at the district.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1502677
Database: ERIC
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  Data: Collective Transformative Agency: The Power of Ordinary People to Create Systemic Change
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Dian+Mawene%22">Dian Mawene</searchLink> (ORCID <externalLink term="https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3908-3942">0000-0003-3908-3942</externalLink>)<br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Elizabeth+Schrader%22">Elizabeth Schrader</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Teachers+College+Record%22"><i>Teachers College Record</i></searchLink>. 2026 128(2):130-160.
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  Data: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="EL" term="%22High+Schools%22">High Schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="EL" term="%22Secondary+Education%22">Secondary Education</searchLink>
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  Data: 10.1177/01614681261433290
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  Data: Background: The design of educational policy is typically dominated by those in positions of power, such as elected officials, education departments, school districts, and administrators. However, ordinary people, such as students, parents, and community members, who are often perceived as passive recipients of policy, do have rights to educational policy design. It is essential to address cultures of exclusion as a foundation for a transformative co-design process that honors and leverages the knowledge, experience, and expertise of ordinary people who are typically sidelined and silenced in educational policy design. Purpose: This paper explores how a diverse group of stakeholders, including school and district administrators, teachers, students, parents, and community members, form their collective transformative agency--their ability to challenge and break away from traditional rules and norms about expertise in education policy. Specifically, the study looks at how these stakeholders address cultures of exclusion that have historically marginalized certain groups in the co-design process. Through the use of the Learning Lab methodology, this paper examines how Lab members formed a collective transformative agency to co-design a district-level policy. This process allowed them to create an inclusive, student-centered protocol that challenges existing power dynamics and fosters a more equitable approach to policy co-design. Research Design: This qualitative study was conducted in the Aleph School District (ASD) in the U.S. during the 2022-23 academic year. The Learning Lab intervention involved 16 members. After the intervention, we conducted individual interviews with Lab members, and we analyzed the emergence of their collective transformative agency. We analyzed data from Lab meetings and interview recordings, along with ethnographic memos, to explore how transformative agency manifested within the Learning Lab. Conclusions: Collective transformative agency is critical for achieving a truly inclusive co-design of educational policy that moves beyond incremental and tokenistic efforts toward inclusion. In ASD, transformative agency gradually fostered the development of a new, inclusive culture within the district that extended beyond the Learning Lab. District leadership began to seek out the valuable knowledge, expertise, and power that students and families bring to the district decision-making processes. As a result, students' perspectives and the voices of parents and the community are now seen as legitimate contributors and knowledge creators in educational policy development at the district.
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        Value: 10.1177/01614681261433290
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      – SubjectFull: Stakeholders
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