Research Impact: This paper explores the role of teacher agency in one teacher’s enactment of a new school subject (Leaving Certificate Physical Education). The paper presents three teaching episodes whereby the process of achieving agency is interrogated through a figurational sociology lens. To capture the complexity of operating in the process of achieving agency, a Figure was constructed to visualise this complexity. We argue that it is impossible to link the achievement of agency with one element (including the teacher). We therefore suggest the need to move away from discourse that positions a huge amount of belief on the agency of the teacher. We strongly advocate for the physical education community to work together to enable collaborative thinking, discussion and action.
Scanlon, D., Calderón, A., & MacPhail, A. (2020). Teacher agency in enacting physical education in a period of curriculum change. The Curriculum Journal. DOI: 10.1002/curj.80
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