New book to help educators empower every student by changing approach to education

LAWRENCE — Why do some students understand themselves as capable of making a difference and others do not? That is the question at the heart of a new book that calls for change in the way schools educate young people.

“Agents of Impact: How Education Can Empower Students to Change Themselves, Their Communities, and Their World” was written by three internationally acclaimed educators, including Yong Zhao, Foundation Distinguished Professor in the School of Education & Human Sciences at the University of Kansas. All have taught in K-12 schools and universities and see the current moment with a rising mental health crisis among young people and the potential of technology like artificial intelligence as a to time to shift how the public thinks about schooling.

“The main idea is to call for teachers and schools to change the way we teach skills. Students can become active agents to guide their learning and change their communities,” Zhao said. “We teach them to get good grades and go to college, but not to solve problems.”

Central to the book's ideas is an understanding of two problems and potential opportunities. Zhao and co-authors G. Williamson McDiarmid of the University of North Carolina and Ronald Beghetto of Arizona State University cite data of an increasing mental health crisis among young people that includes drastically increased levels of depression, anxiety and suicide among school-aged young people. Surveys have shown that large numbers of students do not feel that they matter. Simultaneously, AI is changing large facets of society quickly, including education.

The authors write that educators and the schooling system have the potential to show students that they matter and help them learn to identify and solve problems. And by embracing technology and showing young people how to use it responsibly, educators can change the “grammar of schooling” that has kept the approach to education largely unchanged for more than 200 years.

Proposed changes to education are nearly always met with resistance at every level, the authors wrote. They recognize such changes are a lofty goal but address that by noting the “scale of impact.” The authors provide a framework to help students understand the levels of influence they can have, ranging from individual and local changes and progressing to societal and global changes.

Additional chapters address what students need to make a difference and how to give students agency by providing them autonomy and empowering them to take control of their learning.

“Students want to matter and do things that are important to someone,” Zhao said. “We all do. In the book we talk a great deal about the power of even small-scale changes and how they can make a difference for young people, their families and communities.”

The authors explore how schools, families and educational policy influence and shape students’ autonomy and decision making. Further, the book includes real-world examples and case studies of schools that have incorporated new, innovative models into the traditional dynamic of schooling. Such programs include personalized learning, engagement with real-world problems and emphasis on critical thinking.

Finally, the authors discuss AI and its place in transforming education. The technology is already changing how students learn, and the authors explore how schools can use it to prepare students for a future where its use will be critical for success. They also examine the ethical considerations surrounding its use in schools and how to teach students to use the technology with an ethical mindset for problem-solving.

Between chapters, “Agents of Impact” features interludes where the authors further delve into the larger ideas behind their recommendations. The interludes include dialogue among the three authors, footnotes and more on ideas such as teaching students they can make a difference now, educational autonomy and freedom from systemic limits.

“I hope readers will enjoy seeing how we got to our conclusions,” Zhao said.

In the book's epilogue, Zhao, McDiarmid and Beghetto call on educators, parents and policymakers to adopt a new version of education, though not as a criticism of teachers or families, they wrote.

“The goals and aims of education need to be rethought,” Zhao said. “It should not be just to accumulate information. It can be giving students ownership of their education and using technology like AI to find problems and solve them. The question should be, ‘How do you matter?’ We want students to make meaningful, lasting change. Test scores don’t do that. We all have to matter.”