Situating children’s agency in grades 2 & 3 Ghanaian public schools’ classrooms: A sociomaterial perspective
Authors:   , Newman Sibylle 
Published: September 2023

Classroom practices are situated within complex and interconnected systems that include material settings, cultural norms, power dynamics, and historical legacies. Yet the material and intangible characteristics of classrooms are often overlooked, omitted, or portrayed as the background and passive actors (Iannaccone, 2017). This thesis presents an empirical account of how the sociomateriality of the classroom environment shapes children's agency and daily learning experience in Ghanaian public schools. The study takes a sociomaterial perspective, which decentralizes human actions to concentrate on the non-human things whose existence and performativity extend beyond fulfilling human needs and intentions (Orlikowski & Scott, 2008). This thesis aims to situate children’s agency by answering the following research question: How do indigenous knowledge, colonialism, and the sociomateriality of the classroom shape children's agency in grades 2 and 3 Ghanaian public schools? The qualitative research design involved ethnographic tools, including participant observations, interviews, photographs, videos, and school documents. Over one and half years, 36 classrooms in 24 schools, comprising 18 government and 6 private schools in rural and urban settings, were visited. Semi-structured interviews with 22 adults, including 9 teachers, 4 heads of schools, and 9 parents, were conducted. Eight children’s participants were interviewed using child-friendly methods such as small group role-playing exercises and informal group discussions (Clark, 2011). The school documents comprised children's classroom work, children's drawings, and teachers' instructional material. Photographs and videos taken on the school grounds were also included. One key finding suggests that the current classroom environment, practices, and dynamics are centered on material artifacts, such as the blackboard and notebooks, making them the main actants that negotiate the social intra-actions, patterning, dynamics, and temporality of the daily activities of the classroom. These sociomaterial characteristics are systematized by complex entanglements of indigenous and colonial practices and principles and create hybrid practices. This hybridization has conflicting dynamics, limiting children's agency and the application of child-centered practices. Furthermore, these hybrid principles and materialized practices over time crossed borders in the family realm and consequently became inseparable cultural norms (Iannaccone & Marsico, 2013). This permeability is important to consider in promoting child-centered practices. Another key study finding suggests that indigenous principles share similarities with social-constructivist pedagogy and theories. Incorporating elements of indigenous principles of communal peer culture in classroom practices can promote a more holistic and culturally responsive approach to teaching and learning. It is important to note that the benefits of incorporating indigenous principles go beyond temporal considerations. The study's relevance and timeliness lie in the promotion of children's participation in classroom practices through the social constructivist pedagogy that is part of the policy reforms. This approach requires teachers to step away from existing teacher-centered pedagogy and embrace a child-centered approach that reconnects with traditions and initial cultural principles that align with Ghanaian beliefs and perceptions about children. The study encourages educators, parents, and policymakers to rethink, re-indigenize, and decolonize classroom practices and the perception of learning by developing a sociomaterial perspective about the classroom culture in public Ghanaian schools. By raising awareness of the detrimental impacts of the continuous colonial legacy on the classroom environment and practices and reintroducing indigenous knowledge and socialization methods, children's agency can be enhanced, leading to more meaningful and culturally relevant learning experiences.