Supporting transformative agency in initial teacher education: A Change Laboratory in China

Studies of teacher agency need analytical frameworks with processual and collective perspectives in support of the transformation of educational institutions and practitioners. The framework of transformative agency by double stimulation (TADS) from cultural-historical activity theory is used as a lens to inquire how a Change Laboratory in initial teacher education in China supported teacher agency. Our analysis traces the occurrence of the TADS phases during six online Change Laboratory sessions and the distribution of these phases among 13 participants and two researchers, moving toward a major transformation of the institutional strategies for mentoring school placement. Our findings verify the usability of the TADS model for capturing transformative teacher agency as a stepwise process. The analysis shows the nonlinear character of the TADS process, requiring adaptation to context-specific contingencies. The distribution of TADS phases among the participants and researchers reveals the collective and relational nature of teacher agency in transformation efforts.