Richard Flynn's Point of View about Children Agency

Summary: Children Agency
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Summary: Children Agency
The article “What are we talking about when we talk about Agency” by Richard Flynn addresses the need to respect and understand children’s capabilities and abilities. From Flynn’s point of view, agency is the ability for individuals to act independently without external influence. Flynn’s main argument is that agency diminishes and kills the abilities and capabilities of children. He argues that adults have dominated the lives of children, making it impossible for children to grow and develop independently. He cites an example where most children literature is written by adults. It is not that children cannot tell stories or imagine the real world, but because adults view children as lesser beings without the ability to create and imagine. He says, “…I do object the notion that the relationship between adults and children is oppositional…” (Flynn, 2016, p. 257). He goes ahead to explain that even...