In this article, we look into student agency which challenges the existing structures and find that students assume such agency for a purpose: there is something they pursue instead of just resisting something. We raise some critical questions about the concept of resistance in educational thought based upon findings from two different qualitative research projects: one in Arctic Finland; and the other in coastal Atlantic Canada. In our research contexts, we have found that students pursue restoration as a means of self-regulation, relevant knowledge and trust in their own terms, and also pursue dialogue in which they are considered to be relevant actors. We conclude that the concept of resistance should only be used for intentional resistance, and that when there is such resistance, it should be considered to be a sign of seriously dysfunctional school environment which we conclude can best be addressed by place-sensitive, dialogical approaches to pedagogy and curriculum.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	rural education, resistance, culture, identity
Research Division:	Education
Research Group:	Education Systems
Research Field:	Continuing and Community Education
Objective Division:	Expanding Knowledge
Objective Group:	Expanding Knowledge
Objective Field:	Expanding Knowledge in Education
Author:	Corbett, M (Professor Michael Corbett)
ID Code:	100552
Year Published:	2011
Web of Science® Times Cited:	5
Deposited By:	Education
Deposited On:	2015-05-20
Last Modified:	2015-08-31
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