Strengthening Student Agency for Inclusion and Social Cohesion: Lessons from PEAS Schools in Uganda and Zambia

• In Event: Whole School Approach to Nurturing Skills, Values and Community Cohesion

Proposal

Secondary education can play a vital role in equipping young people with the skills and values to engage constructively with others and help build more cohesive societies. When students are given real opportunities to lead, and the right support to develop socio-emotional and leadership skills, their sense of agency grows alongside their confidence, empathy, and responsibility. Embedding student agency within a whole-school approach ensures these opportunities are inclusive, relevant, and sustainable.
PEAS schools in Uganda and Zambia provide high-quality, safe secondary education for marginalised learners, with a strong focus on preparing students with skills for life. Through targeted curricula and co-curricular activities, students develop resilience, communication, problem-solving, and decision-making. External evidence shows that PEAS students report significant gains in communication (94.2%), study skills (92.5%), and decision-making (90.9%) (Jigsaw, 2021). These skills give students the agency and confidence to participate meaningfully in school life, take on leadership roles, and foster more inclusive relationships in their schools and communities.
Addressing gendered barriers is central to this work. Girls in particular are too often excluded from leadership and decision-making, both in and outside school. Without tackling this exclusion, opportunities for skills development risk being uneven and reinforcing inequality. PEAS uses a whole-school approach, incorporating targeted interventions, to create more equitable opportunities: Girls’ Clubs offer safe spaces for discussion, confidence-building, and leadership development, while Senior Woman Teachers mentor female students and support their welfare. These initiatives strengthen socio-emotional skills such as self-esteem, resilience, and decision-making, enabling girls to thrive and participate more equally in school and community life.
Alongside this, student leadership forms an important part of our approach. PEAS schools provide structured opportunities for learners to represent their peers, influence decisions, and practise leadership. Students participate in councils, clubs, and Child Protection Committees, ensuring their voices shape school governance. Debate clubs bring learners together with teachers and community members to explore local issues, strengthening communication and critical thinking. Girls’ Club members have led training for community members on practical skills, while student leaders connect with feeder primary schools as role models and advocates for secondary education. These opportunities nurture responsibility, confidence, and collaboration, while reinforcing the links between schools and their communities.
Crucially, student voice is sustained and amplified when supported by a whole-school strategy. Safeguarding systems, gender-responsive pedagogy, and community engagement create the conditions where student voice can flourish. School leaders are empowered to create inclusive environments where learners feel safe and valued, and where leadership is seen as a shared responsibility.
Lessons from this work show that students thrive when given meaningful opportunities to lead, when schools provide safe and inclusive environments, and when their engagement extends into communities. In this panel, PEAS will share evidence and insights from Uganda and Zambia on how strengthening student agency, supported by whole-school and community engagement strategies, can nurture the skills and values that underpin inclusion and social cohesion.

Author

• Daniel Elijah Kyasanga, Promoting Equality in African Schools (PEAS)