Problem based learning (PBL) by its nature is ideally situated to address authentic problems within society and to nurture a range of 21st century skills at the same time. This paper explores the relationships between agency, capability, self-organisation and control in education as it applies to the potentially liberating practice of PBL. PBL remains underutilised in formal education which champions the individual over the collective, the expertise of one over the wisdom of the many. PBL can be a powerful tool for change and transformation in education because as an instructional method is changed it requires other changes to both curriculum and evaluation. It also requires teamwork and a transfer of agency from the organisation to the students coupled with a modicum of trust. There is an ontology of PBL practice that is more or less releasing of agency with a tendency towards the latter. Control, within the higher education establishment is still desirable in what has become a transactional education marketplace. Sous le pave, la plage- was the slogan of the Situationist International (SI) who were instrumental in the 1967 Paris Student revolt. It means underneath the street there is the beach. As the protesting students ripped up the cobbles to throw at the police, they noticed there was sand underneath. This was also symbolic of the situationists interpretation of society which they saw as a constructed spectacle lacking authenticity, which created a pseudo-reality where passive consumption replaced direct, meaningful human interactions. PBL, if used in its most agentic forms can restore and celebrate meaningful human interactions by directing students to collective work on societal problems that can be authentic and local/global in service of a sustainable economy.

The issue with PBL is that it can be a little bit chaotic, students must learn how to work in this new domain based on collaboration and collective endeavour with few examples from their immediate experience to help them, often being situated within the individualistic competitive environs of education. Likewise, tutors can experience a lack of control and ceding of agency which can be problematic. PBL requires the development of teams that can self-organise (SO) and self-manage. SO is often best described through the anarchist theory of spontaneous order where given a common need, a collection of people will, by trial and error, by improvisation and experiment, evolve order out of chaos’. For SO to occur there needs to be a purpose, a set of rules or framework for action and an imperative.

The agile work practice of Scrum can provide that framing and set of rules for teams to develop collaborative practice. This paper explains how the Scrum framework can be used to develop people’s human capability, agency freedom and functioning within teams and work towards valuable outcomes for PBL. Working in an agile way is an inherently human activity, a social act that combines human purpose and the combined agency of individuals working together to solve problems. Agility and agile ways of working collaboratively should be directed towards the social and the collective public good through education and through using PBL.

Keywords: Agility, PBL, Capability, Agencyfreedom, Collaboration, Sustainability, Authentic, Development.