Belonging in an age of exclusion

The struggle to achieve a condition of belonging in education by and for children with disabilities exposes the deep structure of social exclusion that is represented in and reproduced by schooling. Seeking inclusive education is undermined by a range of factors including the appropriation of the discourse inclusion by deeply conservative forces committed to sustaining exclusion and the ethic of competitive individualism that is the engine for education policymaking and school level practices. While inclusive education and the establishment of belonging for the diverse range of students who seek enrolment and successful participation in school is a challenging ambition, it is a first order requirement for sustainable futures.