What does an inclusive school look like?
The following guide provides a brief overview of what an inclusive school may look like in action.
While reading this guide, we recommend you pause frequently throughout to reflect on what you or your school do well, and to identify what specific actions you could take to strengthen the way you or your school include those within your school community.
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In inclusive schools, every member of the school community:
1. Is valued
Inclusive schools create safe and respectful environments where students feel a strong sense of belonging
What does this look like?
School leaders implement policies and processes:
- that help students feel safe and accepted
Teachers:
- build supportive and respectful relationships with students and families
- model healthy social, emotional and communication skills
- support students in developing friendships with their peers
Students:
- feel safe, accepted and a strong sense of belonging
- are welcoming and accepting of peers and others in their school community
- develop healthy social, emotional and communication skills
Inclusive schools build a shared school community understanding of intersecting identities
What does this look like?
School leaders:
- promote shared inclusive language across the school community
- create a school culture that recognises the strengths, value and identity of all school community members. This is not tokenistic, such as a once off celebration of a culture once a year
Teachers create learning activities:
- that reflect diversity (for example, stories and pictures include people with disability and a range of cultural backgrounds)
- that do not exclude or harm individuals or groups (for example, family tree activities may be distressing for some children; some activities and games could exclude a student with physical disability)
Students:
- feel their identity, traditions and experiences are represented and valued in the school
- are sensitive and responsive to the perspectives and experiences of others
2. Can fully participate and be involved
Inclusive schools pause and reflect regularly on their approach
What does this look like?
School leaders and teachers:
- regularly reflect on and improve school and classroom inclusive policies, processes and practices
- take time to understand and respond to the preferences and needs of all members of the school community
- recognise that the strategies that support students with diverse learning needs tend to benefit all students, and use these consistently across classes and learning environments
School leaders:
- make sure all staff understand their legal responsibilities and mandates in relation to inclusion
- support staff to participate regularly in professional learning on inclusive education practices
- encourage staff to consider and implement adjustments required to support whole class and individual learning
Teachers:
- consider the learning profile, strengths, and readiness of each student
- develop goals and learning activities that are meaningful, interesting, challenging and accessible to every student
- where possible, adjustments are introduced without drawing attention to individual students or acting as a barrier to peer collaboration or group work
For example, written summaries of key points might be provided to all students in a class instead of individuals, or worksheets may contain different questions but use the same colours and formatting.
Students:
- are equipped to recognise when a peer is not able to participate, and to take appropriate action (e.g., change the game, or advocate for their peer)
Inclusive schools plan for meaningful involvement in every experience and interaction
What does this look like?
School leaders and teachers consider:
- whole school policies and processes
- the physical environment (for example, school and classroom accessibility; sensory or safe spaces)
- the inclusive practices of teachers and education support staff (for example, all students can access learning materials in ways that allow them to demonstrate their learning)
- building strong networks between staff, external providers (for example, allied health professionals), students, and families
- how to include the broader school community in school events and volunteer opportunities, including parents or carers with disability or who are culturally and linguistically diverse
- the accessibility of excursions and school activities, including accommodating for potential costs (for example, accessible transport and support staff)
For example, when planning school events this could involve:
- communicating where clearly identified accessible parking and toilets are located
- presenting information in multiple formats (verbal, captions, brief dot points in a presentation, translator where appropriate, and emailing out summaries of key information)
- acknowledgement of country
3. Develops and succeeds
Inclusive schools support student voice and self-determination
What does this look like?
School leaders and teachers:
- create ‘safe spaces’ for all students to share their ideas and views, and are responsive to what students share
- consider the ways in which students may have different preferences for how and where they can communicate confidently
- actively address power imbalances between staff and students, and within cohorts
- allow students to have input and choices in their learning
- teach key skills (for example, problem-solving; self-regulation; and self-advocacy) so that students can tackle and master challenges for themselves
Students:
- share, and advocate for, their ideas and views in their learning, support and engagement at school
- set goals, make choices, problem solve where needed, and experience ownership in their learning and experiences at school
- experience leadership opportunities in ways that align with their personal strength
Inclusive schools hold high expectations for all students
What does this look like?
School leaders:
- focus on student strengths and successes
- pause and reflect on the attitudes, expectations, and understandings of disability or other intersectional identities that may impact student achievement
- communicate and engage in ways that promote high expectations of all students
Teachers:
- monitor student progress using goals set with students and their families
- engage in teaching practices that reflect high expectations. For example, all engagement with students is supportive and positive; the contribution of all students is planned for; and all students receive similar levels of feedback and opportunities to respond
Students:
- are developing a growth mindset (i.e., the belief that through persistence they can grow in their learning and personal goal achievements)
- set and achieve personal goals