Pedagogies of performative care and school belonging: lessons from an Australian school

Abstract

With schools coming under pressure to perform and produce outcomes, the caring practices of the institution have been increasingly framed around issues of achievement, excellence and outcomes. In this article, we examine how the performativity-driven practices of care impact on the possibilities of social inclusion for marginalised students. Drawing on case study data from two 14-year-old students in a government secondary school located in a low socio-economic suburb of Melbourne, Australia, we argue that the performative ethic of care fails to cater for the more complex needs of these students. Lacking the qualities of ‘good student’ as independent and successful learners, these students a..