Enhancing belonging for students with disabilities in mainstream schools: setting the framework for inclusive practices that benefit all students

Co-leads: Dr Nicole Merrick Research Fellow - Healthy Trajectories Child and Youth Disability Research Hub, Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences and Research Fellow, Learning Environments Applied Research Network (LEaRN), Faculty of Education

Ms Kelly Day Educator and Project Manager - Innovative Learning Environments and Student Experience, Learning Environments Applied Research Network and PhD candidate, Faculty of Education

For children, a sense of belonging is sought through social acceptance and behaving in ways that encourage their inclusion amongst peers. Within the school context this is known as school connectedness and means feeling valued and cared for within the school environment.

This project will use consumer engaged methods to gain a deeper understanding of sense of belonging for students with disability in mainstream schools, helping to identify opportunities to address the systemic barriers to achieving it.