Exploring belonging in the documentary inclusief [inclusive] as a matter of care

Abstract

In this article we study the concept of ‘belonging’ within the context of inclusive education. We see inclusion and belonging as two entangled concepts and focus on inclusion as an ethical process. We do this by analyzing the Flemish documentary Inclusief [Inclusive] to investigate the idea of belonging as building and finding roots. As a method we carry out a close reading of two episodes of the documentary and plug in theory to gain a deeper sense about the meaning of belonging in two students’ life stories. In our writing process these fragments become tangible. Through the stories, we see how belonging emerges. We come to understand belonging in inclusive education as connected to the dynamic interplay with the context; listening with care; and radical relationality. By combining these elements schools can invest in becoming inclusive communities of care, and contribute to every student having a feeling of belonging.

Points of interest

• This paper explores the relation between inclusion in educational contexts and the sense of belonging of disabled students.

• The authors argue for a system approach to aim for inclusion instead of through case-by-case assessment.

• Through close reading of two episodes of the Flemish documentary Inclusief, the authors find that belonging is enhanced through the teachers’ careful attention to the students’ relations with each other.

• The authors state that creating space to enhance every student’s belonging is carried out through listening with care and being open to many connections between the student and others.

• The interplay with the environment proves very important to stimulate a sense of belonging with every student.

• The authors argue that caring communities arise through close connections.

Keywords:

• Inclusive education
• belonging
• care
• community

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Correction

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Nathan and Sami and their families for teaching us more about belonging. Thank you to Inge Van de Putte for thinking with us on the road. Thank you to Bronwyn Davies for the wonderful input, reading and correcting the text.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).