Chapter 12: Debney Park: A Study of Exemplary Practices in One Ethnic and Racially Diverse Australian School

Over the last 3 decades, the rapid increase in the number of people displaced by conflict or natural disaster has led to a situation in which schools and teachers need to be able to meet the needs of student populations that are diverse in terms of the language, ethnicity, race, and culture as well as educational backgrounds and family circumstances. If they do it well, whole nations, as well as individuals, benefit from the richness that is added to the community, but there is little available in the way of guidance for schools trying to accommodate students from a wide variety of backgrounds. This chapter offers an example of how one highly diverse Australian school—Debney Park Secondary College—has created a model of inclusive schooling that builds resilience in all students and overcomes potential sources of exclusion and disharmony.