Speaking back to the mainstream from the margins: lessons from one boutique senior secondary school

This chapter considers some key findings from a study into students’ and teachers’ lived experiences in a music-industry focused alternative school that works in the margins by catering to young people who have disconnected from their schooling. There are three key lessons that can be taken from this for mainstream schooling: the (re)engaging of students in their learning who have disengaged from mainstream schooling; the fostering of a commitment to belonging to a community of learners that is based on an ethic of care, trust and respect; and the capacity to (re)imagine education in more socially-just, equitable and counter-hegemonic ways