(Program Leaders: Prof Cathryn McConaghy; Assoc Prof Louise Watson; Assoc Prof Katja Mikhailovich; Dr Affrica Taylor).

From the premise that social exclusion is the result of system failure rather than the “fault” of individuals, our research will interrogate the many meanings of social exclusion for Australian and international contexts. Through a focus on education and poverty, we will examine the factors that contribute to social and economic stratification and seek to identify the social correlates of low educational attainment. Our research findings will help to identify the ways in which established institutions, such as schools, need to change in order to minimise their contribution to social exclusion and maximise their role in creating a more inclusive and socially just society.

The Centre’s research program includes:

• The social correlates of rural and Indigenous student underachievement in schooling with implications for schooling practices and teaching;
• Addressing new forms of social disadvantage in schooling;
• An analysis of the experiences of non-traditional students who enter university;
• An international comparison of early childhood, place and belonging
• A study of trends in household expenditure on private tutoring for Australian children.
• A social inclusion audit of education policies and practices in Australian school systems;
• Implications of new understandings of the relationship between education, poverty and social inclusion for quality teaching and teacher professional standards;
• A longitudinal study exploring the impact of incarceration on Indigenous prisoners and their families;
• A four-year empirical evaluation of an early intervention strategy for vulnerable young children in supported accommodation prior to starting school;
• An international conference to inform policymakers of the latest research on Education, Poverty and Social Inclusion.