One size does not fit all when it comes to education. In modern society, education has been and continues to be shaped, informed, and driven by a so-called “grammar of schooling”: an approach which completely ignores the many and diverse identities that learners own, are given, and encounter. Categorising students into neat, labelled boxes, splintering knowledge into strictly defined subjects, and fracturing learning – this grammar of schooling desperately needs rewriting. Through narratives from teachers, students, and their families, this book explores the lived experiences of those who are forced to live with the current approach, and the consequences for their lives, relationship, and education. It also asks the question of what creative and holistic alternative approaches might look like – when the rules aren’t working, the rulebook can be rewritten.

One size does not fit all when it comes to education. In modern society, education has been and continues to be shaped, informed, and driven by a so-called “grammar of schooling”: an approach which completely ignores the many and diverse identities that learners own, are given, and encounter. Categorising students into neat, labelled boxes, splintering knowledge into strictly defined subjects, and fracturing learning – this grammar of schooling desperately needs rewriting. Through narratives from teachers, students, and their families, this book explores the lived experiences of those who are forced to live with the current approach, and the consequences for their lives, relationship, and education. It also asks the question of what creative and holistic alternative approaches might look like – when the rules aren’t working, the rulebook can be rewritten.