ABSTRACT
Belonging is a word with multiple resonances which go to the heart of what it means to be human. It suggests deep emotion and is often discussed in the context of religious belief and need fulfilment, crossing discourses of theology and psychology, as well as the fields of sociology and politics which are prioritised in the educational context discussed here. It is also difficult to talk about belonging without also discussing exclusion, since communities exist by virtue of criteria for their membership. There may be contradictory situations where an individual feels that they belong to a community, whilst at the same time being excluded by the criteria of others. Thus, forms of discrimination exist to police the borders of belonging.
