A relational enquiry into the provision of small schools

Small schools are a significant feature of the education ecosystem. In Australia they make up 22 per cent of all schools and serve some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged communities. While their social and emotional worth to communities (students, educators, families) is rarely questioned, at times of fiscal contraction (e.g., global pandemic) with government revenue in decline and expenses rising, the pressure to sustain provision through small schools is brought into question. Drawing on the emerging field of relational studies, this paper introduces a novel approach – relational inquiry into the provision of education (RIPE) – and applies that to the case study of small schools in the Australian state of New South Wales.