Australian schools are struggling to respond positively to the increasing cultural diversity of the student cohoisrt. The aim of this study is to research how schools become culturally responsive and specifically explores how the affective environments of schools attend to the diverse cultural, academic and emotional needs of their communities. Th study brings together methods borrowed from educational ethnography, critical policy analysis, and educational action research. The study will inform curriculum and pedagogical reform in schools, changes to teacher education programs, and potentially ameliorate systemic inequality in Australian schooling.