Alternative and flexible education settings may come in different forms, but they generally have in common a focus on young people who have been disengaged from conventional schooling. One challenge of these settings, therefore, is to change the way education is offered in order to better engage these students. Much of the onus for this changed approach is on the staff: teachers, youth workers and other support staff. Therefore, the purpose of this book is to examine different aspects of the work of staff in these settings. Several common threads run through the chapters in this book, highlighting core aspects of the work of staff in these settings: (1) A strong sense of commitment to working with and for young people from marginalised backgrounds; (2) Validation of the relational and emotional nature of education, as a fundamentally people-centred enterprise; (3) The importance of explicit attention to critical reflection on staff members' own positionality, assumptions and identity; and (4) Collegiality as a crucially affirming part of school culture for staff. These elements are pertinent to educational settings everywhere. The chapters in this book serve as a reminder of what really 'counts' for our young people and their schooling. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of "Teaching Education". The book provides a Foreword: Learning from Teaching in Alternative and Flexible Education Settings (Jennifer A. Vadeboncoeur and Paulo Padilla-Petry); and an Introduction: Teaching in Alternative and Flexible Education Settings (Kitty te Riele, Martin Mills, Glenda McGregor and Aspa Baroutsis). The following chapters are contained in this book: (1) Emerging ideas for innovation in Indigenous Education: A Research Synthesis of Indigenous Educative roles in Mainstream and Flexi Schools (Marnee Shay); (2) Symbolic Non-Violence in the Work of Teachers in Alternative Education Settings (Richard Waters); (3) Cultivating Critical Reflection:Educators Making Sense and Meaning of Professional Identity and Relational Dynamics in Complex Practice (Ann Morgan); (4) Exploring the Affective Dimension of Teachers Work in Alternative School Settings (Kitty te Riele, Martin Mills, Glenda McGregor and Aspa Baroutsis); (5) Reworking or Reaffirming Practice? Perceptions of Professional Learning in Alternative and Flexible Education Settings (Vicky Plows); (6) Beyond the Middle Finger: Affective Labour, an Ethic of Care and the Reform of Teacher Education (Peter Renshaw).