School systems and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders have long acknowledged the levels of social, cultural and epistemic disaffection and contestation that have historically existed between teachers and schools, and Indigenous students, families and their local communities. This relationship is both part symptomatic and part causal of the broader and highly complex array of legal and socio-economic issues that underpin the often highly fraught relationships existing between these communities and schools. The findings of this review provide insights into the everyday environments of these interactions, the possibilities that emanate from their establishment and the hope that these interactions can positively impact on students’ educational outcomes.