Rand Corporation research demonstrates that restorative practices help reduce student suspensions. “Schools and school districts across the country are looking for evidence-based strategies to improve their learning and social environments. Restorative practices, developed in the justice system as a way to mediate and repair relationships between offenders and their victims, are offering a way forward. In schools, restorative practices have been adopted to offer a means to respond to conflict and build relationships in an inclusive, nonpunitive way. “
Johns Hopkins University School of Education – Institute for Education Policy: Restorative Practice in Schools Early detection and early intervention are what “districts nationwide have explored the use of preventive, early response disciplinary models. Restorative practices are one such model. Restorative practices represent an attempt to reform school discipline and improve relationships among stakeholders while minimizing punitive disciplinary measures (Vaandeering, 2010). Morrison and Vaandeering (2012) posit that restorative practices address “power and status imbalances” by promoting the “soft” power of relationship building and understanding, rather than “hard” power of the institution to sanctions as a motivator.” (Page 1)
AN EXPLORATION OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE IN AN ONTARIO PUBLIC SCHOOL Kristin Reimer, University of Ottawa, 2011
Conclusion and discussion Challenges are many. The School and School Board operate within a system that is ultimately retributive; for transformative change to be sustainable there must be fundamental shifts in key ways of thinking and acting (Romberg & Price, 1983; Woodbury & Gess-Newsome, 2002). These shifts are facilitated through considerable support from the leadership and this support has not been consistent in this School Board, or in the broader Ontario government, in terms of funding, policy changes, and expressions of support. The gatekeepers of change, those in leadership, have not sustained their initial support of restorative justice, allowing it to be viewed as a fad, a death knell for any potential reform. Link to article
Outcomes of a Restorative Circles Program in a High School Setting Mikhail Lyubansky, Lilyana Ortega, Dorothy Espelage, Saundra Nettles, 2016
- Conclusions Positive outcomes
- ownership of the process,
- interrupting the school to prison pipeline,
- improved relationships, prevention of destructive ways of engaging conflict,
- meaningful dialogue and academic and social achievements were key themes.
- This study provides researchers and practitioners with a theoretical framework to use as a foundation to better understand how individuals experience RC. Read research here
Research & Information Services Toronto District School Board January 2018 Report No. 17/18-18
General conclusions
- the proportion of suspensions whereby restorative practices were implemented as one of the intervention strategies increased steadily over time
- restorative practices had a positive impact on reducing the possibility of students being re-suspended:
- (7% more) of students who had participated in restorative practices had a very low absenteeism rate (i.e., better school attendance) than students who had not participated.
- a greater proportion (5-7% more) of suspended students who had participated in restorative practices were meeting expectations in Grades 9 to 12 credit accumulation than those who had not participated. Read research report here.
Research shows restorative practices improves school climate, reduces student suspensions and discipline disparities Written by Laura Mirsky, Published: January 9, 2019
Conclusions/discussion
In one of the first rigorous, large-scale evaluations of restorative practices in a large urban school district, researchers from RAND Corporation found that restorative practices improved school climate, reduced student suspensions and decreased discipline disparities in Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS). The randomized controlled trial compared 22 PPS K-12 schools that adopted restorative practices with 22 similar schools that did not, between June 2015 and June 2017. The study found that:
- climate and relationships in the restorative practices schools improved, compared with the control schools.
- the number of days lost to suspension declined in the restorative practices schools, as did racial and income disparities in suspension rates, when compared to the control schools.
- Reductions in suspension rates were greater for African American students, students from low-income families, female students and elementary grade students than for students not in these groups. Read research brief here. Read full report here.