Academic literature on the topic 'Restorative practice (RP)'

This study is a discourse on restorative practice as a divergent epistemological ideology. It explores the field of restorative practice (RP) through thematic analysis of discursive captures from restorative practitioners and researchers within or associated with the Global Alliance for Restorative Justice and Social Justice. It includes elements of what could loosely be considered ethnographic research due to the time spent within restorative spaces, whilst analysing and processing the data. Methods include a restorative approach to research design, using online surveys as prerequisites to in-depth semi structured dialogic interviews. This led to reflexive thematic analysis, whereby three themes were constructed: the importance of congruence; evolution finding spaces for cultivation; and decentralising restorative practice through radical action. It is understood that this study takes a post positivist stance, designed to produce a discourse of participants’ views on RP as a divergent ideology. It is designed to highlight the perceptions of participants from a highly invested group and to promote a wider understanding of how RP interacts with dominant cultures. It would therefore be of interest to those implementing or growing restorative ideas within organisations.

Restorative practices (RP) and youth work continue to emerge as more formalized fields of theory and practice. The interaction between these fields requires attention as RP gain popularity among services delivered to young people. Of particular importance, and currently receiving inadequate attention, is a tension regarding the conceptualization of power in the relationship between practitioners and young people. This article examines the conceptualization of power within youth work and restorative practices drawing on post-structural power–knowledge relations. A shared emphasis on empowerment and relationality within these fields obscures the problematization of the young person–worker dynamic. Of concern in particular is that restorative practices appear to operate within a power–knowledge discourse of control. This article will outline the frameworks’ potential as a source of both transformation and extension of a ‘carceral network’.

To introduce restorative practices (RP) to the school counseling literature, the authors explicate the hand in glove fit between the RP model for schools and school counselor identity and scope of practice. Drawing from the American School Counselor Association’s (ASCA) National Model, ASCA’s Ethical Standards for School Counselors, multitiered systems of support (MTSS), and the school counseling literature, the authors make the case for the profession of school counseling to take up RP and integrate the model into school counseling research, theory, and practice.

The purpose of this study is to explore restorative practice (RP) within education, highlighting practitioner views from an inductive evaluative perspective. This is in response to the suggested ambiguity over what constitutes RP in education. Practitioner perspectives are explored, providing an insight into an established restorative school. New data offer further clarity on RP in education by describing embedded practice and highlighting sites for further specific task analysis. Methods include semi-structured questionnaires in the form of employee practice statements, situated within insider research. Eleven practice statements were completed, which were then subject to in-depth thematic analysis. The main findings of this study suggest that RP is clearly understood in this educational setting and participants described a wholistic approach that is part of a wider culture, not just practice as an intervention. Analysis suggests that this can be categorised into the following three themes: Conceptual, Pedagogical and Routine Practice. When used alongside one another, it is suggested that these themes create a restorative paradigm, which is of relevance to the field of education. As such, this paper is designed to provide a useful resource for schools, policy makers and researchers alike.

Restorative practices (RP) in K-12 schools in the United States have grown exponentially since the early 1990s. Developing against a backdrop of systemic racism, RP has become embedded in education practice and policy to counteract the harmful and persistent patterns of disparities in school discipline experienced by students of color. Within this legal, social, and political context, the empirical evidence that has been gathered on school-based restorative justice has framed and named RP as a behavioral intervention aimed at reducing discipline incidents—that is, an “alternative” to punitive and exclusionary practices. While this view of RP is central to dismantling discriminatory systems, we argue it reflects an unnecessarily limited understanding of its potential and has generated unintended consequences in the field of RP research. First, the reactive RP model of analysis focuses more exclusively on behavioral change, rather than systemic improvement, to address discipline disparities. Second, RP research has insufficiently examined the potential role of RP in achieving health justice. Third, RP research too rarely engages in intersectional analyses that critically examine gendered racism. This study is intended as a course correction. Building on the work of legal scholars, public health researchers, sociologists, restorative justice practitioners, and our own prior work, this original study is the first to examine non-disciplinary RP through a critical race feminist lens, and—just as importantly—a public health praxis. Our findings reveal that the interplay between RP and adolescent health, race, and gender can no longer be overlooked. Proactive non-disciplinary RP was found to promote supportive school environments that enhance five key protective health factors for Black and Latina girls. Additionally, results indicate that RP improved the mental health and wellbeing of Black and Latina girls, building fundamental resilience skills that can help overcome the complex array of social structures that serve to disempower and disenfranchise girls and harm their educational and health outcomes.

Many effective strategies exist to keep students safe, supported, and engaged in school. Restorative practice (RP) is a powerful approach for achieving these goals as it elevates student voice and can strengthen school climate. Annie M. White and John Kenneth Weiss share findings from an initiative through which high school student-faculty teams learned strategies to use RP practices and incorporate student voice to improve school climate. After two years, students gained the confidence to work for school change. They offer implementation recommendations, including prioritizing relationship-building, reaching a critical mass, and providing structure for engagement. Ultimately, they found that student voice and engagement may be key to improving school climate.

We investigated whether the vegetative state depicted in stimuli and the date of evaluation were related to restorative potential (RP) and preference ratings. Stimuli depicted flowering, foliated, or autumn-colored plants in scattershot, clustered, or formal arrangements that represented complexity values equal to zero, 2, or 4 bits of Shannon’s information entropy. Analyses included 77 and 105 respondents’ RP and preference ratings from September and January, respectively, along with 106 respondents’ fascination and complexity estimations from September. Evaluation dates did not relate to respondents’ RP and preference ratings. Respondents rated flowering and autumn-colored views significantly higher in RP and preference than foliated, 4-bit views higher than 2-bit, and 2-bit views higher than zero-bit. Flowering and autumn-colored foliage, view area, and plant region quantities indirectly affected RP ratings through preference. Important landscape design and practice implications follow: Flowering plants and red or yellow autumn-colored foliage may increase users’ preference and RP.

Background: In recent years, the use of restorative justice (RJ) and restorative practices (RP) in schools has grown rapidly. Understanding how theory and research address this topic is important for its practical implementation based on scientific knowledge. The aim of this article was to analyse the practices derived from RJ implemented in school and what kinds of results have been achieved. Starting from the analysis of the qualitative and quantitative research in the field, a systematic review was conducted on the last decade of studies using RJ and RP at every level of school education. Methods: For this review, methods including the PRISMA guidelines, the PRISMA flow diagram, and qualitative synthesis were carried out. Scientific articles for the literature review were selected according to the following criteria: (1) publication date between the years 2010–2021; (2) student population aged 6–18 years; (3) publications in the English language; (4) articles directly accessible or accessible by contacting the author(s); 34 articles met the inclusion criteria. Results: The most used RP in school are circles (n = 26), followed by restorative conferences (n = 17), peer mediation (n = 10), restorative conversations (n = 8), mediation (n = 7), community-building circles (n = 5). RP can improve the school climate, discipline, positive conflict management through actions that aim at preventing suspensions, exclusions, conflicts, and misbehaviours (e.g., bullying). RJ practices promote positive relationships between peers and between students and teachers, as well as to prosocial behaviours through the development of social and emotional skills. Conclusions: From the studies examined, a great interest in applying restorative justice and practices in schools clearly emerged. Discussions on the benefits and challenges of implementation were provided. However, there is still limited evidence in terms of direct correlation, which suggests further studies on the impact of RJ and RP in school settings.

Persistent disparities in exclusionary discipline procedures continue to portent negative educational outcomes for students from specific racial, income, and ability categories. Restorative practices (RP) has emerged as a promising approach to mitigate these disparities and improve school climate. This study describes the utility of field-initiated implementation readiness assessments that might guide school districts by targeting the needs of faculty and staff. This study is a part of a mixed-methods Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) project made possible by a university and school-district partnership. The results reveal potential challenges and opportunities related to RP implementation and hold implications for professional development trainings for school districts that aim to implement RP as a foundation to employ more just and effective disciplinary mechanisms.

Purpose An understanding of the effects of zero tolerance policies in schools has resulted in rethinking of approaches to prevent conflict and creating a healthy school climate. Restorative practices (RP) have been looked to as an alternative to zero tolerance policies. At the same time, social emotional learning (SEL) programming has been implemented to provide students with the skills to communicate and build relationships with peers. The purpose of this paper is to provide a look at the historical context shaping the development of RP, and explore connections between RP and SEL. Considerations for implementation and conceptual models for implementing RP are also discussed. Design/methodology/approach Informed by education policy analysis methods, this essay places RP in their broader context, explores RP and considers such practices important to study due to the unintended effects stemming from “traditional” obedience-oriented punitive approaches to school discipline (American Psychological Association Zero Tolerance Task Force, 2008; O’Malley and Austin, 2014). Findings Based on the analysis of current research, the authors explain that when RP are implemented with SEL programming, it is an opportunity for educational practitioners to address issues around race, gender, disability, and other aspects of diversity. By integrating these approaches together, RP become a vehicle to develop students’ SEL skills, which includes communication skills, kindness, empathy, and caring. Research limitations/implications An understanding of how zero tolerance policies have played out in the school setting has resulted in rethinking of current approaches to preventing conflict. Subsequently, educational leaders and professional associations have led a shift toward alternative models and practices in school discipline. Practical implications District, state, and federal policymakers have pressed for more constructive alternatives that foster a productive and healthy instructional climate without depriving large numbers of students the opportunity to learn (Skiba and Losen, 2016, p. 4). These approaches include RP, as well as integrating SEL into school practices and the curriculum. Social implications Several challenges and opportunities lie ahead. Based on the firsthand work with schools and districts implementing restorative and SEL practices, as well as the knowledge and insights gained from this analysis of research, one important need to consider is the need to integrate school disciplinary practices, including RP, into the school context and existing structures. Originality/value By conducting this study of the research evidence on RP, the authors were able to gain insights into questions, including: How have school practitioners applied RP as an alternative to zero tolerance policies?

AbstractThe Universal Declaration of Human Rights’ Article 26 on education and more recently UNESCO’s “World Declaration on Higher Education for the Twenty-First Century: Mission and Action” have called for civic and ethical education alongside academic education in postsecondary settings. Many post-secondary institutions have made fostering civic responsibility, engaged citizenship, and ethical decision making in students a strategic priority. What often remains ambiguous is how these priorities translate into action. A growing body of scholarly literature and research establishes the role Restorative Practice (RP) can play in pursuing these strategic priorities surrounding moral development, emotional intelligence, and engaged citizenship. Specifically, RP has been shown to prevent conflict and misconduct, while empowering marginalized individuals. Restorative practices demonstrate fairness; and foster empathy, compassion and accountability; through experiential learning opportunities. In light of these developments, MacEwan University, in Alberta, Canada, has been actively building a restorative culture. One aspect of this endeavour was the revision of its Academic Integrity Policy and Academic Misconduct Procedures to include the possibility of alternative resolutions to academic misconduct, based on restorative practices and principles. In our chapter, we will (a) provide a brief introduction to restorative practices that makes explicit its connection to universities’ civic education mandate, integrity, and specifically, academic integrity; (b) describe the restorative practices model that is being established at MacEwan University; (c) discuss in detail the application of restorative practices to academic misconduct cases, including training of facilitators, as well as successes and challenges experienced in the first year since it became available; and, finally, (d) share feedback regarding its effectiveness received from students, staff, and faculty who participated in restorative resolutions.