Benefits / Characteristics of Restorative Practices in Schools
- There is a positive school climate inclusive of all students, where students have a strong sense of belonging rather than being at risk for exclusion.
- Students experience positive learning relationships with adults and one another, feel safe, have high regard for their school community, and are given the opportunity to make things right when things go wrong.
- Culturally responsive pedagogies of relations underpin the school’s approach to diverse student populations.
- Staff focus on students’ strengths, reject deficit explanations for failure, and take agency for successful educational outcomes for children and youth.
- Families feel welcome in the school, participate in activities designed for parents, regularly receive information about how their young person is doing, and are involved in supporting their child’s education as appropriate including collaborating actively to address problems.
- Average daily attendance is high, all absences must be excused for valid reasons, and there is timely, daily follow-up by teacher and school when students are absent or tardy.
- Students receive support and encouragement meeting their educational and socioemotional needs, including positive classroom relationships with peers, teachers with high expectations, and pedagogies that enable them to achieve to the best of their abilities.
- Reasonable and well-understood behavior expectations for children and youth are agreed upon, specified, and shared across the school community.
- A comprehensive system of schoolwide restorative discipline policies and practices with clear definitions of behavior and consequences is in place and communicated widely throughout the school and with families.
- Ongoing backup supports are in place—including threat assessment, crisis management, and in-school suspension to deal with severe behavior problems.
- Restorative practices and mutual respect are the foundations for interactions across members of the school community, not retribution and punishment.
- Professionals assume agency for student outcomes in accepting responsibility to add value to every student’s achievements.
- Educators and schools, however, children’s characteristics or their home situation cannot be allowed to justify low expectations for their behavior and achievement at school, and a good educational program with positive opportunities for individual learning can make all the difference.