Restorative practices in schools are an alternative to traditional disciplinary actions that center on punishment for misbehavior and breaking rules. They focus on resolving conflict, repairing harm, and healing relationships, and support a positive and safe school climate, prevent bullying, and reduce disciplinary incidents. Restorative practices aim to build community, strengthen relationships, and create safe learning environments for students. They are used to foster an equitable and positive school culture by strengthening relationships and connections between individuals, both youth and adults, in a school community.
Restorative practices are also known as positive discipline, responsive classroom, or empowerment. They offer schools an alternative to traditional disciplinary actions that push kids out of their classroom and school community, which may disproportionately affect students of color and low-income students. Restorative practices can take three to five years to implement within a school site.
Examples of restorative practices include affective statements, community-building circles, small impromptu conferencing, and setting classroom agreements or norms. Restorative practices can be implemented in a whole-school approach, where they are used primarily as a tool to build community and relationships rather than as a reactive measure.
The Oakland Unified School District has seen positive results implementing restorative practices at its schools, with an 87 percent decrease in suspensions at a failing middle school. A 2019 report from WestEd’s Justice and Prevention Research Center summarized the breadth of evidence on restorative practices and found that some schools adopt a universal approach that involves training all staff members and students, while others add the practices on to existing discipline systems.
For restorative practices to achieve their benefits, they should be coupled with resources and training for teachers and school administrators. Incorporating restorative practices as one of many strategies for improving school culture is also recommended.
