The study investigates educators' perceptions of Restorative Justice Practices (RJPs) in inclusive classrooms, focusing on students with dis/Abilities, within the frameworks of Social Justice, Critical Race Theory, and Disability Studies (DisCrit). It aims to address a gap in the literature on equity in education, particularly the effects of RJPs…

Alternative schools often receive a bad connotation when it pertains to student success academically and behaviorally. The implementation of restorative practices can aid in the restoration and building of relationships between students and teachers, which can lead to an increase in student success academically and behaviorally. The purpose of…

This phenomenological qualitative study examined school leaders' perceptions of using restorative practices within their schools. Participants included twelve school leaders who had experience with utilizing and implementing restorative practices. School leaders included: principals, assistant principals, deans, and administrative assistants.…

While restorative practices (RP) is hailed as one of the oldest criminal justice models in the world, the official advent of RP in education did not occur until the 1990s. Mirroring the reemergence of RP into legal systems, educators began experimenting with the application of RP in the educational setting. Today, restorative work in schools has…

Studies have been conducted for decades on the impact that restorative practices can have on student discipline systems in an educational context, along with the challenges of implementation (Dhaliwal et al, 2023; Marsh, 2017; Blood, 2005; Wearmouth et al, 2007; Drewery, 2016; Jones, 2021, Guckenburg et al, 2015). However, these studies have not…

Rooted in relational philosophies, restorative practices (RP) in schools are initiatives that seek to provide alternatives to exclusionary discipline. Restorative conferences (RC), in particular, aim to repair harm and reintegrate youth following a conflict. Despite abundant theorizing about conference benefits and hypothesized mechanisms of…

Discipline practices wield significant influence over the social dynamics within educational settings and profoundly impact students' ability to attain academic and social gains crucial for their success. The racialization of school discipline has been linked to negative effects on student's academic trajectories and life outcomes. Consequently,…

Disciplinary intervention is an important responsibility for teachers and administrators. Undesirable behavior must be addressed as it can cause disruptions to the learning environment and ultimately impede student learning and progress. A variety of punitive disciplinary interventions, ranging from time out to exclusionary practices such as…

There are a multitude of challenges facing the education profession, especially our teachers in the field. Teachers are often dissatisfied due to two prevalent stressors: teacher workload and student discipline and behavior (Borg & Riding, 1991; Boyle et al., 1995; Chaplain, 2008; Klassen, 2010; Skaalvik & Skaalvik, 2009). Given the need…

As student discipline has become a growing area of concern in public schools, the staggering number of office referrals and student suspensions has caused principals to seek alternative methods to address student misbehavior. Restorative practices aim to change negative student behavior and restore relationships following behavioral incidents by…

The challenge for schools and districts across the country has been tackling issues of equity and inclusion that lead to closing opportunity gaps for students. With this in mind, districts have employed schools to find alternative approaches to discipline. One option districts and school sites have is the use of restorative practices as both…

This dissertation explores the perceptions of administrators, teachers, and other school personnel regarding the effectiveness of restorative practices in addressing disciplinary infractions within school settings. Grounded in a phenological design approach, the study investigates lived experiences to understand how individuals perceive and engage…

Racial disparities are consistently present in the office discipline referral data for schools. Beginning in primary grades, African-American students are frequently punished more severely and more often than their peers who display similar behavior. Nationally, during the 2017-1018 school year, over two million K-12 public school students were…

This qualitative case study, utilizing interviews and observations, investigated the perception, use, training, and application of Restorative Justice interventions by secondary school Deans of Students. Investigation revealed that although the participating Deans of Students were fully trained in Restorative Justice practices, they were not…

The first years of teaching can be often some of the most stressful in an educator's career. "Reality shock" is a phase new teachers go through when they transition from learning to being responsible for teaching in their own classrooms (Dicke et al., 2015). It often results in a "collapse of ideals or expectations developed during…