Restorative Practices

Basic Intros

Knowing the Room

• Name
• Why you chose this session
• What comes to mind with "Restorative Practices"? OR What has your experience been?

Today's Agenda

• Basic Overview of RP
• Affective Statements
• Class Meetings
• Circles
• Closing Feedback

An Invitation

Resources

• International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP)
• Better Than Carrots or Sticks (Smith, Fisher, Frey 2015)

Restorative Practices

"Restorative practices is a social science that studies how to build social capital and achieve social discipline through participatory learning and decision-making."
(IIRP, 2016)

Restorative Practices

• formal and informal
• proactive and reactive
• rooted in criminal justice
• multi-cultural, multi-ethnic
• cross-sector

RP in Education

"building relationships with students and teaching social skills along with academic skills"
(Smith, Fisher, Frey 2015)

"I teach HUMANS,
not just my SUBJECT"

Relationships AND High-Quality Instruction

"it's harder to act defiantly or disrespectfully toward adults who clearly care about [students]"
(Smith, Fisher, Frey 2015)

"we don't leave the acquisition of reading or mathematics skills to chance; we engage in explicit, systematic, and intentional instruction to ensure learners progress academically...

...So why wouldn't we do the same to ensure that students progress socially and emotionally?"
(Smith, Fisher, Frey 2015)

"Problematic behaviors signal a student's lack of skills"
reframe misbehavior as a teaching opportunity

iN sUM...

helping "students develop a vocabulary for discussing their perspectives and considering the viewpoints of others"...

...and "equipping children with the tools they need to resolve conflicts"
(SFF 2015)

Methods of RP

3 methods

• Affective Statements
• Class Meetings
• Circles

Affective Statements

affect

• psychology context
• "the experience of feeling or emotion"

Affective Statement:
personal expression of feelings in response to others' positive or negative behaviors

"I felt [EMOTION] when [BEHAVIOR/EVENT] because [REASON FOR EMOTION]"

"I felt frustrated when you left the classroom without permission because it embarrasses me when you're caught roaming the halls"

"I felt proud of all of you when you turned in your essays on-time because it showed me you valued the work we did in class and that you engaged in the process"

Affective Brainstorm

Affective Brainstorm

• Identify real or "realistic" experiences - one positive and one negative
• Brainstorm statement

"I felt [EMOTION] when [BEHAVIOR/EVENT] because [REASON FOR EMOTION]"

How would you respond to a colleague who claimed that they don't feel comfortable using this kind of language with students?

"The language we use influences how students see themselves, and, in turn, how others view them."
(SFF 2015)

class meetings

purpose of class meetings

• plan and make decisions
• "check in"
• solve problems or raise awareness

Class Meetings

• Recognize peers
• Raise classroom issues
• Ask clarifying questions

class meetings

• common practice in elementary levels
• both academic and social
• student-led

Class meetings "increased students' skills in relation to listening attentively, complimenting and appreciating others, showing respect for others, and building a sense of community"
(Potter and Davis, 2003)

Shameless plug for a great Edutopia article:

"Morning Meetings in Middle and High School"

approaches

Meeting "agenda"

• Opening Reflection
• Old/new Business
• Closing Shout-outs

consistent questions

• What is the problem our class is having?
• Why is this a problem?
• How does the problem make you feel?
• What can we do about the problem? (brainstorm solutions)
• What is our best solution?

What would an authentic class meeting look like for you in your practice?

What would you say to a colleague who argued that class meetings were a waste of instructional time?

Anticipating critics...

"Sometimes teacher worry that they won't be able to cover all their lessons if they devote time to class meetings and other informal restorative practices activities..."

"...Our experience suggest that class meetings ensure that learning is really happening throughout the day..."

"...An investment in class meetings can result in a peaceful classroom climate where learning, both social and academic, flourishes."
(SFF 2015, p.92)

circles

basic set-up

• chairs facing in
• no desks/tables (visual/psychological barriers)
• talking "piece"

Circles

• Purpose: "allow students to answer truthfully and honestly to questions or prompts"
• (SFF 2015, p.93)

Circles

• maximize opportunties for quiet voices
• emphasis on listening rather than speaking
• everyone's voice matters
• (IIRP, 2016)

Various Purposes

• Class meeting
• EQ/topic discussion
• End-of-unit debrief
• Addressing conflict

Types of circles

• Sequential
• Non-Sequential
• Fish Bowls
• Inside-Outside

Sequential

• fixed order
• everyone encouraged to speak, but you may opt-out
• talking piece is a visual reminder - you cannot comment until it is your "turn"

Non-Sequential

• talking out of order and as many times as desired
• importance of norms around not dominating the conversation

Fish Bowl

• small inner circle discusses prompt
• outer circle observes, takes notes, has option to rotate in

Inside-Outside

• "Speed dating"
• inner and outer circle face each other
• steady rotations by inner circle to hear multiple perspectives

Processing

• Benefits? Previous positive experiences?
• Barriers/objections? Previous negative experiences?
• Brainstorm when you'd use one

Closing Thoughts

Today we...

• justified R.P.
• discussed 3 methods: affective statements, class meetings, circles

Feedback/Share out

• A practical application from today's workshop is...
• It's hard to conceptualize how to...
• Final questions/comments

Thank you!