Completing the Circle: Linkages Between Restorative Practices, Socio-Emotional Well-Being, and Racial Justice in Schools

Abstract

Mounting evidence demonstrates that exclusionary discipline practices like suspensions and expulsions have long-term negative socio-emotional, behavioral, and academic consequences for the students who experience them, with evidence of spill-over effects for nonexcluded students. Restorative practice has emerged as a promising alternative to punitive discipline approaches, yet evidence is mixed on whether it can improve academic outcomes or curb racial disparities in school discipline. In a new conceptual model, we argue that the full potential of restorative practice can only be reached when it is (a) operationalized more directly within a socio-emotional framework; (b) responsive to more significant mental health needs; and (c) informed by a multifaceted understanding of how racism contributes to discipline disparities, both directly through interpersonal biases, and indirectly through structural oppression. A revised conceptual model based on evidence from the broader literature, original data analyses, and pilot intervention results is advanced.

Does anyone benefit from exclusionary discipline? An exploration on the direct and vicarious links between suspensions for minor infraction and adolescents’ academic achievement.

“…These programs combine school-based racial socialization practices with the academic, behavioral, and relational resources inherent to schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports to reduce disciplinary referrals and suspension. By focusing on school community buy-in, the relational climate, and culturally sensitive responses to student behavioral infractions, restorative practices hold promise as an integrated behavioral system that is sensitive to students' phenomenological experiences within their school's unique social ecology (Huguley et al, 2020(Huguley et al, , 2022. Moreover, recent field experiments have found that providing teachers with the tools to respond respectfully and empathically to student misbehavior can reduce suspension rates (Okonofua et al, 2022).…”

Fostering school equity: A racial socialization approach to creating an equitable school climate and reducing disciplinary infractions.

“…Experimental research has shown that the racial socialization practices embedded within the Identity Project support students' development of positive ethnic-racial identities and psychosocial functioning over time (Umaña-Taylor et al, 2018). In addition, restorative justice programs (e.g., the Just Discipline Project; Huguley et al, 2022) have offered hope for creating more just school environments by instilling culturally responsive, inclusive school policies and developing better cross-cultural relations within the school community.…”