Restorative Justice: Sites of Connection and Contestation

• In Event: Focusing on Social Justice as a Catalyst for Improving Diverse Schools

Abstract

Restorative justice is increasingly being considered as a reform strategy to address high rates of exclusionary discipline in schools. Using interview data collected from administrators and teachers in a Pennsylvania school district that is using a restorative justice model, this study seeks to understand the processes at work as the district implements a reform meant to reduce the use of exclusionary discipline practices. This study will explore the ways in which educators are practicing restorative justice in the classroom, including the challenges they face in carrying out the reform, as well as the broader reasons that administrators chose to adopt the particular reform of restorative justice and how they perceive the impact it is having on their district.

Authors

• Kendra Taylor, The Pennsylvania State University

• Rafael Eduardo Alvarado, The Pennsylvania State University - University Park

• Stephen Staley Worthington, The Pennsylvania State University