Restorative Justice is a Shift in Thinking
Society currently widely uses an adversarial approach that believes the more you punish someone for wrongdoing the less likely they are to do it again. Restorative justice believes that the stronger the relationships are between people the less chance that they will inflict harm on one another. Therefore the punishment approach is not conducive to nurturing healthy relationships between people. Thus the need for a shift in thinking for restorative justice to become a part of our beliefs and values. Our schools have been built around the punitive system which has proven to be ineffective at providing students with the positive, nurturing environment they need to grow into healthy, happy relational adults. Restorative justice gives students an environment where they are heard and where they are encouraged to build healthy relationships with others. Students learn how to deal with conflict in ways that support both the harmer and the harmed as they work together to find solution that repairs the harm that has been done.
Restorative Justice Relationship Triangle
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A Continuum of Practice
School Culture
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The Relationship Window
If we do things:
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Restorative Justice is not another tool for teachers to use to deal with classroom management. It is a much deeper and bigger shift in thinking, in how we demonstrate our beliefs and values to others and in our relationships with other human beings.