Exploring the Link Between School Discipline and Restoring Relationships Using Restorative Conferences!

Format

Individual Presentation

Presenters

Derrick C. Bailey, Lovinggood Middle SchoolFollow
Julia Bullock, Lovinggood Middle SchoolFollow

First Presenter's Institution

Lovinggood Middle School

First Presenter’s Email Address

derrick.bailey@cobbk12.org

First Presenter's Brief Biography

Derrick Bailey is currently a principal at Lovinggood Middle School in Powder Springs, Georgia. He has been a principal for 6 years and in education for 20 years. Mr. Bailey completed coursework provided by the International Institute for Restorative Practices to become a Restorative Conference Trainer and Consultant. As an active practitioner, Mr. Bailey presents on what he has learned while conducting conferences, and strategies to help schools and districts customize restorative conferences that work for their environment. Mr. Bailey has an unwavering passion for resolving conflict and finding creative ways to address school discipline. Mr. Bailey’s presentations include presenting at the Innovative Schools Conference in San Antonio, the International Institute of Restorative Practices Conference in Pennsylvania, the National School Counseling Leadership Conference in San Diego, the virtual Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports Conference, and the National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference in Savannah. In addition, Mr. Bailey has trained educators on Restorative Conferencing in Cobb County, Ga, the second largest school district in the state. Mr. Bailey enjoys sharing his restorative experiences and learning from others on ways to address conflicts.

Location

Session Four Breakouts (Vernon)

Strand #1

Heart: Social & Emotional Skills

Strand #2

Hands: Safety & Violence Prevention

Relevance

Restorative Conferences should not be solely viewed through the lens of discipline. When appropriately conducted, Restorative Conferences empower the complainant and the respondent to become directly involved in the restorative process. It enhances students’ communication skills and helps facilitate their understanding of true empathy. Restorative Conferences should be used as a preventative strategy as well as a reactive one. It is best to attempt to schedule a Restorative Conference as soon as there is a conflict. This may reduce the violence that develops when conflict is not addressed. It is important to note this includes conflict with teachers, families, and students.

Brief Program Description

Participants will be able to identify the link between effective restorative conferences and school discipline. They will learn strategies that are effective for reactive and proactive conferences. Participants will analyze scenarios of actual conferences and prepare a list of things to avoid. Participants will learn how to use data to assess the effectiveness of their conferences and adjustments that may need to be made.

Summary

Although Restorative Conferences are scripted, to be effective, it will not look the same for every school. It takes a mind-shift to understand that Restorative Conferences must be viewed as more than a discipline strategy. The Proposal reflects a presentation that will provide guidance on how to set up and conduct an effective restorative conference. It will also reflect how to customize restorative conferences to best benefit a particular school and scenarios that include and do not include discipline. We will cover fundamental questions to ask prior to deciding if a Restorative Conference is appropriate. Participants will be provided a document to fill out and take back to their institutions to guide the discussion on how to develop or add value to the process of using restorative conferences to restore relationships. Participants will begin filling in the document during the presentation. We will compare typical conferences and restorative conferences as the participants weigh the pros and cons of both methods. We will watch a short, edited clip of an actual conference I facilitated and have an open discussion on the subtleties of the video. I will demonstrate ways to collect and analyze data to assess the effectiveness of restorative conferencing. Participants will be able to identify the data points that would be most valuable at their school. Participants will establish a short-term and long-term goal based on the information they obtain during the presentation. Participants will receive steps to develop a team that includes teachers, administrators, and counselors. They will see examples of survey data that can be collected after every conference, to help the facilitators make necessary adjustments. In summary, the participants will see where restorative conferencing falls on the restorative continuum. This will give them a deeper understanding as to why the restoration process should precede the discipline aspect and how they are both connected.

Evidence

The Restorative Justice Conferencing book written by Ted Wachtel, Terry O’Connell & Ben Wachtel serves as the foundation for restorative conferencing. This is a very important resource as Mr. O’Connell not only adopted some of the principles of conferencing from the family group conferencing concept in New Zealand, but he also authored what is now known as the restorative conference script. The authors not only provide several real-life stories of restorative conference application, but they also provide the official procedures for a restorative conference. In the Little Book of Restorative Justice in Education, Katherine Evans and Dorothy Vaandering provide a look into the history of restorative justice. Although restorative justice is rooted in the criminal justice system, the authors provide strategies on implementing it in education. The need for alternatives to solely relying on punitive consequences is supported by several books and articles. Great Colombi and David Osher in a published article entitled Advancing School Discipline Reform describe how suspensions lead to low self-esteem and low academic progress. In addition, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there is little evidence that suggest suspensions are succeeding as a deterrent to negative behaviors. Australian criminologist John Braithwaite has published work on his concept of shame being used for reintegration as opposed to stigmatizing. This is the basis of restorative conferencing. Although restorative practices fall under a huge umbrella, restorative conferencing plays a major role in relationship building. As an active restorative conference practitioner, I have collected perception and discipline data that suggest restorative conferences are effective.

Learning Objective 1

identify how effective restorative conferences are linked to school discipline.

Learning Objective 2

customize the use of restorative conferences to fit the needs of their organization

Learning Objective 3

understand how to collect and analyze data to assess their usage of restorative conferences.

Keyword Descriptors

Restorative, Conference, Resolution, Conflict, Discipline, Data, Social, Emotional, Prevention, Communication

Presentation Year

2023

Start Date

3-7-2023 8:30 AM

End Date

3-7-2023 9:45 AM

Recommended Citation

Bailey, Derrick C. and Bullock, Julia, "Exploring the Link Between School Discipline and Restoring Relationships Using Restorative Conferences!" (2023). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 17.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2023/2023/17