RESTORATIVE PRACTICES: Its Impact on Racial Inequity in Pk-12 Schools

Abstract

PagesThis research explores the relationship between Restorative Practices and race, specifically how Black students experience RP when race is not centered. It also explores the ways anti-Blackness influences the implementation of restorative practices and results in further racial inequities and racial oppression through the lens of Critical Race Theory. The central research questions are: In what ways, if any, does RP address racial inequities in PK-12 schools? In what ways do districts implement RP? In what ways, if any, does RP impact institutional racism in school systems? How does RP address the social and emotional issues of historically marginalized students as it relates to education? How have racialized factors impacted the implementation of RP? In what ways, if any, does RP provide support and connectedness in schools for Black students? This case study explores five Black students’ and 17 black and white educators’ perceptions and experiences with RP and discipline. My findings indicate signals of systemic racism are consistent with the principles of CRT and is also supported by overwhelming qualitative evidence that a potentially effective alternative to exclusionary discipline such as Restorative practices covered in colorblind institutional policies and practices serve to reproduce racial inequalities in school discipline if race and racism are not effectively addressed. KEYWORDS: restorative practice; discipline disparities; racism; race