Restorative Practices as a Catalyst for a 12 year transition at a stall.

By Alejandra Padilla

Research Question: How can Restorative Practices catalyze a school’s transition from Traditional Education to a more progressive education, in this case, Project Based Learning. Research aim: By the end of the 2015­2016 School­year, all teachers (5th­12th) at HPA will have participated, observed or facilitated a Restorative Circle and/or a Community Circle, and reflected on their first impressions, perceived benefits, challenges, drawbacks, alignment with their philosophy and the school’s philosophy. Abstract: Walking around my school’s hallways always left me with a feeling of frustration. First of all, classrooms did not look like project based learning classrooms. There was little to no student work on the walls, seats were usually in rows, teachers were in front of the classroom, lecturing, and the most frustrating of all, you could hear them talking to students in very commanding ways, with firm voices that left no room for student voice and choice. I decided to change this, since I tought our school had come to a stop in its transition process. My main motivation was my own kids, who go to this school, and also the students I work with as a School Psychologist. I tought they deserved to be treated as intelligent, responsible and creative human beings. My solution was the implementation of Restorative Practices. The road was very bumpy, and I encountered a lot of resistance and setbacks, but in the end, I was able to facilitate restorative circles where my colleagues witnessed the power of restorative practices. They started thinking about using them to motivate their students to learn, to push the work forward, to get to know them better, to make them feel part of the community, to help them express their emotions in an effective way, to involve their families, to solve conflicts, and manily, to change the way they had been doing things. Throughout my research I examine how restorative practices became the missing link for my school to continue to become a progressive, respectful, peaceful, project based learning school.

Table of Contents

Introduction Setting Description Literature Review Methods Findings Conclusions Resources Appendices

Introduction I dream of a school that challenges Traditional Education, a school that is not based on obedience. In traditional schools, students have to be in rows, looking at the teacher, following directions, quiet, still. The teacher is the authority in the classroom, the one that holds all the knowledge and power. Goals are met by instigating fear. Punishments and rewards are the basis of discipline and teaching. Traditional education was born in the industrial ages, when attributes like obedience and compliance were highly valued, since students needed to become obedient workers, who did not question how or why things were done, who would be willing to work sitting down, and repeating the same movement all day. This has to change, and as Sir Ken Robinson explains: “At the most fundamental level, the focus of education has to be on creating the conditions in which students will want and be able to learn. Everything else has to be arranged on that basis. Next, the role of teachers is to facilitate students’ learning. Doing so properly is an art form in itself…” (Robinson, 2015, p. 72). At our school, Highland Prince Academy, we have already begun the process of transitioning from Traditional Education to a more progressive Project Based Learning, 12 years ago. Each year, our students produced more meaningful, authentic work, learned to create excellent products through critique, and did their best in making their efforts evident. Until it all came to a stall. We can’t call ourselves a Project Based Learning school, because our problem solving techniques, classroom management strategies and school norms are still traditional. We are also encountering other challenges along the way. It is hard to get students to do creative work, to engage in conversations with others, to defend their opinions, to solve problems. Morrison explains what years of traditional education do to students, “Most students are accustomed to being told what to do and to acting passively in the classroom” (2008, p. 54). This situation is still going on at our school, where teachers and students are feeling frustrated and overwhelmed, instead of motivated by projects. There is also another aspect to consider, some people are not ready to let go. Holding on to power and authority makes them feel secure. Some teachers are used to their own practice, and it is hard for them to change. Morrison also explains:

“Very few teachers have experienced democratic education themselves, so to attempt to institute democratic practices in their classrooms represents a sizable leap into the unknown. Teachers may be fearful of this unknown, fearful that involving students’ voices and choices in running a course will produce chaos and an overall lack of learning” (2008, p. 56).

Evans also states: “Alterations in practices, procedures and routines make all of us insecure, especially if we have exercised our skills in a particular way for a long time (and even more if we have seen our performance as exemplary)” (2010, p. 44). This is where Restorative Practices come in, to break all of these misconceptions and previous points of view. To let us know where we stand and renew our motivation to teach and learn. By listenting to students’ needs, likes and dislikes, we can understand the need to change, and face it all together as a collegiate decision, which helps teachers who are feeling insecure. One bright spot is that, since many of the teachers are motivated by PBL, they are willing to analyze their current practices, and look for better models. This is where the possibility of change is born. As Robinson says

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“…the apparently sharp divide between progressive and traditional approaches is more theoretical than real in many schools. In practice, teachers in all disciplines usually do­ and should­ use a wide repertory of approaches, sometimes teaching facts and information through direct instruction, sometimes facilitating exploratory group activities and projects. Getting that balance right is what the art of teaching is all about” (Robinson, 2015, p. 102).

We need students to feel empowered to become advocates for their own learning. To do so, they must also feel empowered to make their own decisions, become responsible for their actions and have some control over their learning environment. In this research, my aim is to explore if Restorative Practices are the missing link to fully transition from traditional to progressive education. La Paro and Pianta state that:

“An optimal classroom climate is characterized by low levels of conflict and disruptive behavior, smooth transitions from one type of activity to another, appropriate expression of emotion, respectful communication and problem­solving, strong interest and focus on task, and supportiveness and responsiveness to individual differences and students needs” (LaParo & Pianta, 2003).

Restorative practices can help create this optimal classroom climate because they focus on solving conflict and allowing students to express how they feel in a safe, controled environment. Teachers can use the Restorative Practices tools to support their students by getting to know them better, what their needs are and how they want to be helped.

Setting Description Highland Prince Academy (HPA) is a K­12 private school located in Playas de Tijuana, less than five miles from the border, in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico. HPA is on its way transitioning from Traditional Education to Project Based Learning, meaning that students learn by collaborating on interdisciplinary projects and present their learning to an authentic audience in public exhibitions throughout the year. The school opened in 1972 as the first bilingual school in our community. It was then called Colegio Inglés. In 1998, it divided into two schools, one more traditional, that kept its original name, and a more progressive school called Highland Prince Academy. HPA’s vision is to develop global digital citizens who are fluent both in English and Spanish who believe in the value and dignity of themselves and others, and who strive for continuous learning. Its mission is, with the support of parents and the community, to provide an environment that motivates every student to grow emotionally, spiritually, physically, and intellectually while discovering strengths and learning styles given to them by God and applying them through a strategically designed program, taught by committed, dedicated and qualified teachers.

Currently, 248 students are enrolled in our school: 55% are boys and 45% are girls. 9% of the students are Native English Speakers (which might be considered a disadvantage since 40% of courses are in Spanish), 15% need an IEP and 16% are students with behavioral problems who also need interventions. Students spend most of the day with their English (60%) and Spanish (40%) teachers. They have a 50 minute Physical Education class daily. Once a week, students go to workshops. Workshops this year are Art, Play and Movement, Embroidery, Theater and Baseball for elementary school; Basketball, Soccer, Art and Cooking for Middle school and High school. Workshops are proposed based on teacher’s interest and abilities. Each student can pick a different Workshop every semester, so that all students

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will have two each year. This year we also implemented an Emotional Intelligence Workshop in which all lower elementary students participate. Sessions are 50 minute long, once a week, for 10 weeks. Comparing private schools and public schools in Mexico, the academic level in their Spanish classes is similar, but the approach in public schools is too traditional. Most private schools also offer an extended day (7:30 to 2:30, compared to 8:00 am to 12:00 pm in most public schools), with classes that public schools do not typically offer such as English as a Second Language, English as a First Language, Physical Education more than once a week, Arts, Workshops, etc. In terms of tuition, public schools in Mexico are relatively free, but students do need to pay for some initial fees. Private schools range from $2,000 to $5,000 pesos per month (an equivalent to $111 to $277 dlls per month). At our school, tuition is $3,100 pesos ($172 dlls), plus a total of around $15,000 pesos ($833 dlls) of initial fees including books, materials, uniforms, enrollment fees, parent council fees, etc.

Literature Review In my quest towards finding progressive models to aid our transition, I began studying Restorative Practices. After reading about them, I thought they were the missing link to speed us along our 12 year journey. For true PBL to happen, students need to feel safe, understood, motivated, and happy. With traditional classroom management and school norms, students usually feel overwhelmed, ignored, indifferent and insecure. In this literature review I will explain what Restorative Practices are, how they can support learning, how they can become classroom management tools, their role in student voice and choice, and finally how they catalyze school change.

Restorative Practices Restorative Practices are ancient. They can be tracked down to earlier movements and to a variety of cultural and religious traditions. Its earliest practitioners were the Native people of North America and New Zealand, along with other countries such as First Nation Canadian to African, Asian, Celtic, Hebrew, Arab and many others. As Gohard and Zehr explain:

“Indeed, they are as old as human history. In some parts of the world, modern government structures have taken away from communities the power to resolve disputes and wrongdoing. Yet, in many places, traditional structures are still working effectively. In the tribal arrangements of some areas, for example, major crimes are settled by community elders and family problems are effectively resolved by family elders, male and female” (Gohard and Zehr, 2003).

In many countries around the world, Restorative Justice began as an effort to deal with crime. It all started as an approach to deal with minor crimes, but as its benefits have begun to spread, more countries began adopting it and using it to deal with more serious crimes and even mass violence. As Gohard and Zehr express:

“These approaches and practices are also spreading beyond the criminal justice system to schools, to the workplace and religious institutions. Some advocate the use of restorative approaches such as circles as a way to work through, resolve and transform conflicts in general. Others pursue circles or conferences as a way to build and heal communities” (Gohard and Zehr, 2003).

In the 1970s, some case experiments took place in several Mennonite communities. They were trying to create a justice system that matched their faith and their peace perspective. It became a mediation or

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reconciliation between victims and offenders. That is how Restorative Justice theory came to exist. “Eventually modern restorative justice broadened to include communities of care as well, with victims’ and offenders’ families and friends participating in collaborative processes called conferences and circles” (Wachtel, n.d.). The movement has gained strength across the globe, with different names and versions. Some schools looking for solutions to discipline and violence have adopted Restorative Practices. In the US, the International Institute for Restorative Practices (IIRP) was founded in 1994 and has been training professionals ever since. There are two kinds of circles in Restorative Practices for schools: Restorative Circles, where a conflict is solved, and Community Circles, where the emphasis is to build trust and create a positive environment. The Elementary Justice Committe describes some key ideas of Restorative Circles:

“Bring together all involved, including the offender and, if appropriate, the victim. Recognize that the student who committed the offense did harm to the school and community. Offer the student a chance for to repair the harm caused. For example, if a student vandalizes the bathroom wall, then he or she should clean it off and repaint. Or if a student stole money, he or she should repay the victim. Find a way to welcome the student who did the harm back into the community” (Elementary Justice Committee, 2012).

Another version of Restorative Circles are Family Circles or Family conferences. Wich are Restorative Circles with family members of the offender and/or the victim.

The basis of Restorative Practices are daily Community Circles. "A circle is a versatile restorative practice that can be used proactively, to develop relationships and build community... Circles give people an opportunity to speak and listen to one another in an atmosphere of safety, decorum and equality" (Wachtel, n.d., Page 7). Circles are well explained by Wachtel:

"Circles may use a sequential format. One person speaks at a time, and the opportunity to speak moves in one direction around the circle. Each person must wait to speak until his or her turn, and no one may interrupt. Optionally, a talking piece—a small object that is easily held and passed from person to person—may be used to facilitate this process" (Wachtel, n. d. Page 8).

Community circles can be facilitated every day, and may include games or different community building activities. Questions are less personal and more focused on creating a relaxed environment. Examples of Community Circle questions may be: what animal would you like to be and why? What super­power would you like to have and why? On a scale of 1 to 10, how are you feeling today? etc. At the beginning of the year I focused on getting my colleagues to experience Restorative Practices first hand by facilitating circles during staff meetings. I also recorded some of the circles (both kinds) I facilitated in my classroom and in other classrooms and showed them to all my colleagues. It seemed like the perfect fit for our school, because we have been trying to do projects while still teaching in a traditional way, with students sitting down and the teacher talking, products sent as homework and student voice and choice completely ignored. Projects at our school had become crafts, or insignificant products that would end up in the trash. Students were not motivated by Projects, and they were even asking to go back to regular traditional classes and textbooks. They felt overwhelmed by the amount of work they had to do at home, since teachers from different subjects were asking them to work on several products at once. Restorative Practices could become the connection between teachers and students so

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they could have the right platform to speak, and to move work forward. They could let teachers know how students felt and how plan better and collaborate with other teachers to motivate students. The process of letting go and including student voice and choice has not been easy at our school. It is hard to implement a new disciplinary method when students are used to something completely opposite, when other teachers are using more traditional methods, and when parents expect their children to be treated a certain way, and they also use punitive methods at home. Restorative Justice is an alternative to the way we think about justice and bad behavior. It is much better than Zero tolerance, detention, suspension and expulsion (Fixing School Discipline Toolkit, n.d., p. 29). Some teachers are not ready for this fundamental shift, and need more time to adjust. We definitely need more training on facilitating circles, for times when conflict arises. But we also need to establish an environment where kids feel safe to speak, safe to share their ideas and to come up with solutions. We need to build a community, and this is where Community Circles come in. “The conventional academic curriculum is focused almost entirely on the world around us and pays little attention to the inner world. We see the results of that every day in boredom, disengagement, stress, bullying, anxiety, depression and dropping out. These are human issues and they call for human responses” (Robinson, 2015, p. 52). And I would add, they call for humane responses. Setting apart a small time each day to work on building a community, is key to start shifting away from these negative feelings in our teachers and students. Both Restorative and Community circles can help create a more equitable, safe, nourishing, positive environment, where kids can feel safe and motivated to learn. Where less conflicts occur, and communication is the key to success. An environment where everyone feels they belong and there is a sense of community. All of these elements are key for true PBL to flourish.

What does learning really mean? Robinson defines a key concept: “Learning is the process of acquiring new knowledge and skills. Human beings are highly curious learning organisms. From the moment they’re born, young children have a voracious appetite for learning. For too many, that appetite starts to dull as they go through school. Keeping it alive is the key to transforming education” (Robinson, 2015). This concept of education, which focuses on curiosity, is very important. Sometimes as teachers, we believe that the child does not know anything, and we are supposed to teach them everything we know, but this is not the case. Since children are born, their curiosity is their motivator, their teacher. During their first years they learn more than they will learn for the rest of their lives. Their brain develops incredibly, and they are excited to see the world. It is sad to see how, in many schools, this appetite for learning is slowly killed. It is replaced with rules, ways to do things, schedules and standards to be met. Children are evaluated on things that they are supposed to know, and creativity, fantasy, fearlessness to fail, are forgotten. Through the use of circles, the teacher can learn about student’s interests, talk about failure, and guide a respectful, meaningful critique. Listening to what students have to say is key to igniting their curiosity. Learning from what their peers have to say, questioning eachother and coming up with creative solutions to their problems are some of the abilities they develop with circles. All of these abilities should be what learning really means. Restorative Practices can restore our view and appetite for learning, and stop the negative effect that traditional school can have in children, one circle at a time.

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Classroom management

As a new Project Based Educator last year, I struggled with knowing when to let go, and when to take over in terms of managing my classroom. There is a fine line between students working on different tasks at the same time, and chaos. I had a diverse group of kids. Some were fast workers, and learners, and others needed more time and support. There were many times when some kids would be working on something and the others three steps behind. My teaching partner and I had to create a structured schedule and daily goals and share them with our students so everyone was responsible for finishing their work. It worked out for most, but there were some kids who would not follow the norms, and they would take advantage of the freedom given and just play or bother other students on many occasions. It was not a big issue most days, but they were somewhat disruptive and they were not learning as much as they should. We tried talking to them, to their parents, having them write weekly goals and reflect on their accomplishment, and it would work for a while, but then they would go back to their previous misbehavior. We kept working on it over the months, and by the end of the school year most of them learned the benefits that good behavior had for themselves. They noticed they had better relations with other kids, they were learning a lot more and working faster, and they were getting recognition from us teachers, among other things.

Reflecting on it, and after conversations with several people, I realized there were three important causes for this situation. The first one was that we ­ my teaching partner and I ­ had a few kids in our class with severe family or social­emotional issues, and also a few with diagnosed disorders or learning problems. The second reason was that the first grade had a different approach to classroom management, a lot more traditional, directive and punitive. This caused kids to behave well when she was their teacher, and when they knew she would hold them accountable for their actions, but completely the opposite after she was no longer their teacher. When they became our second grade students, they realized we were different and they were constantly testing our limits, to see how far they could get with us. The third cause was that this situation took us by surprise, and we were not prepared for a group like that. We did not establish effective procedures since the beginning of the year, and even though we accomplished our goal by the end of the year, there was a lot of lost time and frustration. As Brady explains:

“The teacher is the sole creator and enforcer of these rules (traditionally), announcing them on the first day of school with little or no discussion of their meaning. This mesage is clear. Follow this rules or else. While this classroom approach can be effective in establishing a sense of order in a classroom (which we very much need), it does little to help children develop self­discipline, ethical thinking, or an understanding of how to be contributing members of a democratic community. At its worst, it invites tension, blind obedience, or a constant battle of wills between adults and children in school” (Brady, et al, 2003).

Restorative Practices can be effective classroom management tools. As I described before, this has been one of the weakest areas in our school. Most staff members have different approaches when it comes to classroom management. The impact of this variations has been huge, since students have to adapt to a new style every year, and multiple cases of misconduct and lack of motivation occur. As Marzano states:

“Teachers play various roles in a typical classroom, but surely one of the most important is that of classroom manager. Effective teaching and learning cannot take place in a poorly managed classroom. If students are disorderly and disrespectful, and no apparent rules and procedures guide behavior, chaos becomes the norm. In these situations, both

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teachers and students suffer. Teachers struggle to teach, and students most likely learn much less than they should. In contrast, well­managed classrooms provide an environment in which teaching and learning can flourish. But a well­managed classroom doesn't just appear out of nowhere. It takes a good deal of effort to create—and the person who is most responsible for creating it is the teacher” (2003).

Restorative Practices are a democratic approach to classroom management, and focus on listening to students in order to meet their needs and collaborate to create an ideal learning environment, where justice is perceived by everyone. “…the heart of education is the relationship between the student and the teacher. Everything else depends on how productive and successful that relationship is. If that is not working, then the system is not working” (Robinson, 2015, p.71­72). I would add that peer relationships play a big role too. And when both of this relationships are working, classroom management becomes easy and a joy. Restorative Practices a way of creating a school climate that enables optimal academic and social work in students. I belive that the use of daily community circles will create a proper environment that will promote respect between students and motivation to learn.

Voice and Choice One of the most important aspects of Restorative Practices is that it gives students voice and choice. As Kohn says, "…much of what is disturbing about students’ attitudes and behavior may be a function of the fact that they have little to say about what happens to them all day. They are compelled to follow someone else's rules, study someone else's curriculum, and submit continually to someone else's evaluation” (Kohn, 1993, p. 1). Participating in community and restorative circles gives students a voice and empowers them to make choices. They get to express how they feel about themselves, their work and their relations with others. In a traditional education system, students’ voices are rarely heard. But, this creates a problem. As Robinson eloquently states: “Strict compliance is essential in manufacturing products, but people are different. It’s not just that we come in all shapes and sizes. In the right circumstances, we are also highly imaginative and creative. In a culture of compliance, these capacities are actively discouraged, even resented” (Robinson, 2015, p. 37). Teachers might be afraid to let go of control in their classrooms, but with the right tools and guidance, they are more likely to try. Most of them know that it is what they are supposed to be doing; they just don’t know how to do it. As Kohn states:

“..., there is nothing new about the idea that students should be able to participate, individually and collectively, in making decisions. This conviction has long played a role in schools designated as progressive, democratic, open, free, experimental, or alternative; in educational philosophies called developmental, constructivist, holistic, or learner­centered; in specific innovations such as whole­language learning, discovery­based science, or authentic assessment; and in the daily practice of teachers whose natural instinct is to treat children with respect” (Kohn, 1993, p. 1).

Giving students a voice and a choice, within a structured and respectful environment, will prevent misbehavior, conflicts, and promote deeper learning. When we emphasize obedience, and we force children to do things, it usually does not work. Children are less likely to do what we want them to do if they did not participate in the creation of rules. If we want children to practice values and make them

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their own, we should give them a chance to decide what kind of people they want to be and what kind of classroom or school they want to have (Kohn, 1993, p. 3­4). Giving student’s voice and choice has to do with personalization. And according to Robinson, that means: “Recognizing that intelligence is diverse and multifaceted. Enabling students to pursue their particular interests and strengths. Adapting the schedule to the different rates at which students learn. Assessing students in ways that support their personal progress and achievement” (Robinson, 2015, p. 83). Community circles can be the tool for teachers to get to hear and understand their student’s interests, strengths and learning rates. Talking to them on a regular basis and checking in is the only way to assess and support their progress.

School Change As Robinson states: “If you design a system to do something specific, don’t be surprised if it does it. If you run an education system based on standardization and conformity that suppresses individuality, imagination, and creativity, don’t be surprised if that’s what it does” (Robinson, 2015, Introduction xxii). Sometimes I wonder if we, as a school, are ready for change. There are many internal factors, such as culture, personalities, school norms and organization, parent expectations (As represented in my Fishbone Diagram, Figure 1). There are also external factors, like our Mexican School System. But after a lot of thought and study I conclude that change is imminent. There is a lot at stake, but I am ready. As Robinson also suggests: “If you are involved in education in any way you have three options: you can make changes within the system, you can press for changes to the system, or you can take initiatives outside the system” (Robinson, 2015, Introduction xxv). In my case, I will begin by trying to innovate within the system.

Figure 1. Fishbone Diagram.

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On the other hand, it can be hard to motivate teachers to talk about their practice, to share ideas, and to open up. Like our students, teachers are often shy, motivated by extrinsic factors, or fearful of critique. “The findings... indicate that greatest success was achieved where schools saw a need for change and were already committed to improving school ethos by creating and sustaining positive relationships throughout the school community” (McCluskey, 2008, p. 8). Restorative Practices can become spaces for teachers to talk about these things too, where they can become vulnerable within a safe space, and talk to peers about how and why they do what they do. From talking to students, they can begin to see the need for personal change. I have been sharing a lot of information with teachers in many different formats, in person, during staff meetings, as workshops, by email, through our private facebook group. Some see what I share, a few give it a like (on facebook) and only one or two respond. Sometimes I feel frustrated, but then I find small rays of light, of hope. A teacher doing a circle to solve a conflict, someone asking me to intervene with a student, someone else asking for help with a project, etc. “As we face a very uncertain future, the answer is not to do better what we’ve done before. We have to do something else. The challenge is not to fix this system but to change it; not to reform it but to transform it” (Robinson, 2015, Introduction xxviii). I know change is slow, Restorative Practices usually take more than three years to be established fully in a school, when the administration is ready to invest in training, and when the staff is ready to reflect on what their practice looks like and what they want it to look like, as McCluskey states:

“The research suggested that Restorative Practices had most impact when school staff were willing to reflect on their daily interactions in school and review their values – when they saw the pilot project as a chance to think about what kind of school they wanted and how they wanted to ‘‘be’’ with their pupils. RP seemed most effective when ‘‘behavior’’ was seen as an issue to be addressed through restorative strategies that involved active learning for all children and for staff across the school. This was most likely to happen when there was visible commitment, enthusiasm and modeling by the school management team and where the school had invested in significant staff development” (McCluskey, 2008, p. 11).

So, I am in no rush, but I also never want our school to go back, or stop changing. To be able to accomplish true change, we must start from within. As Robinson proposes: “Education is really improved only when we understand that it too is a living system and that people thrive in certain conditions and not in others” (Robinson, 2015, p. 44) Robinson also presents four principles adapted from organic farming to education:

“Health. Organic education promotes the development and wellbeing of the whole student, intellectually, physically, spiritually, and socially. Ecology. Organic education recognizes the vital interdependence of all these aspects of development, within each student and the community as a whole. Fairness. Organic education cultivates the individual talents and potential of all students , whatever their circumstances, and respects the roles and responsibilities of those who work with them. Care. Organic education creates optimum conditions for students´ development, based on compassion, experience, and practical wisdom” (Robinson, 2015, p. 44­45).

All of these aspects are embedded in Restorative Practices, since they are a way for the student to develop in all areas (Health), since participating in a restorative circle is a mind­body­spirit experience. Circles help us recongize the interdependence of students and their community (Ecology) by allowing

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them to understand how what they do affects not only themselves but everyone around them. Restorative practices are fair for everyone, under any circumstances (Fairness) because their principle is based on the victims’s individual needs and abilities to heal, and the offender’s capacity to restore the damage made. With the regular use of Community Circles, the conditions for student development become optimal (Care), since getting to talk about eachother is the basis for empathy.

Benefits of Restorative Practices According to Ashley and Burke, Restorative Practices emphasize values of empathy, respect, honesty, acceptance, responsibility, and accountability. They provide ways to effectively address behavior and other complex school issues. They also offer a supportive environment that can improve learning. Restorative Practices improve safety by preventing future harm. They offer alternatives to suspension and expulsion and can be used to resolve and even to avoid conflict and other disciplinary issues (Ashley and Burke, n. d.). A study of 19 schools in the United Kingdom found restorative practices improved the school environment and enhanced the learning and development of young people. In their outcomes section they state: “The vast majority of conferences (92%) resulted in successful agreements between the parties. These ranged from apologies, repaired friendships/relationships, agreements to desist from the behaviour that led to the conference and agreements to maintain distance between the parties, through to formal reparation” They also found that “Pupils reported high levels of satisfaction with the process of participating in conferences, with 89% of pupils reporting that they were satisfied with the outcome of the conferences and 93% reporting that they thought that the process was fair and that justice had been done” (Youth Justice Board for England and Wales, 2004). In their findings sections they state that there was “a reduction in racist name­calling in all schools… an increase in the percentage of pupils who think that their school is doing a good job of stopping bullying… a reduction in pupils thinking that bullying is a serious problem in all secondary schools” (Youth Justice Board for England and Wales, 2004). A study of 18 Scottish schools concluded that restorative practices offer a strong cohesive framework and allow students to feel safe and respected, and have positive relationships with others. They found that Restorative Practices emphasize “the human wish to feel safe, to belong, to be respected and to understand and have positive relationships with others” (McCluskey, et al, 2008). At Cole Middle School, a pilot site for Restorative Practices in Oakland, California, restorative practices began in the 2005/06 school year. Significant benefits in terms of quantifiable data were noticeable between the 2006/07 and 2007/08 school years when the suspension rate at the school dropped. They also saw other positive outcomes: Reductions in the number and intensity of fights and physical altercations, fewer classroom and cafeteria disruptions, drastic reductions in the number of students suspended and expelled and higher academic performance including standardized test score increases (Alameda County Health Care Services Agency, 2011). HPA’s transition form traditional to PBL has come to a stand. Restorative Practices can help us push the transition forward because they will help create the right environment. Restorative Practices are the catalyst we need, the missing link to become a full Project Based Learning school. They are both proactive, setting the culture we need, and responsive to infractions or incidents when they occur, strenghtening the community. Opposed to traditional school norms, they can help teachers “establish a

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calm. orderly and safe environment for learning; foster an appreciation for the role of rules in school; help children develop self­control and self­discipline; teach children to be responsible, contributing members of a democratic community; and promote respectful, kind, and healthy teacher­student and student­student interactions” (Brady, et al, 2003) Through daily circles, teachers and students can get to know each other better every day. The use of games, phrases, sentence starters and shared experiences, among other things, will create a culture that promotes a sense of community and will encourage others to change. “When people live in regular contact, they deeply influence each other’s ways of thinking and behaving. Over time, every cohesive human community evolves common conventions and values. They develop a culture. I define culture as the values and forms of behavior that characterize different social groups”.(Robinson, 2015). We need to start living, really living together, and building a classroom and school culture that aligns to PBL.

Methods For my data collection, I decided to use a variety of tools in order to better capture the information and for it to be representative of the majority of teachers and students at my school. I began by using Improvement Research (IR) which focuses on finding the root causes of a problem using a fishbone diagram (Figure 1) and identifying change ideas to solve the problem using a driver diagram (Appendix A).

The next step in the IR process is the testing of change ideas called PDSA cycles: Plan, Do, Study, Act Cycles (Appendix B). The purpose is to implement a change idea, gather data, evaluate it, and refine if necessary. For my PDSA Cylces I decided to test the change idea of introducing teachers to restorative practices in grades 5th to 12th. The aim was to to begin implementation of restorative circles at HPA and collect data on first impressions, perceived benefits, challenges and drawbacks from teachers and students.

PDSA Cycle #1: Collecting data through Exit Cards.

For my first PDSA Cycle, I began in the 5th grade, whose teacher is a new staff member and observing the facilitation was part of his training in restorative practices. I facilitated the circle and he observed. Students were really motivated to participate in the circle, they all talked about times when they have had problems with classmates. They were able to express their feelings about it and talk about how this affected them and others. They also came up with various solutions to the problems they had been having.Their teacher was surprised to hear them talk about their problems in such a mature way, and also to listen to some of the problems they are having at home. The only problem is that since they wanted to talk a lot, we spent one hour and 20 minutes to complete the three rounds of questions (what has been happening in your group, with your classmates? In one word or sentence, how do you feel about coming to school every day? What would you like to see happening to solve this problem?). There was not enough time to reflect on the circle process, what worked and what could have been better. For the next cycle, I decided to have students fill a printed exit card with the following questions:

­ What worked about today’s circle? ­ What could have been better about today’s circle? ­ What do you commit to?

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PDSA Cycle #2: Collecting data through printed Exit Cards.

For this cycle, 4 staff members observed me as I facilitated a circle in the 7th grade, after an incident with one of the students, a teacher and classmates. We talked about the incident that took place that morning when a student hit another student and then started screaming and pushing everyone. The questions asked during the circle were:

What happened today with one of your classmates and what has been happening with him in the past?

In one word or sentence, how do you feel about what happened today? What would you like to see happening to solve this problem?

Students were still impacted by the incident that happened two hours before we could have the circle. Some were scared about their safety, some were concerned about their classmates involved in the incident. They all participated in a very respectful and mature way. Solutions were empathic.The teachers were surprised to see their students handle an incident in such a deep way, being able to express their emotions in a respectful, proactive manner. They also talked about how well they were able to continue with their activities after having the circle. Something they were not expecting after such an impactful incident. The circle extended to almost two hours, and everyone was exhausted by the end, since it was so emotional and deep. Filling the exit cards at that moment did not seem like a good idea, I asked one of the teachers to ask the students to fill them out the next day but she never got to it. For the next cycle, I decided to have students fill an exit card with the previous questions digitally and send it to me by email.

PDSA Cycle #3: Collecting data through digital Exit Cards. I facilitated a circle while the 9th grade history teacher, who is also the school director, observed. The idea for the circle was proposed by her, because she has been having trouble getting students to do their homework and/or bring the resources needed for projects. The questionas asked were:

What has been happening with your classwork and homework? In one word or sentence, how do you feel about your classes? What would you like to see happening to solve this problem?

Students were eager to talk not only about why they had not being doing their History homework, but about all their other subjects, teachers, amount and type of homework assigned to them, their feelings of frustration, boredom and lack of motivation. The History teacher, who is also the School director was happy to listen to her students and get a better understanding of how they perceive homework, their teachers, the courses, projects, and the school in general. She asked me to facilitate another circle with the 8th graders, whom she also teaches, and organized a meeting with all the teachers the next day where we presented these issues to the middle school staff. We talked about their own perceptions and feelings and we were able to come up with solutions to improve their practice. This time 7 students sent me an email with their exit cards answering the questions about what what worked for them about the circle, what did not work and what they committed to. The exit card was more successful this time, even though only a few of them sent them, but they were honest and helpful. Another problem came up, students had a hard time respecting their turn to speak. They also had a lot to say about what others were saying and we had to go back to people who were eager to talk twice during the same round of questions. For the next cycle, I decided to introduce a talking stick so they can visually see who’s turn it is to speak and hopefully this helps them settle down their impulse to speak out of turn.

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PDSA Cycle #4: Introducing a Talking Stick. The school director asked me to facilitate a circle with her 8th grade History class, to talk about why they were not participating in projects, not doing their homework and their general perception of school. She did not want to be an observer this time, so kids would feel free to speak about her teaching and other teachers. The questions asked were the same as in 9th grade. I introduced the talking stick to prevent students from talking out of turn. The use of the talking stick was helpful, students were taking turns and listening to others while they spoke most of the time. Some students had to be reminded to pay attention to the speaker and not talk to peers, only to the center of the circle. In the exit cards they expressed that they would have liked to be able to speak whenever they had something to say. Students talked about their perceptions of the school in general, what they disliked about their classes, and what they knew worked for them. They talked about their lack of motivation with projects and how stressed their teachers were. All of this information, along with the 9th grade circle information, was presented to middle school teachers to talk about ways to improve their practice. For the next cycle the use of the talking stick had to be emphasized and explained so students wouldn’t feel that they were not being heard. They needed to know that it was important that everyone got a chance to speak and that if we went back to the same people who had already spoken, there would be not enough time to finish the questions. Also, that while the person with the stick is talking, they should be paying attention, not thinking about something they want to say. The talking stick norms would be presented and explained along with the circle norms.

PDSA Cycle #5: Introducing the Talking Stick Norms. The High school Orientation teacher asked me to facilitate a circle with all the High School students to see why some of them were not motivated to complete any work from the Big Picture Learning Project, such as their auto­biography, questions and letters for their mentors, weekly reflections, etc. The questions asked during the circle were:

What has been happening with your work for the Big Picture Learning Project and Internships? In one word, how do you feel about the project right now? What would you like to see happening to solve this problem?

The use of the talking stick was a little awkward with High school students because they were respectful, listening to to others carefully and speaking from the heart. They were a little shy in the beginning, and some of them were reluctant to speak. This was their first time doing a similar activity where they would speak about themselves in front of everyone, since they are a mixed grade class (10th­12th) and they usually work individually in their online program. The circle was short, compared to other circles we had in other classrooms. It lasted 35 minutes. But still, the two teachers who participated and who are leading the Big Picture Learning project were happy to listen to them, their mindset, where they stand at the moment and why. It was agreed by the two teachers and I to have another circle with them the next week to talk about their progress in the project. We decided not to use the talking stick, but to go over the norms and emphasize that the circle is a chance to speak from their hearts about how they are feeling, that they don’t need to worry about what to say, but when it is their time to speak, they should take advantage of the opportunity to be heard, understood and taken into consideration. We also agreed to begin with some sort of reflection or message to motivate them to start their path into their future by beginning their internships.

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PDSA Cycle #6: Introducing a message to begin the circle. We talked to High school students again about their progress in the Big Picture Learning Project. We want them to feel like this is a safe space for them to express their frustrations, opinions, emotions and ideas. We began the circle with the motivation video called “Oh the Places you’ll go”. The message is based on Dr. Seuss's final book before his death. It is a story about life's ups and downs, told by the people of Burning Man. It won "Best Short" at the New Media Film Festival, in Los Angeles, CA. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahv_1IS7SiE. We watched the video together, and then I told them that even though they might not be sure what their path is, and what they want to do in their future, internships are not a life bounding decision, but a life changing experience. They took it well, and were open to talk about their fears, their hopes, and how they wanted to personalize their projects to their interests and needs. Teachers were excited to hear them speak from their hearts for the first time since they begun High School. The questions asked during the circle were:

What were you able to accomplish this week? What is keeping you from moving forward? What suggestions do you have in order to complete your assignments?

One of the things High school students asked for in their exit cards was a one­on­one orientation, so after spring break we will focus on this. Introducing the motivational video and talking about it before the circle was a good idea. See Complete PDSA Cycles here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1phW0dTqqqHHQbyNzXoVXfFNH1PvXHnrA1Ls9­njHRMY/edit?usp=sharing

Circle Transcripts: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1K0Hn5lOaYdlrbvvndeXf5pLev3vwsfG_iKesTmEGyZQ/edit?usp=sharing

Interviews After the circles, I decided to interview all the teachers who had been observers or participants in them. I interviewed 5 teachers, 1 student, the school director and the middle school dean. The interviews were recorded, then transcribed and translated from Spanish to English. Then they were coded for themes. The interview base questions were:

What was your first reaction to Restorative Practices What are the benefits of Restorative Circles? What could be drawbacks or challenges of Restorative Circles? What do you think about using Restorative Practices family meetings vs. traditional

suspensions? What connections do you see between Restorative Practices and your own philosophy about

teaching and children? How do Restorative Practices align with our school’s pedagogical philosophy? What advice do you have for getting other teachers invested in RP? How would you begin implementation in a new school?

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What are the benefits of community circles? What coudl be some drawbacks or challenges of community circles? What support has been helpful? What support is still needed? What might be helpful for increasing teacher investment in circles?

See complete interview transcripts here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h3fYLM­D7jaHuT_ba7DEnhgvczw3ZOLeAxCtkSE5gX0/edit?usp=sharing

Findings There were many things emerging from my interviews and exit cards, but there were five main aspects that most teachers talked about. They were the development of social­emotional skills, empathy and belongingness, family involvement, academic growth and personal need to change. These four areas are crucial for PBL and are weak areas at our school and probably at most traditional schools.

Social­emotional skills All interviewees talked about Restorative Practices being a way to develop social­emotional skills, both in Students and Teachers. The 5th to 7th grade Spanish teacher expressed:

“I really liked having the circle about her (a 5th grade student) because she was able to realize that whenever she did something to defend herself, she was hurting others, and even though it was really hard for her, she was able to understand what she was doing wrong. She stopped acting like a victim when she realized that many students felt the same way and it was not just one person telling her that. She gave a really big step that day and I was impressed by that, and also by the fact that the fifth­graders, even though they’re little, spoke with a lot of maturity. When they felt the support of their classmates, they were able to speak from the heart”.

They also talked about the effect of emotional wellbeing in all other areas. The 7th and 9th grades Science teacher stated: “I will love it if I can start facilitating circles every day. It will be a mental outlet for my students, breaking the usual seating arrangements is a really good way to begin the day. The simple fact that everyone is looking into each other's eyes is really powerful. It even opens them up to academic material, to whatever it is I want them to learn that day”. The 5th to 7th grade Spanish teacher said: “ I certainly believe that when a student has emotional problems, he can not accomplish many things in school and specially when he's having problems in the classroom, or when other students isolate him, he's not going to be in the best mindset to learn. So this techniques help us solve problems in an excellent way”. Teachers know that if a student is not well emotionally, he’s not going to be able to perform as expected, but most of them are afraid to approach their students when they sense that there is something going on in their lives outside school or that they are having troubles with classmates. Educators I spoke to identified that most of them don’t know what to do afterwards, how to guide them to find a solution or cope with their situation. The school director said: “Sometimes kids are not able to identify if they are sad, angry or even hungry. They need to learn

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how express and control their emotions properly. And circles are an effective way to do so”. By establishing the circle norms, a safe environment is created, where students can begin to express their feelings, something they had rarely been asked to do before at our school. In an exit card, one of the 10th grade students wrote:

“I feel aghast (perhaps too strong a word but I'm a writer, I'm dramatic) and frustrated at everyone's complaints. Too much work? Grow a backbone. I don't mean to sound mean (pun intended), it's just not as much work as everybody makes it out to be, their work ethic is nonexistent (I'm not talking about everyone, obviously, just the ones who redundantly said that this project was too much work) and that makes them whiny, but whatever, that's all I took from today... thank you for letting me rant”.

Other interviewees talked about additional benefits, such as student’s confidence in themselves, more participation in class, learning how to listen and how to say things so others will understand, and developing public speaking skills. The 7th and 9th grade Science teacher said: “Learning to listen to others, really listen to others, is a life skill that is hard to practice sometimes”. The 10th grade student I interviewed said: “Personally, I feel that circles have helped me overcome my fear of speaking in public, because usually when I speak in front of the classroom I feel my face turn red and hot, my hands begin to sweat and I just don't know what to say. With circles, I have been able to speak more naturally each time”. Finally, they reflected on Restorative Practices being a way to get students to express themselves, and to vent and validate their feelings. The school director stated “We need to learn to speak their language, but also give them a space to talk. Something that bothers my own two eldest kids is when they feel that other people don’t validate what they are saying just because they are young. They have grown in an environment where we always listen to them and take their opinions into consideration”.

Empathy and belongingness

Another benefit emphasized by the people interviewed was the increase of empathy and the feeling of belongingness. The 7th and 9th grade teacher said: “I know that practicing these abilities every day is essential for adolescents, since they are going through tough times figuring out who they are and where they belong”. Most students reported (in exit cards) that they were glad to get to know how other students felt, and even how their teachers felt. They also talked about realizing were not the only ones who felt a certain way. Many teachers are not aware of things going on in their students’ lives and sometimes they put too much pressure on them. When students fail at what is expected of them, teachers are surprised that they did not react well to pressure. They have good intentions, but sometimes they are not able to empathize with them because they never took the time to get to know them and their situation better. The 5th grade teacher said: “Even though I had my suspicions, I did not know that so many of my students were going through their parent’s divorce or family issues. When I got to observe the circles, I got a different angle, and now I can help in better ways” The same teacher also emphasized the importance of establishing a connection with students: “Seeing them as more than students, as human beings. I have tried to establish this in my class, and it is not so much of a teaching philosophy, it is more of a human being philosophy. This is important, getting to the students’ level, and becoming one more of the group. And yes, it is true you are facilitating the circle, but, you are one more”. He added:

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“We need to set our priorities straight, we are sometimes involved in so many things, that we start seeing students as products, and then we wonder why they are not doing well in school, when neither at home nor at school they are being treated as persons. I must be really hard for them as kids, but this circles help us understand them better and figure out what is going on with them. We need to become softer, more sensitive to their needs, because it would be useless to just listen to them and pretend nothing is happening, just continue with our regular classes”.

They also talked about the benefits of empathy among students. The 7th and 9th grades Science teacher said: “Community circles are beneficial because students get to know each­other better, and that helps with tolerance. There will be less bullying, a healthier environment where they know each­other better and learn how to say what they want to say and solve their problems by talking about them”. It is too soon to talk about a decrease in bullying, but we have noticed that each day more and more students report to teachers about situations where they have been attacked or where they have seen students attacking other students. High school students expressed that circles were helpful in getting to know themselves, their classmates and their teachers better. One student wrote: “With circles you get to really know what your opinion is on a certain issue, because sometimes we never even think about those things until you are asked in a circle”. She was talking about the time when we asked her how she felt about writing her autobiography and why it had been so hard for her. Another student wrote: “Well, the thing that was good about this circle is that I got to hear everyone's opinion about the project, and well, I thought I was the only one stressing out about this, but I guess I’m not”, refering to realizing that others had been feeling stressed about having to find a mentor soon, when they were not even sure what career they wanted to explore. One student wrote: “My take­away from today’s circle was learning what my teachers think about the project. It gave me the motivation to continue, knowing that I have my teachers' support”. These realizations were the motivation for students to begin working on the assigments that had been presented to them months ago, and that they did not wish to fulfill, mostly because they were afraid to make an important decision about their future. Talking to them during the circles gave them the confidence to explore different areas without having to stick to only one, and realizing that whatever they learn in an internship is useful to them, even if they end up deciding to go on a different path.

Family Involvement

We have also been implementing Family Circles in cases where the students have had repetitive misconduct and are affecting not only themselves but other students and teachers. Six interviewees talked about the use of family circles as ways to involve parents in their children’s school life. The 5th to 9th grades English teacher said: “...when I suspend a student, I don’t know what happened after, what went on at home, what he told his mom. Sometimes parents want to speak to you but sometimes they don’t even care. So this is a way to get them all together and give them an opportunity to commit, to analyze, to observe”. It is too soon still to ponder results of family circles, but most teachers are hopeful that the misconduct incidence will decrease. Four teachers and students agreed that family circles can become a way to promote better behavior, and a much better choice than suspension. The 3rd and 4th grade Spanish teacher said: “Using RJ family meetings vs. traditional suspensions is great, because with suspension they just don’t come, and with this, parents know what the problem was and we can get to the root of the problem”. The 7th to 12th grade Spanish Teacher and Tutor said:

“My opinion about using family circles instead of traditional suspension is that is ideal, because if this is the path we want to go on, families can learn how to solve conflicts in this way. And also, we will all agree, starting with what a fault is, because some parents think there are things we shouldn't consider as suspension worthy, so, this family circles can help us come to terms with

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why the incident is incorrect and how it is affecting others. Everyone is on the same channel, and families can learn this method, which is necessary”.

Academic Growth Six teachers talked about ways that circles can become tools to improve their practice and to really implement PBL. They talked about using circles as warm­ups to begin their class. They also thought about using academic topics in community circles, to talk about history or even math. One theme that emerged was using restorative circles to motivate students to work and also to engage them by learning their interests and what challenges them. As Kohn states:

“Every teacher who is told what material to cover, when to cover it, and how to evaluate children’s performance is a teacher who knows that enthusiasm for one’s work quickly evaporates in the face of being controlled. Not every teacher, however, realizes that exactly the same thing holds true for students: deprive them of self­determination and you have likely deprived them of motivation. If learning is a matter of following orders, students simply will not take to it in the way they would if they had some say about what they were doing” (Kohn,1993).

The use of circles as check­ins for projects as a way to motivate students to work was mentioned by three teachers. One teacher said:

“Sometimes kids just want fun classes but they do not do their part, they don't participate in some activities, or do not bring the materials for a project. I like circles because if kids become responsible for what they think and what they do, they will become more responsible in the other areas too. Circles can be a way to push work forward, when someone is not doing their job”.

All interviewees mentioned that one other issue that they deal with constantly is conflicts between students during team­work. One teacher said: “Part of it (the problem) is teamwork, and restorative practices can help a lot to solve those conflicts that always arise during teamwork and that sometimes don't let us advance”. Another teacher stated: “... we haven't been helping them develop their social emotional skills, working as a team, being tolerant, being and also being assertive. So circles are a great support for Project Based Learning. RJ is completely aligned with the philosophy that the school is trying to adopt. We really need something like this”. We were able to witness this after the circles we had with 8th and 9th grade. The next week they had to work together to create a project from scratch. The teacher only told them the theme and they had to come up with a driving question, the products, the timeline, etc. (another positive effect of circles, teachers letting go). The teacher facilitated a circle with them the next day to talk about challenges they were facing, and they were able to solve their differences and move forward with their work. When students are given a chance to decide, they usually work a lot harder. Other comments on Restorative Practices as PBL support were in relation to circles being spaces for reflection, auto­correction, spaces to learn how to give and receive a constructive critique, without getting defensive, and spaces to develop critical thinking. These are all necessary traits for successful PBL. With this same group, we were able to facilitate a Project Tuning session, where kids from 9th grade critiqued the 8th grade projects and vice­versa. We had circles at the end of the session to see what had worked and what could have been better. They said that space was too small and it was too much having to do both sessions (critiquing and being critiqued) at once. They did say that they had enjoyed the experience, they had learned how to give kind, specific and helpful feedback and they had been pushed to create deeper projects.

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Personal Need to Change Having teachers experience circles was helpful, in the sense that everyone got to experience the power of sitting together, looking into eachother’s eyes, with no distractions from phones or tablets, and a common goal, to share thoughts, feelings and goals.But also, because after the circles, they learned that in order to do PBL, they needed to change their teaching practices, they needed to listen to students, and haver them work in teams, during school hours. They needed to have them experience conflict and help them solve it. They needed to become guides in their learning process and not the beholders of knowledge, as they considered themselves to be before. One of the things that came up in the interviews was a personal need to change. Three teachers talked about their personality and teaching style, and how they needed to work on themselves to be able to implement both circles and PBL. The 7th­12th grade Spanish Teacher and Tutor said that

“The challenge I can see in implementing this in my own practice is my personality. I am from the old school and I am used to giving orders, and expecting them to be followed immediately. I need to work on myself, to be able to give students a voice, it is hard for me, and through the circles I have become even more aware that I need to change. I am used to always being in control of every situation, I might ask students for an opinion about a project in a structured way, but I never let go. The other thing I need to grow on is emotional intelligence, I am really working on this on myself before feeling ready to facilitate a circle”.

The 5th to 7th grade Spanish Teacher said:

“After listening to what my students had to say in one of the circles you facilitated, I realized that I have been putting a lot of effort into creating attractive projects for my elementary students and I haven't been doing the same for my middle school students. So that is the reason why they are frustrated, overwhelmed, or just not interested. I was not doing real projects in middle school, I was just telling them how to do products to answer a question, but I left out their voice and choice. After talking to you, I decided to let them create their own project to end the year, and it has been a wonderful experience seeing how motivated they are to come up with their own driving question, their own products, and even their own rubrics...They are really excited about this, and instead of me trying to push them to think further, or to do things, they are asking for my help and pushing me to make the project more meaningful and deeper. This time, they are the ones asking me to take them on field trips, to connect them with experts, etc. This is my first time allowing them to make all the decisions about their learning, and so far it looks good. This all came after a circle with them and our meeting. And let me tell you that this has not been easy for me because I am usually a controlling teacher, I like telling people what to do and how. But I am trying to become more flexible, and circles are helping a lot”.

Another teacher told me:

‘Sometimes even us as teachers are not motivated to come and we just come because we have to, and we are not giving our best. Circles are a way to connect with your students again and for them to become your allies, and and the constant struggle between teachers wanted to teach and students not wanting to learn. How great it will be if circles can accomplish this, and motivate me to become a better teacher”.

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Conclusions

Are Restorative Practices really the missing link? I firmly believe that Restorative Practices were the catalyst that allowed the 12 year transition of HPA to keep on moving forward, after a long stall. We are not yet a PBL school, but have accepted that we are not there yet and that we need to take steps to really become one. Before, we were in denial, thinking that we were doing the best we could with what we had, and that was not the case. The transition is over because we have begun taking real steps. We are now in a stage of Transformation. There have been many bumps in the road, but we are finally at a crossroads, and ready to take a leap. In this section, I will talk about the reasons why Restorative Practices were the missing link, the challenges that any school might encounter and recommendations for implementation. After the circles and the meeting we had with teachers, a transformation began at our school. The middle school teachers began collaborating, as they let their students decide everything about their final project of the year. At the meeting, teachers asked us to organize a trip to High Tech High to see how real PBL is done. Five teachers came to me to talk about ways to improve their teaching practice. I was called to co­facilitate two circles in middle­school to deal with project related problems. The school director asked me to help her create a checklist of what real PBL should consist of, so teachers may use it as a reference guide to evaluate themselves and improve their methods. The director said: “I am really happy that they (the teachers) are all willing to start trying, that you don’t have to do 500 circles per year.. I loved their reaction to circles. I can see that a real team is emerging. They are asking for more collaboration time, more meetings, more training. And with circles, teachers are beginning to feel our support”.

Challenges

Finding the time The most common challenge teachers talked about is time. The 7th grade teacher said: “A drawback or challenge for me to begin implementing circles in my classroom is having the time. Sometimes I need to cover a lot of content and I don't feel like I will have time, because, once you start it (a circle) you need to finish it. The 5th grade teacher stated: “A challenge for me is finding the time to do the circles, since there are many things I am asked to do. For example right now we have the play rehearsals, pictures taken, project exhibition, the end of the year fair, so, ... time is definitely one of the limitations to do circles”. Another teacher said: “My advice to other teachers is to just restructure the plan that you already have for your class, and dedicate some of your time to this. It is merely a planning issue, and sometimes teachers don’t want to change their plans, but if you dedicate a small amount of time to circles every day, you will se great results”

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As Dubin explains: “While such practices take time... they are a necessary part of instruction. If educators try to teach content over disruptive behaviors or emotions that manifest themselves in negative ways, learning will not and cannot occur” (Dubin, 2016). So, making time is important. After talking to more teachers informally, we realized we needed to create time in the school schedule to incopororate circes. So far, the director and I have been working on the elementary schedule for next year (Appedix E). We will collaborate to continue to modify the schedules for all the other levels. To do this, we took the advise from the What every Teacher needs to know Series, from the Responsive Classroom approach (Wilson, 2010). On each one of their book they have a Schedules and Routines Section, where they specify how to arrange schedules so there is time for community circles every day (they call themmorning meetings) and also for closing circles. We assigned 30 minutes very day at the beginning of the day and five at the end of the day for circles. To accomplish this, we took five minutes from every subject taught at our school. We also modified the times so kids can have schedules that meet their physical and developmental needs, as suggested in the series.

The right staff One harsh reflection we came upon is that not every staff member is right for our school. Some people are just not ready for change, and they are pulling us back. We have tried many things, such as Professional Development, co­teaching, peer observations, collaboration time, and they don’t seem to work. The school director came to this conclusion: “My advice for teachers who are beginning this journey is to be willing to learn. To know if someone was born to be a teacher, they have to love learning. We should not lose that as teachers. If we feel as we already know everything, it becomes a real challenge for anything new in education”. She also told me: “My classes are Project Based, but after hearing the students and having a circle with the teachers yesterday, I came to the conclusion that not everyone is on board yet. I want everybody to catch on, but it is hard. Because people don’t want to unlearn what they know”. The 5th grade teacher says about this issue: “...we could start by putting our ego aside, and becoming even a little vulnerable. It is true that the classroom is ours, but sometimes we behave like animals marking their territories: "this is mine", controlling everything, telling kids where to sit and all. And it is fine, but we must never forget that being a teacher is just one aspect of our lives, a roll we are playing, and there must be times when you take off the mask, and you become a human being”. There is also another factor, teachers have to be mentally prepared to assess situations where students might need more support, since sometimes victims and offenders are not in the right mental state to solve conflict. Sometimes the victim’s and the offender’s mental status have not been considered or their needs have not been analized. They should be psychollogically prepared, and given the information needed so they know the process an goals of the session (La Prairie, 1995; Hudson, 2003; Daly, 2003). After talking to the director abouth how to begin implementation, we concluded that telling teachers that they have to do it is not the right way, and it goes against Restorative Practices principles and against teacher voice and choice. The best way to approach it is by having the teachers who have participated in circles share their experiences with others during Professional Development sessions or other meetings. This way, they can motivate others to try them. She also stated:

“We will support teachers who are willing to make the change within themselves. They have to prove to us that they are willing. And we will be there for them. So the first step is to have the right people, with the right attitude. The second step is getting them trained, showing them how

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we expect them to do PBL. These circles can help us get to the bottom of this, by knowing where we stand with our students and our teachers”.

Recommendations for implementation

Training Six interviewess talked about training as a form of beginning implementation in schools. A teacher says: “I would recommend teacher training for starting up this practices, being observers, watching videos, seeing examples of what a teacher can do when there is a problem”. They have experienced observing and co­facilitating cirlces with me, but they also want to experience them even further as participants, One teacher suggested we can have a series of circles during Professional Development sessions, where we can get to know each other, as we practiced the circle norms and process. Other teachers talked about having a mentor or coach, and access to more literature and resources.

Interactive Modeling Observation, participation and co­facilitation were suggested by all eight people interviewed. They way we started this process at HPA was through me facilitating the circles, and teachers were able to decide if they only wanted to observe, if they wanted to participate in the circle or they wanted to co­facilitate with me. One teacher said: “The support that has been helpful has been participating and observing circles before facilitating them myself”. Another teacher added: “It is useful to facilitate circles with you or someone else, just so we can give each other feedback about how we manage each situation. Just someone to support you in those tough moments when you don't know what to do or why you even decided to have a circle. It would be great to have a coach, to guide us through this process”. Most of them said that they would prefer to continue to be co­facilitiators so that they can be given feedback and support on how they handle tough situations with students such as when they open up about something personal and/or emotional, or when one student is not willing to speak. We will use the interactive modeling technique, suggested by The Responsive Classroom Approach, which is a “simple but powerful way to help students picture and practice our expectations for certain times and routines of the day” (Wilson, 2010). Since we want teachers to get used to this approach, we will be practicing the seven steps with them:

1. Describe a behavior you will model. 2. Model the behavior. 3. Ask participants what they noticed. 4. Ask volunteers to model the same behavior. 5. As participants what they noticed. 6. Have everybody practice. 7. Provide feedback.

Using this model, we will be able to provide instruction and feedback on how to handle different situations during circles, and also prepare teachers to begin interactive modeling in their classrooms.

Starting light Four teachers talked about beginning with community circles, which are easier to facilitate because they are not as personal. They also talked about beginning with one question and building it up to three. A teacher says: “My

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advice to other teachers would be to start the way I did, with community circles, with games, and lighter topics. The students love these, because it is part of the class, but it is relaxing and they feel like they are just talking”. The 10th grade student I interviewed also tapped on this: “For example, in my case, there are people in my classroom who are from upper grades, since we're all together and the high school, and I don't even know their names. So talking about personal things with them it's hard. But if we could have activities before the circle that can prepare us for it it would be a lot better”. We will be using the Teaching Restorative Practices with Classroom Circles 7 lesson curriculum. It has a plan for the first 7 lessons to introduce circle format; teach the circle guidelines; introduce the talking piece; cultivate connection among students; establish trust and safety; introduce restorative justice; develop ability to identify how an incident may affect many people in many ways; introduce the concept of “making things right” as an alternative to punishment; engage students in identifying issues that affect them, the classroom, and the school; use restorative questions to discuss issues affecting the classroom; learn how to use the fishbowl circle format; gain experience with asking restorative questions; use restorative questions to explore and move toward resolution of conflicts with other students; use Restorative Questions to express appreciation of other students; identify and discuss any issues that may have arisen with Guidelines and Agreements; and deepen students’ sense of ownership and responsibility for circles and classroom climate (Amos, n. d.).

Resources

1. Alameda County Health Care Services Agency.(2011). Restorative Justice: a working guide for our schools. School Health Services Coalition. Retrieved from: http://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/D2_Restorative­Justice­Paper_Alfred.pdf

2. Amos C. (n.d.). Teaching Restorative Practices with Classroom Circles. Center for Restorative Process Developed. San Francisco Unified School District. Retrieved from: http://www.healthiersf.org/RestorativePractices/Resources/documents/RP%20Curriculum%20and%20Scripts%20and%20PowePoints/Classroom%20Curriculum/Teaching%20Restorative%20Practices%20in%20the%20Classroom%207%20lesson%20Curriculum.pdf

3. Ashley, J., Burke, K. Implementing restorative justice: A guide for schools. Bureau of Justice Assistance, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice, through the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority. Retrieved from: https://www.sccgov.org/sites/pdo/ppw/SESAP/Documents/SCHOOL%20RJP%20GUIDEBOOOK.pdf

4. Blanchard, K (2006) Leading Change at a Higher Level. Pearson Education Ltd., New Jersey. Retrieved from: http://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/images/9780137011704/samplepages/9780137011704.pdf

5. Brady, K., Forton, M. B., Porter, D., Wood, C. (2003). Rules in School. Strategies for teachers series. Northeast Foundation for Children, Inc.

6. Daly, K. (2003). “Mind the Gap: Restorative Justice in the Theory and Practice.” In Von Hirsh, A., Roberts, J., Bottoms, A., Roach, K., Schiff, M. (ed). Restorative Justice and Criminal Justice. Oregon: Hart Publishing Oxford and Portland.

7. Dubin, J. (2016). Learning to Switch Gears: In New Haven, a Restorative Approach to School Discipline. American Educator. Retrieved from: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1086545.pdf

8. Elementary Justice Committee (2012), Parent­to­Parent Guide: Restorative Justice in Chicago Public Schools. Stopping the School ­ to ­ Prison Pipeline. A COFI Project. Retrieved from:http://www.cofionline.org/COFI/wp­content/uploads/2015/04/COFI_ParentGuide.pdf

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9. Fixing School Discipline Toolkit for educators, retrieved from: http://www.joomag.com/magazine/fix­school­discipline­toolkit­for­educators/0264187001429224353?short

10. Gohard, A., Zehr, H. (2003). The Little Book of Restorative Justice. Good Books, Intercourse, Pennsylvania, USA. Retrieved from:http://www.unicef.org/tdad/littlebookrjpakaf.pdf

11. Hudson, B. (2003). Victims and Offenders. Restorative Justice and Criminal Justice. Oregon. Hart Publishing Oxford and Portland.

12. Jennings, P. A. and Greenberg, M. T. (2008). The Prosocial Classroom: Teacher Social and Emotional Competence in Relation to Student and Classroom Outcomes. American Educational Research Associations and SAGE Publications. Retrieved from: http://rer.sagepub.com/content/79/1/491

13. Kohn, A. (1993). Choices for children: Why and how to let children decide. Phi Delta Kappan. Retrieved from http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/cfc.htm

14. La Paro, K. M. & Pianta, R. C. (2003) CLASS: Classroom Assessment Scoring System. Charlottsville: University of Virginia Press. Retrieved from: http://www.google.com/url?q=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.virginia.edu%2Fprovost%2Ftneuva%2Fdocs%2FLaParoCLASS.doc&sa=D&sntz=1&usg=AFQjCNH9pFsAE814g74OTRinhOKjDPyvXg

15. LaPrairie, C. (1995). Altering Course: New Directions in Criminal Justice Sentencing Circles and Family Group Conferences. In: The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology. Retrieved from: http://anj.sagepub.com/content/28/1_suppl/78.abstract

16. Marzano, R. J., Marzano, J. S., & Pickering, D. J. (2003). Classroom management that works. Alexandra, VA:ASCD. Retrieved from: http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/103027/chapters/The­Critical­Role­of­Classroom­Management.aspx

17. McCluskey, G., Lloyd, G., Kane, J., Riddell, S., Stead, J., & Weedon, E. (2008). Can Restorative Practices in Schools Make a Difference? Educational Review. Retrieved from: http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ821669&site=ehost­live

18. McCluskey, G., Lloyd, G., Stead, J., Kane, J., Riddell, S., & Weedon, E. (2008). I was Dead Restorative Today: From Restorative Justice to Restorative Approaches in School, Cambridge Journal of Education. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/248998963_%27I_was_dead_restorative_today%27_from_Restorative_Justice_to_Restorative_Approaches_in_School

19. Morrison, K. A. (2008). Democratic Classrooms: Promises and Challenges of Student Voice and Choice, Part One. Educational Horizons.

20. Rimm­Kaufman, S. E., Larsen, R., Curby, T., Baroody, A., Merritt, E., Abry, T., Ko, M. & Thomas, J. (2012, September). Efficacy of the Responsive Classroom Approach: Results from a three year, longitudinal randomized controlled trial. Society for Research in Educational Effectiveness, Washington, D.C.Retrieved from: https://www.sree.org/conferences/2012f/program/downloads/abstracts/683.pdf

21. Robinson, K. (2015). Creative Schools: The Grassroots Revolution That’s Transforming Schools. Viking.

22. Shah, N. (2012). Restorative Practices Offer Alternatives to Suspension. Education Week. 23. Wachtel, T. Defining Restorative. International Institute for Restorative Practices, Graduate

School of Education. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. Retrieved from: http://www.iirp.edu/pdf/Defining­Restorative.pdf

24. Wilson, Margaret Berry (2010). What every teacher needs to know about setting up and running a classroom. Northeast Foundation for Children, Inc. Retrieved from: http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/what­every­teacher­needs­to­know/

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25. Wood, C. and Freeman­Loftis B. (2011). Responsive School Discipline. Essentials for Elementary School Leaders. Northeast Foundation for Children, Inc. Retrieved from: https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/sites/default/files/RSDintro.pdf

26. Youth Justice Board for England and Wales.(2004). National Evaluation of the Restorative Justice in Schools Programme. Retrieved from: http://www.creducation.org/resources/National_Eval_RJ_in_Schools_Full.pdf

Appendices

Appendix A

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Appendix B

PLAN ­ DO ­ STUDY ­ ACT (PDSA) CYCLE

Date: Aim: Change Idea Title: Targeted Driver: Quick Description of the Change Idea: PLAN What is the purpose of this cycle? (i.e. to test/refine a change idea, see how it works in a different context, see if it leads to the desired outcomes, test a data collection tool/strategy, etc.): When? Who? Where? What do you need to do to get ready?

Questions: What do you want to learn from this cycle?

Data: What data will you collect to answer your questions?

Predictions: What do you think will happen?

Results: What were the results? What did you learn? (completed after implementation)

1.

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2.

3.

4.

DO & STUDY (i.e. REFLECT) What happened when you implemented the change idea ­ observations, surprises, questions, challenges? What are your key findings and take­a­ways from this cycle? (It is helpful to refer to the “results” in the table above.) ACT (i.e. NEXT STEPS) What are possible next steps? What adaptations/refinements would you suggest for future cycles? If you recommend abandoning the change idea, why?

Appendix C Timeline August 2015:

Experiencing and talking about circles. Professional development about Restorative Practices and Inclusion. Prezi here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1h3fYLM­D7jaHuT_ba7DEnhgvczw3ZOLeAxCtkSE5gX0/edit?usp=sharing

September­December 2015 : Some teachers began implementation in their classrooms.

January ­ February 2016:

Some teachers asked me to facilitate circles in their classrooms when incidents happened. March 2016:

I facilitated 8 circles in grades 5th to 12th. Transcription of circles. PDSA Cycles. Meeting with all middle school and high school teachers.

April 2016:

Interviews with 5 teachers, one student, the school director and middle school dean. Interview transcripts. Coding of data

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I started seeing results from circles. Whole staff visit to HTHCV, proposed by teachers at the meeting.

May 2016: Findings and Conclusions sections final drafts. POL Report findings to other colleagues. Launch of Website about Restorative Practices, in collaboration with Rhea Brown and Melissa

Mouton. June­July 2016:

Co­writing of article about Restorative Practices with Rhea Brown and Charlie Hoff. August 2016:

Publish article. Present Prezi about Restorative Practices to parents.

Appendix D

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