Education: Addressing the Issue with Restorative Justice Programs Using Collaborative Rhetoric

Image Credit: https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/restorative-practices-schools-work-they-can-work-better

 

Thesis: While it can be said that restorative justice initiatives have helped many students of color and teachers find a better way of communicating vs. school suspension, it can also be stated that these programs allow disruptive students to keep being a disturbance and let even more students fall behind. A potential solution lies in giving children three strikes before taking action.

 First, considering my opponent's arguments that restorative justice programs have decreased the need for suspensions and detentions, they also allow students to be heard more and seen. In her article, "Rethinking School Discipline," Rachel Cohen writes that "Every teacher at Hampstead Hill is required to lead three class-wide circles per week. These don't take very long, perhaps 10 to 12 minutes, but the idea is to regularly create the space for students to share their feelings, ask each other questions, and build trust" (Cohen). When students are given a voice, they are more likely to behave and listen. The time it takes to take small steps with restorative justice programs is short and has enormous advantages. If teachers lead these programs, it can help them better understand their students and notice their own biases.

Furthermore, my opponent and I can agree that restorative justice programs reduce suspensions and detentions, meaning that fewer students miss out on valuable learning that could have made them fall behind. We can also agree that more needs to be done for restorative programs to work. Cohen also notes in her article, "Rethinking School Discipline," that there is no easy solution to "racial disproportionally" and that "It will require more than just sending individual teachers to anti-racism training" (Cohen). Canceling restorative justice programs is not the answer. They are beneficial and aren't expensive, but just restorative justice programs alone won't help students. Tim Walker writes in his article, "Restorative Practices in Schools Work ... But They Can Work Better, "Neglecting to explicitly address the role of institutional racial bias in our society (and schools) is another pitfall" (Walker). It isn't enough to just have circle time with students and expect results. It is also unrealistic to expect change to happen overnight.

In conclusion, while there is no easy answer on balancing restorative justice programs and zero-tolerance policies, some common ground can be found. Richard Ullman, a teacher of many years, summarizes in his article, "Restorative Justice: The Zero-Tolerance Policy Overcorrection," that giving a student too many chances defeats the purpose of helping that student. Most importantly, his peers (Ullman). It can be agreed between both parties that the importance of students comes first. If disruptive students are being given too many chances, it defeats the purpose of helping students overall. Students who are trying to learn and students from similar backgrounds as well. Teachers who send their students to detention aren't terrible teachers, and a potential solution is to give students three chances before sending them to the principal's office. This solution allows students to correct their behavior, be given a chance, and other scholars the opportunity to learn.

Works Cited

Cohen, Rachel M. "Rethinking School Discipline." The American Prospect, 2 Nov. 2016, https://prospect.org/education/rethinking-school-discipline/.

Ullman, Richard. "Restorative Justice: The Zero-Tolerance-Policy Overcorrection ." Education Week, Education Week, 26 Mar. 2021, https://www.edweek.org/leadership/opinion-restorative-justice-the-zero-tolerance-policy-overcorrection/2016/09.

Walker, Tim. "Restorative Practices in Schools Work ... But They Can Work Better." NEA, 30 Jan. 2020, https://www.nea.org/advocating-for-change/new-from-nea/restorative-practices-schools-work-they-can-work-better.

-Angel Hunter

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image credit: https://www.ted.com/topics/education

Thesis: It is essential to consider both the instructor's and the student's points of view when creating new restorative justice programs because the cooperation of both is needed to succeed.

    First, I think that Angel is right to suggest that children receive group therapy and counseling because they are more likely to behave when they are given emotional space. For example, Rachel Cohen mentions that the "zero tolerance" policy contributes to more children being sent to prison after school because they were not given enough chances to correct their behaviors. Even teachers agree that balancing the students' needs with the teachers is challenging. One English teacher that Cohen quotes is Kimberley Colbert, who says, "We don't want to see our colleagues hurt, we don't want to be hurt, and at the same time, we understand that we have students who get angry and have needs (Cohen). Taking the children's needs into consideration is necessary when creating new restorative justice programs.

    Additionally, Angel also correctly touched on teachers' roles in creating new restorative justice programs by addressing the need for racial awareness in their training. There is a fine line between discipline vs. abuse of power and controlling an environment vs. suppressing the students' spirits. Many teachers are falsely blamed for misbehaving students. For example, Richard Ullman mentions how they are often blamed for not engaging the students enough when one or more of them disrupts the learning environment, but many of those teachers are doing the best they can with what they have (Ullman). Many of them are overworked, exhausted, and underpaid; taking care of students' emotional, physical, and intellectual needs is far more than what they signed up to do. In Ullman's words, "Teachers, especially in high-poverty areas, are some of the most tolerant, patient, social-justice-oriented humanitarians in any profession." For these reasons, teachers' needs should be considered when reforming the education system.

In conclusion, we have discussed how students' needs for emotional support and racial justice are necessary for restorative justice programs, and we have discussed how opponents view these ideas. We also talked about the needs of students and teachers as reported by teachers across the country and how teachers also need support to adequately support their students. We used the principles of collaborative rhetoric to empathize with opposing sides on education reform issues.

Works Cited

Cohen, Rachel M. "Rethinking School Discipline." The American Prospect, 2 Nov. 2016, https://prospect.org/education/rethinking-school-discipline/.

Ullman, Richard. "Restorative Justice: The Zero-Tolerance-Policy Overcorrection ." Education Week, Education Week, 26 Mar. 2021, https://www.edweek.org/leadership/opinion-restorative-justice-the-zero-tolerance-policy-overcorrection/2016/09.

 - Annika V.

Here is a VIDEO about restorative justice in schools; it is a Ted Talk by Teacher Jean Klasovsky about why she thinks the "zero tolerance" policy is ineffective.