April 6, 2026
Restorative Justice Works (Just Not Like That)
You sat in the circle. You heard the apology. And you knew… nothing actually changed. Restorative justice can work in schools- the research supports that. But the versions most campuses are implementing... Are something else entirely. Research describes restorative practices as structured, resourced, and time-intensive. What most schools are doing is faster, lighter, and handed off. That's how school counselors end up in the middle of things: Facilitating conversations that aren't meant to ...
You sat in the circle.
You heard the apology.
And you knew… nothing actually changed.
Restorative justice can work in schools- the research supports that.
But the versions most campuses are implementing...
Are something else entirely.
Research describes restorative practices as structured, resourced, and time-intensive.
What most schools are doing is faster, lighter, and handed off.
That's how school counselors end up in the middle of things:
- Facilitating conversations that aren't meant to be rushed
- Trying to facilitate a process you were never really trained to lead
- Knowing the outcome doesn’t match what the promises of true restoration, but not having the language to explain why.
In this episode, we take a hard look at what restorative justice actually requires... and how to know if your campus is falling short.
Because this isn’t just about whether you believe in restorative practices.
It’s about whether what’s happening on your campus even matches what the research is measuring-
And what that means for the role you’re being asked to play.
Referred to in this episode:
Ep. 191, "Your Campus Runs on a Pyramid of Lies"
********
Join our new Skool for School Counselors community
********
Want support with real-world strategies that actually work on your campus? We’re doing that every day in the School for School Counselors Mastermind. Come join us!
********
All names, stories, and case studies in this episode are fictionalized composites drawn from real-world circumstances. Any resemblance to actual students, families, or school personnel is coincidental. Details have been altered to protect privacy.
********
Ready to spend a few days this summer with me, geeking out over school counseling and preparing for your best year ever? Grab your ticket here before this limited-seat event sells out!
Ready to spend a few days this summer with me, geeking out over school counseling and preparing for your best year ever? Grab your ticket here before this limited-seat event sells out!
********
This work is part of the School for School Counselors body of work developed by Steph Johnson, LPC, CSC, which centers role authority over role drift, consultative practice over fix-it culture, adult-designed systems and environments as primary drivers of student behavior, clinical judgment over compliance, and school counselor identity as leadership within complex systems.
00:13 - When A New Mandate Lands
03:49 - The Definition Problem In Practice
10:12 - What Real Implementation Requires
15:31 - What A Real Circle Looks Like
20:39 - Voluntary Participation And Safety Limits
26:46 - Measuring Success Beyond Suspensions
32:59 - The Four Conditions And Next Steps
WEBVTT
00:00:07.479 --> 00:00:09.719
You know how this goes.
00:00:09.879 --> 00:00:17.399
Your principal goes to a conference or watches a webinar or reads a headline and they come back on fire.
00:00:17.640 --> 00:00:18.600
This is it.
00:00:18.920 --> 00:00:21.000
This is what we've been missing.
00:00:21.240 --> 00:00:37.159
And suddenly there are emails, there's a PD workshop on the calendar, and posters going up in the hallway, and everybody's language starts to change overnight because it's not just a suggestion or an idea anymore.
00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:39.159
It has become a mandate.
00:00:39.799 --> 00:00:43.480
We are going to transform our school culture.
00:00:43.879 --> 00:00:47.879
This is going to be a game changer for our kids.
00:00:48.439 --> 00:00:57.640
And if you've been in education longer than five minutes, you recognize this moment because you've lived it before.
00:00:57.879 --> 00:01:11.159
You've watched the excitement, you've sat through the trainings, you've nodded in all the right places, and then you've watched the whole thing implode while the next game changer was already being announced.
00:01:11.560 --> 00:01:15.560
But when this one got announced, it felt different.
00:01:15.880 --> 00:01:20.200
Because this time they put this one in your hands.
00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:22.439
And that's how you end up here.
00:01:22.840 --> 00:01:28.920
Sitting in a room with two students, 30 minutes notice, a talking piece on the table.
00:01:29.159 --> 00:01:34.280
One student is leaning back, they're relaxed, almost like they're amused.
00:01:34.680 --> 00:01:39.560
And then another student is staring at their shoes, making themselves small.
00:01:39.960 --> 00:01:41.719
The apology comes.
00:01:41.880 --> 00:01:45.000
It's technically correct because it has all the right words.
00:01:45.240 --> 00:01:48.280
I'm sorry if what I did made you feel bad.
00:01:48.520 --> 00:01:58.040
And you sit there watching this with a feeling you can't quite put your finger on because nothing about this situation feels like restoration.
00:01:58.520 --> 00:02:10.520
It feels like the student who caused the harm just got a very structured opportunity to intimidate again in front of you with your facilitation and a talking piece.
00:02:10.759 --> 00:02:17.080
The following week, you hear about the same two students and you're asked, can you run another circle?
00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:19.080
The first one didn't quite stick.
00:02:19.319 --> 00:02:24.439
And when you say you're not sure that's the right call, you're told, trust takes time.
00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:27.479
The process just needs more repetitions.
00:02:27.960 --> 00:02:37.159
Now, you know in your gut this is not the right intervention, but the problem is you don't have the words yet to explain exactly why.
00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:39.800
Well, I have good news for you, my friend.
00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:43.000
That's exactly what this episode is for.
00:02:43.960 --> 00:02:46.120
Hey, school counselor, welcome back.
00:02:46.280 --> 00:02:48.840
Here's what I know about you right now.
00:02:49.000 --> 00:02:54.120
You either love restorative justice or you feel like it's complete baloney.
00:02:54.599 --> 00:02:57.479
There's not a lot of middle ground on this one.
00:02:57.640 --> 00:03:01.319
Maybe you've watched it work, but more likely you haven't.
00:03:01.560 --> 00:03:08.520
Today we're gonna go through exactly what it takes, according to the research, for restorative practices to work.
00:03:08.680 --> 00:03:16.680
Some of what you hear is gonna feel very validating, and some of it is going to make you extremely uncomfortable.
00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:25.800
So, if you're ready for some straight talk, my friend, some clarity in your work and maybe a little bit of rebellion, you are in the right place.
00:03:25.960 --> 00:03:30.680
I'm Steph Johnson, and this is the School for School Counselors podcast.
00:03:32.599 --> 00:03:36.439
Hey, hey, so today we're gonna do something a little different.
00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:42.920
Instead of telling you what doesn't work, we're gonna talk about what it actually takes to do this one right.
00:03:43.240 --> 00:03:47.240
There are four conditions that come straight from the research.
00:03:47.319 --> 00:03:59.640
And fair warning, some of what the research shows is gonna surprise you, even if you've already made up your mind about restorative justice, and especially if you've already made up your mind.
00:03:59.960 --> 00:04:06.680
So let's start with the most basic condition of all for making restorative practices work in schools.
00:04:07.000 --> 00:04:09.800
You have to know what you're actually doing.
00:04:10.039 --> 00:04:14.759
And in restorative justice, that is genuinely harder than it sounds.
00:04:15.080 --> 00:04:19.719
Because here's something that almost nobody tells you until you dig into the research.
00:04:19.959 --> 00:04:24.279
There is no agreed upon definition of restorative justice.
00:04:24.519 --> 00:04:37.799
The field itself calls it a contested concept, which means when someone says research supports restorative justice, the first question has to be, okay, which version?
00:04:38.359 --> 00:04:43.000
Because that label gets applied to a lot of things that are not the same.
00:04:43.319 --> 00:04:52.919
Quick hallway conversations, classroom check-ins, and formal harm conversations that last an hour or more are not all the same things.
00:04:53.239 --> 00:04:59.319
Their approaches and their underlying intentions and frameworks are not interchangeable.
00:04:59.639 --> 00:05:06.599
And this isn't just a problem of semantics, it has direct consequences for the research.
00:05:06.919 --> 00:05:14.279
If we can't agree on what we're studying, we can't actually know what we're measuring when we say it works.
00:05:14.519 --> 00:05:15.959
Think about what that means.
00:05:16.119 --> 00:05:19.319
Was that school doing what your school is doing?
00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:22.359
Was that circle the same kind of circle?
00:05:22.599 --> 00:05:25.879
Was that coordinator the same kind of coordinator?
00:05:26.039 --> 00:05:27.399
Maybe, maybe not.
00:05:27.560 --> 00:05:31.560
And nobody in that training room is asking those questions.
00:05:32.119 --> 00:05:42.119
This is also where something deeper is worth talking about because the problem with defining restorative practices isn't accidental.
00:05:42.679 --> 00:06:00.599
There is a pattern in Western education where we encounter something cool rooted in Indigenous knowledge, something communal, relational, embedded in a specific cultural framework, and we grab onto the one piece that fits on a poster.
00:06:01.159 --> 00:06:09.079
We strip out the community, the accountability structure, and all of the context that made it work in the first place.
00:06:09.319 --> 00:06:15.399
And then we hand the remainder to the schools, we slap a name on it, and we call it a strategy.
00:06:15.879 --> 00:06:17.879
We did that with Maslow.
00:06:18.119 --> 00:06:27.000
If you listened to the last episode, episode 191, you know Maslow's hierarchy has serious evidence problems.
00:06:27.239 --> 00:06:29.959
But here's something I didn't cover in that episode.
00:06:30.199 --> 00:06:36.119
And it's the fact that the origin story goes way deeper than most people know.
00:06:36.599 --> 00:06:43.879
Abraham Maslow visited the Sixica, the Blackfoot Nation, in 1938.
00:06:44.359 --> 00:06:52.119
He spent six weeks embedded in a community that genuinely challenged his assumptions about human motivation.
00:06:52.679 --> 00:07:00.599
Because in the Blackfoot framework, self-actualization is not the destination, it's the starting point.
00:07:01.159 --> 00:07:08.599
The individual develops, and then that development fuels something larger, community actualization.
00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:17.799
And above that, cultural perpetuity, the responsibility to contribute to your people's survival and knowledge across generations.
00:07:18.439 --> 00:07:23.000
The individual exists in service of the community.
00:07:23.479 --> 00:07:25.479
Maslow observed that.
00:07:35.479 --> 00:07:38.599
And he never credited the Blackfoot.
00:07:38.919 --> 00:07:43.959
And there are Blackfoot scholars who are still feeling pretty salty about that, rightfully so.
00:07:44.199 --> 00:07:55.639
Though to be fair, the foremost researchers on this specific question, Blackfoot scholars Ryan Heavyhead and Nurse Blood, stop short of calling it stealing.
00:07:55.879 --> 00:08:03.000
What they document is significant unacknowledged influence, the taking without the crediting.
00:08:03.239 --> 00:08:07.159
The literature calls that epistemic appropriation.
00:08:07.399 --> 00:08:11.799
But then again, most of us would probably just call it stealing.
00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:27.799
Then we did it again with mindfulness, a 2,500-year-old Buddhist ethical practice, communal, inseparable from the Eightfold Path, and grounded in collective liberation.
00:08:28.119 --> 00:08:31.959
Mindfulness got redefined as individual stress management.
00:08:32.200 --> 00:08:41.960
It was stripped of its ethical framework, stripped of its communal purpose, and handed to schools where it became a glitter jar in a calm corner.
00:08:42.200 --> 00:08:45.560
And now we're doing it with restorative justice.
00:08:45.879 --> 00:08:57.560
Indigenous peacemaking practices that only worked because they were embedded in a community with shared values, shared accountability, and shared commitment to long-term relationship repair.
00:08:57.960 --> 00:09:03.320
But we packaged it into a one-day PD and handed it to educators.
00:09:04.200 --> 00:09:19.399
In all three cases, what made the original meaningful is exactly what got taken out, which is why we can't even agree on what to call restorative practices and why the research is so hard to interpret.
00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:24.680
You can't call it what it is because we've lost track of what it actually was.
00:09:25.560 --> 00:09:30.519
So knowing what it is that you're actually doing isn't just a technicality.
00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:38.920
Before your school implements anything called restorative anything, someone needs to be able to answer these questions clearly.
00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:41.560
What specific model are we using?
00:09:41.800 --> 00:09:43.399
What does it include?
00:09:43.639 --> 00:09:46.519
What does it explicitly exclude?
00:09:46.680 --> 00:09:51.240
And is everyone in this building working from the same definition?
00:09:51.800 --> 00:09:58.759
And if any of those answers are vague, your foundation is already cracked before you've laid a single brick.
00:09:59.080 --> 00:10:06.280
Restorative practices in schools can work, but it's only if we're honest about what we're actually doing.
00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:15.160
So then, if the first condition is knowing what you're doing, the second step is having what you need to actually do it.
00:10:15.399 --> 00:10:25.960
You know, when I was instructed to use restorative practices, I was handed a cue card with four guiding questions, and I was told to use it in hallway conversations.
00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:27.320
That was it.
00:10:27.480 --> 00:10:30.440
That was the extent of my restorative training.
00:10:30.600 --> 00:10:35.320
And I'll bet you got something similar if you got anything at all.
00:10:35.560 --> 00:10:37.720
My friend, that's not a foundation.
00:10:37.879 --> 00:10:39.480
That's an aesthetic.
00:10:39.960 --> 00:10:45.240
So let's start with what the research says genuine implementation looks like.
00:10:45.720 --> 00:10:51.080
It's whole school adoption, not a program that runs in the school counselor's office.
00:10:51.399 --> 00:10:55.560
It is not a circle here and there only when something goes sideways.
00:10:55.800 --> 00:11:05.240
It requires every single adult in the building to operate from the same philosophy, the same training, and the same level of commitment.
00:11:05.480 --> 00:11:11.000
It requires ongoing professional development, not a one-day workshop.
00:11:11.320 --> 00:11:19.879
It requires strong, consistent administrative leadership, not just endorsement, but modeling, living by it.
00:11:20.280 --> 00:11:32.200
Administrators who use restorative language in their own interactions, who back the process when it gets hard, and who don't default to suspension the moment a situation gets serious.
00:11:32.680 --> 00:11:37.320
It also requires a full-time dedicated coordinator.
00:11:37.800 --> 00:11:45.800
Not a school counselor who also does restorative justice, not a dean who runs these restorative circles between their other duties.
00:11:46.040 --> 00:11:51.720
It is a role, a person whose entire job is this.
00:11:52.519 --> 00:12:00.920
Research specifically identifies the absence of a dedicated coordinator as one of the primary reasons implementations fail.
00:12:01.560 --> 00:12:07.800
And then there's a study that should have changed this whole conversation, but somehow did not.
00:12:08.280 --> 00:12:18.360
Pittsburgh Public Schools, the Rand Corporation, with one of the first randomized controlled trials of restorative practices in schools.
00:12:18.680 --> 00:12:20.759
This is the gold standard.
00:12:21.160 --> 00:12:36.840
44 schools, strong experimental design, real resources, real training, a dedicated program with coaches who visited schools, monthly professional learning groups, and consistent administrative support.
00:12:37.160 --> 00:12:39.639
What else could you ask for?
00:12:40.200 --> 00:12:45.560
By most measures, this was a better implementation than anything most schools ever attempt.
00:12:45.800 --> 00:12:55.320
And here's what they found: suspensions went down in both the restorative schools and the non-restorative schools.
00:12:55.560 --> 00:13:00.040
And we need to pause there because that's not how this gets presented.
00:13:00.280 --> 00:13:03.960
It gets presented like a clean win for restorative practices.
00:13:04.120 --> 00:13:08.840
Suspensions went down, hooray! But it isn't a clean win.
00:13:09.080 --> 00:13:14.440
And they couldn't actually say restorative practices caused that change.
00:13:14.680 --> 00:13:17.480
Maybe there was something else happening in those schools.
00:13:17.639 --> 00:13:19.560
Maybe it was a national trend.
00:13:19.720 --> 00:13:22.840
Maybe it was the fact that everybody knew they were being watched.
00:13:23.000 --> 00:13:24.680
No one really knows for sure.
00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:26.840
And that is a huge problem.
00:13:27.720 --> 00:13:34.360
And then when they looked at the other outcomes in this study, violence, no meaningful difference.
00:13:34.680 --> 00:13:37.480
Arrests, no meaningful difference.
00:13:37.720 --> 00:13:46.759
And in middle schools, academic outcomes actually got worse, including declines in math scores for black students.
00:13:47.160 --> 00:13:49.720
Let that one percolate for a second.
00:13:50.200 --> 00:14:00.680
Because this was one of the better resourced, better supported implementations in the research literature, and it still could not deliver clear results.
00:14:01.080 --> 00:14:15.240
So if Pittsburgh, with coaches and training and administrative support and a real program produced results this mixed, what exactly are we expecting from a laminated card on a lanyard?
00:14:16.600 --> 00:14:23.399
So before your school moves forward, someone needs to be able to answer these questions.
00:14:23.800 --> 00:14:26.200
Do we have a dedicated coordinator?
00:14:26.360 --> 00:14:28.440
And is that their only role?
00:14:28.680 --> 00:14:34.200
Do we have a multi-year professional development plan, not just a one-off workshop?
00:14:34.519 --> 00:14:40.200
Does our administration model restorative practices or just talk about them?
00:14:40.600 --> 00:14:47.960
And are we prepared to sustain this for three to five years before we expect to see any meaningful change?
00:14:48.280 --> 00:14:50.680
Because that's what the research says it takes.
00:14:50.920 --> 00:14:56.600
Three to five years of sustained, supported, whole school implementation.
00:14:57.320 --> 00:15:02.440
If the answer to any of those questions is vague, you don't have a foundation.
00:15:02.680 --> 00:15:04.120
You have an intention.
00:15:04.360 --> 00:15:07.560
And intentions don't repair harm.
00:15:08.040 --> 00:15:13.960
Restorative practices in schools can work, but not without a real foundation.
00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:25.080
So if condition two was about what your school needs to have in place, the next condition, condition three, is about what actually happens in the room.
00:15:25.320 --> 00:15:36.840
And this is where we kind of need to slow down because most people have probably never actually seen what a true restorative circle looks like when it's done well.
00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:38.360
And that's important.
00:15:38.920 --> 00:15:44.040
Because if you haven't seen the real thing, you don't even know what you're aiming for.
00:15:44.519 --> 00:15:49.160
So a real circle starts before anyone ever sits down.
00:15:49.560 --> 00:15:58.360
You meet with each student individually, you prepare them, you assess whether the situation is even appropriate for a circle.
00:15:58.440 --> 00:16:00.600
And we're going to come back to that one in a minute.
00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:06.360
You make sure that participation in the circle is actually voluntary.
00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:09.399
Then the circle itself is structured.
00:16:09.720 --> 00:16:16.360
Chairs in a circle, everyone can see each other with a trained facilitator guiding the process.
00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:19.560
They don't control it, they guide it.
00:16:20.360 --> 00:16:27.480
They work through a sequence of questions that move from surface to impact to responsibility to repair.
00:16:27.960 --> 00:16:32.840
There's a talking piece, which means people are listening fully.
00:16:33.160 --> 00:16:36.040
And all of this takes time.
00:16:37.000 --> 00:16:39.320
60 minutes, sometimes more.
00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:51.399
And it doesn't even end when everybody stands up to leave, because even though you often see it utilized that way, restoration isn't supposed to be a one-and-done event, it's a process.
00:16:51.960 --> 00:16:57.160
So after the circle, someone should intentionally continue to check in.
00:16:57.399 --> 00:16:59.639
Agreements may have to be revisited.
00:16:59.879 --> 00:17:06.200
The relationship is monitored, it's tended to, and it's more deeply cultivated.
00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:10.359
That's what repair actually looks like.
00:17:10.759 --> 00:17:15.159
And that is not what we are doing in schools.
00:17:16.199 --> 00:17:21.720
Compare that vision to what most schools are calling a restorative circle.
00:17:22.039 --> 00:17:25.159
Two students sitting across from each other at a desk.
00:17:25.399 --> 00:17:27.319
Tell me how that made you feel.
00:17:27.559 --> 00:17:34.679
There's silence, there's a shrug, there are some single-sentence answers, a tentative agreement, and done.
00:17:34.919 --> 00:17:36.519
That's the whole thing.
00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:45.639
And out of that, everybody wants to believe that the situation was handled because it looked like the process and it sounded like the language.
00:17:45.799 --> 00:17:47.639
It checked the box, right?
00:17:47.879 --> 00:17:52.199
But if you're being honest, these situations are not the same thing.
00:17:52.359 --> 00:17:53.879
They're not even close.
00:17:54.119 --> 00:18:01.559
And this is where everything gets really blurry because we start confusing resolution with restoration.
00:18:01.959 --> 00:18:04.359
And those are not the same thing.
00:18:04.679 --> 00:18:09.559
Adding to that, reparations do not equal restoration.
00:18:09.879 --> 00:18:12.119
An apology is not repair.
00:18:12.359 --> 00:18:14.439
An agreement is not trust.
00:18:14.679 --> 00:18:21.799
And getting everybody back to class as quickly as we can is not the same as actually addressing what happened.
00:18:22.199 --> 00:18:24.919
So be honest with me for a second.
00:18:25.720 --> 00:18:44.519
If you were asked right now to lead a full restorative circle, the kind that I just described, for 60, maybe 90 minutes with multiple students and real harm that has occurred, would you actually know how to guide that conversation all the way through?
00:18:44.839 --> 00:18:46.679
You could probably get it started.
00:18:46.919 --> 00:18:51.559
You could ask good questions, you could get people talking, but then what?
00:18:52.199 --> 00:19:01.000
When it gets tense, when somebody shuts down, when the conversation drifts, do you have a structure to bring it back?
00:19:01.559 --> 00:19:06.119
Because most of us were never ever trained to do that, not at that level.
00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:08.759
And that is not a deficit on your part.
00:19:09.000 --> 00:19:15.319
That is a mismatch between what's being asked of you and what you were actually taught.
00:19:16.359 --> 00:19:20.119
Now, here's another thing that nobody ever covers in PD.
00:19:20.519 --> 00:19:26.199
There are three things that almost never get mentioned in this process.
00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:29.480
The first one is the harmed student.
00:19:29.959 --> 00:19:41.559
Almost everything that is written about restorative justice focuses on the student who caused the harm, their accountability, their reintegration, their behavior change.
00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:49.240
And that's probably not an accident because modern restoration practices were adapted from the criminal justice system.
00:19:49.319 --> 00:19:52.759
That's literally why it's called restorative justice.
00:19:53.559 --> 00:19:58.039
In that context, the offender is the subject.
00:19:58.359 --> 00:20:00.759
The process is built around them.
00:20:01.000 --> 00:20:04.759
Accountability, consequence, reintegration.
00:20:04.919 --> 00:20:07.319
That's the architecture of the justice system.
00:20:07.399 --> 00:20:10.679
And it traveled into schools with this practice.
00:20:11.000 --> 00:20:13.639
But schools are not courtrooms.
00:20:13.959 --> 00:20:22.359
And the student sitting across from the person who harmed them is not a plaintiff with legal representation and procedural protections.
00:20:22.599 --> 00:20:39.639
They're a kid who got hurt and who now has to sit in a room and listen to an apology they didn't ask for, facilitated by an adult who may or may not have any good trauma training, with no guarantee that the other student is actually remorseful.
00:20:39.879 --> 00:20:42.519
And we are calling that restoration.
00:20:42.919 --> 00:20:57.559
But the harmed students' needs, their right to feel safe, their right to choose whether they participate, and their right to have someone in their corner who is specifically there for them, those needs get forgotten in favor of the process.
00:20:57.959 --> 00:21:04.279
That should concern every single school counselor involved in these practices.
00:21:04.919 --> 00:21:09.959
The second thing you hardly hear people talk about, voluntary participation.
00:21:10.599 --> 00:21:18.359
Authentic restorative justice requires genuine, voluntary participation from all parties.
00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:21.079
That is not just a preference or a guideline.
00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:23.879
That is a foundational requirement of the model.
00:21:24.439 --> 00:23:13.949
But in schools, how voluntary is it really when the alternative is suspension?
00:23:14.269 --> 00:23:18.429
Would you like to participate in a circle or would you like an out-of-school suspension?
00:23:18.669 --> 00:23:20.989
That is not much of a choice.
00:23:21.149 --> 00:23:24.909
That is coercion implemented with the talking piece.
00:23:25.149 --> 00:23:29.549
And any agreement reached under those conditions is pretty much worthless.
00:23:29.789 --> 00:23:34.429
And when it doesn't work out, everybody's going to act surprised, except for you.
00:23:35.389 --> 00:23:40.589
The third thing people rarely talk about is knowing when not to hold a circle.
00:23:40.829 --> 00:23:44.509
There are situations where a restorative circle is not appropriate.
00:23:44.750 --> 00:23:45.629
Full stop.
00:23:46.109 --> 00:23:48.589
Like when there's an ongoing safety threat.
00:23:48.750 --> 00:23:52.349
Restoration can't Cannot happen until safety is established.
00:23:52.589 --> 00:23:53.869
Those are sequential.
00:23:54.029 --> 00:23:55.709
They are not simultaneous.
00:23:55.949 --> 00:23:59.709
One has to happen before the other, not at the same time.
00:24:00.349 --> 00:24:11.869
When the relationship is chronically power imbalanced, like with chronic bullying or ongoing harassment, putting those two students in a circle does not level the playing field.
00:24:12.109 --> 00:24:15.709
It just gives the more powerful student a new venue.
00:24:16.349 --> 00:24:27.149
When a student has significant trauma history, forced dialogue with someone who caused them harm can reopen wounds that a 60-minute circle is not equipped to close.
00:24:27.789 --> 00:24:34.109
When a teacher wants to run a circle with an entire class over a discipline concern, this happens more than it should.
00:24:34.189 --> 00:24:36.349
And it is not a restorative practice.
00:24:36.589 --> 00:24:41.549
It is a teacher using the language of restorative justice to manage a room.
00:24:41.869 --> 00:24:50.029
The power differential between a teacher and 28 students does not disappear just because everybody's sitting in a circle.
00:24:50.269 --> 00:25:02.189
And when harm has happened repeatedly, if you've got situations where you've already run a circle for certain students and the harm reoccurs, that's data telling you the circle does not work.
00:25:02.349 --> 00:25:04.909
And running another one is not persistence.
00:25:05.069 --> 00:25:09.389
It's the definition of doing the same thing and expecting a different result.
00:25:10.269 --> 00:25:12.750
These are not outlier cases.
00:25:13.069 --> 00:25:15.949
These are situations you will encounter.
00:00:07.479 --> 00:00:09.719
00:00:09.879 --> 00:00:17.399
00:00:17.640 --> 00:00:18.600
00:00:18.920 --> 00:00:21.000
00:00:21.240 --> 00:00:37.159
00:00:37.399 --> 00:00:39.159
00:00:39.799 --> 00:00:43.480
00:00:43.879 --> 00:00:47.879
00:00:48.439 --> 00:00:57.640
00:00:57.879 --> 00:01:11.159
00:01:11.560 --> 00:01:15.560
00:01:15.880 --> 00:01:20.200
00:01:20.359 --> 00:01:22.439
00:01:22.840 --> 00:01:28.920
00:01:29.159 --> 00:01:34.280
00:01:34.680 --> 00:01:39.560
00:01:39.960 --> 00:01:41.719
00:01:41.880 --> 00:01:45.000
00:01:45.240 --> 00:01:48.280
00:01:48.520 --> 00:01:58.040
00:01:58.520 --> 00:02:10.520
00:02:10.759 --> 00:02:17.080
00:02:17.240 --> 00:02:19.080
00:02:19.319 --> 00:02:24.439
00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:27.479
00:02:27.960 --> 00:02:37.159
00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:39.800
00:02:39.960 --> 00:02:43.000
00:02:43.960 --> 00:02:46.120
00:02:46.280 --> 00:02:48.840
00:02:49.000 --> 00:02:54.120
00:02:54.599 --> 00:02:57.479
00:02:57.640 --> 00:03:01.319
00:03:01.560 --> 00:03:08.520
00:03:08.680 --> 00:03:16.680
00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:25.800
00:03:25.960 --> 00:03:30.680
00:03:32.599 --> 00:03:36.439
00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:42.920
00:03:43.240 --> 00:03:47.240
00:03:47.319 --> 00:03:59.640
00:03:59.960 --> 00:04:06.680
00:04:07.000 --> 00:04:09.800
00:04:10.039 --> 00:04:14.759
00:04:15.080 --> 00:04:19.719
00:04:19.959 --> 00:04:24.279
00:04:24.519 --> 00:04:37.799
00:04:38.359 --> 00:04:43.000
00:04:43.319 --> 00:04:52.919
00:04:53.239 --> 00:04:59.319
00:04:59.639 --> 00:05:06.599
00:05:06.919 --> 00:05:14.279
00:05:14.519 --> 00:05:15.959
00:05:16.119 --> 00:05:19.319
00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:22.359
00:05:22.599 --> 00:05:25.879
00:05:26.039 --> 00:05:27.399
00:05:27.560 --> 00:05:31.560
00:05:32.119 --> 00:05:42.119
00:05:42.679 --> 00:06:00.599
00:06:01.159 --> 00:06:09.079
00:06:09.319 --> 00:06:15.399
00:06:15.879 --> 00:06:17.879
00:06:18.119 --> 00:06:27.000
00:06:27.239 --> 00:06:29.959
00:06:30.199 --> 00:06:36.119
00:06:36.599 --> 00:06:43.879
00:06:44.359 --> 00:06:52.119
00:06:52.679 --> 00:07:00.599
00:07:01.159 --> 00:07:08.599
00:07:09.000 --> 00:07:17.799
00:07:18.439 --> 00:07:23.000
00:07:23.479 --> 00:07:25.479
00:07:35.479 --> 00:07:38.599
00:07:38.919 --> 00:07:43.959
00:07:44.199 --> 00:07:55.639
00:07:55.879 --> 00:08:03.000
00:08:03.239 --> 00:08:07.159
00:08:07.399 --> 00:08:11.799
00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:27.799
00:08:28.119 --> 00:08:31.959
00:08:32.200 --> 00:08:41.960
00:08:42.200 --> 00:08:45.560
00:08:45.879 --> 00:08:57.560
00:08:57.960 --> 00:09:03.320
00:09:04.200 --> 00:09:19.399
00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:24.680
00:09:25.560 --> 00:09:30.519
00:09:30.759 --> 00:09:38.920
00:09:39.240 --> 00:09:41.560
00:09:41.800 --> 00:09:43.399
00:09:43.639 --> 00:09:46.519
00:09:46.680 --> 00:09:51.240
00:09:51.800 --> 00:09:58.759
00:09:59.080 --> 00:10:06.280
00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:15.160
00:10:15.399 --> 00:10:25.960
00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:27.320
00:10:27.480 --> 00:10:30.440
00:10:30.600 --> 00:10:35.320
00:10:35.560 --> 00:10:37.720
00:10:37.879 --> 00:10:39.480
00:10:39.960 --> 00:10:45.240
00:10:45.720 --> 00:10:51.080
00:10:51.399 --> 00:10:55.560
00:10:55.800 --> 00:11:05.240
00:11:05.480 --> 00:11:11.000
00:11:11.320 --> 00:11:19.879
00:11:20.280 --> 00:11:32.200
00:11:32.680 --> 00:11:37.320
00:11:37.800 --> 00:11:45.800
00:11:46.040 --> 00:11:51.720
00:11:52.519 --> 00:12:00.920
00:12:01.560 --> 00:12:07.800
00:12:08.280 --> 00:12:18.360
00:12:18.680 --> 00:12:20.759
00:12:21.160 --> 00:12:36.840
00:12:37.160 --> 00:12:39.639
00:12:40.200 --> 00:12:45.560
00:12:45.800 --> 00:12:55.320
00:12:55.560 --> 00:13:00.040
00:13:00.280 --> 00:13:03.960
00:13:04.120 --> 00:13:08.840
00:13:09.080 --> 00:13:14.440
00:13:14.680 --> 00:13:17.480
00:13:17.639 --> 00:13:19.560
00:13:19.720 --> 00:13:22.840
00:13:23.000 --> 00:13:24.680
00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:26.840
00:13:27.720 --> 00:13:34.360
00:13:34.680 --> 00:13:37.480
00:13:37.720 --> 00:13:46.759
00:13:47.160 --> 00:13:49.720
00:13:50.200 --> 00:14:00.680
00:14:01.080 --> 00:14:15.240
00:14:16.600 --> 00:14:23.399
00:14:23.800 --> 00:14:26.200
00:14:26.360 --> 00:14:28.440
00:14:28.680 --> 00:14:34.200
00:14:34.519 --> 00:14:40.200
00:14:40.600 --> 00:14:47.960
00:14:48.280 --> 00:14:50.680
00:14:50.920 --> 00:14:56.600
00:14:57.320 --> 00:15:02.440
00:15:02.680 --> 00:15:04.120
00:15:04.360 --> 00:15:07.560
00:15:08.040 --> 00:15:13.960
00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:25.080
00:15:25.320 --> 00:15:36.840
00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:38.360
00:15:38.920 --> 00:15:44.040
00:15:44.519 --> 00:15:49.160
00:15:49.560 --> 00:15:58.360
00:15:58.440 --> 00:16:00.600
00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:06.360
00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:09.399
00:16:09.720 --> 00:16:16.360
00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:19.560
00:16:20.360 --> 00:16:27.480
00:16:27.960 --> 00:16:32.840
00:16:33.160 --> 00:16:36.040
00:16:37.000 --> 00:16:39.320
00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:51.399
00:16:51.960 --> 00:16:57.160
00:16:57.399 --> 00:16:59.639
00:16:59.879 --> 00:17:06.200
00:17:06.759 --> 00:17:10.359
00:17:10.759 --> 00:17:15.159
00:17:16.199 --> 00:17:21.720
00:17:22.039 --> 00:17:25.159
00:17:25.399 --> 00:17:27.319
00:17:27.559 --> 00:17:34.679
00:17:34.919 --> 00:17:36.519
00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:45.639
00:17:45.799 --> 00:17:47.639
00:17:47.879 --> 00:17:52.199
00:17:52.359 --> 00:17:53.879
00:17:54.119 --> 00:18:01.559
00:18:01.959 --> 00:18:04.359
00:18:04.679 --> 00:18:09.559
00:18:09.879 --> 00:18:12.119
00:18:12.359 --> 00:18:14.439
00:18:14.679 --> 00:18:21.799
00:18:22.199 --> 00:18:24.919
00:18:25.720 --> 00:18:44.519
00:18:44.839 --> 00:18:46.679
00:18:46.919 --> 00:18:51.559
00:18:52.199 --> 00:19:01.000
00:19:01.559 --> 00:19:06.119
00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:08.759
00:19:09.000 --> 00:19:15.319
00:19:16.359 --> 00:19:20.119
00:19:20.519 --> 00:19:26.199
00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:29.480
00:19:29.959 --> 00:19:41.559
00:19:41.799 --> 00:19:49.240
00:19:49.319 --> 00:19:52.759
00:19:53.559 --> 00:19:58.039
00:19:58.359 --> 00:20:00.759
00:20:01.000 --> 00:20:04.759
00:20:04.919 --> 00:20:07.319
00:20:07.399 --> 00:20:10.679
00:20:11.000 --> 00:20:13.639
00:20:13.959 --> 00:20:22.359
00:20:22.599 --> 00:20:39.639
00:20:39.879 --> 00:20:42.519
00:20:42.919 --> 00:20:57.559
00:20:57.959 --> 00:21:04.279
00:21:04.919 --> 00:21:09.959
00:21:10.599 --> 00:21:18.359
00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:21.079
00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:23.879
00:21:24.439 --> 00:23:13.949
00:23:14.269 --> 00:23:18.429
00:23:18.669 --> 00:23:20.989
00:23:21.149 --> 00:23:24.909
00:23:25.149 --> 00:23:29.549
00:23:29.789 --> 00:23:34.429
00:23:35.389 --> 00:23:40.589
00:23:40.829 --> 00:23:44.509
00:23:44.750 --> 00:23:45.629
00:23:46.109 --> 00:23:48.589
00:23:48.750 --> 00:23:52.349
00:23:52.589 --> 00:23:53.869
00:23:54.029 --> 00:23:55.709
00:23:55.949 --> 00:23:59.709
00:24:00.349 --> 00:24:11.869
00:24:12.109 --> 00:24:15.709
00:24:16.349 --> 00:24:27.149
00:24:27.789 --> 00:24:34.109
00:24:34.189 --> 00:24:36.349
00:24:36.589 --> 00:24:41.549
00:24:41.869 --> 00:24:50.029
00:24:50.269 --> 00:25:02.189
00:25:02.349 --> 00:25:04.909
00:25:05.069 --> 00:25:09.389
00:25:10.269 --> 00:25:12.750
00:25:13.069 --> 00:25:15.949