Tag: restorative practice

Rand Corp Analysis on Restorative Practices in Schools

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Rand Corporation has conducted a randomized controlled study, sponsored by the National Institute for Justice, on the effectiveness of restorative practices on suspension rates and classroom atmosphere. The study took place in the Pittsburgh Public School District during the 2015/16 and 2016/17 school years. The researchers sought to answer three key questions: 1) how the specific program used was implemented and what challenged or facilitated restorative practices; 2) what were the impacts of this program; and 3) how likely is it that the restorative practices will be sustained over time? The key findings indicated an improvement in school and classroom climate, decrease in overall suspension rates, and fewer disparities between minority and low-income students when compared to white or high-income students. They did not find academic improvement or a reduction in arrest rates. Recommendations following the report include emphasizing restorative practices that can be woven into the school day to… Continue reading

Book Review: Transforming Justice, Lawyers, and the Practice of Law by Marjorie A. Silver

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Review by Elaine Quinn This review first appeared in the online magazine, The Conscious Lawyer, vol II, May 2017. Available through Carolina Academic Press If I had an understanding before that law needs to change and that that change is already happening, this book has helped that understanding become a conviction. The book reinforces the message that our society is undergoing a shift in consciousness from an experiential sense of innate separateness to one of innate togetherness, that scientific evidence is available to prove the validity of this shift, and that our cultural institutions – law being one of the most essential – need to join with and support this shift rather than resist and hold it back. One of the core messages in the book echoes that of ‘The Ecology of Law – Toward a Legal System in Tune with Nature and Community’. That is that legal thought needs… Continue reading