1st Edition
Restorative Justice in Urban Schools Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline
The school-to-prison pipeline is often the path for marginalized students, particularly black males, who are three times as likely to be suspended as White students. This volume provides an ethnographic portrait of how educators can implement restorative justice to build positive school cultures and address disciplinary problems in a more corrective and less punitive manner. Looking at the school-to-prison pipeline in a historical context, it analyzes current issues facing schools and communities and ways that restorative justice can improve behavior and academic achievement. By practicing a critical restorative justice, educators can reduce the domino effect between suspension and incarceration and foster a more inclusive school climate.
1. Restorative Justice and the School to Prison Pipeline 2. The Intersection of Race and Punishment in Schools 3. Research Design and Methodology 4. "Evolution, Not Revolution": Restorative Justice From the Ground Up 5. The Evolution Continues: Resseding Restorative Justice Through Talking Circles 6. "I am Not Extraordinary": Janet Connors and the Role of Community Members in Restorative Justice 7. "Turning the Paradigm on Its Side": Youth-Adult Power Dynamics in a Student Apprenticeship Model of Restorative Justice 8. Doing Discipline in Circles: The Developmental Challenges of Restorative Justice 9. The Bridge to Equity: Lessons for Implementing Critical Restorative Justice in Urban Schools Epilogue
Biography
Anita Wadhwa is a graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Education and is currently Restorative Justice Coordinator at the Spring Branch Academy of Choice in Houston, TX.
"Wadhwa has written an essential book for anyone who wants to do restorative work in urban communities or just wants to better understand the challenges that face the restorative justice movement in this particular context. Given its selling price, you'll probably need to find a library that has it or ask your library to purchase it, but that's what libraries are for, and Restorative Justice in Urban Schools is well worth the extra effort."- Mikhail Lyubansky Ph.D., Psychology Today
