It can’t be a farce: Teachers’ perceptions of restorative practices in an urban charter school

The purpose of this research was to understand teacher perceptions of restorative practices in an urban charter school. This study sought to illustrate how teachers conceptualize restorative practices and use it in their classrooms. This research study utilized a single-case study design. The study examined teacher perceptions of restorative practices through the lenses of five urban charter school teachers. The findings suggest that restorative practices have shown promising results in terms of building a collaborative school culture that embraces staff and students for who they are, helps build lasting relationships between students and teachers, and above all, encourages a more effective way in dealing with discipline so students understand what they have done wrong and how they can make better choices. Themes that emerged from the participants highlighted the significance of social emotional learning, building relationships, empathy, the physical classroom environment, and the importance of keeping teachers in urban schools