This study examines whether a restorative justice(RJ)intervention compared to the traditional school discipline process,improves the commitment and attachment to school for middle school students,leading to an increase in academic achievement and a decrease in anti-social behavior.Previous studies on restorative justice programs in schools have found a decrease in suspension,expulsion and behavioral referral rates for students involved in RJ intervention and high participant satisfaction rates for both victims and offenders who went through restorative processes. Findings from this study showed that RJ had no effect on academic achievement,the change in GPA between the RJ students and non RJ students was not significantly different.However, RJ was found to be successful in reducing or stopping future offending for certain students. The predictive attribute analyses(PAA)show that the best predictor for success in RJ was having minor incidents. The PAAs also show that RJ was more effective at stopping future offending for students in poverty with minor prior offences than the traditonal discipline process.
Your donation helps Prison Fellowship International repair the harm caused by crime by emphasizing accountability, forgiveness, and making amends for prisoners and those affected by their actions. When victims, offenders, and community members meet to decide how to do that, the results are transformational.
Donate Now