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Peer Mediation: Empowering Youth to Lead Restorative Practices Work in Schools

Workshop by Burlington High School Peer Mediators at the Education Justice Coalition Conference

Saturday, April 13, 2024

11:15-12:30

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BHS Peer Mediators

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Where Peer Mediation was first proposed: The Burlington School District Racial Justice Academy

SRJA3 Documentation Video

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How did Peer Mediation get started at BHS?

Youth Organizing - Discipline, How Can Students be Involved in Discipline?

Summer Racial Justice Academy 2 Capstone Project by Quynh Nhu and Nicole Xie, 2022

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Peer Mediation Recruitment and Training Fall 2023

* Check-in Questions

* Temperature Checks

* Restorative Justice & 7 Core Principles

* Q & A with BHS Administration

* Social Discipline Window

* Values and Guidelines Circle

* Celebrating Strengths

* Acknowledging areas for growth with Personal goal setting

* Circle on Stress

* Role Play

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Sample Check in Questions

Share your name, pronouns if desired, and something you think you might have in common with me.
How are you feeling today? What emoji would you use to describe that feeling?
What excites you about what we’re learning in peer mediation?
Do you think discipline/behavior management at BHS is fair? Why or why not?
What are your hopes and fears about being a peer mediator?

DARESAY Check-in generator

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Temperature Checks

I feel comfortable seeing people cry.
I feel comfortable de-escalating rising conflict between two people.
I have trusted adults at BHS that I can talk to if I have a concern.
I feel comfortable talking to people about racism.
I feel comfortable confronting my peers about hurtful things they say.
I feel comfortable confronting staff and teachers about hurtful things they say.
I feel confident that I can apply restorative justice values of equity, respect, self-determination, and multiple truths to my everyday interactions with people.
I feel comfortable talking to people about sexism and homophobia.
I know what my triggers are when it comes to hard conversations.
I have developed strategies to help me stay calm and centered when I’m in stressful situations.
I think discipline is fair at BHS.

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7 Core Assumptions of Restorative Practices

The True Self in Everyone is Good, Wise & Powerful
The World is Profoundly Interconnected
All Human Beings have a Deep Desire to be in a Good Relationship
All Humans Have Gifts & Everyone is Needed for What they Bring
Everything We Need to Make Positive Change Is Already Here
Human Beings are Holistic
We Need Practices to Build Habits of Living from the Core Self

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The social discipline window was developed by Ted Wachtel and is a widely used graphic to help understand how educators and other authority figures can work WITH others in restorative ways.
On the y axis we see levels of “control,” which in a restorative mindset is really referring to accountability, structure, consistency and clear expectations.
On the x axis we see support, or love and care.
The TO box represents high control and low support which is a punitive and authoritarian style.
The NOT box represents low control and low support, or neglect.
The FOR box represents high support with lacking control or structure and accountability.
The WITH box, which is the restorative box, represents both high levels of support and high levels of structure and accountability.

Oftentimes when we move from traditional punitive discipline, we can over correct and land in the FOR box. When this happens it can feel like things are getting out of control, which can lead educators to want to retreat to more punitive measures. We know we are in the WITH box when expectations are clear, accountability is authentic and involves all parties, and when all members of the community are supported to meet the expectations and repair harm so that they can be in positive relationship with the community.

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Restorative Practices prioritize natural and logical consequences that are immediately linked to the problem or harm caused and are intended to restore community.
Often the function of a restorative practice for those who have caused harm is to process shame and help individuals make connections from their behaviors to the natural relational consequences of their actions.
Many times, processing this loss of relational capital and figuring out how to repair is all the consequence necessary.
Punishment is proven the least effective method for long term behavior change and does not repair harm or restore community.
Punishment is focused on pairing behavior with unfavorable outcomes in order to extinguish this behavior.
Punishment can lead to compliance in the presence of authority, such as slowing down on the highway when a police car is visible, but does not lead to community needs, such as safe responsible driving.

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Circle Templates

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Student Panel

Why did you sign up to be a peer mediator?

How did you train to be peer mediators?

What kind of cases did you hope to mediate?

How did you hear about the cases?

When did your meetings take place? Were they during or after school?

How effective has peer mediation been at Burlington High?

Questions?

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Circle for Workshop

Mindfulness: Balloon Breath

Opening Quote: “Leadership embraces activism and it is the outcome of the purposeful pursuit of goals.”

Check in Q: Share your name, pronouns if you’d like and your connection to schools and what resonated with you from the workshop?
Round: Would you consider implementing peer mediation in your schools?
Round: Now that you have heard our story of some of the challenges, how could the peer mediation system be improved upon?
Closing Round: How was this workshop for you on a scale of 1-5?