A Personalized Approach to Restorative Justice and Social-Emotional Learning

A Personalized Approach to Restorative Justice and Social-Emotional Learning

At Distinctive Schools, we have found that taking a personalized learning approach to student behaviors has cultivated a positive community and student change.  We have taken the ideals of personalized learning and applied them through the lens of restorative justice and social emotional learning in multiple ways, including:

Celebrating the uniqueness of each student and highlighting the valuable role they play in our school community

Acknowledging that a one-size-fits-all approach to discipline is not compatible with the mission of our schools

Recognizing, understanding, and attending to each student's distinct need

Treating each reflective and restorative interaction with a student as wholly unique

Breaking away from the traditional confines of concrete behavioral consequence structure and transitioning to personalized plans for improvement

Matthew Pitucco, Middle School Dean of Students, CICS Irving Park, Distinctive Schools