Restorative Practices are processes that proactively build healthy relationships and a sense of community within the classroom to prevent and address conflict and wrongdoing. It is a management tool that is increasingly being used by schools to address student maladaptive behavior in lieu of exclusionary discipline practices such as suspension.
Compassionate Schools benefit all students who attend but focus on students chronically exposed to stress and trauma in their lives. These schools create compassionate classrooms and foster compassionate attitudes of their school staff. The goal is to keep students engaged and learning by creating and supporting a healthy climate and culture within the school where all students can learn. It is not a program; it is a process and as such is not “one size fits all.” Each school and community will develop their own unique compassionate “personality.”
Delaware's School District Learning Collaborative is a group of schools who are actively engaged in implementing the Trauma-informed/Compassionate Schools Model within their buildings. The Collaborative meets quarterly to discuss implementation, share effective strategies and success stories, and promote the overall concept of being a Compassionate School. Below are resources which have been discovered or developed and are used by the schools. In addition, Collaborative presentations and meeting notes are included as an additional source of information.
The Delaware Positive Behavior Support Project is sponsored by the University of Delaware College of Education and Human Development. This initiative is based on the concepts of multi-tiered systems of behavioral support and promotes the creation of safe and caring environments for children to develop both emotionally and academically. The project focuses on equipping Delaware educators with the tools and knowledge required to create a healthy learning environment for students based on Positive Behavior Support (PBS).
