title: Restorative practice and behaviour management in schools: discipline meets care.

authors: Drewery, Wendy

subjects: restorative practices

abstract: The history of restorative practices in New Zealand schools is directly related to projects such as the Suspension Reduction Initiative (SRI) and the more recent Student Engagement Initiative (SEI); thus the origins of restorative practices in schools are linked with behaviour management and school discipline. During the same period, teachers' work has become more complex: They are working with an increasingly diverse range of students, which in turn requires epistemologically diverse teaching and relationship-building approaches to ensure maximum participation for all. Teachers are looking for new and better ways to interact with students in their classrooms, and those responsible for disciplinary systems are looking to restorative practice for new ways to resolve the increasing range and number of difficulties between teachers and students, students and other students, and between the school and parents. Restorative practices (RP) are currently seen as a way of achieving all this, so they carry a huge burden of hope. Relationship skills are a key competency in the new curriculum, and the philosophy of restoration offers both a basis for understanding and a process for putting this agenda into practice. In effect, it means educating for citizenship in a diverse world, including teaching the skills of conflict resolution. If we accept this philosophy, the curriculum for teacher education will require significant changes in what students are taught about behaviour and classroom management.

text: Restorative practice and behaviour management in schools: discipline meets care. The history of restorative practices in New Zealand schools is directly related to projects such as the Suspension Reduction Initiative (SRI) and the more recent Student Engagement Initiative (SEI); thus the origins of restorative practices in schools are linked with behaviour management and school discipline. During the same period, teachers' work has become more complex: They are working with an increasingly diverse range of students, which in turn requires epistemologically diverse teaching and relationship-building approaches to ensure maximum participation for all. Teachers are looking for new and better ways to interact with students in their classrooms, and those responsible for disciplinary systems are looking to restorative practice for new ways to resolve the increasing range and number of difficulties between teachers and students, students and other students, and between the school and parents. Restorative practices (RP) are currently seen as a way of achieving all this, so they carry a huge burden of hope. Relationship skills are a key competency in the new curriculum, and the philosophy of restoration offers both a basis for understanding and a process for putting this agenda into practice. In effect, it means educating for citizenship in a diverse world, including teaching the skills of conflict resolution. If we accept this philosophy, the curriculum for teacher education will require significant changes in what students are taught about behaviour and classroom management.

year: 2010

title: Infant and peer relationships in curriculum

authors: Redder, Bridgette Miriam

subjects: infants

abstract: The purpose of this thesis was to explore the relations between infants and their peers as they interacted intersubjectively with one another in an early childhood care and education environment and to investigate how the teacher was answerable through her engagement in these intersubjective events. Drawing upon a Bakhtinian methodological approach to research utterance was employed as my unit of analysis, providing a means to investigate the intersubjective interactions between infants and their peers in tandem with the teachers’ engagement in these interactions as answerable acts. 
This thesis builds on a previous pilot study which utilised dialogic methodology to investigate the nature of infant and teacher dialogue in an education and care context (White, Peter & Redder, 2015). The research that formed the basis for my subsequent analysis took place in a New Zealand education and care centre that catered for children less than two years of age. In the present study the same polyphonic video recording was used to capture infant and peer intersubjective interactions and the teacher’s engagement within these events. A mixed methods research approach was employed to qualitatively and quantitatively analyse the video data.
The findings of this study suggest that infants are intersubjective agents in their relationships with peers and with teachers. Infants intentionally communicated with peers in lived relational experiences that were characterised by the fleeting, elongated or connected nature of their interactions. Mutual understanding, joint attention, attunement and the employment of synchronised language forms were features of infant ― peer intersubjective experiences. In addition, the findings revealed the capacity of infants and peers to relate with one another in social interactions that promote ‘dialogic spaces’ through which intersubjective relationships are sought. 
When teachers engaged in the infant ― peer intersubjective relations they either restrained by ‘shutting’ down or sustained by ‘opening up’ the intersubjective experience for the peers. The teacher’s body language was a feature of their engagement that contributed in a variety of ways to the infant ― peer intersubjective experience. Indeed how teachers engaged themselves in the interactions that were taking place between infants and their peers often determined the orientation of the teacher’s body positioning. The findings suggest when teachers restrained infant ― peer intersubjective dialogue, this form of engagement had the potential to alter how infants related to peers in subsequent interactions, highlighting the importance of sensitive, ‘in tune’ teacher engagement. Furthermore, the results highlight the pivotal role of the teacher as a ‘connecting’ feature within infant and peer intersubjective experiences, one who has the potential to ‘open up’ dialogic spaces for infants and their peer partners through engagement that is dialogic.
These findings taken together may have implications for policymakers, educators and teacher education by ‘opening up’ dialogic spaces through which infants are seen as intersubjective agents and dialogic partners.

text: Infant and peer relationships in curriculum The purpose of this thesis was to explore the relations between infants and their peers as they interacted intersubjectively with one another in an early childhood care and education environment and to investigate how the teacher was answerable through her engagement in these intersubjective events. Drawing upon a Bakhtinian methodological approach to research utterance was employed as my unit of analysis, providing a means to investigate the intersubjective interactions between infants and their peers in tandem with the teachers’ engagement in these interactions as answerable acts. 
This thesis builds on a previous pilot study which utilised dialogic methodology to investigate the nature of infant and teacher dialogue in an education and care context (White, Peter & Redder, 2015). The research that formed the basis for my subsequent analysis took place in a New Zealand education and care centre that catered for children less than two years of age. In the present study the same polyphonic video recording was used to capture infant and peer intersubjective interactions and the teacher’s engagement within these events. A mixed methods research approach was employed to qualitatively and quantitatively analyse the video data.
The findings of this study suggest that infants are intersubjective agents in their relationships with peers and with teachers. Infants intentionally communicated with peers in lived relational experiences that were characterised by the fleeting, elongated or connected nature of their interactions. Mutual understanding, joint attention, attunement and the employment of synchronised language forms were features of infant ― peer intersubjective experiences. In addition, the findings revealed the capacity of infants and peers to relate with one another in social interactions that promote ‘dialogic spaces’ through which intersubjective relationships are sought. 
When teachers engaged in the infant ― peer intersubjective relations they either restrained by ‘shutting’ down or sustained by ‘opening up’ the intersubjective experience for the peers. The teacher’s body language was a feature of their engagement that contributed in a variety of ways to the infant ― peer intersubjective experience. Indeed how teachers engaged themselves in the interactions that were taking place between infants and their peers often determined the orientation of the teacher’s body positioning. The findings suggest when teachers restrained infant ― peer intersubjective dialogue, this form of engagement had the potential to alter how infants related to peers in subsequent interactions, highlighting the importance of sensitive, ‘in tune’ teacher engagement. Furthermore, the results highlight the pivotal role of the teacher as a ‘connecting’ feature within infant and peer intersubjective experiences, one who has the potential to ‘open up’ dialogic spaces for infants and their peer partners through engagement that is dialogic.
These findings taken together may have implications for policymakers, educators and teacher education by ‘opening up’ dialogic spaces through which infants are seen as intersubjective agents and dialogic partners.

year: 2014

title: Indigenous children and youth: The case of marae courts in Aotearoa/New Zealand

authors: Toki, Valmaine

abstract: Marae2-based Courts are an initiative of the Judiciary that builds on existing programmes for offenders such as Te Whanau Awhina, and informed by the Koori Courts in Australia.3 This is the first time that a New Zealand court has conducted criminal cases on a Marae within the jurisdiction of the Youth Court. Most offenders referred to the programme are Maori4 and the process incorporates Maori tikanga (Maori customs).

text: Indigenous children and youth: The case of marae courts in Aotearoa/New Zealand Marae2-based Courts are an initiative of the Judiciary that builds on existing programmes for offenders such as Te Whanau Awhina, and informed by the Koori Courts in Australia.3 This is the first time that a New Zealand court has conducted criminal cases on a Marae within the jurisdiction of the Youth Court. Most offenders referred to the programme are Maori4 and the process incorporates Maori tikanga (Maori customs).

year: 2014