Cyberbullying and Restorative Practices in Schools:
Opportunities and challenges in response to online mediated conflict and harm
Restorative practices are gaining popularity in schools seeking alternative responses to student conflict and harm, which may be more effective than disciplinary approaches. In this talk I examine emergent understandings of restorative practices in schools, examining qualitative responses of Canadian educators regarding restorative responses to conflict and harm which is mediated online; i.e., cyber-risks facing students, including cyberbullying and sexting. My participants include education students, as well junior and senior teachers with varying degrees of familiarity with restorative practices. Overall, educators emphasize meaningful change in student behavior and the positive impact of restorative practices in response to cyber-risk, including the potential of face-to-face mediation to ameliorate online harm. While supportive overall, educators questioned how appropriate restorative responses are in response to serious incidents of online mediated harm. I discuss these findings with reference to approaches to restorative practices that exist alongside a spectrum from reactive to proactive.
KEY WORDS: cyberbullying; restorative practices; restorative justice; cyber-risk and students; schools and online conflict; educators
Presenter:
Michael Adorjan, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology, University of Calgary. Adorjan has successfully received funding for four research grant applications submitted as primary investigator since he began his career at the University of Hong Kong in 2010 (through Hong Kong’s Research Grants Council) and with the University of Calgary (via SSHRC Insight Development Grants and Insight Grants). Adorjan’s research on public perceptions of police and youth crime as well as youth and online activism in Hong Kong has been published in international criminology journals (e.g., Theoretical Criminology, Punishment and Society) and research monographs (e.g., with his co-author Eric Chui, with Routledge). Adorjan is also a Fellow with the Centre for Criminology, University of Hong Kong. Since joining the University of Calgary in 2014, his research has focused on youth and cyber-risk, especially qualitative research examining online conflict and harm from the perspectives of Canadian youth, as well as parents and educators. Findings from SSHRC-funded research have been published in both international (e.g., Learning, Media & Technology, Qualitative Sociology Review), and Canadian journals, including Canadian Review of Sociology, as well as research monographs (with Rosemary Ricciardelli, published with Routledge). His current research addresses the role of restorative practices in response to cyber-mediated conflict and harm. Adorjan’s research with Rosemary Ricciardelli also includes ongoing projects examining correctional officer mental health and wellbeing, involving conducting interviews with COs at various stages of their careers (i.e., from initial training to those with several years of experience working in prisons). Findings have been published in journals such as BMJ Open, Criminal Justice Studies, and The Howard Journal of Crime and Justice. In total he has published 46 journal articles, 5 books, and one research monograph, Parenting Cyber-risk, forthcoming in 2024 (Routledge, co-authored with Ricciardelli).
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in
-Leonard Cohen, Anthem
Cost: Free
Registration Link: https://forms.gle/86UgK1QF1hKzdruQ9
This is part of the Maskwacis Cultural College Microlearning Series and is open to the public.
Contact Manisha Khetarpal by email mkhetarpal@mccedu.ca or call toll free: 1 866 585 3925