‘If they can’t see a punishment, they’re not happy’: Punitive Attitudes as Barriers to Restorative Practice in New Zealand Schools

This article analyses the experiences of using restorative practice of New Zealand school staff, from primary and secondary schools in the Wellington region. With data collected from 12 participants in semi‐structured qualitative interviews, it examines the barriers to restorative practice in New Zealand schools. The article demonstrates how punitive attitudes among teachers can create large obstacles to effective restorative practice, as well as whole‐school adoption of the approach. It outlines how the participants changed their own punitive attitudes and how they have helped their colleagues to do the same. Participants adopted a pragmatic approach to this, being interested in how restorative practice improves outcomes for teachers and learners, in achieving attitudinal and practical change. Finally, the article analyses how student and whānau attitudes toward punishment can both prevent and enable effective restorative practice.