School suspensions beget more suspensions. It's rare that they fix student behaviour
From Term 3, Victorian principals will assume powers to suspend students for misdemeanours outside the school gates. It's an understandable reaction from the state government, but it's no substitute for a strategy.
In much the same way that we all might react by hurling a bucket of water on a house fire, this decision provides the feeling of making a worthwhile contribution but encourages us to ignore its futility.
In practicality, the likely result of this policy is an increase in student suspensions. What does the evidence tell us is the result of increasing student suspensions? It's more student suspensions.
Before I go any further, I'm an advocate for our principals having the right to suspend. In fact, I'd contend that Victoria's principals do it exceedingly well. Principals know the research, and they know the impact of suspending. For these reasons alone, they make the decision to suspend soberly and carefully.
That was certainly the case for me in my own time as a principal. Literally nothing in that job robbed me of more sleep than the occasions on which I suspended students.
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Suspension routinely places a student on the fast track to more suspensions, increases the likelihood of eventual school exclusion and substantially places them at risk of destructive life outcomes beyond their time at school.
But, just sometimes the impact on the school community – staff, other students and families – is so significant that we just need a little time to take a breath, to recover and to plan. When suspension is used as a pause button rather than an eject button, it can have merit and it can make a difference.
The time that these suspensions afford can be used by schools to use approaches, such as restorative practices, which have proven effective in driving down suspension rates as opposed to increasing them.
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