The Intersection of Trauma-Informed Practices, Social-Emotional Learning, and Restorative Justice in Schools: A Path Toward Holistic Healing and Equity

Schools have increasingly become more than places for just academic learning—they are communities where students develop social, emotional, and relational skills and connections to their community.

As educators further recognize the impact of trauma, emotional well-being, and the need for equity in discipline, three powerful frameworks have emerged to address these issues holistically: Trauma-Informed Practices (TIP), Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), and Restorative Justice (RJ). Together, these approaches complement, enhance and support each other to create a comprehensive strategy for fostering safe, inclusive, and affirming school environments where all students can thrive.

The Frameworks

1. Trauma-Informed Practices (TIP)

Trauma-Informed Practices center and address the pervasive impact of trauma on students’ behavior, emotions, and learning. Studies show that nearly half of all children experience at least one adverse childhood experience (ACE), such as abuse, neglect, or exposure to violence. These experiences can interrupt and slow cognitive development and emotional regulation. This disruption can lead to barriers to academic success and issues with behavioral regulation. Trauma-informed practices focus on developing environments that are responsive to these experiences by emphasizing safety, trust, and self-advocacy. In these systems, school staff are trained to be sensitive and receptive to students’ needs with empathy and support rather than punitive approaches, working to ensure that students feel safe and heard.

2. Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)

SEL is a framework through which students develop essential life and social skills, including self-awareness, emotional regulation, empathy, responsible decision-making, and interpersonal skills. SEL curricula encourages students to explore their emotions, build positive relationships, and make constructive choices. 

Schools that incorporate SEL foster a culture of empathy, respect, and collaboration, equipping students with the skills they need to navigate both personal and social challenges. Research shows that SEL leads to beneficial outcomes related to: social and emotional skills, academic performance, mental wellness, healthy behaviors, school climate and safety, and lifetime outcomes. From an academic standpoint, students who participated in SEL programs saw an 11 percentile increase in their overall grades and better attendance.

3. Restorative Justice (RJ)

Restorative Justice is a culture of addressing harm that shifts the focus from punitive discipline to repairing harm and restoring relationships. When harm, or conflicts arise, RJ practices encourage dialogue between the people impacted, fostering empathy, accountability, and collaborative problem-solving.

Techniques such as Community Building Circles, Restorative Conversations, Problem-solving Circles, and Formal Restorative Conferences, provide spaces for students to take responsibility for their actions while also considering the impact on others. RJ fosters a community-based approach to discipline that strengthens relationships and mitigates future harm. 

Read more about the What and the Why of RJ in Schools in our blog post.

Integrating the Frameworks: A Holistic Approach

While each of these frameworks is beneficial on its own, their true power lies in the blending of these practices. Together, they provide an approach that aids in schools addressing the very complex social and emotional needs of their students. This approach centers the impact of trauma and promotes a sense of belonging with equity and community in schools.

1. Addressing Trauma through SEL and RJ

Trauma-Informed Practices sets the foundation for both SEL and RJ by creating space where student safety and voice is centered in a supportive environment where students feel secure enough to engage. Alex Shevrin Venet defines trauma in Equity-Centered Trauma-Informed Education as “an individual and collective response to life-threatening events, harmful conditions, or prolonged stressful environments.”

The large body of research also clarifies that trauma is not the event(s) itself but the impact physiologically, neurologically, psychologically, and emotionally. Shevrin Venet goes on to define trauma-informed education “as practices that respond to the impact of trauma on the entire school community and prevent future trauma from occurring.”

SEL teaches students how to recognize and manage the emotions that often arise from trauma, while RJ provides a space for students to express those emotions in a constructive manner.

Without recognizing the physiological impacts of trauma, schools are not able to explore the management of emotions and behavior or the harm and therefore, resolution of harm once harm occurs. Within blending this practices, a trauma-informed teacher can identify the root cause of an explosive behavior, use SEL strategies to help the student self-regulate, and employ RJ to address any harm caused, ensuring that all involved feel heard, validated and resolved.

2. Building the Emotional Vocabulary for Empathy

Incorporating SEL into RJ practices deepens students' understanding of what empathy is and how it relates to accountability. In restorative circles, students learn to voice their perspectives, opinions and feelings, actively listen to others, and are more self-aware in their own role in the situation, all of which are skills fostered by SEL practices.

By centering emotional literacy, schools empower students to move beyond blaming and shaming toward meaningful productive dialogue and collaborative problem-solving. This not only helps repair harm, but also strengthens relationships in the overall community, making schools safer and more inclusive. Safe and inclusive schools are more conducive to allowing trauma impacted students to thrive. 

3. Discipline Strategies for Equity and Reducing Discipline Disparities

Restorative Justice, when combined with Trauma-Informed Practices and SEL, helps identify and address systemic inequities in school discipline. “Years of research point to inequities in education for students of color, students from low-income backgrounds, and students with disabilities.”

By focusing on relationships, understanding, empathy, and resolution of harm rather than the punitive consequence, schools can narrow these gaps in systemic disparities. Trauma-informed methodology works to ensure that marginalized students receive support, validation and connection rather than punishment for behaviors or harm that is systemically rooted in communal adversity, while SEL equips students with the skills needed to resolve conflicts constructively.

Implementation in the School Community

While many benefits to the education system have been outlined above, including advancing school culture, mitigating harm, and improving academic and social outcomes, some challenges may exist for implementation of these blending practices. Some of these barriers might manifest in resource constraints on school systems, district policy or internal staff resistance to change, and the requirement for all in the school community to be trained in these practices, some extensively.

Schools must work to ensure that the appropriate staff are working in these areas, not in silos, but collaboratively. This implementation must be culturally responsive which requires voice and input from the entire school community, including staff, parents, students, administrators and district or state-wide perspective. A significant commitment from school leadership, staff and support staff is necessary to overcome these challenges. 

A Path to Healing and Equity

The blending of Trauma-Informed Practices, Social-Emotional Learning, and Restorative Justice offers a transformative trajectory for schools seeking to address the complex realities their students face.

By integrating these frameworks together, schools can move past traditional punitive models of discipline and toward restorative environments where every student is seen, heard, and supported. This approach not only has the potential to heal, but also has the potential to empower students, allowing communities to develop stronger and more inclusive at school and at home.