Canadian schools have long employed punitive discipline, a colonial paradigm that is hierarchical and exclusionary. Using Participatory Action Research, two Indigenous and nine non-Indigenous educators collaborated to implement a restorative model into an elementary school in northern British Columbia. Our hybrid of Restitution and Restorative Practices (RRP) and Circles included regional Indigenous protocols. A thematic analysis of participant interviews revealed patterns in the key areas of belonging, cultural safety, trauma informed practice, shame, and decolonizing education. RRP was experienced as an egalitarian model and Indigenous protocols supported community building during Circle practice. Implementation of RRP and Circles (RRP/C) did not represent enough structural change to decolonize discipline, but this hybrid was a relational and holistic model that integrated the Indigenous values of consensus building, interconnection, and harmony. Concerns with the model and its implementation included cultural racism, resistance, vulnerability, shame, and safety.
