Schools Should Embrace Unity Through Unitive Justice

In many Ugandan schools, harsh discipline methods like caning, suspension, or expulsion are still common, despite the ban on corporal punishment.

These practices often hurt students, break their confidence, and harm the trust needed for learning.

It’s time for a better way—unitive justice—a kinder, more effective approach to discipline that heals and unites.

Unitive justice is more than just a softer way to handle misbehaviour.

It’s a way of thinking and acting that restores relationships, heals harm, and values everyone in the school community—students, teachers, parents, and administrators.

Instead of focusing on blame or punishment, it:

Looks at why someone acted harmfully.

Respects the dignity of everyone involved.

Brings people together through honest talk, responsibility, and forgiveness.

Builds stronger relationships to prevent future problems.

Like many Ugandan students, I grew up in a system where pain was treated as discipline.

I still remember my mathematics teacher in Primary 7.

After every assessment test, we would be caned during corrections and the pattern was brutal: “number by number” as he called it.

For every question you failed, you received a stroke. Ten wrong answers meant 10 strokes.

That kind of punishment didn’t make me a better mathematician, it made me afraid of learning and terrified of failure.

Looking back, I realise we didn’t need more fear, we needed more understanding.

Late last year, I visited Richmond, Virginia, and during my time there, I toured Greensville High School in Emporia.

I was moved by their Refocus Programme, which helps students who have been labelled as “troublemakers” find their way back into the community.

Instead of being expelled or pushed aside, these students are offered a chance to reflect, reconnect, and heal.

They are mentored by adults who listen to their stories and guide them back toward responsibility and respect.

This is unitive justice in action: not about punishing a student, but inviting them back into the fold, restoring unity instead of deepening division.

In Ugandan schools, disciplinary committees often focus on punishment.

But what if we turned them into healing and unity circles?

These groups could lead honest conversations between students, teachers, and families.

Instead of asking, “What rule was broken?” they’d ask, “What relationship was hurt, and how can we fix it?”

This approach builds accountability and maturity, not shame.

How schools can start

Update rules: Schools should adopt unitive justice in their discipline policies, following the Ministry of Education’s call for positive discipline.

Train everyone: Teach teachers, prefects, and students skills like non-violent communication, active listening, and conflict resolution.

Create safe spaces: After a conflict, hold guided talks where everyone can share their feelings and listen to others.

Support healing: Check in with students after conflicts to ensure they feel supported and can grow.

Prevent problems: Hold weekly class meetings or reflection sessions to build trust and empathy before issues arise.

Unitive justice isn’t a foreign idea.

It matches our African values of community and Ubuntu — “I am because we are.”

In our villages, conflicts were often resolved through dialogue, not punishment.

People talked under a tree to rebuild trust and unity.

For example, aspects like Mato Oput among the Acholi, Karo Karungi among the Banyankole-Bakiga, and Ekisanja Kyengoma among the Baganda.

All these were reconciliatory practices whose wisdom we can bring into our schools.

We can’t force a generation to be great through punishment.

We must guide them with listening, wisdom, and care.

Unitive justice isn’t just about discipline, it’s about transforming lives through connection and healing.

It’s not only possible; it’s what our children deserve.

Let’s build schools where students learn from mistakes through understanding, not fear.