Dr. Peter Leone is an internationally renowned researcher and advocate for incarcerated youth. Throughout his almost four decades at the University of Maryland, his expertise and research have influenced lawsuits related to the provision of education and special education services in juvenile corrections and paved the way for changes in policy and…

Discussions surrounding incarcerated juveniles, education programs, and recidivism are difficult to find. In fact, gathering data is incredibly difficult in juvenile facilities because of high turnover rates and difficult of obtaining permission to conduct studies in juvenile facilities (Calderone, Bennett, Homan, Dedrick, & Chatfield, 2009;…

The process of entering prison as a civilian is such … sign in … send stuff through x-ray … walk through metal detector … get patted down by officer … show badge, get buzzed through steel door … get buzzed through another steel door … get buzzed through another steel door … show badge to officer, get buzzed through steel door. Enter the yard and…

In this "Harvard Educational Review" symposium article, Lynette N. Tannis provides an in-depth look at the juncture of education and incarceration. Tannis states that the denial and/or lack of educational programs within carceral settings are concerning given the size of the US prison system. Discourse about the intersection of education…

Return-to-prison rates are high. This indicates that imprisonment is not succeeding at rehabilitation, however return to prison is significantly reduced when prisoners receive education while in prison, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons and other related research (Aos et al., 1999; Brown, Forrester, Hull, Jobe, & McCullen, 2000; Clark…

In this essay, Michael Satterfield recounts his experiences as a student in and outside of prison. His narrative exposes the challenges faced by one person in pursuit of an education, and recounts his early educational experiences as well as his participation in a college-in-prison program. He also describes his journey to a four-year college and…

The Prisoners' Education Trust is working on a "learner voice" initiative that seeks to involve learners more in the development of prison education, helping them to express their views and helping providers to respond to them. Evaluation is an issue of increasing importance, for charities as well as public funders. Everyone agrees it's…

In this essay, I examine the concept of thinking in Hannah Arendt's writings. Arendt's interest in the experience of thinking allowed her to develop a concept of thinking that is distinct from other forms of mental activity such as cognition and problem solving. For her, thinking is an unending, unpredictable and destructive activity without fixed…

In his poem entitled "Privacy", Alberto, an inmate in the state prison of Oaxaca, Mexico, vividly evokes the conflictive dynamics of space and time within his living quarters. This is his way of dealing with the sadness, trauma, and mundanity of his incarceration. Alberto's poem has emerged from our ongoing ethnographic project based on…

This book of research readings provides clear evidence that adult prisoners and offenders who participate in vocational education and training (VET) during their sentence are less likely to re-offend. A reduction in recidivism represents significant cost savings to the community. The book highlights recent improvements in the delivery of VET for…

Research on incarceration and educational access continues to reveal the stark reality for many adjudicated youth: without access to educational opportunities recidivism is probable. Yet conventional methods of teaching critical reading, writing, and thinking skills are not always successful for juveniles who have found little success (or hope) in…

The purpose of this article is to connect theories Austin MacCormick discussed in his 1931 book "The Education of Adult Prisoners" with examples from modern correctional education practice. The author began teaching an institutional plumbing class in 2000, equipped with an undergraduate degree in elementary education and a master's…

Every day the author enters a world of hierarchy that she cannot fully comprehend--a world in which she is expected to teach, transform, and rehabilitate incarcerated women into "productive" citizens. It is a world where political forces blow powerfully on anyone that challenges the status quo. She works with a population that most…

Social perception deficits are intensified by incarceration. Social education programs can be used to identify, analyze, and remedy the difficulties experienced by the perceptually handicapped inmate. (JOW)

Discusses how views of correctional teacher characteristics have changed and how teacher aims have been linked directly to student character formation. Includes historical and cultural contexts, teacher selection issues, and a summary. (Author/JOW)