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Better education in prison research position research paper
Critical reflection on prison education
Critical reflection on prison education
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The website, literacy.kent.edu describes literacy as “ being able to read and write at a level to be successful in today's world and also being proficient at math, knowing how to use technology, and knowing how to solve problems and make decisions.”(par. 1). So how do prisoners acquire these skills while they are incarnated away from the world? This is where literacy programs such as Literature-N-Living in Florida and Storybook Project come into play. Although these literacy programs seem minor to the world they are important to prison inmates, juvenile offenders and their community because studies show it can lead to reduced recidivism, positive attitude changes, and even enhance the prisoners own children's’ literacy.
According to “Teaching Literacy in Order to Turn the Page on Recidivism” Emily Music stated, recidivism is “the tendency of a convicted criminal to relapse into a habit of criminal activity or behavior”(p. 723). What this means is that recidivism is the rate a criminal goes back to prison for committing a crime. Music also expressed that the key to reducing recidivism rates in the United States is decreasing illiteracy rates among juvenile delinquents(p. 724) Many studies since the 1990s state that the rate of recidivism goes down if there are options made available for inmates.Along with William Drakeford explaining in his study that the “Reading skills of the youth in corrections could improve given the opportunity to learn in a structure environment” ( p.143). A study in found inmates who did take this opportunity had a “59% lower recidivism rate than those who did not” (Walker par. 3).As long as prisons provide these literacy programs and if prisoners participate they have more than 59% less of a chance o...
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...ybook Project.” Aid to Inmate Mothers. Web. 20 Feb. 2014
Music, Emily. "Teaching Literacy In Order To Turn The Page On Recidivism." Journal Of Law & Education 41.4 (2012): 723-730.OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson). Web. 4 Feb. 2014.
TURVEY, Sarah, and Jenny HARTLEY. "What Books Can Do Behind Bars." Adults Learning 25.1 (2013): 30-31. Readers' Guide Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson). Web. 3 Mar. 2014.
Vacca, James S. "Educated Prisoners Are Less Likely To Return To Prison." Journal Of Correctional Education 55.4 (2004): 297-305. Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 3 Feb. 2014
Walker, Karen, and Inc. (EPI) Education Partnerships. "High School Education In Correctional Facilities. Research Brief." Education Partnerships, Inc (2006): ERIC. Web. 1 Mar. 2014.
Willoughby, Mariano. “Books behind Bars.” Los Angeles Times 30 Jan 2000: B2. ProQuest. Web. 5 Feb. 2014.
Correctional program writing nowadays is at a level of efficiency that surpasses earlier outlooks. In territories all over the United States, there are several curriculums that use research-based curriculums to teach, instruct, and inspire inmates. Disappeared are the days of hit-or-miss execution of curriculums that seemed good, but over and over again just occupied time for the inmates. The previous evolution happened for several reasons (Corrections Today, 2010). The largest wake-up demands was the claim composed around thirty years ago. The statement made was not anything works in corrections systems, mainly rehabilitation. Even though this commonly revealed report was taken from its context, it did in detail carry some notice to the mystery that several penitentiaries were not operational as change
In “Literacy behind Bars” narrative from an autobiography by Malcolm X in 1965, Malcolm X shows that being able to read is important and sometimes jail is the best place to learn. The author supports this by showing that he saw the people around him reading and wanted to be able to speak and read as well as them (640). He started out by reading and writing an entire dictionary which helped him read and understand more words (641). Malcolm X read everything that he could get his hands on and was able to learn more and use it later on in his career. He was able to concentrate more about learning in jail then he would have been able to do at a college because he had nothing else to do. Malcolm X would read late into the morning despite that guard
Basic education services are often not met. The literacy rate of inmates in California is at a seventh grade level (204).
Just because someone is locked up does not mean they cannot get the message they want to people who are not in prison. The most effective way for a prisoner to get their message to the person they want is through literature. The function of literature in prison is demonstrated in “Soledad Brother”, “Letter From Birmingham Jail”, “Soul On Ice”, and ‘How Writers In Prisons Empower inmates”.
That explains the positive correlation between the amount of education a person receives while in prison and the chance they have of securing a fulltime job following their release. A study published by a prison in Minnesota supports this idea by showing that prisoners who had obtained a secondary degree while in prison increased their chances of securing a job within two years of being released by 59%. These odds were increased even further for younger offenders, which shows that educational programs in prisons are even more pertinent for the younger
Blumberg, M, Kappeler, V, and Potter, G. 1993, The Mythology and Crime and Criminal Justice, Prospect Heights, I11.: Waveland Press.
Studies have shown that in-prison education curriculums decrease recidivism while refining the eminence of life. However, majority of extra-curricular classes in prison have been eradicated, additional customs of job preparation have reduced, and access to exercise equipment and educational resources such as books is progressively limited. In the past five years the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has increased the federal budget by 40 per cent to $2.6 billion, majority bei...
In many instances, prisoners use books to help them get through their term. By letting prisoners read, it can help to make them smarter, keep violence in prisons down and make their terms easier. If they read they may learn something from the books and when they get out it may help them to get a job and stay out of trouble. The New York Times clearly shows how the prisons are doing a terrible job at helping prisoners to stay out of prison. Successful prisons
Dodd, Vikram. "Why Prison Education?." . Prison Studies Project, Teaching Research Outreach, 16 Jan. 2010. Web. 12 Apr. 2014. .
Esperian, John H. "The Effect of Prison Education Programs on Recidivism." Journal of Correctional Education 61.4 (2010): 316-334. ProQuest. Web. 2 Nov. 2013.
While offering an inmate for a second chance to improve while they are incarcerated. Statistics indicate that when prisoners are provided an education, they gain higher self-esteem and recidivism rates drop dramatically. According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, it states that there is an "inverse relationship between recidivism rates and education". The reason as to why there a inverse relationship between one another is because the higher the level of education a prisoner has received ,the less likely he or she is to return to prison. For instance, studies indicate that approximately between 50 to 65 percent of inmates who has receive higher education experience a better rate of employment than those who don 't participate in education programs. The cost-benefit of reducing recidivism will begin to be realized immediately. If we consider the additional benefit of these individuals obtaining work, paying taxes, and contributing to the general economy, and the prevention of costs to victims of crime and the criminal justice system, the benefits are significantly greater". In addition, while individuals are in prison receiving an higher education, it would put towards these cause because they would have job to repay for the debt they have
The most recent example of this would be Tyrone Howard who is mentioned above. He has been arrested many times yet still got out and continued to commit crimes even after going through the diversion programs for drug charges. I believe that Jonsson is mistaken because he overlooks the factors that come out of prison education. Although many think prison education is being pushed, prisons and prison guards do not advocate the idea of educating the prisoners. Since the requirement to become a prison guard is only a high school diploma, the guards become envious of the criminals who are getting higher education which could cause tension and mistreatment. Also, educating prisoners should decrease the recidivism rate which would bring the government to give less money to prisons because there are less prisoners to care for. Education in prison is not being pushed because it is harmful to the prison system no matter how the government decides to do
For the issue of high incarceration rates, high recedivisim rates, large amounts of government and tax payer money associated with the spending per inmate in state and federal prison systems, the act of implementing more education programs both incarcerated and as an alternative to incarceration might just help save the future. When looking at the education programs that could be offereed for offenders and incarcerated individuals, there are two basic types; vocational educational training and literacy development education. Vocational training education focus on skills that are directly transferable and related to a workplace. Whereas literacy education courses are based on the traditional education learning model that is centered around reading and math skills (Bazos & Hausman, 2004). These types of programs focus on goals such as the increase in education attainment among the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated population, to increase access to postsecondary education for offenders, to deliver at minimum the basic core education classes one needs to succeed outside of prison or jail, and reducing recidivism and improving the quality of life affected by crime and incarceration, (Borden, Richardson, & Meyer, 2012; Vera Institute of Justice). Research show that these type of programs should focus on.......One way to go about managing educational programs is by offeing community college oppurtunities for both the incarerated and as an alternative to incarceration for certain types of offenders. Community colleges are of one of the best options available because they offer a wide range of academic and vocational degree that are ideal for meeting the unique needs of the incarcerated population. Also, because many ...
According to experts and inmates, education is a key to successful reentry into society that most inmates are lacking. Over the past twenty years, the need for education within jails and prisons has risen to an all-time high...
Education in prisons has shown by many different studies that it is a good thing to implement in the prison system. The studies that prisoners are less likely to return to prison if they are giving some form of education. Which is a positive thing because if we reduce the number of people that are in prison we would save money that we could put elsewhere. Even though that these programs have been met with a lot of scrutiny they are showing that there is a lot of positive thing that can happen if you help prisoners get an education in prison. While they are in prison you have a chance to change someone life for the better. We just have to be will to put the money forward.