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How Effective Is Correctional Education, and Where Do We Go From Here? The Results of a Comprehensive Evaluation
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Assesses the effectiveness of correctional education for both incarcerated adults and juveniles, presents the results of a survey of U.S. state correctional education directors, and offers recommendations for improving correctional education.
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... Additionally, the personal and personality traits of former prisoners further complicate their employment prospects. Incarcerated individuals often exhibit low cognitive capabilities, limited education and literacy, and inadequate reading and writing skills (Bloom 2006;Davis et al. 2014;Lawrence et al. 2002;Saylor and Gaes 1997;Silver and Nedelec 2018). In the labour market context, released prisoners typically lack a substantial occupational history, marketable skills and professional competencies (Cullen and Gendreau 2000;Davis et al. 2014;Gaes et al. 1999;Lawrence et al. 2002;Petersilia 2003;Visher et al. 2005;Western et al. 2001). ...
... Incarcerated individuals often exhibit low cognitive capabilities, limited education and literacy, and inadequate reading and writing skills (Bloom 2006;Davis et al. 2014;Lawrence et al. 2002;Saylor and Gaes 1997;Silver and Nedelec 2018). In the labour market context, released prisoners typically lack a substantial occupational history, marketable skills and professional competencies (Cullen and Gendreau 2000;Davis et al. 2014;Gaes et al. 1999;Lawrence et al. 2002;Petersilia 2003;Visher et al. 2005;Western et al. 2001). Their work history often includes a pattern of unstable employment (National Institute of Justice 2014; Petersilia 2003;Visher et al. 2005;Western et al. 2001), low self-esteem and negative expectations regarding their employability (Saylor and Gaes 1997). ...
... Furthermore, prisoners have many personal and personality traits that diminish their chances of being hired. In this context, prisoners typically tend to have low cognitive capabilities, low levels of education and literacy, as well as lesser reading and writing knowledge (Bloom 2006;Davis et al. 2014;Lawrence et al. 2002;Saylor and Gaes 1997;Silver and Nedelec 2018). In the occupational context, released prisoners characteristically have sparse occupational history, few working skills, a lack of professional competencies (Cullen and Gendreau 2000;Davis et al. 2014;Gaes et al. 1999;Lawrence et al. 2002;Petersilia 2003;Visher et al. 2005;Western et al. 2001), a history of unstable employment (National Institute of Justice 2014; Petersilia 2003;Visher et al. 2005;Western et al. 2001), low perceived self-esteem, negative expectations about their ability to get hired, and so on (Saylor and Gaes 1997). ...
In the quest for effective prisoner rehabilitation, while there is existing literature that predominantly emphasizes recidivism rates, it is important to recognize that this singular focus may sometimes overshadow the broader dimensions crucial for successful societal reintegration. This study, therefore, investigates the multifaceted outcomes of an employment training programme offered by the Israel Prison Service. Employing propensity score matching, we compared outcomes between programme participants and non-participants. Our analysis encompassed recidivism rates, employment stability, income levels, tax-paying behaviour and welfare service engagement. While recidivism rates remained largely unaffected, our findings unveiled promising results in other domains. Programme participants exhibited enhanced employment stability, realized higher incomes, demonstrated increased engagement in tax-paying and accessed welfare services more frequently. This study underscores the need for a comprehensive approach to assessing rehabilitation effectiveness, extending beyond the singular metric of recidivism. While acknowledging certain limitations, our research highlights that employment training programmes may not have a direct impact on recidivism but can significantly contribute to labour market reintegration and promote more productive and socially responsible behaviours. It advocates further exploring diverse outcome measures to develop holistic rehabilitation strategies.
... Det er etter hvert publisert mange interessante analyser av sammenhengene mellom utdanning og kriminalitet, hvor en på samfunnsnivå ser nedgang i kriminalitet ved utvidelse av utdanningsnivået i befolkningen (Hjalmarsson og Lochner, 2012;Lochner og Moretti, 2004;Machin mfl., 2012;Moretti, 2005), og det er gode indikasjoner på at utdanning som kriminalitetsforebyggende tiltak blant innsatte er en fruktbar vei å gå (Davis mfl., 2014;Steurer og Smith, 2003). Stortingsmeldingen om utenforskap viser også hvilke omfattende konsekvenser mangelfull kvalifisering for arbeidslivet medfører. ...
This report focuses on the training needs of inmates who had contact with support systems such as PPT (Pedagogical-Psychological Service) and child protection services during their childhood. Overall, 44% of the inmates reported having such contact, with 13.9% having contact only with PPT, 11.9% only with child protection services, and 18.2% with both.
Inmates who had contact with these support systems also reported more previous convictions, despite being, on average, younger than those without such contact. This is not related to the length of their sentences.
There is a disproportionately high need for training among inmates who had contact with support systems, especially those who had contact with child protection services alone or in combination with PPT. The survey shows that around 30% of these inmates completed upper secondary education, with only a small number having higher education. This proportion is somewhat higher for inmates who had contact only with PPT. In contrast, 58.5% of inmates without contact with support systems reported completing upper secondary or higher education.
The groups also differ in their training desires. A larger proportion of inmates with support system contact want secondary education, while more inmates without such contact prefer shorter courses. This is reflected in their participation in training, with a higher proportion of those with support system contact participating in upper secondary education.
Learning challenges, such as learning difficulties and attention issues (including ADHD), are significantly higher among inmates with support system contact. The incidence of ADHD is particularly elevated among those who had contact with child protection services, both in terms of diagnosis and high scores on related measures. Inmates with PPT contact also show a higher incidence of learning difficulties, such as reading, writing, and math challenges. Additionally, these inmates have significantly weaker communication skills, particularly in areas requiring good impulse control and attention.
Inmates with support system contact more frequently cite difficulties as obstacles to training participation compared to those without such contact. However, motivation for education among participants is similar between the two groups.
Early contact with support systems results in a greater need for tailored training programs. There is a need for thorough assessments of individual prerequisites to ensure well-arranged educational offerings.
... The program was developed in response to difficulties experienced by many released prisoners when seeking meaningful employment, due to factors including stigma, poor prior employment background, limited skills, low wages, and unrealistic expectations for rapid promotion (Davis et al., 2014;Lucken and Ponte, 2008;Pager et al., 2009;Seiter and Kadela, 2003). In the development of the program, securing meaningful employment was regarded as a crucial step in rehabilitation, reintegration, and assimilation (Duwe, 2015;Gillis and Nafekh, 2005;Laub and Sampson, 1993). ...
For many released prisoners, the period following release is characterized by extreme challenges. The ability to overcome such challenges depends on the services, level of supervision, and type of support available. One type of support offered by the Israeli Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Authority provides a supervisory and rehabilitative framework for reintegration after release from imprisonment, with an emphasis on employment. The present study examines the subjective experiences of ex-prisoners on their journey from incarceration through reentry and reintegration while participating in supervision, treatment, and employment intervention operated by the Israeli Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Authority. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a sample of released prisoners who successfully completed Israeli Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Authority supervision. The interviews reveal four main themes that in turn identify pathways to “better lives” through the reintegration process.
Prison misconduct can produce a range of detrimental consequences across prison systems. Research indicates that both individual- and prison-level characteristics predict misconduct; however, there is increasing evidence that this relationship can be mediated by program participation. Accordingly, this study seeks to expand knowledge on the relationship between prison misconduct and prison programming by examining two types of prison programs (a) Thinking for a Change and (b) Functional Literacy. Specifically, we examine the impact of these programs across different forms of misconduct (i.e., drug, violence between incarcerated people, assault on staff, and other non-violence) using propensity score matching on sample of 3,795 incarcerated individuals. Findings showed participation in the Functional Literacy program was associated with reductions in drug misconduct and participation in the Thinking for a Change Program was associated with reductions in staff assault and drug misconduct. Implications for correctional practice and policy are discussed.
Basically, detained children, like any other children, have the right to education. Unfortunately in most of prisons worldwide, education programs seem not to meet the general requirements or are simply forgotten. In some cases, these programs are not available when on the other side, they are unable to respond to their major goal of preparing children inmates for rehabilitation and reintegration into their community. That is the case at Munzenze prison in the Democratic Republic of Congo where evidence shows that there is no education program for children inmates. This paper tries to identify the gaps while establishing the urgency for correctional education especially the need for peace education. This could be a good way to help the children to return to their society. Data were collected through interviews using a question guide.
The emphasis of juvenile justice has changed from punitive to a more restorative approach. The existing literatures was searched from the academic databases out of which 54 studies were identified and content analysis was performed to review these studies. The aim of this paper was to critically analyze studies that relate to the correctional strategies used in Juvenile Justice Systems for rehabilitation. It was found that there is a paucity of knowledge regarding how the mental factor is taken into consideration for rehabilitation of a juvenile delinquent. Key components like causes of juvenile delinquent, the theoretical framework, legal underpinnings, the important rehabilitation models and the psychological element of juvenile delinquency are reviewed. The limitations and future directions for research are discussed.
Youth with and at risk for disabilities served in alternative education settings frequently struggle with the writing process, which impedes their ability to communicate ideas and opinions with others. Providing explicit teaching of a writing strategy is necessary for this population of youth. This study examined the effects of self-regulated strategy development (SRSD) with self-determination skills on self-advocacy-focused writing probes (e.g., persuasive) for adolescent female youth in a juvenile justice setting. Emphasis was placed on teaching youth how to use persuasive writing as a tool to self-advocate for things they want or need. The SRSD instructional approach was investigated using a multiple-probe-across-participants design to evaluate the effects. Visual analyses indicated a functional relation between SRSD with self-determination instruction and youth’s writing skills. All youth demonstrated an increase in organizational quality and self-advocacy in writing from baseline to independent practice. Limitations to the current study and future directions are discussed.
It is well documented that justice-involved individuals experience a plethora of systemic barriers that exist at the societal, organizational, and individual level; namely, at the individual level, employers’ attitudes and perceptions often impede the hiring of individuals with a criminal record, as well as individuals’ inconsistent work history and lack of skills. Among the strategies that can assist justice-involved individuals in lowering their perceived stigma during the employment process is attaining some level of education or skills training. Given that justice-involved individuals are nearly twice as likely to have no high school education as compared to the general population, individuals who demonstrate agency and engage in some level of education and skill attainment, may be perceived as more marketable and employable. This paper explores the role of education and skill training pathways to aid in individuals’ access to employment opportunities. Specifically, I aim to make the following contributions: (1) provide an overview of the research with regard to varied education and training pathways that justice-involved individuals may engage in, (2) identify the level of skills and educational attainment that are associated with varied training pathways; (3) raise critical questions that have not been given sufficient attention in the research literature about the effects of training pathways and employment opportunities for justice-involved individuals. Lastly, while acknowledging the contributing factors that render individuals more employable, and highlighting the agency and resiliency demonstrated by justice-involved individuals, this paper notes the significance (and need) of organizations to create sustainable inclusive employment policies and practices, such that they are ready to hire from this population.
This randomized pretest/posttest group study examined the impact of explicit instruction in decoding, comprehension, and fluency on the reading achievement of incarcerated students from facilities in a southwestern (SW) state, a southeastern (SE) state, and a mid-Atlantic (MA) state. Comparisons were made between instruction comprised of higher and lower teacher-student ratio groups (1:12 v. 1:4) for the MA site and overall student reading growth rates for the SW and SE site. A total of 49 students were involved (SW=13, SE =16, MA=20). MANCOVA results for the MA site found significant differences for group size on the Letter-Word Identification subtest of the Woodcock Reading Mastery test. Pretest and posttest difference scores are reported for the SW and SE sites. Results are discussed in relationship to the implication of providing explicit reading instruction with lower teacher-student ratios and the overall difficulty of conducting juvenile justice research.
Seven youths from a residential treatment facility for juvenile offenders served as subjects in a study designed to train minimally literate individuals to read and complete job applications. An item analysis was conducted on applications from 30 employers in a metropolitan area. Based on that analysis, a Master Employment Application was created to be representative of a typical job application; it required 35 separate items of biographic information from the prospective employee. A nine-step training program was conducted in a Visual Response System classroom, a specially designed room in which students respond simultaneously on individual overhead projectors. The training program progressed from matching items projected by the teacher to writing responses to biographic items on overhead projector transparencies of the Master Employment Application. A multiple baseline design across sets of biographic items was used to evaluate the program's effectiveness. All subjects' scores on the Master Employment Application increased as a function of the training program and were maintained in a two week follow-up. Students also increased their performance on three real job applications used to assess generalization.
Given the close association of academic achievement with delinquency and recidivism, further examination of the relationship between these variables is warranted. This study examined the records of 549 delinquent males committed to the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center in Kearney, Nebraska (a state correctional facility), who received general equivalency diplomas (GEDs) while incarcerated and those whose academic achievement was assessed (Woodcock Johnson Psychoeducational Battery-Revised/Tests of Achievement [WJ-ACH] pretest and posttest scores [Woodcock & Johnson, 1989]) from 1990 through 1996. Findings were consistent with previous research showing that the age of the offender at first offense and first commitment differentiated recidivists from nonrecidivists. Additional discriminant factors included pretest WJ-ACH scores in reading, writing, math, and skills; improvement in academic achievement in writing and skills; and GED performance in science and math, location of residence, and ethnic origin.
What Works in Corrections, first published in 2006, examines the impact of correctional interventions, management policies, treatment and rehabilitation programs on the recidivism of offenders and delinquents. The book reviews different strategies for reducing recidivism and describes how the evidence for effectiveness is assessed. Thousands of studies were examined in order to identify those of sufficient scientific rigor to enable conclusions to be drawn about the impact of various interventions, policies and programs on recidivism. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses were performed to further examine these results. This book assesses the relative effectiveness of rehabilitation programs (e.g., education, life skills, employment, cognitive behavioral), treatment for different types of offenders (e.g. sex offenders, batterers, juveniles), management and treatment of drug-involved offenders (e.g., drug courts, therapeutic communities, outpatient drug treatment) and punishment, control and surveillance interventions (boot camps, intensive supervision, electronic monitoring). Through her extensive research, MacKenzie illustrates which of these programs are most effective and why. © Doris Layton MacKenzie 2006 and Cambridge University Press, 2009.
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