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Full-Time Vocational Training in Corrections: Measuring Effectiveness vs. Appearance

NCJ Number
113567
Journal
Journal of Correctional Education Volume: 39 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1988) Pages: 130-133
Author(s)
A W Zumpetta
Date Published
1988
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article discusses a study which examined four major management principles (planning, organizing, actuating, and controlling) as they applied to full-time vocational training programs at two correctional institutions in Pennsylvania.
Abstract
The correctional institutions chosen for the study, in Pittsburgh and Huntingdon, had comparable inmate populations and offered full-time vocational training opportunities. Courses offered in Pittsburgh included auto body repair, auto mechanics and computer programming. Auto mechanics, building trades and offset printing were offered at Huntingdon along with a business education program. A 15-item questionnaire was administered to the student inmates soliciting descriptive information on sentence, length of time enrolled in class, time remaining until release, and opinions on various aspects of the training. Of the 58 respondents (24 in Pittsburgh and 34 in Huntingdon), 43 or 83 percent rated the instruction good or very good; another 86 percent felt the training was a vital part of the rehabilitation process; and 72 percent felt it would be 'very helpful' in finding a job following release. Results indicate that when compared to part-time programs, the full-time programs appeared to have better student morale and higher quality of instruction. Tabular data and 8 references.