NCJ Number
87647
Editor(s)
L Morin
Date Published
1981
Length
328 pages
Annotation
This collection of 18 essays and research studies on prison education focuses on the philosophical justification for the provision of education in prison, the role of values education, the competencies required of correctional educators, and related issues.
Abstract
The philosophy that education is a right for inmates is discussed in terms of three concepts: fraternal obligation, human dignity, and human development. The factors which affect curriculum development are analyzed, as are the current curriculum in British prisons and future curriculum needs. A coordinator of educational programs at two Canadian correctional facilities proposes an educational growth model as the appropriate basis for correctional programming and describes the results of some correctional education programs in Canada, the United States, and Great Britain, An analysis of a humanities program as part of prison education concludes that such programs should receive low priority in the planning of educational programs in prisons. A discussion of the theoretical basis for values education in prisons accompanies the presentation of a plan for a viable, realistic program of values education. Historical and antropological analyses from Rene Girard and others form the basis of a philosophical exploration of the relationship of the judicial system to the penal system and this relationship's relevance to the question of why education should be provided in prison. Another paper offers a philosophical justification for the minimal legal rights of prisoners, using a conception of punishment derived from social contract theory and differing from utilitarian and retributive theories of punishment. A comparison of three types of institutional programs for youthful offenders reveals that the program using Kohlberg's model of a just community produced greater improvements in the clients' moral development than did either an open behavior modification unit or a secure transactional analysis program. Other issues examined include the benefits of advanced education in prisons, the major psychological processes in moral behavior, and theoretical aspects of correctional education. Tables and reference lists are provided for some of the papers.