Education Commons^™

Teaching Humanities Research In Under-Resourced Carceral Environments, Kevin J. Windhauser

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Humanities courses make up a large portion of higher education courses offered in United States carceral facilities. However, many of these facilities lack the academic resources necessary to support the research assignments traditionally assigned in a humanities course, from research papers common in introductory courses to the undergraduate theses completed by many humanities majors. This paper outlines a case study in adapting a humanities research assignment to function in a prison lacking digital and physical research resources, with particular attention to the assignment’s potential to promote student confidence, independent learning, and autonomy. The author surveys the instructor’s role in promoting …

National Novel Writing Month Behind Bars: A Road Map For Nanowrimo At Fci-Elkton, Jason Kahler

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Writers and students at Federal Correctional Institution-Elkton use low-tech strategies to participate in National Novel Writing Month. Prisoners reflect on the challenges and power of participating in an entirely prisoner-led event. Over the span of a six-week course, students earn programming credit by responding to prompts, working on their novels, and reporting word totals and goals. The author positions himself as a researcher, practitioner, scholar, and prisoner, who balanced the needs of good teaching and positive educational experiences with the realities of working in a prison as a prisoner.

“You’Re Almost In This Place That Doesn’T Exist”: The Impact Of College In Prison As Understood By Formerly Incarcerated Students From The Northeastern United States, Hilary Binda, Jill D. Weinberg, Nora Maetzener, Carolyn Rubin

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

This qualitative study examines the immediate and lasting impact of liberal arts higher education in prison from the perspective of former college-in-prison students from the Northeastern United States. Findings obtained through semi-structured interviews with formerly incarcerated people are presented in the following three areas: self-confidence and agency, interpersonal relationships, and capacity for civic leadership. This study further examines former students’ reflections on the relationship between education and human transformation and begins to benchmark college programming with attention to the potential for such transformation. The authors identify four characteristics critical to a program’s success: academic rigor, the professor's respect for students, …

Book Review-- Prison Pedagogies: Learning And Teaching With Imprisoned Writers, June Edwards

Journal of Prison Education and Reentry (2014-2023)

Prison Pedagogies, Learning and Teaching with Imprisoned Writers

Edited by Joe Lockard and Sherry Rankins-Roberson

Syracuse University Press, New York, 2018

ISBN 9780815654285

Reviewed by JUNE EDWARDS

Mountjoy Prison, Dublin, Ireland