Add explicit study-skills instruction and dedicated quiet study spaces to prison college programs¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

Participants in the pilot study entered the prison college program without study skills and struggled to find suitable places to study in the prison environment. The article recommends that "Prison education programs should work to consciously create spaces that foster learning and effective studying" and be aware of context. This strategy addresses an identified gap rather than a tested intervention.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Programs must acknowledge the unique challenges of learning in a prison setting, including noise, shared housing, and failed prior arrangements such as study halls

Constraints¶

• Prior attempts such as study halls did not work for various reasons, per one participant's account; the strategy is recommended, not evaluated, in this study

Target Learners¶

• Incarcerated college students in women's prison facilities entering postsecondary coursework without prior study skills

Target Learning Goals¶

• Academic study skills, course persistence, and effective learning within a secure facility

Related Strategies¶

• Bu Prison Education Program Element
• Quiet Space for Self-Regulation
• Quiet Space

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Jillian Baranger, Danielle Rousseau, Mary Ellen Mastrorilli, James Matesanz. (2018). Doing Time Wisely: The Social and Personal Benefits of Higher Education in Prison. The Prison Journal. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032885518776380