Anyone taught in a prison?

B

Bristolboro

Well-known member
I'm thinking of doing this. Anyone have experience to share?

I've taught for 25 years but want to try something different.
 
Really depends on the Prison Cat. Kirk is a D Cat and working towards release. In a Cat C you could be teaching rom across the board
 
I taught english and drama at Holme House, Durham and Frankland, but all a long time ago. It was very interesting then, but apparently has become much more limiting since. As has the whole scope in the world of teaching.
 
rkangel said:
I taught english and drama at Holme House, Durham and Frankland, but all a long time ago. It was very interesting then, but apparently has become much more limiting since. As has the whole scope in the world of teaching.
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agree with that. It's now so corporate, controlled and regulated.
 
I went for a chat at a YOI at Hatfield near Doncaster about 29 years ago.

The chat and visit put me off - panic buttons in every classroom. I was told to never tell the students what you drive or the area where you live as they think it is fun to get an outside mate to damage your car or break into your house. Taking the students on visits is obviously out and its hard to get visitors to come in to speak to them. However I had just got my teaching certificate and hadn't applied much for work, so I decided to keep looking in mainstream education (which was laying staff off). Nowadays I would consider it as it looked like real teaching in small groups, not paperwork/box ticking or Moodle type stuff (setting up online materials). May be to teach numeracy.

Some of the inmates I saw in a playground setting and they looked 12 and it certainly felt like a prison for children.
 
Bristolboro said:
It's Bristol, category B.
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Obviously Cat A is the high security prison with little movements. Cat B again is quite high and I believe you will have a captive audience who really want to learn to read and write and really want to be in the classroom, something they probably never did in earlier life. I often found the Cat C boys just did education to get off the wing for a few hours. Bit of advice, do not be too judgmental, do NOT promise anything and do NOT give information about you, your family and where you live. Keep eye contact and take no *****. Sounds harsh but you need to make your mark.
 
Went for a look around a year or so ago. Interesting for sure. A lot calmer then I expected. I think the whole airport security feeling on the way in put me off. The workers there spoke highly of the work but they always (almost) do. As said above, depends on the category of the prison. Currently work with some one who did it for 10 or so years and has mixed reviews. Definitely a way to shake things up!
 
I recommend the book The Art of Crime by Stephen Tafka. He taught art in prisons and this book gives a warm, humorous but ultimately bleak view of what it’s like.
 
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