The purpose of this chapter is to describe educational barriers confronting incarcerated college students in the age of digitalization. This chapter will also explore how to mitigate barriers to developing 21st century competencies. Many incarcerated college students are academically disenfranchised due to the lack of access to essential modern learning modalities for traditional college students. Failure to provide incarcerated students with adequate 21st century competencies may impede their successful reintegration into society.
TopIntroduction
The United States is the world leader of mass incarceration among developed and developing states (Beckett et al., 2018; Blumstein, 2020; Dignam, 2016; Jouet, 2019; Wiseman, 2018). Sadly, yet accurately, Zimring referred to the U.S. as “the homeland of mass incarceration” (2020, p. x). More than two million people are incarcerated at state prisons, federal penitentiaries, and local jails across the nation (Looney & Turner, 2018; Sawyer & Wagner, 2020; Seabrook, 2019; Todd, 2019). Nearly 700 per 100,000 U.S. residents are jailed or imprisoned (Wagner & Sawyer, 2018; Walmsley, 2015). Moreover, the incarceration rate for Black men is over five times than white men (Alexander, 2012; Carson, 2020; Dignam, 2016). Incarceration in the U.S. is tied, in part, to demographic status, social disadvantage, and lack of education (Courtney, 2019; Gorgol & Sponsler, 2011; Morenoff & Harding, 2014; Oakford et al., 2019; Patterson, 2019; Simes, 2018; Tighe et al., 2019).
Many incarcerated persons enter prison without the necessary education, skills, or resources to successfully participate in mainstream society (Gorgol & Sponsler, 2011; Rabuy & Kopf, 2015). Likewise, many, if not most, of these people leave prison without the essential education, skills, or resources to reintegrate into their communities (Gould et al., 2015; Morenoff & Harding, 2014). Many formerly incarcerated persons will return to prison as repeat offenders (Alper et al., 2018; Davis et al., 2013; Sawyer & Wagner, 2020).
A study by Rhodes et al. (2014) found that approximately 33% of formally incarcerated persons will recidivate at some point. However, research has consistently shown that recidivism rates significantly decrease among former inmates who participate in education programs, most notably higher education, during their confinement (Davis et al., 2013; Dignam, 2016; Inderbitzin, 2015; Simpson, 2019). This contribution to the literature maintains that providing a college education to prison inmates has both social and economic benefits, serving as a vital pathway for reducing recidivism rates and victimization. However, many prison education systems suffer from a dearth of educational resources commensurate with 21st century competencies essential to providing incarcerated students with the skills necessary to reintegrate with society fully and productively.
Purpose and Problem
The purpose of this chapter is to describe educational barriers confronting incarcerated college students in the age of digitalization. It will consider ways to mitigate barriers to developing 21st century competencies. Many, perhaps most, incarcerated college students are academically disenfranchised, experiencing a lack of access to modern learning modalities that are considered essential for traditional nonincarcerated college students. A failure to provide incarcerated students with adequate 21st century competencies will impede successful reintegration with society. Unsuccessful reentry, in turn, has significant negative economic and social impacts.