Prison Pedagogies - by Joe Lockard & Sherry Rankins-Robertson

Book Synopsis

In a time of increasing mass incarceration, US prisons and jails are becoming a major source of literary production. Prisoners write for themselves, fellow prisoners, family members, and teachers. However, too few write for college credit. In the dearth of well-organized higher education in US prisons, noncredit programs
established by colleges and universities have served as a leading means of informal learning in these settings. Thousands of teachers have entered prisons, many teaching writing or relying on writing practices when teaching other subjects. Yet these teachers have few pedagogical resources. This groundbreaking collection of essays provides such a resource and establishes a framework upon which to develop prison writing programs.

Prison Pedagogies does not champion any one prescriptive approach to writing education but instead recognizes a wide range of possibilities. Essay subjects include working-class consciousness and prison education; community and literature writing at different security levels in prisons; organized writing classes in jails and juvenile halls; cultural resistance through writing education; prison newspapers and writing archives as pedagogical resources; dialogical approaches to teaching prison writing classes; and more. The contributors
within this volume share a belief that writing represents a form of intellectual and expressive self-development in prison, one whose pursuit has transformative potential.

Review Quotes

What really emerges from this wonderful collection of essays is the importance of progressive pedagogies that encourage people living in prison communities to have their voice heard, to create and tell their own narratives, and to find agency and self-reflection in their work. But it is also a reminder to prison educators and writing teachers to be aware of our own prejudices and positions of privilege when working on programmes with students. In the words of Anna Plemons, what incarcerated students need is "...teachers willing to show up, show respect, bring their own best work, and teach what they know."-- "Journal of Prison Education and Reentry"

Prison Pedagogies is highly kairotic due to the current breadth of prison education programs that struggle to meet the educational needs of prisoners. . . . This edited collection approaches the performance of prison teaching and learning through multiple perspectives and intelligences.-- "Reflections Journal"

Offers a much-needed resource for educators interested in teaching writing and literature in prisons, jails, and detention centers. Rather than relying solely on personal accounts of prison teaching, the authors in this compelling collection emphasize pedagogical practices that can be useful to other educators working in similar spaces.-- "Patrick W. Berry, author of Doing Time, Writing Lives: Refiguring Literacy and Higher Education in Prison"

About the Author

Joe Lockard is associate professor of English at Arizona State University.

Sherry Rankins-Robertson is the associate professor of rhetoric and writing at University of Arkansas in Little Rock.