NCJ Number
185451
Journal
Journal of Correctional Education Volume: 51 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2000 Pages: 286-292
Date Published
September 2000
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This article describes the components of Washington State's inmate literacy program, entitled "Read to Succeed."
Abstract
"Literacy," as defined by the program, is being able to function in English above a fifth-grade level. Trained, educated inmates teach other inmates in one-on-one instruction. To qualify as a tutor, an inmate must have earned a high school diploma or have a GED certificate and have successfully passed the college level, one-credit lecture course entitled, "Tutoring Principles and Practices, Education 193." Upon successful completion of this course, the tutor-coordinator reviews the tutor's qualifications (cultural background, education, personality, avocations, skills, and infractions) and selects an appropriate inmate/client for this tutor. The client is usually a student enrolled in an Adult Basic Education class, a referral from a Department of Corrections counselor, or an inmate known to an active program tutor. The client is given the opportunity to decide whether he wants to work with the tutor provisionally assigned to him. The tutoring sessions are dependent on the schedules of both the tutor and client, tutoring room accessibility, and inmate movement periods. The program guidelines require that the tutor and client meet three times a week for an hour. In addition to describing the program's requirements and procedure, this article also profiles the monitoring process, program advertising, program costs, and program benefits. Ten figures portray the various forms used in the program.