Table 1
Number of Prisoners Enrolled In Prison Schools

School Attendance

Attendance at prison schools is considered voluntary. While teachers emphasize the voluntary nature of schooling, some invariably view it as a "job" for which standardized institutional wages of between $2.00 and $7.00 per day are provided. Pay is docked if individuals do not attend and teachers are asked to provide performance and attendance records on students for the purposes of parole board hearings or early release hearings. There was varying support for these institutional requirements among teachers.

Most teachers indicated that clearly articulated rules help to establish safety within the environment. Wlodkowski (1993) advocates reminds teachers to show fairness and acceptance to all learners and, by so doing, fear and mistrust will be reduced thereby making the learning environment safer and more cohesive (p. 123).

The degree of commitment by prisoners for school varies from prison to prison. From time to time, students quit school and the reasons provided for quitting school are numerous. The most commonly cited reasons included inter- and intra-prison transfers, sentence expiry or parole, , an inability to concentrate or stay physically in one place for long periods of time, the rules being too strict, unrealistic commitments, lack of motivation and/or completion of academic goals. One teacher stressed the importance of a thorough screening process which would deny unmotivated or disruptive prisoners a chance to participate in class.