Corrections_Today_Fall_2025_Vol.87_No.3

EDUCATION

issue (Burgess 250; Chaney 29; Sticht and McDonald 2). Intergenerational illiteracy can be defined as, “a sociocul tural phenomenon whereby illiterate parents inadvertently sponsor home conditions that may seriously hinder their children’s reading and writ ing development, thus perpetuating a cycle of illiteracy” (Cooter 698). Research has found that parents of low literacy or illiteracy tend to provide less literacy training, experience and education to their children, resulting in their children having low literacy as well (Burgess 249; Chaney 31; Cooter 698; Sticht and McDonald 3). Due to the lack of learning necessary literacy skills, low literacy in childhood can contribute to an increased risk of being

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in completing programs that include comprehensive education (Finlay and Bates 133; Galeshi and Bolin 429; Reed 540; “Historical Development” 49). While this is important for the development of literacy for incarcer ated people, there are a variety of approaches where this can be accomplished. Diversifying approaches to literacy will not only provide more options for how to improve literacy skills but also can assess a variety of cost-effi cient options that society can consider. Some approaches can include prison publications, emotional literacy, the use of visual media and parent-child relationships (Jones 2; Novek 22; Petrosino et al. 263; Rahman 105). Addi tionally, these approaches have proven to be not only successful but also creative in making literacy develop ment interactive and a positive experience for everyone involved. In the northeastern United States, a minimum- to maximum-security women’s prison taught literacy to students by publishing a prisoner newspaper. Originally, the class focused on different aspects of journalism before branching out to include newspaper produc tion. From both the journalism class and producing the newspaper, students learned a plethora of literacy skills such as research skills and how to present their research to their audience (Novek 7). They also learned decision making processes, as they had to learn how to work as a team within groups of diverse opinions, deciding together how to create and disseminate the newspaper.

justice-involved or being incarcerated as an adult, con tinuing the cyclical nature of intergenerational illiteracy and incarceration (Clark and Haderlie 9). Therefore, literacy is a key factor for parents who are currently or were previously incarcerated, their children and both of their futures. Overall, previous research indicates the result of the interactions between literacy and incarcera tion can be an important point of intervention to reduce these cyclical intergenerational processes (Burgess 256; Chaney 31; Clark and Haderlie 9; Cooter 699; Sticht and McDonald 9). Literacy programs within correctional settings are an essential part of rehabilitation and reducing recidivism. Prison literacy programs can provide students with the chance to learn skills that will open more economic opportunities for them upon release (Wildeman and Western 187). They can also pass these literacy skills onto their children, and hopefully break the generational cycle of incarceration. While there are many forms of prison literacy programs, most can be categorized into two sections: prisoner-run, and those run by prison staff or outside educators. Non-prisoner-run literacy programs Historically the approach of literacy programs aimed to improve literacy so prisoners can be more successful

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