In stir, up the river, in the nick, down, locked up. So far, I have served just over 12 years behind bars, and it looks like I'll be doing life. I am a teacher in a state prison.
To protect the innocent, namely me, I can't give specific details such as names and locations, but I will say that I deal only with youthful male inmates who have mostly committed some fairly serious crimes for which the state determined that anything less than a year would not be enough.
I teach GED classes, which is to say, I teach. Everybody knows what teachers do, and anyone could do it, right? Most people have at least 12 years experience of observing teachers, so we all know what goes on. Is it different in prison? Not in the ways you might expect. First, let's expel Myth No. 1. There are no guards in the room. In fact, there are no guards anywhere in sight, most of the time. Considering there are always at least a couple of rapists and murderers in the room, that might seem a bit odd. Yet, the inmates are relatively well-behaved. They have had a fair number of classroom rules shoved down their throats over the years, so they know how to play the game. The difference when they get out of line in a prison school is that they will not be going to the dean's office; they will be going to a freezing, stinking, dark cell for an indeterminate number of days, with a cell-mate they don't know, who may be crazier than they are. Fear is a great motivator. More on that later.
As a state worker, I teach year-round, which is to say I do not get summers off. Really. I also get much lower pay than county teachers because there are no step increases, and the cost-of-living increases have ranged from 0 (yes, 0) to 3 percent, usually closer to 1 1/2 percent per year since I began. At this rate, I figure minimum wage will overtake my "salary" before I retire. So why do I do it? First, no parental contact. I have never had to speak to a parent. That's not to say that I couldn't, but they would have to ask to speak to me (prison policy), and in over 12 years, not one of them ever did that. I find that odd. Do you? Second, by state statute I am forbidden to take work home with me. And by prison policy, I am not allowed to do overtime. My day ends with the bell. Period. I know teachers in county schools who put in 100 hours a week. I do not envy them their summers off.
I started this blog for a class I am taking to do with educational technology. So let me finish up with a few words on that. Inmates are spoiled. I have six computers in my room. Inmates have the option of doing some or all of their studies on the computer. Of course, they do not have Internet access, you will be pleased to know. But they have a myriad of educational games available, and a full library of educational videos, School could not be any easier or attractive. Do they appreciate it? No. They complain that school is a punishment in itself and look upon computers as a supply box for tattoo guns (they steal the CD drive motors)! But I keep trying.
I have a few simulations that the inmates do periodically, and I try to work in the videos with the text readings. We have plenty to choose from, so that helps make lessons more interesting. Of course a ten-minute video followed by a mind-stretching writing exercise is not necessarily their idea of "fun," and there are many who will resist and complain every step of the way. So perhaps really I mean that it is interesting for me.
And then again, sometimes I feel as if I am pushing water uphill.
To protect the innocent, namely me, I can't give specific details such as names and locations, but I will say that I deal only with youthful male inmates who have mostly committed some fairly serious crimes for which the state determined that anything less than a year would not be enough.
I teach GED classes, which is to say, I teach. Everybody knows what teachers do, and anyone could do it, right? Most people have at least 12 years experience of observing teachers, so we all know what goes on. Is it different in prison? Not in the ways you might expect. First, let's expel Myth No. 1. There are no guards in the room. In fact, there are no guards anywhere in sight, most of the time. Considering there are always at least a couple of rapists and murderers in the room, that might seem a bit odd. Yet, the inmates are relatively well-behaved. They have had a fair number of classroom rules shoved down their throats over the years, so they know how to play the game. The difference when they get out of line in a prison school is that they will not be going to the dean's office; they will be going to a freezing, stinking, dark cell for an indeterminate number of days, with a cell-mate they don't know, who may be crazier than they are. Fear is a great motivator. More on that later.
As a state worker, I teach year-round, which is to say I do not get summers off. Really. I also get much lower pay than county teachers because there are no step increases, and the cost-of-living increases have ranged from 0 (yes, 0) to 3 percent, usually closer to 1 1/2 percent per year since I began. At this rate, I figure minimum wage will overtake my "salary" before I retire. So why do I do it? First, no parental contact. I have never had to speak to a parent. That's not to say that I couldn't, but they would have to ask to speak to me (prison policy), and in over 12 years, not one of them ever did that. I find that odd. Do you? Second, by state statute I am forbidden to take work home with me. And by prison policy, I am not allowed to do overtime. My day ends with the bell. Period. I know teachers in county schools who put in 100 hours a week. I do not envy them their summers off.
I started this blog for a class I am taking to do with educational technology. So let me finish up with a few words on that. Inmates are spoiled. I have six computers in my room. Inmates have the option of doing some or all of their studies on the computer. Of course, they do not have Internet access, you will be pleased to know. But they have a myriad of educational games available, and a full library of educational videos, School could not be any easier or attractive. Do they appreciate it? No. They complain that school is a punishment in itself and look upon computers as a supply box for tattoo guns (they steal the CD drive motors)! But I keep trying.
I have a few simulations that the inmates do periodically, and I try to work in the videos with the text readings. We have plenty to choose from, so that helps make lessons more interesting. Of course a ten-minute video followed by a mind-stretching writing exercise is not necessarily their idea of "fun," and there are many who will resist and complain every step of the way. So perhaps really I mean that it is interesting for me.
And then again, sometimes I feel as if I am pushing water uphill.
1 comment:
Wow! I was "stirred" by what you wrote. Very well written; interesting perspectives held by you and your students. I will be thinking about what you wrote ...
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