Universities and other education institutions are increasingly turning to technology for the delivery of their courses and programmes. But what happens when their learners are incarcerated?

1. Dr Helen Farley
Practice Manager Education and
Training Southern Region,
Department of Corrections New
Zealand
Adjunct Associate Professor
University of Southern Queensland

3. We estimate,
of the people
in our care …
• 57% require numeracy
and literacy support
• 66% have no formal
qualifications
compared to 23%
general population
• 4.4% have Autism
Spectrum Disorder
• 40–50% of youth have
ADHD
• 91% have a life time
diagnosis of mental
health or substance
abuse disorder

4. That results in • Emotional age not equal to physical age
• Poor impulse control – anger
• Challenges with processing information
• Poor working memory
• Challenges retaining knowledge
• Challenges with fine motor control
• Challenges with understanding
instructions
• Challenges reading and writing

5. Young males

6. Why is education
important?
• Integral to rehabilitation
• Significant impact on recidivism
rates
• Better mental health outcomes
• Post-release employment (but does
that matter?)
• Dynamic security
• Education is transformational

7. A technology quiz …
• Who looked at Facebook before they got out of bed?
• Who has conducted an online financial transaction today?
• Who has emailed the boss?
• Who has fed a virtual animal today?
• Who bought online concert tickets in 2020?
• Who has looked me up on Linked In?
• Who has a qualification earned entirely online?
• How many mobile devices do you have?

9. Why is
technology
important?
• Improve digital literacies
• Interactive learning materials
• Address learning challenges
• Provides for opportunities beyond the classroom
• Providers are increasingly online
• Reintegration
• To improve employment prospects post-release

10. 90% of employers rate
operating a digital device
as important to the
majority of roles in their
organisation. Today almost
every job relies on some
aspect of technology:
whether it’s sitting at a PC
in an office, working at a
checkout or delivering
parcels.
Chartered Institute of IT
http://www.bcs.org/category/17854

11. Two main models
• Computer or
education labs
• In-cell technologies
• But also consider
instructional
technologies

12. Computer labs
• In New Zealand, Secure Online Learning
• Limited internet with white-listed sites
• Other materials made accessible from server loaded
centrally
• Biometric log in
• Mostly for numeracy and literacy, driver’s licence
• Challenges with third party providers

13. Computer labs
USQ’s Making the Connection
• Server-based solution – ‘USQ
Enterprise Platform’
• 8 – 10 computers
• Access to learning management
system, Libre Office and courses
• Added to existing lab via network
switch

14. Virtual reality at Otago
Corrections Facility
• Virtual mechanic’s workshop
• Embedded numeracy and literacy

16. Challenges with
computer and
education labs
• Difficult to get prisoners there
• Movement issues becoming worse with overcrowding
• One or two labs for hundreds of prisoners
• Limited time with computers or VR
• Content can be expensive to produce
• But … can be cheap and secure through supervision

17. In-cell technologies in
prison
• Focus on tablet
technologies or thin
clients
• Education often an add-
on after everything else
• User pays system
sometimes exploitative
• Little user testing
• Screen real estate
compromised by
keyboard

18. But …
• Can work with the right learning
materials
• Choose the right tool for the job
• Afterthought better than no
thought at all
• Can supplement written materials
– Remand project in Central
Region, NZ

19. The right tool …
Learning graphic design
• At Otago Corrections Facility and
partnering with Methodist
Mission
• Using Socrates 360 tablets and
looking at alternatives
• Māui Studios
• Colour/design/animation
courses
• Then learners contribute to
existing projects
• Māori stories, te reo

22. In-cell technologies:
Making the Connection
• Two technologies: Server-based solution and
notebook computer solution
• A fleet of around 700 Offline Personal Devices
• Completely offline
• Learning Management System, Device Manager
Software, Libre Office, and higher education
courses
• Deployed in Queensland, Tasmania, Western
Australia and the Northern Territory
• Pilot in Matawhāiti Residence at Christchurch
Men's’ Prison

24. What we’ve done … Device Manager Software
• Two log ins: Education officer and
Student
• Group policies
• Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, network, camera,
recorder, ports disabled
• Device Manager Software constantly
scans for attempts at re-enabling
• Constantly scans for illegal file types
• Automatically disables everything upon
sleeping
• Limits visibility for student of drives:
Can’t hide anything
• Tick or cross in task bar

25. AI in Finland
• Criminal Sanctions collaborated
with the start-up technology
company Vainu.
• Vainu offers inmates a chance to
work by classifying data to train
artificial intelligence algorithms.
• Prisoners can take a course in
basic Artificial Intelligence.
• https://www.elementsofai.com/

27. Coding
• Looking at it in New Zealand – Take 2
• Next Chapter in California
• Code 4000 in UK

28. Code 4000
• Stage 1 is a training phase, and begins with teaching prisoners the
basics of HMTL, CSS, and Javascript, before moving on to more
advanced concepts such as Git, TDD, MVC, databases and full stack
development.
• Stage 2 allows successful graduates of Stage 1 to then work on real-
world projects for external clients, which will also provide a modest
income to the project.
• Stage 3 will then see them working for clients in the real world on
temporary day release.
• Stage 4 aims to help them find full time employment as developers.

29. Open University
• Virtual Campus
• L7 platform (LMS) on
laptops
• 1800 students across
120 prisons
• OpenLearn courses
• OU courses

30. A word on whitelisting …

31. Technology planning considerations
• Work closely with providers as partners
• Content is expensive to modify/create
• Copyright is tricky
• Simple is best
• Human factors
• Support is key

33. Images from Pexels.com

34. Helen Farley
+64 21 027 27215
helen.farley@usq.edu.au