introducing digital technologies into prisons: issues and challenges
TRANSCRIPT
Introducing digital technologies into prisons: Issues and challenges
Associate Professor Helen FarleyDigital Life LabUniversity of Southern Queensland
How do I know?
• Introduced digital technologies for learning into correctional centres
• In Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia and the Northern Territory
• Private and public prisons
• Probation and parole
• 1000 prisoners over 4 years
• No security breaches
The challenges
• No internet
• Restricted access to technology
• Competition with vocational and cognitive training
• Universities increasingly online
• Prioritisation of custodial
• No social or cultural capital
Our solution• 2 technologies
• Server• Personal device
• Technologies loaded with USQ StudyDesk
• Provides access to a selection of USQ courses and programs designed to work without internet
A sad story …
Advocates
• Keeping prisoners occupied
• Developing digital literacies
• Skills for learning and working
• Skills for living• Mindfulness
• Diabetes management
• Eases movement restrictions
• Eases pain of dislocation
Sceptics• Too smart for their own good
• They’re in there for a reason
• All technology is corruptible
• All prisoners want to corrupt technology
• Coercion
• Ready access to OS, mobile technologies, USBs
• Power illegal devices (watch the YouTube!)
Custodial is king
Working with custodial
• Must be given opportunity to voice their concerns
• Must be given opportunity to explore technologies
• Must work within existing systems, approvals
• Use existing processes
• These are the people who pick up the pieces
Learning what can be dangerous
• All the usual: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cameras
• Mass storage devices
• Powered ports
• Batteries
• Cords
• Places to hide stuff: physical and virtual
• Desktop shortcuts
• An accomplice
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 file types
• Automatically disables everything upon sleeping
• Limits visibility for Student of drives: Can’t hide anything
• Tick or cross in task bar
Third party security certifications
• Some peace of mind for jurisdictions
• Will find something
• Balancing risk and benefit
• Need to address concerns
• Jurisdictions watch each other
What can go wrong?• Reactivating deactivated functionality
• Using devices for other than intended purposes• Lighting cigarettes from shorted cords
• Creating illegal documents/files• Offensive prose/poetry
• Pornographic material
• Coercion
• Jealousy/resentment
• Use as a physical weapon
Prevention … the easy things
• Thorough screening of prisoners for suitability … or not?
• Agreements, e.g. Qld In-Cell Laptop Agreement
• Hire - investment
• Documentation, e.g. what should it look like?
• Rugged hardware (and software)
• Training of education/custodial officers and prisoners
Dynamic security
• Education is a privilege
• Work with prisoners to know where they are at with their studies
• Shift in identity - prosocial
• Development of higher cognitive skills
• Builds resilience
• Develops vocabulary and fosters negotiation
• Develop self-reliance and self-regulation
• Gain digital literacies
• Oh, and to gain a qualification
‘Education has made me more well-behaved … it’s had a calming effect … gave me something else to think about … stopped me acting so impulsively … gave me some long term thoughts …’
Damien, undergraduate incarcerated student in theMaking the Connection project
Maryborough Correctional Centre, 31 July 2015
Making the Connection
• 1000 incarcerated students
• 2000 course enrolments
• 77% retention rate
• All but one correctional centre in Queensland
• Tasmania, Western Australia, Northern Territory
• Negotiating a different mode of delivery in the ACT
• Proposals with Victoria and South Australia
• Recently, deployed with Probation & Parole in Ipswich and Inala
Programs• Tertiary Preparation Program
• Indigenous Higher Education Pathways Program
• Diploma of Arts
• Diploma of Science
• Associate Degree of Business Administration
A happier story …
Pictures from Flickr …• 2765 Cold by nebojsa mladjenovic
• FACER5 by akaTman
• Prison cell by Aapo Haapanen
• Finger by Andreas Levers
• The music is all I have left by Neil Moralee
• Netbook Sony VAIO by Antonio Tajuelo
• Crown by Peter Clark
• Shattered by jeff gloriana
• Power cord by The Next Web
• Broken lock by Mike Myers
• Sparks by Kevin Faccenda
• Community ..... by Kamaljith K V
• A CATastrophic Surprise by Susan Gilson
• Thank You by Nate Grigg
A couple of other conferences …
• The Australasian Corrections Education Association Conference• October 3 – 5 Canberra
• https://acea.org.au/
• Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education• December 4 – 6 Toowoomba
• http://2017conference.ascilite.org/
Keeping in touch … Project newsletter
http://bit.ly/USQMakingtheConnection
