Correctional Education Data Network

Who Participates in Correctional Education?

Although nearly all federal and most state and private prisons offer some form of instruction, only about half of state prisoners participate in educational programs while incarcerated. Participation rates are affected by a variety of factors, including eligibility criteria, program availability, and inmate transfers from one facility to another. As policymakers decide how much funding to allocate for correctional education, they need current statistics on who is and is not receiving instruction and why. Relevant policy questions include:

Inmate Program Eligibility—conditions that must be met by inmate to participate.

Who is eligible to participate in correctional education, and how many of those eligible actually enroll?
How many inmates voluntarily enroll in correctional education, compared to those required to enroll?
How many inmates qualify for special education or English as a second language services, and how many receive those services?
Do state and private correctional facilities provide equal access to education for inmates?
Has inmate access to educational programs changed over time?

Inmate Program Participation—intensity of inmate participation.

In what types of academic and vocational programs do inmates enroll?
Do specific education programs have waitlists, and if so, what is the average length of time inmates wait to enroll?
How much instructional time do inmates receive?
Why do inmates stop participating in correctional education?

Variables

To provide state and federal policymakers with an accurate assessment of program eligibility and participation, state data administrators will need to standardize reporting around the following variables:

Inmate Program Participation
Variable	Reference in Data Codebook	Variable Name
Program Eligibility	Correctional Education Eligibility Reason for Correctional Education Enrollment	EDELIG EDENRL
Special Education Participation	Special Education Services	SPECED
English as a Second Language Participation	English as a Second Language	ESL
Adult Basic Education (ABE) Participation	ABE Enrollment ABE First Enrollment Date ABE Last Enrollment Date ABE Current Enrollment Date ABE Waitlisted Date ABE Status ABE Contact Hours	ABEENR ABEENRFI ABEENRLA ABEENRCU ABEWAIT ABESTAT ABEHOURS
Adult Secondary Education (ASE) Participation	ASE Enrollment ASE First Enrollment Date ASE Last Enrollment Date ASE Current Enrollment Date ASE Waitlisted Date ASE Status ASE Contact Hours	ASEENR ASEENRFI ASEENRLA ASEENRCU ASEWAIT ASESTAT ASEHOURS
Vocational Education Program (VOC) Participation	VOC Enrollment VOC First Enrollment Date VOC Last Enrollment Date VOC Current Enrollment Date VOC Waitlisted Date VOC Status VOC Contact Hours	VOCENR VOCENRFI VOCENRLA ASEENRCU VOCWAIT VOCSTAT VOCHOURS
Life Skills/Cognitive Restructuring/ Transition Program (LCT) Participation	LCT Enrollment LCT First Enrollment Date LCT Last Enrollment Date LCT Current Enrollment Date LCT Waitlisted Date LCT Status LCT Contact Hours	LCTENR LCTENRFI LCTENRLA LCTENRCU LCTWAIT LCTSTAT LCTHOURS
Postsecondary Education Program (PSE) Participation	PSE Enrollment PSE First Enrollment Date PSE Last Enrollment Date PSE Current Enrollment Date PSE Waitlisted Date PSE Status PSE Contact Hours	PSEENR PSEENRFI PSEENRLA PSEENRCU PSEWAIT PSESTAT PSEHOURS

Standardizing State Reporting

States use different terminology and criteria to classify various correctional education courses (e.g., ABE and ASE), and they use various approaches to collect waitlist data. These differences among states, which may not be easily resolved, will affect the accuracy of eligibility and participation statistics aggregated at the national level. Specifically, the following differences among states will need to be considered and noted when analyzing the data across states:

The academic skill levels of inmates within similarly titled courses may differ across states.

States assign inmates to academic programs based on their score on standardized exams administered either when the inmates are first incarcerated or prior to enrollment. Since states may use different exams (e.g., Tests of Adult Basic Education, Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment, etc.) to assess inmates or may establish different scoring thresholds for program placement, inmates with different abilities may be enrolled in classes bearing the same titles. Consequently, inmate participation rates within some courses may vary across states as a result of how inmates are assigned to coursework rather than inmates’ actual skills.

States use different strategies to identify inmates waitlisted for services.

Due to resource constraints, not all inmates eligible for educational services are able to enroll. Those in need of services often are placed on waitlists until a class vacancy becomes available. How these waitlists are maintained, however, varies across and even within states. Moreover, states that test inmates upon incarceration may automatically place all inmates with identified skill deficits on correctional education waitlists, irrespective of whether inmates desire program services. As a consequence, in some states, waitlist data may not accurately reflect the number of inmates needing or desiring services.

Who Participates in Correctional Education?

Variables

Inmate Program Participation

Standardizing State Reporting