Transforming argumentative dialogue through prison service-learning projects.

• Author: Hinck, Shelly Schaefer
• Position: Essay

On February 16, 2014, offering a bold yet data driven plan, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo proposed to provide public financing for basic college-education programs in state prisons by introducing college classes in 10 prisons at a cost of $5,000 per inmate for the opportunity to earn a college degree ("Governor Cuomo launches initiative," 2014; Kaplan, 2014). Cuomo's plan seemed like a rational investment of taxpayer dollars. In a study recently published by the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization, it was found that incarcerated men and women "who participated in correctional education programs have a 43 percent lower chance of recidivating than those who do not" (Davis et al., 2013, p. xv); additionally, the study reported that "the odds of obtaining employment post-release among inmates who participated in correctional education (either academic or vocational/CTE programs), were 13 percent higher than the odds for those who did not" (Davis, et al., 2013, p. xvi). According to the Department of Justice, each dollar spent on enhancing education programs within prisons decreases incarceration costs by approximately five dollars during the first three years after an individual is released, a crucial period when those leaving prison are most likely to return (Bidwell, 2013).

Unfortunately, Governor Cuomo cancelled his innovative plan as a result of opposition from lawmakers in Albany. Arguments raised by those against the plan centered on the idea that taxpayers shouldn't have to foot the bill for "Attica University" claiming that tuition costs are rising for others. In a New York Times column (Kaplan, 2014) it was noted that members of the New York State Assembly proposed a "Kids Before Cons Act" to prevent federal dollars from being diverted to Governor Cuomo's plan. The fact that the proposed "Kids Before Cons Act" did not directly address the evidence demonstrating that educational programs are in the taxpayers' interest was of little concern to the New York assembly. Arguments that challenge educational programs such as this often fail to take into account data that support the value of prison educational programming in reducing the likelihood that the incarcerated will reoffend and be reintroduced into the prison community. Rather, oppositional arguments are often driven by a need to be tough on those who commit crimes; leniency toward people who commit crimes often derails political campaigns.

The problem is not limited to New York. States are spending less on prison educational programs now than in 1982, despite the fact that state expenditures on corrections overall have consistently increased during this time. Across states, spending on educational programming in correctional facilities has dropped from a high of 33 percent of total state expenditures in 1982 to a low of 29 percent of total state expenditures in 2010 (Bidwell, 2013). Within the state of Michigan, the funding of correctional facilities accounts for a greater share of the general budget than any other state. While the correctional facility budget has increased, the amount of money devoted to educational programming has not kept pace (Roelofs, 2014).

Inmates often leave prison without the critical skills needed to "start over" in a society where they have been incarcerated for considerable lengths of time. If ex-offenders leave prison without a way to earn a living upon their return home, they are less likely to have a successful transition back into society (Mathis, 2014). Research has found that individuals who are incarcerated are more likely to find employment if they have participated in education programs in prison (Skorton & Altschuler, 2013).

To cultivate a more informed citizenry and a public more receptive to arguments that reimagine current public policy, we take up the promise of service-learning as a pedagogy that has the potential to transform argumentative discourse and create space for both compassion and rationality in a politically contested learning environment. We argue that service-learning holds the possibility of transforming previously held positions, offering a promising educational strategy for social change.

BENEFITS OF SERVICE-LEARNING

Service-learning is a teaching model that intentionally integrates academic learning and relevant community service to offer potentially transformative pedagogical opportunities. Service-learning scholars believe that participation in high quality, well designed service experiences, will yield thoughtful and responsible citizens who are committed to democratic ideals (Eyler & Giles, 1999; Hinck, Hinck, & Withers, 2012). Reinforcing the value of service-learning, scholars have found that students participating in service-learning activities have increased critical thinking skills, greater understanding and appreciation for diversity, an enhanced tolerance of others, improved leadership skills, and stronger feelings of connection to the community (Astin, Vogelgesang, Ikeda, & Yee, 2000; Eyler & Giles, 1999; Steinke & Buresh, 2002).

Service-learning has the potential to be a transformative learning experience for students. Transformative learning is defined by Mezirow (2000) as

... the process by which we transform our taken-for-granted frames of reference (meaning perspectives, habits of mind, mind-sets) to make them more inclusive, discriminating, open, emotionally capable of change, and reflective so that they may generate beliefs and opinions that will prove more true or justified to guide action, (p. 7-8)

Transformative learning may occur as the result of a "disorienting dilemma," gradually and cumulatively over time (Mezirow, 2000). Kiely (2005) offers that this disquieting dilemma can be thought of as a sense of "dissonance," referring to the incongruence of students' previously held ideas and assumptions with the situations, problems, and people with whom they are currently serving when participating in a service-learning activity. Kiely (2005) found that high intensity dissonance that is politically, economically, historically or socially grounded accounts for transformational learning when it encourages students to "reexamine their existing knowledge and assumptions regarding the causes and solutions to ambiguous and ill structured problems" (p. 11).

Service-learning contexts may generate a level of disequilibrium or anxiety and a heightened urgency to learn, resulting in an understanding of concepts that is often deeper, more meaningful, and more relevant. Using a detailed case study where students participated in a service-learning program in Nicaragua, Kiely (2005) found five categories that describe how students experienced transformational learning: contextual border crossing, dissonance, personalizing, processing, and connection. These five categories reinforce the importance of creating a disquieting experience that requires students to think critically, to be reflective and to re-imagine their current assumptions and understanding, situating themselves socially, politically, and culturally within the experience. Ideally the objective of transformational learning is "that one is empowered by learning to be more socially responsible, self-directed, and less dependent on false assumptions" (Kiely, 2005, p. 7).

Pompa (2002) created a transformative learning experience situating students and men/ women who are incarcerated as co-learners in a classroom within a prison where they explored issues such as: what prisons are really for; why people get involved in crime; the myths and realities of prison life; victims and victimization; and the distinction between punishment and rehabilitation. Immersing students within the prison led students to critically examine their initial feelings, prejudices, and stereotypes of the individuals incarcerated, to critically examine the issues of rehabilitation versus punishment, and to feel comfortable voicing their opinions regarding what they have learned and what they would like to see changed societally concerning issues of punishment and rehabilitation.

Hinck, Hinck, and Withers (2012) examined the effects of service-learning as a way to develop citizenship concerns for participants engaged in a service-learning partnership with various correctional facilities. Their service-learning project directed communication skills in a variety of areas to incarcerated persons, a stigmatized and under-resourced group for whom most students held neutral attitudes prior to participation. Students participated in educational programs within the prison context, having the opportunity to engage with the men who were currently incarcerated. Using a one group, pre-test/post-test design, and collecting data over a period of two years, their results indicated that participants changed their perceptions of the inmates from neutral to more positive, increased academic learning for the subject matter of the communication courses students were enrolled in at the time, and developed positive attitudes toward allocating social resources to inmates. For those who experienced the greatest amount of change in perceptions of prisoners, results indicated that participants noted that they would be more likely to volunteer for future service-learning projects. The results reinforce the idea that service-learning affected attitudes toward social policy and engaged students in future service to their communities. Hinck, Hinck, and Withers concluded that service-learning constituted a powerful instructional experience for the development of citizenship concerns as they relate to incarcerated persons, correctional policy, and future service.

Reflection and Standpoint in the Service-learning Context

If transformational learning is to occur, opportunities for reflection and dialogue must be featured in the service-learning experience. Grounded in experiential learning theory, reflection serves as the connection between...