Barriers and Facilitators to Providing Incarcerated Youth With a Quality Education

Obstacles to Research in Residential Juvenile Justice Facilities: Recommendations for Researchers

“…When researchers attempt to obtain consent during convenient points of contact (e.g., during visitation to facilities, at court hearings), they may encounter difficulties as well. Challenges to parental involvement in court hearings (e.g., public defenders may not be required to meet with parents, parents may feel demeaned by the system, childcare may not be available; Garfinkel, 2010) and parents' abilities to visit the facilities (e.g., travel distance to the facility; Houchins et al, 2009) have been noted. Further, gathering consent during visitation or court proceedings threatens the validity of the study because youths with parents who visit more regularly may be systematically different from those whose parents are less involved.…”

“I’m Going to Need a Change…”: Understanding a Teacher’s Experiences in a Juvenile Corrections School

“…They experience unique difficulties as a school that resides within a correctional facility, which is different from traditional schools in several ways (Houchins et al, 2009;Gagnon et al, 2012). Such schools require daily security procedures and expose teachers to phenomena that can take a toll on teachers' mental and emotional well-being.…”

“…Teachers in juvenile corrections (JC) schools work in complicated working conditions that are not experienced in typical public school settings (Gagnon, Houchins, & Murphy, 2012;Houchins, Puckett-Patterson, Crosby, Shippen, & Jolivette, 2009;Mathur, Clark, & Schoenfeld, 2009;Mathur & Schoenfeld, 2010). They experience unique difficulties as a school that resides within a correctional facility, which is different from traditional schools in several ways (Houchins et al, 2009;Gagnon et al, 2012).…”

“…For over twenty years researchers have written about how, amidst their sea of challenges, JC school educators feel isolated from not only each other, but from their colleagues in general public school settings, as well as local education agencies, and state departments of education (Coffey & Gemignani, 1994;Gagnon et al, 2012;Houchins et al, 2009;Mathur et al, 2009;Mathur & Schoenfeld, 2010). Given the challenges created by their working conditions and the sense of isolation they feel, it is not surprising that JC schools have high rates of teacher turnover (Houchins, Shippen, & Jolivette, 2006).…”

“…Research has been conducted that sheds light on JC teacher perceptions of their working conditions, using a collection of surveys evaluating attrition, retention, and job satisfaction factors in JC schools (Houchins, Shippen, & Cattret, 2004;Houchins et al, 2006;Houchins et al, 2009;Houchins, Shippen, McKeand, & Viel-Ruma, 2010). These studies are based on Gersten, Yovanoff, and Harniss's (2001) assertion that Special Education teachers who are more satisfied in their working conditions are more likely to remain in their positions.…”