Vocational Education and Training in Finnish Open Prisons: A Multilevel Approach to Young Incarcerated People’s Barriers to Participation

Abstract

Having relevant skills and education are considered the best indicators of reintegration into society after release from prison, but majority of young, incarcerated people have a lower education level and participate less in education compared to the same age population at large. This article focuses on finding solutions for overcoming the barriers to prison education in Finland. We explored those barriers, asking: What are the perceptions and experiences of barriers to education among prisoner-students, educators, and other professionals engaged in vocational prison education in Finland? The research data consists of 29 interviews of vocational education and training (VET) students (11), teachers, prison staff and other experts (18). The analysis is based on a framework of the comprehensive lifelong learning (LLL) participation model (Boeren, 2017). The analysis demonstrated that the conflicting policies and practices of education and jurisdiction, the two sectors involved in prison education, challenge low educated individuals’ successful entry to and participation in education while incarcerated.