IN 1998, a 17-year-old boy was convicted of murder and sent shackled to the St Catherine Adult Correctional Centre.

He was almost a man, except that he couldn't read.

Now, 13 years later, the 30-year-old has sat and passed three Jamaica Schools Certificate (JSC) courses — Mathematics, English and Civics — and is preparing to sit the more advanced Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) Mathematics administered by the Caribbean Examinations Council (CXC).

He is one of more than 100 inmates at the Spanish Town prison who are currently enrolled in academic and vocational courses there. It's a means of rehabilitation, prison authorities say, a way of preparing inmates for re-entry into civil society. It's also a means of deterring recidivism, the act of repeat offending which often ends in reincarceration.

Sixteen of them just completed JSC exams.

"So far I'm able to read and so forth, so I give thanks for the experience and the warders and teachers for allowing me to take part in the school programme. I'm going for my CXC and I'm trying to do my best in it," the young man told the Sunday Observer during a visit to the prison Friday.

He's hoping to acquire an education that will give him leverage once he's released, although he doesn't yet know when that will be, as he's being held at the court's pleasure.

But whenever that day comes, he plans to be prepared and he plans to catch up on the missing years.

"Education is a big part of life, because in a society where technology is taking over the world you have to can help yourself when you get back in society," he said. "You have to can move around to get a job or even create a job for yourself so as not to re-enter into the institution.

"I also learned a skill since I've been here, which is art and craft," he added.

"Describing his prison experience as horrific, the young man said: "Mi consider it as a nightmare sometimes because I've been locked away from my family for years. I'm 30 years old now and I do not have a daughter or a son as yet... It's not my major concern, but part of the nightmare that I'm going through. I'm just doing my best so I can get my release to my family and reunite with my family again."

An older inmate who was convicted of illegal possession of firearm and robbery with aggravation has a similar story. Prior to prison, 11 years ago, he didn't have any academic qualifications. Last year, however, he received a grade III in CSEC English and is to resit Math next year.

"I gravitate more towards Math than English, but sometimes some of the signs in Math throw me off," he said Friday, explaining the reason behind his grade IV score in the numerical subject.

But he's not giving up. He is determined to qualify himself so he can become employed and support his son who just received his Grade Six Achievement Test results and is to start high school in September.

"I want to be a qualified person. I want to get myself qualified," he said, adding that Geography, Chemistry and Biology are the other subjects he intends to sit.

"I'm here over 11 years now and I've wasted a lot of time due to stress and so. During those times more subjects used to be taught at the school and tru' stress I wasn't able to come. But down the line I look into myself and said I wasted a lot of time, so it make sense I try and see what I can achieve. So I started out," he said.

The older inmate is the most advanced student in the prison's academic programme and often instructs lower-level classes when the teacher is unavailable.

"I used to be a brilliant student at school. In all my classes I never remember I come fifth. It's between first and fourth. I'm the most advanced one in level five, so at times when there is no teacher I have to take the class," he said proudly.

Like the 30-year-old, the older man extolled the benefits of the programme.

"It keep me away from the negativity of other inmates and help me to excel 'cause being here, I've been taught a lot of things and that will help me to advance and can take GCE class whenever teacher is not available," he said.

The academic programme has five levels. The first is for remedial inmates; those in level two are considered 'lapse literate', which means at one time they could read but lost the ability while in prison; level three is for the pre-JSC group; level four is for the pre-CXC set; while level five is for those preparing for the CSEC exams which are sat every two years.

"It's not compulsory," explained education officer at the facility Charles Wheatle. "The inmates make the decision to come to school. I interview them to see where they belong in terms of their reading level and numeracy level. The juveniles might be encouraged that they should be in school, but they are not forced," he explained.

The inmates are also allowed to participate in welding, tailoring, auto mechanic repairs, woodwork, metal craft, computer classes, and radio broadcasting on Free FM 88.9.

They don't yet have a licence to broadcast on the frequency, but while they wait they stream programmes on the Internet at www.mongrelstreet.org:8000.

Corporal William 'Billy Rae' Reynolds, who oversees the computer and radio programmes -- both financed by the United Kingdom's Department for International Development -- explained that the station is operated by supervised inmates between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm each day. From 4:01 pm to 8:59 am it is managed remotely. It airs information programmes (prison rules and regulations, prisoner rights and the appeals process, for example), interviews with key people on the staff of the Department of Correctional Services, issues relating to parenting, devotionals, and artistic expressions like original poems and songs from the inmates.

But the St Catherine Adult Correctional Centre is not unique in its offerings. In fact, Acting Commissioner of Corrections Lt Col Sean Prendergast said educational training takes place in "most of our correctional institutions", including the major ones at Tower Street, South Camp Road and the all-female Fort Augusta.

At Fort Augusta, sited on 10 acres on the water's edge near the Portmore toll plaza, inmates undergo instruction in clothing and textile, home economics and cosmetology, in addition to academic subject areas. They make their own bread and sew their own uniforms, sheets and netball bibs.

The facility has 10 dorms each able to accommodate 30 inmates. As at Friday afternoon it housed 182 adult and 52 juvenile females.

Classes are mandatory for juveniles, but optional for adults.

"For this year, we had 25 persons sit CXC. The subjects ranged from Biology, Social Studies, English, Maths and Accounts and we also just concluded the Jamaica School Certificate and we had a total of 17 inmates who sat that exam. We are now awaiting results," Superintendent Rueben Kelly told the Sunday Observer.

Last year, eight of 12 inmates passed one to three CXC subjects ranging from grades I to III.

"We have the clothing and textile department where all of our inmates' uniforms and uniforms for staff members [including Kelly's] as well as the sheets that they use, all of that is constructed here by the inmates," said Kelly.

"Also, we have a home economic centre where the ladies are taught the art of baking and cooking, and since December 18 last year, we have been providing our own bread for the inmates, whereas before it used to come from Spanish Town.

"There is a computer lab for both juveniles and adults and these classes run five days per week. Also, we have a hair salon where they are taught cosmetology. At the moment, we have 12 students. HEART/NTA has come on board so we are hoping that they will have certification for all the areas. Whereas before you would just go to these classes, learn and leave, what we have ventured to do now is to ensure that they get a HEART certificate which, of course, will be valid throughout Caricom," explained Kelly.

The classes, the superintendent insisted, go a far way in curbing behaviour and have impacted positively on recidivism at the institution. Other rehabilitation programmes at Fort Augusta include sports, church services, music, motivational lectures and individual mentorship. Each dorm has a television set and individuals are allowed battery-operated radios.

"For the last couple of years I think we have intensified the programme. We have more persons attending classes. We never had a home economics centre before. We had a small computer room that had about four computers, now we have 12," he said.

"I think it has been very effective because, so far, we find the behaviour of those inmates who are involved in the classes to be much better and different than those who are not involved. Those people who are in the classes and who have left, we have not seen any return as any reoffender, so it certainly has helped," he said.

Wheatle agreed, saying: "In most cases, most of the inmates have an arrogant or aggressive personality. When they come to the school, due to the standards that the officers require of them, it smoothes them down eventually. They learn to be respectful to officers, especially to the wardresses, and to have high regard for women and also to be disciplined while in a learning environment."

Superintendent Kelly added that without the correctional facilities and the educational programmes they offer, some people would be worse off.

"We have some juveniles who are about to be released but there is nobody to receive them, and without anybody we can't release them. That gives you an idea of what their life was outside," he told the Sunday Observer.

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