WP2 – Collection of Good Practices

WP2 focuses on collecting good practices on teaching general competences to inmates across the EU, serves as the foundation for designing an effective and adaptable course. Its main objective is to ensure that the educational programme developed within the project is tailored to the real needs of low-skilled inmates, aligning with the broader goal of supporting their social reintegration and strengthening the capacity of prison educators.

A key component of this work package is conducting a comprehensive target group analysis. To achieve this, surveys, interviews, and focus groups will be carried out with inmates and educators, allowing the project team to gain a deeper understanding of their existing skill levels, learning barriers, and educational preferences. By analyzing this data, it will be possible to shape the course content in a way that is both practical and engaging.

In addition to assessing needs, this work package also involves an extensive review of existing educational programs for inmates across various EU countries. Research will be conducted to identify best practices that have proven successful in prison education, particularly those that enhance literacy, numeracy, and basic language skills. The findings will be analyzed to determine which methodologies, teaching materials, and instructional strategies can be adapted or further developed for use within the project.

By gathering and analyzing this wealth of information, this work package will establish a strong evidence-based foundation for the development of the course. The result will be a carefully designed curriculum that is not only theoretically sound but also practical and feasible for implementation. This approach ensures that the project contributes to the broader goal of equipping inmates with essential competences, improving their prospects for reintegration into society while enhancing the teaching methodologies available to prison educators.

The main results of this work package will be a comprehensive knowledge base that informs the development of an effective and adaptable general competences course for inmates. The findings will serve as the foundation for the next stages of the project, ensuring that the course is not only well-structured but also tailored to the needs of the target group.

One of the key results will be a detailed needs assessment report, which will provide insights gathered from surveys, interviews, and focus groups conducted with inmates and prison educators. This report will outline the skill gaps, learning barriers, and educational preferences of the target group, ensuring that the course content is relevant and effectively addresses their needs.

Another outcome will be an analysis of existing prison education programs across the EU. By examining current initiatives and identifying best practices, this analysis will highlight successful methodologies and instructional strategies that can be adapted or integrated into the project. The research will also include an evaluation of teaching materials used in different prison settings, allowing the project team to select and refine the most effective approaches.

Building on these findings, the work package will produce a set of recommendations for structuring the general competences course. This will include guidelines on instructional design, the modular structure of the course, and the most effective teaching methodologies for engaging low-skilled inmates.

Lastly, this phase of the project will result in the identification of the most suitable educational model to be implemented across partner countries. The chosen model will incorporate evidence-based teaching practices, ensuring that the course is adaptable to different prison environments while maintaining its effectiveness.

The quantitative indicators will include the number of surveys, interviews and focus groups conducted with inmates and prison educators (at least 4 sets; one set in each partner country). This will provide measurable evidence of how extensively the target group has been consulted during the needs assessment process. Additionally, the number of existing prison education programmes analyzed will serve as an indicator of the breadth of the research conducted (minimum 2 from each partner country). The project will also track the number of best practices identified and how many of these have been selected for integration into the course framework (minimum 2 from each partner country). Another key indicator will be the completion of the needs assessment report (1) and comparative analysis (1), ensuring that these essential outputs are delivered on time and with sufficient depth.

The qualitative indicators will focus on the depth and relevance of the gathered data. The quality of the needs assessment report will be evaluated based on the diversity of perspectives included, ensuring that it reflects the voices of both inmates and educators. The analysis will be assessed for its ability to highlight key trends, differences, and challenges in prison education across the EU. Another qualitative measure will be educators’ feedback on the recommendations for structuring the general competences course. Also, the level of engagement and satisfaction of prison educators and stakeholders involved in the research process will be measured through feedback sessions.