Solitary Confinement and Experiential Learning in the Criminal Justice Major

• In Event: Solitary Confinement: Complexities, Effects, and Recommendations

Abstract

Experiential learning opportunities have become popular in higher education, because they improve student learning. Unfortunately, these opportunities are more difficult to facilitate in criminal justice than other disciplines due to 1) limitations on access to criminal justice agencies and populations and 2) the nature of some criminal Justice practices, such as solitary confinement. Three student cohorts completed individual isolation exercises for 24-48 hours and wrote reflection papers about their experiences, watched a documentary about inmates subject to solitary confinement, and then participated in a traditional lecture on solitary confinement to examine methods to address this instructional challenge. Analysis of attitudinal differences between a baseline survey and a follow-up survey indicate that all but one student reported changed views regarding the use of solitary confinement, indicating support for additional restrictions or elimination of the practice. Students whose attitudes changed reported that the isolation exercise or the isolation exercise followed by the documentary exerted the most influence on their attitudes. The results suggest that it is possible and especially important to facilitate meaningful experiential learning activities for criminal justice practices that may seem more abstract to students so that they are better able understand the policy issues associated with these practices.

Author

• Jennifer L Lanterman, University of Nevada, Reno