Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline (HER Reprint Series)

Harvard Educational Review Reprint Series

by Sofia Bahena

The "school-to-prison pipeline" encompasses a range of circumstances whereby children are funneled out of public schools and into the juvenile and criminal justice systems. This new volume from the Harvard Educational Review features essays from scholars, educators, students, and community activists who are working to disrupt, reverse, and redirect the pipeline. Alongside these authors are contributions from the people most youth and adults who have been incarcerated, or whose lives have been shaped by the pipeline. Their writings add to the book's comprehensive portrait of how our education and justice systems function -- and how they fail to serve the interests of many young people. A trenchant and wide-ranging look at this disturbing national phenomenon, this volume is unsparing in its account of the problem while pointing toward meaningful reforms.

Genres: Teaching, Education

Mass Market Paperback

First published November 14, 2011

Reviews

[Kony · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good collection for anyone interested in the topic.

If you know nothing about the STP pipeline, you'll get a solid summary in the intro and first chapter, as well as a multifaceted portrait through the following chapters.

If you're already an expert on the STP pipeline, you'll still enjoy the reflections, memoirs, and poems penned by survivors and witnesses.

The book contains 4 parts: (I) Discipline and justice in schools, (II) Education in detention, (III) Transforming the pipeline, (IV) Epilogue [review of 5 recent books]. Each part includes a nice mix of academic, creative, and personal/reflective pieces.

Tiny subjective gripe: I'd like the book more if it condensed the academic pieces. Long strings of citations and statistics make my eyes glaze over. The stats are important, but can we get them in graphic form?

Otherwise, no complaints. You can read the chapters that grab you and skip the rest. But I think each piece genuinely adds value and is worth at least skimming.

[Ray Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent primer on a pervasive and harmful trend in our society. While this lays out the case, you will want to read more once you finish this book.