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Prisoners are using smartphones to access online classes, and at least one Harvard professor told Insider they even send him thank-you notes from time to time.
The Marshall Project reported on the rise of secret smartphone use amongst prisoners, and talked to one inmate who said that he leads a group message of around 300 other prisoners learning computer science using an online course from Harvard. The group message includes prisoners in other states, the inmate said, and they use Harvard's CS50: Introduction to Computer Science course materials that are available for free online.
"There are a bunch of schools that do that, but I find Harvard's are the best, and that professor — David Malan — I think he's one of the best," the inmate said, adding that the course is self-guided and self-graded.
Malan told Insider over email that he's received thank-you notes from students in prison over the years.
"We have such admiration for students who are trying to acquire new knowledge and skills on their own, ever more so in circumstances like those," Malan said.
In addition to inmates taking online classes like the man in Georgia, some pose as regular students in online classes, something that online learning through Zoom allows.
www.businessinsider.com
I think prisoners who are willing to turn a new leaf should be allowed to get locked-down smartphones and tablets to give them the education they need to re-enter society after they get released.
The Marshall Project reported on the rise of secret smartphone use amongst prisoners, and talked to one inmate who said that he leads a group message of around 300 other prisoners learning computer science using an online course from Harvard. The group message includes prisoners in other states, the inmate said, and they use Harvard's CS50: Introduction to Computer Science course materials that are available for free online.
"There are a bunch of schools that do that, but I find Harvard's are the best, and that professor — David Malan — I think he's one of the best," the inmate said, adding that the course is self-guided and self-graded.
Malan told Insider over email that he's received thank-you notes from students in prison over the years.
"We have such admiration for students who are trying to acquire new knowledge and skills on their own, ever more so in circumstances like those," Malan said.
In addition to inmates taking online classes like the man in Georgia, some pose as regular students in online classes, something that online learning through Zoom allows.
Harvard professor says he gets thank-you notes from prisoners, some of which are secretly using smartphones to take his free computer-science class
A Georgia inmate told The Marshall Project he uses a phone to teach incarcerated people in other states computer science with a Harvard course online.
www.businessinsider.com
I think prisoners who are willing to turn a new leaf should be allowed to get locked-down smartphones and tablets to give them the education they need to re-enter society after they get released.
