Examining the Effectiveness of the Management of Education Programme in Malawi Prisons

Abstract

The majority of prison stations in Malawi are now offering education services to inmates. However, the question that one can ask is; are these schools effectively managed? This study set out to examine the internal effectiveness of the management of the education programme in Malawi prisons. The study was conducted at seventeen prison stations in Malawi using a mixed methods research approach; utilising the convergent parallel design. The study involved a total of 243 respondents, drawing from students, teachers, station education coordinators, senior prison officers, as well as the Civil Society Organisations officials. Questionnaires, in-depth interviews, documentary review and observations were used for generating data. The key finding of this study was that the management of Prison Education Programme in Malawi was not effective in terms of its management structures, resources availability and teachers‟ capacities. The study revealed a number of serious challenges that had retrogressive repercussions on the programme. Firstly, the programme was managed by unqualified personnel who hardly had experience and skills in managing an education institution. As a result, the programme was run haphazardly without any policies or guidelines. Secondly, the programme lacked support from authorities hence facing numerous challenges such as lack of enough proper school blocks and having unqualified teachers. From the findings, it was concluded that the management of prison education programme in Malawi was not effective. The implication of the findings of this study is that there is a need for the prison authorities and the Ministry of Education to work together to effectively manage education activities in prisons.

Keywords: Malawi prisons, examining, effectiveness, Malawi