The University of Malta’s Prison Education and Re-Entry Platform participated as a partner in the Erasmus+ Project, .
SkillHUBS focuses on three basic skills (literacy, numeracy and digital skills) and three transversal skills (problem solving, critical thinking and complex problem solving), aiming at upskilling, and in terms of longer sentences reskilling, inmates.
SkillHUBS uses a distinctive teaching and learning methodology dubbed ‘the Engine’, which has been piloted in three European countries – Malta, Slovenia and Romania. This Engine is theoretically grounded in transformative and co-creative learning theories, with a strong basis in the theory of change. This theory of changes has been moulded into the prison context, taking on a stronger prison pedagogy aspect.
Its strength lies in the co-creation of vital skills necessary for inmates’ smooth transition back to society, using diverse mediums and themes, including the Arts, Family Learning and Personal Social Development. Therefore, it moves away from the ‘sage-on-a-stage’ aspect of education, and delves into the co-creative curriculum philosophy, giving inmates autonomy to their learning.
An innovate aspect to SkillHUBS is the matching of the industry to this upskilling. Prior to piloting the programme, partners have conducted a needs-analysis in their respective country to determine those skills most in demand. This gave a strong direction to the Engine, as vital aspects in terms of resettlement were determined as ‘themes’ to be co-created.
Locally, the Prison Education and Re-Entry Platform took an artistic approach to upskilling, offering inmates sessions that mostly focused on the development of inmates’ soft skills.
The project covered three years of work and came to an end this month.
