Developing Writing S kills and P hotography in P rison

1. DevelopingWritingSkills and Photography in Prison Training Teachers and Instructors to Teach in Prisons/Detention Centres 28° Septmeber 2012 Francesca Cattaneo

2. OPG – Forensic Psychiatric HospitalMontelupo Fi.no OPG – Forensic Psychiatric HospitalMontelupo Fi.no

3. Ministry of Justice Educators Ministry of Education Teachers RehabilitationandEducation NGOs ARCI Empolese – Valdelsa Associazione Ilupi del Monte Educators and Psycologists USL11 – Funds of TuscanRegion PsychiatricRehabilitationProfessionals

4. OPGPositive features: • There are many kinds of professions • There are many possibilities to do many educational activities outside the prison (good for the resocialisation) • Montelupo is a little, nice town to improve a new life direction • In march 2013 It will be closed (It will be transformed into a real hospital)

5. OPGNegative features: • Bad structure • Lack of money • Security measure (“Ergastolobianco”) • Patients with different problems: mental psychiatric problems, mental disabilities, drug addicts and chronic alcoholics • Patients take some kinds of medicine that sometimes alter their abilities to learn, their memory, their critical thinking • In march 2013 It will be closed (Nobody invests in projects for the rehabilitation of patients)

6. Writing can help children and adults alike to: • increasetheirproblemsolving and criticalthinking.    • developorganizationalstrategiesdepending on the form of the writing • developthe skill of inquiry • increasedecisionmakingabilities.  • develop a healthyskepticismwhichleads to exploration of ideas, an enlarged world view and a confidentimagination

7. Some psychiatrics (Pennebaker and Beall) showed with their studies that expressive writing about traumatic or stressful events has beneficial effects on physical and emotional health.

8. FurthermoreWriting: • is a simple and spontaneous act, that everyone can do • for someone is a method of relaxation, to drive away negative thoughts • lets look on the paper those ideas and thoughts that make us suffer, and it allows to give it the right importance • give the possibility to analyze the events in a more relative way, so the things that you though absolutely negative could become more acceptable • makes you more aware of the events • so can help to resolve long-standing issues about relationship at home and work, and put into words feelings that have been too sensitive to describe face to face • the auto-educationalvalueofthecreativewritingallowstheemancipation in difficultsituationsascouldbethedetention • prisonerscouldincreasetheir professional skillsand so theycouldhavemanymorepossibilitiestoenter in theworldofwork • Writing creationcanbeuseful also toincreasethecapacityofworking in a team, ofcooperatingandofconfrontingwithothercultureandotherwayofthinking.

9. Twokindsof Writinglaboratoriesthatwe can propose in prison: Laboratoryof Creative Writing Laboratoryof Journalism

10. Laboratory of Creative WritingGoals • To increase writing skills • To improve self-reflection • To accustom to an open and healthy exchange of ideas and experiences • To train the memory • To help psychological traumas

11. Laboratory of Creative WritingMethodology • We need a quiet space (if it is possible with a round table) • A writing guide will propose writing games or some hints to express themselves. • It’s very important that at the end of the session all participants can read their works, and that the others could listen the story and express their point of you.

12. Laboratory of Creative WritingSome exercises (1) • If you were…….water, air, fire or earth. • Ask the questions a journalist would ask if he or she were covering your story. This will help you develop a logical plot • This group exercise involves writing down your ideas on a piece of paper, passing it to a facilitator, who then passes them back out in random order. Each person in the group will spend a few minutes adding on to the original idea or story, then passes it on to the next person. • Give each small group or pair a photograph of a person. The photographs can be close up headshots, distance shots, or activity shots. Ask each group to suggest a name for the character, based on whatever they can learn or intuit from the image. The groups should discuss this for several minutes and then choose a spokesperson to present the group decision to the class with an explanation of why they chose the name they did. • You’re digging in your garden and find a fist-sized nugget of gold. • Write about something ugly — war, fear, hate, cruelty — but find the beauty (silver lining) in it. • The asteroid was hurtling straight for…

13. Laboratory of Creative WritingSome exercises (2) • He turned the key in the lock and opened the door. To his horror, he saw… • The detective saw his opportunity. He grabbed the waitress’s arm and said… • There is a magic talisman that allows its keeper to read minds. It falls into the hands of a young politician… • Write about nature. Include the following words: hard drive, stapler, phone, car, billboard. • Write about one (or both) of your parents. Start with “I was born…” • My body… • Get a package of one of your favorite canned or boxed foods and look at the ingredients. Use every ingredient in your writing session.

14. Laboratoryof Creative Writing Operators of the project An educator or psychologist with some good writing skills. Recipients of the project 10 – 15 inmates Materials A round table Chairs Notebooks Pens Newspaper, magazine, books. Carrying out time The project could be carried out in one year, once a week for two hours.

15. Laboratory of Creative WritingFollow up Activity • To participate in essay contests • To publish the works in a magazine • To create a book with the laboratory works

16. Journalism in prisonGoals • tomakeinformationavailableinsideprison, • toopen upchannelsofinformationfrominsideprisontodispeltheclichesabsorbedfromthemedia.

17. Journalism in prison1ststage: JournalismCourse Convictsandvolunteers will partecipate in a JournalismCoursewherethemaintopics will be: generalnotionsaboutjournalism, creativewritingandsomenotionsaboutthemagazinegraphicandphotography. The lessons will bepraticalandtheoretical.

18. Journalism in prison1ststage: What do youneed • a professional coordinator; • somevolunteers; • 3 teachers: a journalist a newspapergraphic a newspaperphotographer; • newspapers, magazines (someexemplesofjournalism in prison); • a computerwithinternet (youcandecidehowmanycomputersuse on thebasisofthenumberofconvictswho will be in theeditorialstaff); • a printer; • a camera; • layoutprogramsandsomegraphicprograms (forexemple: photoshop); • papers, pens, notebooks.

19. Journalism in prison2nd stage: Magazine Origin Who isthemagazinerecipient? (people in jailorcommunity outside orboth); Objectivesofthemagazine; Magazine title; Presence ofsomecolumns; Howoftenthemagazine will berealised; GuidlinesandPrinciplesthattheeditorialstaffwanttofollow; Distribuationofeditorialstaffroles; Legal organizationofthemagazine (forexempleifyouneedregisterthemagazine in national register).

20. Journalism in prison2nd stage: What do you need • an editingroom; • a professional coordinator; • somevolunteers; • newspapers, magazines (someexemplesofjournalism in prison); • a computerwithinternet (youcandecidehowmanycomputersuse on thebasisofthenumberofconvictswho will be in theeditorialstaff); • a printer; • papers, pens, notebooks

21. Journalism in prison3rdstage: Magazine Production Discussionabouttheargoumentsthatconvictsandvolunteerswant deal withthemagazine (iftheywantto do someinterviewsoriftheyneedphotosorpicture); Writing ofarticles, columns, events, opinionsandinterviews; Graphicandlayout; Magazine release

22. Journalism in prison3rd stage: What do you need • an editingroom; • a professional coordinator; • somevolunteers; • a computerwithinternet (youcandecidehowmanycomputersuse on thebasisofthenumberofconvictswho will be in theeditorialstaff); • 2 tapeor digital recordsfortheinterviews; • a camera; • a printer; • layoutprogramsandsomegraphicprograms (forexemple: photoshop); • papers, pens, notebooks.

23. Pinhole Camera Workshop

24. PinholePhotographyis a new way: • to spend time together • to promote the socialization among the convicts • to express inmates creativity • to learn the basic skills of photography • to develop inmates attitudes and it could encourage moments of reflection about themselves or about what they decide to print on the photo paper

25. Pinhole Camera WorkshopMethodology (1) There could be a first meeting where the operators will explain the workshop to the convicts: the operators will bring a “pinhole camera” and some examples of photos that they should do with this kind of camera. The prisoners who decide to participate at the workshop could make their own “pinhole camera”.

29. Pinhole Camera WorkshopMethodology (2) Then the participants could photograph with their craft camera everything that they could consider important in that moment, things that represent affection or a sentiment, objectives that belong to their everyday life, places where they spend their time, parts of their bodies that they could consider meaningful. Each convict will have the opportunity to write something about the subject chosen, he could invent a title for the subject and he could explain why just that image. The developing of the photos needs a delicate procedure because it needs a dark room and developer.

30. Pinhole Camera WorkshopGoals The workshop could be an opportunity for the inmates: • to express their creativity using contexts and places of their everyday life but giving them a different point of view; • to create a socialization moment; • to promote the spirit of self-efficacy; • to think about themselves; • to study in depth their individual interests; • to “give a shape” to the personal reflections alleviating the heaviness of their internal word; • to produce some artistic images about their world to show them to the external world and to testify that they are “still alive”.

31. Pinhole Camera Workshop Operators of the project Two educators or psychologist with some photographic skills. A tutor of the workshop. Recipients of the project 10 – 15 inmates Materials cardboard scotch photo paper liquids to develop the photos paper colours pens Carrying out time The project could be carried out in 5 months, once a week for two hours.

32. Pinhole Camera WorkshopFollow up Activity • Exhibition • Discussion Group about the photos (going beyond the picture and discussion their personal interest) • Follow up course in using Digital Cameras

35. Thank you for your attention!