An Educational Enquiry into Education in Prison, 'A Visit to reading gaol in 1976' by Sheila
Channel: semw52
Date: 14/12/2019

In 1976,  as a 2nd Year Student studying for a B,Ed., I carried out an educational enquiry into education in prisons and  after being approved by the Home Office I was allowed into Reading Gaol to  carry out 2 interviews with the educations officers of Reading Gaol and Broadmoor Prison Hospital.I was also shown around some sections of the prison--it was a good visit and I received excellent marks for the work and research I  had done---the project was also used in the future for other students.... This video is just an introduction with the interviews  to follow---This study was carried out 43 years ago and more information  will follow---Its weird hearing my much younger voice in the original tape recordings to follow......Later in my life I became passionate about family tree research and discovered that the Governor of Reading Gaol, Henry Bevan Isaacson was my 4th cousin x 3 removed mentioned by Oscar Wilde  in his Ballad of Reading Gaol---" The Yellow Face of Doom"--apparently quite a cruel man despite being a high up ranked  officer of the Royal Marines--when he retired from the Army he  served in several prisons as a Governor including Manchester, Lewis and Reading. Oscar Wilde served his sentence under Henry Bevan Isaacson's regime.....and never forgot his prison experience or that f other prisoners hence  "The Ballad of Reading Gaol'"------Recently the deaths / murders of 2 young Cambridge Graduates on Tower bridge in 2019 reminded me of my own  study about education in prisons---they were deeply involved in the rehabilitation of Prisoners and I was  their age in 1976....