One institutional response to the need for professional interaction within the Correctional Service of Canada is the Monthly Divisional Meeting. All too often, however, the meeting is steered by one-way discourse designed to impart information about control within the institution. Nevertheless, the Correctional Service of Canada has devised some relevant responses to these problems at the national, regional and institutional levels. At the national level, the Correctional Service of Canada's Mission Statement acknowledges the need to develop the professional capacities of prison staff. Educational leave without pay is encouraged, and staff are now entitled to five days' paid training a year.
Funding is also available for staff to attend correctional education conferences.
In 1982, teachers and management in the Prairie region co-operated to form the Correctional Educators Association, which serves prison educators from both the federal and provincial jurisdictions. In 1987, a curriculum for adult basic education was developed through a joint project involving representatives from the Correctional Service of Canada, the University of Saskatchewan, and the departments of education of the three prairie provinces. The process was designed to allow the teachers and administrators involved an opportunity to view the task from a number of perspectives. The guidelines that emerged showed how current requirements for standardization could be sensibly met while permitting flexibility for creative teaching and further curriculum design at institutional levels. More importantly, the guidelines highlighted the potential for ongoing staff development with participatory approaches to curriculum formation.