Tutoring in prison
The University of Milan guarantees the right to education for prisoners in Lombardy prisons through the activities and support of the Prison Project, which has been running since 2015 with its Prison University Hub(PUP) and is currently present in eight prisons.
Studying in prison in complete autonomy can be very difficult: for this reason, since its inception, the Prison Project has focused on the role of the university tutor. This is a figure who mediates both inside and outside the prison walls, overcoming the objective limitations faced by a person deprived of their freedom, thus contributing to the practical realisation of the right to education of the inmate.
The University of Milan offers various types of tutoring for students with disabilities, but it stands out in particular for its widespread use of peer-to-peer tutoring, characterised by “student-to-student” support. This choice has not only made it possible to assign at least one dedicated tutor to each restricted student, despite a constant increase in their numbers, but has also allowed the creation of a real student community made up of free and restricted individuals who, united by their status as university students, engage in a constant exchange of knowledge and awareness. Thanks to the contribution of students who serve as tutors, the University has managed to establish the largest network of tutors in Italy in just a few years.
In concrete terms, tutoring consists of supporting one or more students in prison in their studies and involves developing an effective study method, assisting with exam preparation and managing contacts with teachers and teaching materials between the prison and the University Libraries. The tutor follows the student in every step of their studies: they guide them in choosing exams, bring them the materials or notes they need to prepare for them, and help them study and revise for exams.
Those who undertake tutoring activities are required to attend a number of training sessions aimed at acquiring basic knowledge about the prison environment in which they will be working and, more generally, about the methods and nature of the educational programmes carried out in prison.
The activity requires a minimum commitment of a couple of meetings per month for at least six months, not tied to specific days or times – except those of the Institute.