Incarcerated youth should be afforded the opportunity to develop the advanced academic and vocational skills needed to be competitive in today's labor market. Correctional facility administrators regard education as the most important component of the rehabilitation process. Correctional facilities must therefore make education and training high priorities rather than competitors with other programs. The educational and program administration strategies adopted in correctional facilities must be directed toward developing an effective comprehensive education program that includes basic academic and vocational education. Academic programs in correctional facilities should abandon the old assumption that basic skills must be mastered before students are given more advanced tasks such as problem solving, cognitive reasoning, reading comprehension, and written communication. Because as many as 40% of youth in correctional facilities have some learning disability, correctional education must employ staff trained and certified to provide a full spectrum of special education programs and services. Psychoeducational programming, employment training, and expanded/improved transitional services are also needed. Finally, progress in correctional education requires an increased level of research to identify effective educational programs and practices and provide legislators and funding agencies with the proof they require when determining policies and allocating resources. (MN)