Especially at the undergraduate level, courses will almost always be organized around one or two key textbooks. There are several prominent publishers that provide textbooks covering community corrections. In most cases, review copies can be obtained by prospective educators directly from the publishers (at no cost to you).

The adoption of a given textbook often comes with a variety of supporting documents and tools for educators. These additions may include test questions, chapter outlines, class exercises, PowerPoints (PPT), audio and video clips, bibliographies, and more. While supplemental materials are also provided for students with their textbooks, these materials often go unused unless required by the instructor and therefore should weigh less in a professor’s decision-making (Berry, Cook, Hill, & Stevens, 2011). Note, textbooks typically include learning objectives within each chapter which can guide the day-to-day classroom curricula in addition to the higher-level syllabus. Indeed, the learning objectives and those contained within the selected textbook should be compatible (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2014). In addition, it is preferable that if you use a textbook you should generally plan on following the order of material as presented in the text. Students can find it frustrating and disorienting if the professor continually skips back and forth through book chapters.

Finally, consider the number and costs of the textbooks you will use. Books that have many editions but minor alterations may be more readily available and considerably cheaper than the newest edition or new first-editions. While costs shouldn’t drive your selection, students will experience less consternation if the books are at least moderately affordable, as books represent a significant portion of their financial burden in college (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2014).

Below is a sample of community corrections textbooks currently available from a variety of well-known publishers.

Alarid, L. F. (2016). Community-based corrections (11^th ed.). Cengage Learning. Locate review copy information here.

Bayens, G., & Smykla, J. O. (2012). Probation, parole, and community-based corrections: Supervision, treatment, and evidence-based practices (1^st ed.). McGraw-Hill Education. Locate review copy information here.

Champion, D. J. (2007). Probation, parole and community corrections (6^th ed.). Prentice Hall. Locate review copy information here.

Hanser, R. D. (2013). Community corrections (2^nd ed.). Sage. Locate review copy information here.

Hemmens, C., Belbot, B., & Bennett, K. (2013). Significant cases in corrections (2^nd ed.). Oxford University Press. Locate review copy information here.

Latessa, E. J., & Smith, P. (2015). Corrections in the community (6^th ed.). Routledge. Locate review copy information here.

Lutze, F. E. (2014). Professional lives of community corrections officers: The invisible side of reentry. Sage. Locate review copy information here.

Taxman, F. S., & Belenko, S. (2012). Implementing evidence-based practices in community corrections and addiction treatment. Springer. Locate review copy information here.