Recent research says that a low level of education is the main reason for the increase in crime. Because of this, local authorities think that to reduce crime, they need to raise the education level of people in prison. I fully disagree for two reasons.
First of all, a low level of education is not the only root cause of criminal behavior. Nowadays, there are many cases where individuals with a bachelor’s or doctoral degree become involved in criminal activity due to underlying mental health issues or psychological disorders, which cannot be solved in a classroom. The main factor that affects people’s mentality is the environment where individuals grow up. Poverty, negative peer pressure, experience with street violence, childhood trauma, or a lack of parental guidance play a crucial role in developing psychological issues. Consequently, academic knowledge in prison will fail if the government does not address the root of the social problem.
The second argument is that passing through an educational program in prison does not mean that, after prison, somebody will want to hire them for work. In most countries, ex-convicts often face severe social stigma when searching for a job, due to people’s distrust towards former prisoners. Because of that, people stay in the same low conditions as in the past, and without a support system, individuals are likely to relapse into crime again, even though they have an education.
In conclusion, I totally disagree with people who think that overcoming low academic knowledge is the solution to reduce crime. From my perspective, the crime level will significantly decline only when the government solves the low living conditions among poor regions and gives support to prisoners who pass educational lessons.