Should You Teach a Caged Bird to Sing? Have prisoners always been given the right to receive an education in prison? Many people think of prison as a place to keep unsafe people locked away from them. But prison should be a place of rehabilitation. Preceding prison, many inmates came from criminal subcultures whose role models were thieves, gang leaders, and drug dealers who glorify criminality (Thomas 176). Surprisingly, education is not always offered in prison. It has not been the central way of correction in prison because society believes it is not obligated to pay for the prisoner’s education, especially if they cannot afford their own (“The Journal of Correctional Education”). Alternatively, the goals of education are to provide
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Surprisingly, many prisoners have a desire for education. Younger inmates and prisoners with longer sentences are also more likely than older inmates to strive for an education because they choose to make use of their time and prison and hope to have a productive life after. Without goals, prisoners resort to less constructive plans. One prisoner who spent two years in prison without anything to do, ended up committing suicide after he was released (Schmike 60). Prison inhibited the man from further developing his skills and knowledge which led him to a sense of worthlessness. The man probably foresaw a life of hardship and probably more crime, and realized that was not a life worth living. Since the man was unable to form a decent future from some kind of education or vocational training, he believed that death was the only answer. His suicide was not only the cause of external conflict, but also the lack of any future goals to work toward. Even if the man did not have a desire for education, he would have had the option of vocational training. For prisoners who do not have a desire for a college education, vocational training is often a more pleasant alternative. As one man said,“Inmates agree that being employed in CI provides them with an incentive to stay out of trouble for a number of reasons” (Richmond 240). Although there is sometimes a negative stigma around vocational training, many prisoners change their attitude about it because of the skills they are earning. Similar to college education, vocational training allows a person to set goals for themselves through hard work. Instead of taking part in illegal activities while in prison, such as contraband, sex, and attempts at breaking out, vocational training keeps the prisoners out of
Surprisingly, many prisoners have a desire for education. Younger inmates and prisoners with longer sentences are also more likely than older inmates to strive for an education because they choose to make use of their time and prison and hope to have a productive life after. Without goals, prisoners resort to less constructive plans. One prisoner who spent two years in prison without anything to do, ended up committing suicide after he was released (Schmike 60). Prison inhibited the man from further developing his skills and knowledge which led him to a sense of worthlessness. The man probably foresaw a life of hardship and probably more crime, and realized that was not a life worth living. Since the man was unable to form a decent future from some kind of education or vocational training, he believed that death was the only answer. His suicide was not only the cause of external conflict, but also the lack of any future goals to work toward. Even if the man did not have a desire for education, he would have had the option of vocational training. For prisoners who do not have a desire for a college education, vocational training is often a more pleasant alternative. As one man said,“Inmates agree that being employed in CI provides them with an incentive to stay out of trouble for a number of reasons” (Richmond 240). Although there is sometimes a negative stigma around vocational training, many prisoners change their attitude about it because of the skills they are earning. Similar to college education, vocational training allows a person to set goals for themselves through hard work. Instead of taking part in illegal activities while in prison, such as contraband, sex, and attempts at breaking out, vocational training keeps the prisoners out of