Prison Education Programs, Research Paper Example

A prison is an institution that holds people for a more extended period, for example, many years. A state or government operates it; in simple terms, we can define a prison as an institution where lawbreakers are restricted or punished. On the other hand, a prisoner has committed a crime and is proved guilty and sentenced to prison. Prison education refers to the instruction given to prisoners to acquire more skills as they leave the prison to get employment. Nevertheless, programs are a set of long-term measures or activities with a particular aim or goal. Rehabilitation means restoring useful life through therapy, education, operation, or capacity since prisoners are not permanently criminals. It is possible to restore a criminal to a valuable member of society. A recidivist is one who, after releasing from prison, is not rehabilitated well enough; hence he or she might fall back into former behavior patterns and commit more crime. Therefore, it is right to agree with the statement that prison education programs are the most promising avenue for rehabilitation in prison and disagree with the statement. On that note, prison education programs place inmates in realistic work environments. They are given a chance to be competent which will help them after release and increase their employment chances. Apart from punishment and protection, it is also essential to equip inmates with skills and knowledge to change the narrative behind imprisonment, brutal punishment. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the relevance of this program to inmates and society at large.

First, these education programs can change inmates to become better people whereby it shifts a criminal from being a cost to being a contributing member of society. There are two known types of prison education programs: traditional and prison industry enhancement (Linden & Perry, 1983). For inmates to get the most out of any given program, they need to, first of all, understand the options available for prison education programs (Allen, 1988). In traditional industries, education program inmates manufacture goods such as plates, mattresses, desks, and seats, sold either to the county or municipal offices, schools, and non-profitable organizations. This type of program enables the inmate to have a particular ability to go back to society and earn wages.

Besides, in prison industry enhancement educational programs, inmates can work for private companies. It Places inmates in a natural life work environment whereby they are paid wages and are allowed to acquire competent skills to increase their ability for reforming and relevant employment after release (Linden & Perry, 1983). The importance of the detention center education scheme is much more than just job training because they help prepare for handling responsibilities outside the facility and equipping the inmates with practical, functional, and general technical skills knowledge. The initiative also helps a prisoner become a good member of society beyond their non-manual life and can exercise soft abilities such as; respecting authority figures and valuing teamwork (Bouffard et al., 2000).

Nevertheless, some of the hidden benefits of prison education programs include taxpayers enjoying immediate help from work done by inmates after they have acquired the skills. A sensible amount of the payment goes back to the county or state to cater to some costs (Bouffard et al., 2000). Prisoners who participated in prison education programs have a lower chance of returning to jail than those who did not undertake any program. Besides, beneficiaries of the programs are likely to be employed after release from prison than those who did not benefit from the agenda (Linden & Perry, 1983).

We can say that the objective of education programs in prison is to make sure inmates return to society with a more reasonable attitude towards living to conduct themselves as virtuous citizens and with competence and intelligence to give them an excellent chance to take care of themselves. Even though many prisoners need formal education, informal skills such as life skills and the ability to function in teamwork in the society or family play a significant part in preparing a good citizen. Education programs in prison have enlightened many and helped reduce misbehavior and violence in prisons and institutions. It has also decreased criminal behavior in the community hence improving the safety of the society. Despite the success of education programs in prisons changing prisoners’ lives, the programs also need legislative backing from both the international and domestic.

On the contrary, scholars argue that there are various ways in which the rehabilitation process can be carried out in the prisons. Education programs are not the only promising avenue for rehabilitation in prison (Allen, 1988). According to Allen (1988) offering educative programs to prisoners who are jailed forever is a waste of money and resources. This wastage is because they will not get the opportunity to go back to society and exercise their skills.

Equally, the increased rates of recidivism belittle the need for prison programs. Recidivism is high as four in ten inmates return to prison within three years of release (Bouffard et al., 2000). Introducing a holistic program is essential to reduce recidivism, including prison and post-release support for offenders is thus essential. Unless the inmates released from prison have the skills needed to obtain and keep a job, they will find themselves in the same circumstances (Bouffard et at., 2000). Therefore, the inmate after prison should be supported by being monitored and assisted when problems arise to ensure job retention.Attending the education program doesn’t guarantee money in prison. Working is more fulfilling than education; this is because it gets you out of your cell and makes you earn some money, unlike education. It explains why the recidivism rate is high even though there are education programs. Most prisoners are capable of earning more money by working instead of learning.

The use of educative programs as an essential rehabilitation tool has been widely used in the prisons departments world over. Their effectiveness is largely based on the design and implementation matrix. Such programs have been acknowledged to have tremendous impacts on the lives of released inmates. There continued use will enhance the rehabilitation process in the prisons.

References

Allen, J. P. (1988). Administering Quality Education in an Adult Correctional Facility. Community Services Catalyst, 18(4), 28-29.

Bouffard, J. A., MacKenzie, D. L., & Hickman, L. J. (2000). Effectiveness of vocational education and employment programs for adult offenders: A methodology-based analysis of the literature. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 31(1-2), 1-41.

Linden, R., & Perry, L. (1983). The effectiveness of prison education programs. Journal of Offender Counseling Services Rehabilitation, 6(4), 43-57.