谢振礼 雅思范文: 监狱教育 20181103
IELTS Writing Task 2
China 2018-11-03
Topic:
It is shown that many criminals have a low level of education. Some people argue that the best way to reduce crime is to educate criminals in prison to help them find jobs when they leave prison. To what extent do you agree or disagree?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Essay: ielts360toefl@hotmail
(RMB 60 IELTS essays 2018 +Cambridge 4-13 WeChat fangsong1016)
Getting former inmates into the mainstream labor force is a critical goal for the criminal justice officials. Because many inmates do not have enough education and have not ever had a legitimate job before, it is believed that the best way to reduce crime is to educate people in prisons so they can find employment after release. However, there are both good news and bad news about the value of prison education.
To begin with the good news, there is evidence that educating criminals in prison does work to some extent, referring to the post-release employment. That is to say, not only are such released inmates less likely to return to prison, they are also more likely to get a job after being set free. In looking across the related statistics, the odds of finding employment was about 10 percent higher among prisoners who participated in either academic or vocational education programs than for those who did not. In view of this evidence, education remains an important means to ensure that inmates are prepared for the challenges in today’s workplaces. Therefore, in theory, the value of education should not be underestimated.
What is the bad news in a different picture? Skeptics claim that, in practice, education behind bars may be more a romantic option than an effective solution to help inmates find jobs when they are released from prison. It must be made clear that the point is not against correctional education programs, considering that most criminals are under-educated. Rather, the point is that sometimes prison education produces nothing more than “better-educated criminals,” only more dangerous. These days, the violent crime wave continues raging in society, which certainly does not reflect a significant decrease in recidivism. It merely shows that the value of prison education must not be exaggerated, speaking of the prospects of employment for criminals.
To sum up, it pays to educate inmates and prepare them for job opportunities, however limited. Whether education in prisons is the best way to reduce crime depends on the way those inmates see these opportunities. Good things often happen, but probably not as often as justice officials hope.
