Recidivism In The Juvenile Justice System

The juvenile justice system needs to better prepare youth to enter the adult world and workplace. Per Virginia Performs, “Within twelve months 49.1% of the juvenile offenders released will be rearrested.” This is almost fifty percent. The Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice records recidivism by tracking rearrests, reconvictions, and reincarceration for twelve months after release from a juvenile correctional center. Recidivism is the tendency of a convicted criminal to reoffend. The juvenile justice system does not prepare youth to enter the world and workplace because youth who enter the system lack intellectual development, emotional maturity, and preparedness to transition out into the community successfully. Recidivism rates are a
Youth with disabilities are disproportionately overrepresented in the juvenile justice system. The juvenile justice system does not provide these juveniles with adequate education to address their needs. Often the students are placed in classrooms with others that are on completely different learning levels. Which in turn neglects the needs of youth who need more individualized educational support. On the other hand, when youth enter the system there is usually no record of their educational history. This needs to be addressed because it will be hard to provide them with adequate education if there are little to no education records. While in detention juveniles need to be intellectually stimulated . Giving juveniles quality education will empower youth. Building on their intellectual ability will allow them to make morally appropriate decisions. Per a study by the Office of Correctional Education, U.S. Department of Education found that inmates who participated in correctional education programs had lower recidivism and were one third less likely to be re-incarcerated as non-participants. Education has been proven
Referencing back to recent polls, it seems as if the community agrees. Taking another route in addressing youth incarceration would benefit not only the youth, but the communities that the youth are returning to. Education is power and so is the ability to control your emotions. Let’s empower these juveniles and give them an opportunity to learn from their mistakes and grow from it. We can’t do that with the way the system is