| Do you believe if more kids attended school, | | | | Many experts believe school causes crime more |
| there would be less crime? Studying the | | | | than it prevents it, and this is not necessarily a |
| relationship between school attendance and crime | | | | new belief. Henry Fielding said in his day, "Public |
| goes back more than 200 years. Many people | | | | schools are the nurseries of all vice and |
| believe that better crime control measures should | | | | immorality." Henry Fielding lived from 1707 to |
| involve vigorous police work, or strict law | | | | 1754. |
| enforcement. | | | | Others wonder if crime is closely related to drug |
| For thousands of years and long before the | | | | use. A study entitled, "The Monitoring the Future |
| mandatory school attendance, crime has prevailed. | | | | Study" asked high school seniors this question in |
| Violence and even references to youth gangs are | | | | 2006: "On how many occasions, if any, have you |
| all refferenced in the Holy Bible. | | | | used drugs or alcohol over the last twelve |
| American's views about education and crime were | | | | months?" |
| referenced in a January 10, 1931 Literary Digest, | | | | Here are the answers: |
| article entitled "What We Shall Be Like in 1950.". | | | | Alcohol - 66.5 |
| The article mentioned prophecies made by the | | | | Marijuana 31.5 |
| National Education Association adapted from a | | | | Other opiates - 9.0 |
| publication called Tomorrow's Business, which said, | | | | Stimulants - 8.1 |
| "Crime will be virtually abolished by transferring to | | | | Sedatives - 6.6 |
| the preventive processes of the school and | | | | Tranquilizers - 6.6 |
| education the problems of conduct which police, | | | | Cocaine - 5.7 |
| courts, and prisons now remedy when it is too | | | | Hallucinogens - 4.9 |
| late." | | | | Inhalants - 4.5 |
| One student drops out every 26 seconds in | | | | Steroids - 1.8 |
| America. One Harvard study found that black | | | | Heroin - 0.8 |
| students fall behind by the time they are three | | | | Today there are numerous programs nationwide |
| years old. Three of the one million New York | | | | that help prevent both drug use and crime, and |
| students are a minority, with 70 percent | | | | they have also helped students do better in |
| impoverished. | | | | school. |