In today's society, many people stress the importance of materialism, a factor which will eventually determine whether we can survive in a materially oriented society. As a result, and because we misunderstand self-worth, there are people who will go to any lengths to raise their social status or to increase their income level. A direct consequence of this has been an astonishingly high increase in juvenile delinquency.
If we are to reverse this situation, attention should be paid to education, the family and the mass media in particular.
The approach to teaching adopted by the educational system has gone a long way from the traditional concept that the teaching of moral values comes before the teaching of skills. Nowadays, school authorities and teachers work extremely hard to cram their students full of information used to pass examinations. This explains why most students have to study without considering the value of knowledge.
Educators must teach their students how to think independently as well as how to tell right from wrong. Social learning theory clearly shows how important it is to cultivate in our younger generation the ability to distinguish right from wrong instead of just teaching them information from textbooks. The majority of students are preoccupied with gaining qualifications, but educators must assume the responsibility for change.
The next point that needs to be made is that at the stage at which children learn how to get along with others and how to cope with stress, the family is generally regarded as the most effective and instructive unit. A child whose parents think it normal to commit crimes is particularly likely to copy the behavior from his or her parents unthinkingly.
The younger generation has turned the social order upside down. This stems from the fact that some parents have been preoccupied with earning money to provide their children with material needs, without any regard for the importance of actual heart-to-heart communication. As a result, children may be prompted to do something to gain the attention of others. Engaging in criminal activities is the fastest way to do so. But once they get involved in criminal activities, they may find it difficult to stop.
Again, supplying material needs is not the best way to be good parents; parents have to stick to principle while teaching their kids and listen closely to what they want to say. The generation gap must be closed before it is too late.
Furthermore, when it comes to juvenile delinquency, the media play a critically important role in terms of the rising crime rate. An article titled "The Root Cause of Crime" by Jagad Guru Sidhas-warupananda Paramahamsa clearly demonstrates that "the mass media saturates us with the message that the goal of life is sensual pleasure and that success in life depends on the acquisition of those objects that make such sensual pleasure possible."
Influenced by those who lead a life of material abundance, juveniles may seek to follow the trend in order not to be left behind in a materialist society. In the era of high-technology, ideas -- no matter how good or bad -- spread faster than they used to. The media cannot shirk their responsibility; they must correct this, or our social order will be destroyed.
In schools, the teachers and school authorities must make efforts to educate their students with moral values by which they can be successful morally.
Because families are the first group that children experience, they may copy their parents' behavior and apply it to their daily life. This is why parents must set good examples for their children. The mass media must stop seeking short-term profit; for their own good, lest they end up paying for what they have done to the world in the near future.
If we are to improve juvenile delinquency rates, we must start immediately with ourselves.
Lin Tze-yi is a freelance writer based in Kaohsiung City.
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