ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the institutional conditions for schoolwork in youth detention homes in Sweden, based on previous research, the study's telephone interviews, and other materials. These conditions are characterized by a relatively high number of well-educated teachers per student (although not all teachers teach subjects in which they are formally trained), a perceived lack of resources, and a picture of students with widely varying needs who mostly seek more education than the institutions can provide. The chapter also discusses teachers’ criticism of the treatment staff, whom they often perceive as relatively disengaged from schoolwork, as well as the Swedish Schools Inspectorate's criticism of deficiencies in education within this treatment environment. The chapter serves as a starting point for the more detailed analyses in the following chapters.
