The Teaching of Criminology in Mexico

For some years now, the teaching of criminology in Mexico has been based on the idea that students enrolled in the bachelor's degree want to become investigators like those in police series. Additionally, it is seen as a “novelty” in schools, which is based only on a mistaken idea of the true work of criminology, its objectives, and the hundreds of questions it needs to answer.

On the other hand, the influence of television series does not help much and has only caused future criminologists and the general population to have the false idea that solving cases is a matter of hours or days, that a clue solves everything and from there everything makes sense. The truth is, that does not happen; the demand is too high and the specialized and trained personnel are few, in addition to the enemies we already know (bureaucracy, corruption, favoritism, etc.).

If we looked into criminology classrooms, what would we see? Would we see a classroom full of students eager to know, to learn, students who are there out of obligation, students who are there out of morbid curiosity? Among other aspects, would we see the passion with which the teacher leads the class, a teacher who leaves a reading and leaves, a teacher who dominates and knows precisely what they are saying? Do we really know as students what we want and expect from a teacher? As teachers, do we know how to teach? Do we know how to give students the tools they need to honorably perform the profession?

Criminology is relatively new, and the truth is that there is very little bibliography in Spanish and written in Latin America. There is a lot in other languages and countries, but in Mexico at least, there is not a great variety, and several authors consider that criminology has stagnated and that teaching has become a series of vicious and unproductive repetitions.

How to solve the problem? Wael Hikal mentions that this lag in ideas and new research is based on the moment the adolescent chooses the degree, as a consequence of poor career guidance, aversion to mathematics, and, as I mentioned, a morbid curiosity towards certain aspects of the career. They choose it, but during the course, if they manage to introspect, they glimpse the enormous social responsibility it entails.

But the blame is not all on the new criminologists in process; the responsibility also lies with those of us who already are, in our work as professionals. Work done with integrity and ethics is the responsibility of established criminologists to continue quality teaching, seeking to leave a presence of our science, criminology. It is necessary to get involved in action, not to lock ourselves in ideas from a decade ago, which, although they are necessary references, are just that—references. We must stop being a literary character, stop being absent and aimless entities.

Bibliography

Hikal, W., Tolentino, J. A., & Erosa, R. A. (2017). Black Book of the Teaching of Criminology in Mexico. CDMX: Flores. enseñanza de la criminología en México. CDMX: Flores.