Confucianism keeps convicts on the straight and narrow

"If we incite people to do good by issuing decrees and meting out punishment, all we shall do is create those who fear the stick rather than those who revere doing right; but if we lead people on a just path with morality, we will breed a people imbued with an awareness of shame and they will submit themselves to governance."

Although those words were uttered by the Chinese sage Confucius about 2,500 years ago, they still have great resonance today, especially for the inmates of Yunhe prison in Shandong province.

In the past 24 years, more than 3,200 prisoners have "graduated" from the Yunhe Confucius Distance Learning College, which offers courses that expound on the sage's philosophy and are designed to rehabilitate offenders and prepare them for life outside prison. So far, about 1,000 of the graduates have found work in the low-end technology sector.