CRIMINAL JUSTICE SEMINAR

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1 MT. WACHUSETT COMMUNITY COLLEGE 444 Green Street Gardner, MA (978) CJU 255 Criminal Justice Seminar Instructor: Spring Semester, 2010 Office: Room Phone: Gardner Campus Section G: MW, 1:45-3:00 (Rm. 338) Office Hrs: M, 3-4 PM; W, AM & Section JL: Th, 3:30-6:00 (Rm. 338) 3-3:30 PM; Th, 2-3 PM; F, 9:30-10 AM (Leom.) CRIMINAL JUSTICE SEMINAR COURSE DESCRIPTION: In this capstone course, students analyze and articulate contemporary themes to demonstrate their mastery of the content of completed required courses within the criminal justice degree. They are required to read selected materials and analyze key topics in a seminar format. Students develop and prepare a major analytical research paper and conduct a seminar on their research topic. Students must complete this course with grade of C- or better in order to graduate. OBJECTIVES: The overall objectives of this course are: 1. To assess students mastery of major criminal justice concepts through discussion on selected readings, a research paper, an oral presentation on the student s research topic and a written test. 2. To give students the opportunity to do in-depth research on the topic of their choice related to criminal justice. 3. To insure that students who graduate possess a sufficient level of knowledge and skills to prepare them for entry into a criminal justice career field or to transfer to a baccalaureate degree program. Successful completion of this course will be based on demonstration of the following competencies: a) The ability to describe the functions and interrelationships of the major components of the criminal justice system; b) The ability to explain the constitutional principles underlying the operation of the criminal justice process; c) The ability to analyze and apply criminological theories to various types of crimes and criminals; d) The ability to describe the major characteristics of various crime typologies; e) The ability to analyze major concepts related to substantive and procedural criminal law; f) The ability to explain the various theoretical perspectives on the purpose of punishment; g) The ability to dicuss the major trends and ethical issues confronting professionals within the student s area of concentration; h) The ability to demonstrate through written and oral assignments essential skills including reading, writing, critical thinking, public speaking and appropriate use of criminal justice terminology. PREREQUISITES: Completion of all required criminal justice courses (CJU 131, 133, 134, 232, 250 and 220) and at least one restrictive elective in the student s area of concentration (or permission of instructor).

2 SEMESTER CREDITS: CONTACT HOURS: Three 2.5 per week REQUIRED READING: Robinson, Matthew B. Justice Blind: Ideals and Realities of American Criminal Justice (3 rd edition). Pearson Prentice Hall, Students may also be required to read other materials distributed in class or put on reserve in the library. EVALUATION: A student s grade for this course will be based on the following criteria: Oral and written analysis of required readings 25% Written comprehensive exam 25% Research paper 30% Oral presentation on research project 20% 100% Students will be lose points on any assignment handed in late. No assignment will be accepted more than one week after the date it is due. Absolutely no late research papers will be accepted. ATTENDANCE: Attendance will be taken at every class session. Since this is a seminar class, it is imperative that students attend class regularly, arriving on time and remaining for the entire class session. Any student who misses more than 2.5 hours of class during the semester may be penalized at a rate of one point off the final grade for each additional hour missed. The instructor reserves the right to withdraw a student from the course once the student has missed six hours of class. Students who miss class are responsible for the material covered, so it would be wise to arrange to have another student audiotape any class that is being missed. There will be one opportunity to make up the written exam; failure to take the make-up at the time it is given will result in a grade of zero. A make up will be allowed only if the instructor determines that the student had a justifiable reason for missing the exam on the original date. There will be no opportunity to make up the oral presentation on a student s research project. Any student who stops attending class during the semester without notifying the instructor that he or she is withdrawing from the class will receive a grade of F for the course. Any student who has not completed the required work by the end of the semester may discuss with the instructor the possibility of receiving an Incomplete. If permission is granted, the student shall have no more than thirty days from the end of the semester to complete the required work. CLASS PARTICIPATION: It is essential to the success of this course that students understand their responsibility to participate in class discussion. To achieve this, students must come to class having completed the assigned reading and prepared to lead class discussion on the material assigned to them. Any student who repeatedly fails to do the assigned reading or who comes to class unprepared for discussion may be withdrawn from the course, since a significant portion of each student s grade depends on participation. Remember that a major objective of this course is to demonstrate to the instructor a satisfactory level of understanding of the operation of the criminal justice system, so it is essential for students to communicate this knowledge both orally and in written form.

3 CLASSROOM ATMOSPHERE: The atmosphere in this class should be relaxed, comfortable and conducive to learning. Any behavior which disrupts the class or is distracting to the instructor will not be tolerated. If students are disruptive, they will be asked to stop. If the behavior continues, they will be suspended from class until they agree to abide by this policy. No food is to be consumed in the classroom and all beverages must be in covered containers. All cell phones and other electronic devices must be deactivated before coming into the classroom. STUDENT SUCCESS: Hopefully, each student s goal is to do as well as possible in this course. If students have difficulty with any aspect of the course, it is their responsibility to seek extra help from the instructor. In addition to the office hours listed on this syllabus, the instructor will meet with students at a mutually convenient time if necessary to help them with any difficulties they may be having completing their coursework. Students are strongly advised to take advantage of this. Students with documented disabilities (physical, emotional, learning, and/or others) who believe that they need special accommodations in this course should contact the Counselor for Students with Disabilities in Room 135 as soon as possible to insure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion. TENTATIVE COURSE OUTLINE NOTE: This schedule may be modified as the semester progresses, due to time constraints or other factors. The instructor will inform students in advance of any changes to this syllabus.. WEEK January 20 TOPICS AND ASSIGNMENTS Introduction to the course; review of syllabus Explanation of course requirements Discussion of student research topics January 25 Discussion of Chapter 1: What is the Criminal Justice System? READ: Chapter 1, pages 3-21 February 1 Discussion of Ch. 3: The Law: Providing Equal Protection or Creating Bias? READ: Chapter 3, pages Research topic and thesis statement due

4 February 8 Discussion of Chapter 4: Which is Worse: Crime in the Streets or Crime in the Suites? READ: Ch. 4 Individual meetings with instructor to discuss topics and thesis statements February 15 PRESIDENTS DAY---NO CLASS February 16 Discussion of Chapter 5: Media Portrayals of Crime and Criminal Justice READ: Ch. 5, pages February 22 Discussion of Chapter 6: Law Enforcement: To Serve and Protect? READ: Ch. 6 March 1 Discussion of Chapter 7: Injustice in Pretrial and Trial Procedures READ: Ch. 7, pages and Tentative outline and bibliography due March 8 Discussion of Chapter 8: Punishment: Does It Work and Is It Fair? READ: Ch. 8 Individual meetings with instructor to review outlines March 15 SEMESTER BREAK March 22 Discussion of Chapter 8 (cont d) First draft of research paper due March 29 Discussion of Chapter 9: Incarceration: Lock Em Up and Forget about Em READ: Ch. 9 Individual meetings with instructor to discuss research projects

5 April 5 Discussion of Chapter 11: The War on Drugs READ: Ch. 11, pages and April 12 Revised draft of research paper due WRITTEN COMPREHENSIVE EXAM April 19 PATRIOTS DAY---NO CLASS April 20 April 26 FINAL DRAFT OF RESEARCH PAPERS DUE May 3 Exam period