University of Central Oklahoma College of Liberal Arts School of Criminal Justice Summer 2015 CJ2413-Careers and Technologies in Criminal Justice (CRN 36490) Online/WWW Course Instructor: Elizabeth Maier, Ph.D. Office Phone: 405-974-5504 Office Location: Communications 115 Email: emaier@uco.edu Office Hours: by appointment (available for in-person meeting or live chat) Introduction: My name is Elizabeth Maier and I will be your online instructor for Careers and Technologies in Criminal Justice (CJ2413). My contact information is provided above. The preferred method of initial communication is email. I will respond to emails within 48 hours. If you need more assistance than can be provided in email or if it is a challenging issue, please make an appointment and I will gladly assist you. Instructor Professional Information: I have taught criminal justice at UCO since August 2011. Here is my educational background: Ph.D., Criminal Justice, University of Nebraska-Omaha, 2006 M.P.S.A., Texas A&M University, 2002 B.A., International Affairs, The George Washington University, 1999 Modules: For this course, you will be required to complete 9 weeks of material (approximately two modules per week). These modules must be completed each week by 11pm on Sunday. Modules will cover material from the book (see schedule below). Modules will be active or turned on for students to view on Mondays of the week that the module is assigned. At the beginning of each module, there is a module manual which tells you how many items need to be completed in that module. Within several modules, you will see items labeled as learning supports. These items are there to provide you with additional information and/or resources about careers, finding a job, etc. While using these items are optional, I highly recommend that you review them if/when you have time. Course Description from UCO Catalog: Careers and Technologies in Criminal Justice (CJ) is designed to introduce students to the many career paths that exist in criminal justice and common skill sets needed for communication, problem solving and leadership abilities that are required by various agencies. Students will also explore the history of technologies used by CJ, as well as current and future trends. 1
Course Objectives: Students will be able to write a professional resume Students will be familiar with oral interviews Students will be familiar with career paths in criminal justice Students will be familiar with past, current, and future technologies used in criminal justice Transformational Learning Objectives: The University of Central Oklahoma is a learningcentered organization committed to transformative education through the Central Six, which include Discipline Knowledge; Leadership; Problem Solving (Research, Scholarly and Creative Activities); Service Learning and Civic Engagement; Global and Cultural Competencies; and Health and Wellness. This course addresses one of the university s transformative learning goals: discipline knowledge. Required Text for Course: Harr, J.S. and Hess, K.M. (2010). Careers in criminal justice and related fields: From internship to promotion. Sixth Edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage. ISBN:978-0-495-60032-9. Course Assignments: Exams - There will be one exam (midterm) in this course. It is part of week 4, available June 22 and due July 5. It is worth 75 points and will consist of matching, multiple choice, true & false, and short answer questions. Assignments During the course, you will be asked to complete and submit to dropbox four assignments. Please see the description of each assignment below. 1. Resume You will be required to create and submit a professional resume for review by the instructor. It is due during week 6 and is worth 10 points. The instructor will provide you with feedback upon submission. You will want to incorporate the feedback to your resume since it will be part of the E-Portfolio due at the end of the course. 2. Interview Answers Due You will be required to submit answers to typical interview questions. It is due during week 7 and is worth 10 points. The instructor will provide you with feedback upon submission. You will want to incorporate the feedback into your answers since it will be part of the E-Portfolio. 3. Technology Handout Students will be partnered with another student(s) for this assignment. Each partnership/group will select a current or future technology (off of the approved list provided in the course resources module) and research that technology. Each group will create a handout for their classmates summarizing the technology, its potential uses, costs, pros/cons, etc. Please see the detailed assignment sheet in D2L. The handout is due week 8 and is worth 75 points. 2
4. E-Portfolio At the end of the course (week 9), you will be asked to submit an e- portfolio containing the following four (4) items: Resume, Interview Answers, Strength & Weaknesses, and Job Search Action Plan. Please see the detailed assignment sheet in D2L. Each item is worth 25 points (100 points total). Self-Assessment (Job) Quizzes/CJ Career Ranker There will be two (2) job quizzes given throughout this course, worth 5 points each. They are asking you to reflect on and rank your job preferences. Discussions You will be asked to participate in five (5) discussions, each worth 5 points. In each of the discussions, you must post one original answer/thought and two responses to other students. Your original post needs to be made by midnight on Wednesday of the week that discussion is assigned; this will allow you and other students an opportunity to post your responses by the end of the week (11pm on Sunday). The grading rubric is as follows: 3 points for completing the three posts (one answer and two responses), 1 point for clarity of thought, and 1 point for spelling/grammar. Discussions will be graded within three (3) days of submission. Discussion participation (post and replies) are the one item that Dr. Maier will NOT accept late. The point of a discussion is interaction among you and your classmates. Participating late is like not participating at all. Course Activities In almost every module you will be asked to complete a course activity. They vary from module to module, but are designed to have you demonstrate or apply what you have learned in the module. The answers to the course activities should be written in complete sentence and paragraph form and free of grammar/spelling mistakes. There are 12 course activities, (10 worth 5 points each and 2 worth 10 points each). Course Grading: 375 points total Exams (1) = 75 points (20%) Course Activities (10 x 5, and 2 x 10) = 70 points (19%) Discussions (5 x 5) = 25 points (7%) Assignments (2 x 10, 1 x 75) = 95 points (25%) E-Portfolio (1) = 100 points (27%) Job Quizzes/CJ Career Ranker (5 x 2) = 10 points (3%) A = 336-375 points (90-100%) B = 298-335 points (80-89%) C = 261-297 points (70-79%) D = 223-260 points (60-69%) F = 0-222 points (59% and below) Extra credit is offered once during the course (week 7). Additional extra credit may be offered at the discretion of the professor and students will be notified about it via email and a News Item Post. 3
Course Schedule: Week 1: June 1-7 (Two Modules: Orientation and Ethics) Orientation/Welcome to course o Read Syllabus o Complete Introduction Discussion o Complete Job Quiz/CJ Career Ranker Ethics o Complete Course Activity-Ethical Behavior Quiz Week 2: June 8-14 (Two Modules: Employment Trends & First Responders) Employment Trends o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 1 o Complete Employment Trends-Maslow Discussion First Responders o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 2 o Complete Course Activity-First Responders o Watch Videos-Practitioner Profiles Week 3: June 15-21 (Two Modules: Careers in Courts and Careers in Corrections) Careers in Courts o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 3 o Complete Course Activity-Lawyers o Watch Video-Practitioner Profile Careers in Corrections o Harr & Hess Chapter 3 continued o Complete Course Activity-Probation and Parole o Watch Video-Practitioner Profile Week 4: June 22-28 (Two Modules: Careers in Private Security and Choosing a Career) Careers in Private Security o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 4 o Complete Course Activity-Security Arrangements Choosing a Career o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 5 o Complete Course Activity-Career Interests o Watch Video-The Story of Dr. Maier Midterm Exam is located in the Choosing a Career Module 4
Week 5: June 29-July 5 (Midterm Exam and Two Modules: Physical Fitness & Training and Other Forms of Testing) Physical Fitness & Training o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 7 o Watch Video o Complete Discussion/Roundtable Review-Physical Fitness Requirements Other Forms of Testing o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 8 o Complete Course Activity-Employment Tests Crossword o Midterm Exam due July 5 at 11pm Week 6: July 6 12 (Two Modules: Attributes of Successful Candidates and Resume) Attributes of Successful Candidates o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 9 o Complete Course Activity-Attributes of Successful Candidates Quiz Resume o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 10 o Complete Course Activity-Resume Critique o Complete Resume Week 7: July 13-19 (Two Modules: Preparing for Not Getting the Job and The Application Process) Preparing for Not Getting the Job o Read Harr & Hess Chapter 11 o Watch Video o Complete Course Activity-Myths The Application Process o Read Harr & Hess Chapters 12, 13, & 14 o Watch Video o Complete Course Activity-Strength & Weakness o Interview Game (extra credit/bonus) o Complete Interview Assignment Week 8: July 20 26 (Two Modules: Career Path and Technologies in CJ) Career Path o Read Harr & Hess Chapters 6, 15, 16, & 17 o Complete Interns Discussion o Complete Course Activity-Promotion Process Quiz 5
Technologies in Criminal Justice (CJ) o Complete Current & Old Technologies Discussion o Complete Technology Handout Week 9: July 27-28: (One Module: Go Forth and Prosper) module available July 24 Read Manual/Lecture Complete Job Quiz/CJ Career Ranker Complete E-Portfolio Policies: Late Assignments: Late assignments are accepted with penalties and only until 6 days after the original due date. Each day the assignment is late is worth a letter grade. For example, if the assignment is due at 1pm on November 4 th, it is late at 1:01pm on 11/4 and the highest grade you could receive would be a B. If you turned in the assignment on 11/6, the highest grade you would receive would be a D. Assignments will not be accepted one week (7 days) after the original due date. Discussion participation is the one item that will NOT be accepted late. Academic Integrity: Each student is expected to engage in all academic pursuits in a manner that is above reproach. Students are expected to maintain complete honesty and integrity in the academic experiences both in and out of the classroom. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not confined to: plagiarizing; cheating on tests or examinations; turning in counterfeit reports, tests, and papers; stealing tests or other academic material; knowingly falsifying academic records or documents of the institution; accessing a student's confidential academic records without authorization; disclosing confidential academic information without authorization; and, turning in the same work to more than one class without informing the instructors involved. Any student found responsible of academic dishonesty will be subject to disciplinary action. Violation of these expectations, as specified above and in sections III, IV, and V of the Student Handbook, may result in penalties up to and / or including expulsion from the University. UCO subscribes to the Turnitin.com plagiarism prevention service. Students agree that by taking this course, all required assignments may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to Turnitin.com for the detection of plagiarism. All submitted assignments will be included as source documents in the Turnitin.com restricted access reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of such assignments. Use of the Turnitin.com service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use posted on the Turnitin.com website. Turnitin.com is just one of various plagiarism prevention tools and methods which may be utilized by your faculty instructor during the terms of the semesters. In the UCO Student Handbook, there is a process for contesting any plagiarism allegations against you. Students with Disabilities: The University of Central Oklahoma complies with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Students with 6
disabilities who need special accommodations must make their requests by contacting Disability Support Services at (405) 974-2516. The DSS Office is located in the Nigh University Center, Room 309. Students should also notify the instructor of special accommodation needs by the end of the first week of class. Netiquette: Since this is an online course, it is important that we practice good netiquette when communicating with one another. Without body language (a smile, nod, etc.), it is easy to be misunderstood. Below are some commonly identified netiquette rules taken from Mintu- Wimsatt, Kernek, and Lozada s 2010 article i : Do not dominate any discussion. Give other students the opportunity to join in the discussion. Do not use offensive language. Present ideas appropriately. Be cautious in using Internet language. For example, do not capitalize all letters since this suggests shouting. Avoid using vernacular and/or slang language. This could possibly lead to misinterpretation. Never make fun of someone s ability to read or write. Keep an open-mind and be willing to express even your opinion. All opinions have to be respected. Think and edit before you push the Send button. Do not hesitate to ask for feedback. Using humor is acceptable but be careful that it is not misinterpreted. For example, are you being humorous or sarcastic? To access the Student Information Sheet and Syllabus Attachment, please go to: http://www.uco.edu/academic-affairs/files/aa-forms/faculty/studentinfosheet.pdf i Mintu Wimsatt, A., Kernek, C., and Lozada, H.R. (2010). Netiquette: Make it part of your syllabus. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, Vol. 6, No. 1. Available online at http://jolt.merlot.org/vol6no1/mintuwimsatt_0310.htm 7