Enhancing Student Learning By Using Mock Trials in Criminal Justice Courses

Lecture-oriented teaching is the principal pedagogical technique in college and university classrooms but instructors will sometimes turn to non-lecture techniques in an attempt to provide a more active learning experience. This article describes a mock trial exercise that has been used over several semesters to provide criminal justice students with an active learning experience and increase their understanding of the inquisitorial process in comparison with adversarial proceedings. We provide sufficient detail to allow interested instructors to conduct a similar exercise in their own course. Results of a multi-semester evaluation to assess student perceptions of the exercise show that students expected and found the exercise to be an enjoyable and informative classroom experience that advanced their learning.     

Learning by Giving: A Quasi-Experimental Study of Student Philanthropy in Criminal Justice Education

Student philanthropy is a teaching strategy that “provides students with the opportunity to study social problems and nonprofit organizations, and then make decisions about investing funds in them.” This represents the first study of student philanthropy in the criminal justice education literature and the first quasi-experimental study of student philanthropy in the higher-education literature. Specifically, it examines the impact of student philanthropy on students' beliefs, interest, learning, and intended behavior by analyzing pretest and posttest data for students who participated in a philanthropy experience (experimental group), relative to students who did not participate (comparison group). Key findings include: those who participated in the student philanthropy project were significantly more likely to be aware of organizations in their community, and change scores support the differences between the experimental and comparison groups regarding social problem awareness.     

Learning by Doing: Experiential Learning in Criminal Justice

This article highlights the efforts of colleagues in a criminal justice department to offer experiential learning opportunities (ELOs) to undergraduate students. Operating within the framework of a liberal arts curriculum, we provide criminal justice majors with a range of opportunities that fall under the general rubric of “experiential learning”, including the following: internships, field trips, service-learning, and research projects. Our goal was to combine the academic rigors of traditional, classroom-based learning with exposure to hands-on, real-world, subject-based knowledge. We explain the multistage framework that is used to tie all of our ELOs together across the curriculum. Results from a senior and alumni survey indicate that experiential learning offers significant academic and professional benefits for students.     

Using Movies to Illustrate Ethical Dilemmas in Undergraduate Criminal Justice Classes

Ethics education in criminal justice programs has increased in popularity, but instructors sometimes struggle to teach ethics in such a way that students retain what they have learned and apply ethical principles in the criminal justice field upon graduation. The current research highlights that there are several benefits of presenting ethical dilemmas to students through popular movies such as Mississippi Burning and Road to Perdition. Compared to the control group (Section A) that was taught in a traditional lecture format, students who were required to identify ethical dilemmas in movies (Section B) were more likely to understand the complexities of such situations, to rate unethical behavior properly, and to see how ethical principles could be applied to their everyday lives.     

Literacy in Citizenship Preparatory Classes

Beliefs and theories about literacy, from traditional literacy to multiliteracies to critical literacy, contain assumptions and ideologies about what it means to be literate. In the realm of U.S. citizenship, naturalization requires a certain level of English literacy and knowledge of history/civics, ascertained by a standardized interview. This article investigates views and practices of literacy in the naturalization test and citizenship preparatory classes. Ethnographic observations of three such classes indicate that English literacy is taught as discrete, decontextual, and superficial, and accuracy is accentuated over fluency. Overlooked, but equally important to become a naturalized citizen, are de facto literacy practices such as participation in high-stakes institutional discourse. In concluding that neither citizenship classes nor the citizenship test promote critical literacy or citizenship, I end with suggestions for promoting a more active and critical citizenry.     

Freshman Learning Communities in Criminology and Criminal Justice: An Effective Tool for Enhancing Student Recruitment and Learning Outcomes*

Freshmen Learning Communities (FLCs) or Freshmen Interest Groups (FIGs) recently emerged on the landscape of higher education as an innovative means of improving educational outcomes. Building around a cohort‐based pedagogical model, FLCs use thematic foci, block scheduling, and faculty collaboration to ease the transition into the first‐year college experience. This paper outlines the logic and structure of a criminology/criminal justice‐based FLC. It details how pedagogical variations such as writing across the curriculum and web‐based design can be included. A large body of input and output data is considered that measures how students respond to the FLC experience.     

Engaging Criminal Justice Students through Service Learning

The increasing popularity of service learning has led to the implementation of the pedagogy across educational levels and disciplines. Evidence of its utilization in criminal justice education spans two decades, most of which include case studies of service-learning courses or projects. These examples of service-learning implementation seem to serve as a best practices guide for other faculty and researchers interested in adopting the pedagogy. By examining responses to offender populations and policy areas by students (n = 37) involved in a service-learning course, the current research adds to this “best practices” approach and is intended to instigate further examination of the benefits of service learning for criminal justice students and the discipline.     

The Impact of Criterion Writing Evaluation Technology on Criminal Justice Student Writing Skills

Criminal justice scholars recognize that skillful, articulate writing is critically important in criminal justice because of the responsibilities those practicing in the field assume. This paper adds to the current discussion and evidence related to improving college and university students’ writing skills. We report findings from an investigation that explores the utility and outcomes associated with using a specific web‐based teaching technology—Criterion Writing Evaluation in a criminal justice writing course.     

Student and Supervisor Perspectives on the Benefits of Criminal Justice Internships

Many criminal justice (CJ) undergraduates earn academic credit for completing internships. There is widespread recognition that these activities offer a range of potential benefits for students, yet many questions remain unanswered. The extent to which students and agency supervisors differ in their views about internships, for example, has thus far gone unexamined. This study, based on self-report surveys, explores these differences. Specifically, we compare how student and agency supervisors evaluate the importance of internships and the benefits commonly associated with them. With the goal of determining how long it takes to realize these benefits, we also examine opinions about the optimal duration of internships. Findings suggest that while students and their agency supervisors generally agree that internships are an important component of an undergraduate education in CJ and that a considerable amount of time must be invested to achieve the primary benefits, they tend to prioritize these benefits differently.     

Promoting Student Learning in Criminal Justice,STEM, and Forensic Science: Aggie Sleuth Initiative (AggieSI)-Guided Inquiry Learning Experience

This study reported the first interdisciplinary Aggie Sleuth Initiative (AggieSI) conducted between the Departments of Political Science and Criminal Justice, Sociology and Social Work and Chemistry in order to interest underrepresented minority students in the field of forensic science at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NCA&T). The AggieSI project involved a “simulated crime scene” and a “hypothetical narrative” that provided the “simulated circumstances” for the AggieSI exercise. The students worked in groups on their AggieSI projects in a guided inquiry laboratory experiment format. The students found their AggieSI project motivating, promoting the students’ critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork skills with students from other departments. This project also promoted mutually beneficial collaborations and partnerships between NCA&T and the local Police Department to further promote forensic studies and to ensure justice and public safety in our community.     

Evaluating Student Success in a Cohort-based Graduate Program for Criminal Justice Professionals

Previous studies have shown that additional education for criminal justice professionals can improve individual effectiveness. This higher level of education can facilitate better communication, problem-solving skills, and performance. The University of South Florida offers a unique cohort-style/weekend-based Master’s program (MACJA) that is designed specifically for these professionals. This program has graduated 180 students since 2006, all members of the criminal justice field. The current study aims to determine which student background factors are associated with a higher graduating GPA in the program. This project will also discuss the results of a follow-up survey of MACJA graduates assessing professional advancement following graduation, specifically targeting topics such as promotions, special awards or recognitions, teaching experience, and further education.     

An Assessment of the Relative Importance of Criminal Justice Learning Objectives

This study examines the relative importance of the different learning objectives for criminal justice education as identified by the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences (ACJS). Three different populations (students, faculty, and professionals) completed a survey exercise in which they were required to rank order hypothetical job applicants who varied in competency on each of the ACJS learning objectives. In addition, students completed the same exercise pre- and post-completion of their required internship to determine if experience in the field affected their responses. Conjoint analysis was used to identify the relative importance of different learning objectives. While results indicate some similarities in responses across all three populations, several interesting differences were observed, and these may have important curricular implications for criminal justice programs.     

Connecting Academic Criminal Justice to the Practitioner Perspective: The Efficacy of the Professional Interview

This paper details the use of the professional interview as an active learning assignment for students enrolled in criminal justice and social science classes. Numerous ways in which the professional interview enhances the advising and career selection process are identified. The authors present the results of a content analysis of the “summary and reflections” section of assignments from more than 100 professional interviews completed by students enrolled in several criminal justice classes. The results are used to illustrate students’ perceptions of the utility of the assignment. Lastly, the text includes a version of the interview instrument the authors have utilized with great success for a number of years.     

Using GIS to Apply Learning across the Undergraduate Criminal Justice Curriculum

Geographical information systems (GIS) utilization has exploded in criminal justice over the last decade, but there is scant mention of pedagogical models published in the Journal of Criminal Justice Education, with a content analysis revealing just one GIS-based article published since 2001. This work proposes a GIS-based pedagogical model to move the discussion beyond crime mapping to applying, integrating, and enhancing learning across the criminal justice curriculum. Four pertinent data sources from New York City are integrated to provide an example framework for studying NYPD stop and frisk policy in upper level undergraduate-level criminal justice courses. Using ArcGIS specifically, the model incorporates sociology, criminological theory, corrections, diversity/multiculturalism, research methods, statistics, policing, and policy knowledge to coalesce prior student learning, while enhancing spatial thinking and analytical skills relative to an important social policy. Example maps, assignments, and approaches are included, as are the limitations of such a pedagogical model.     

高校学生管理中的程序正义研究

实现程序正义对推进高校学生管理法治化建设具有重要意义,高校学生管理自身特点、高校学生管理中的程序价值和高校学生管理中程序正义缺失现状都要求高校学生管理引入程序正义。高校学生管理中的程序价值内涵主要包括程序的参与性、中立性、及时性和确定性,这是判断程序正义是否引入高校学生管理中的价值取向。为了实现程序正义,必须通过高校学生管理中行政程序的制度设计来实现。     

The Great Books in Criminal Justice: As Ranked by Elite Members of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences

Attempts to define the core body of knowledge in criminal justice have provided diverse and disparate explanations of what could be considered as central to the discipline. Previous efforts have focused on frequently cited authors and works, required learning for students and the personal beliefs of individual scholars. The present work adds to this body by examining the works considered by an elite sample of criminal justice educators as classics in the field. Based on a survey of Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences Presidents, Fellows and Bruce Smith Award winners the classic books in criminal justice are identified. Results show that a wide range of works and authors is identified, with relatively little consensus either across the sample or with previously identified works and authors. Comparison of presently identified works with those frequently cited and commonly required for doctoral students shows that only a minority of works identified by others are also considered classics by our elite sample.     

论协商性司法中的刑事和解

刑事和解是一种以协商性司法的形式恢复原有社会秩序的纠纷解决方式。刑事和解属于协商性司法程序,与传统的诉讼方式相比,刑事和解是合作性的,它不仅保护了被害人权益,使其在接受犯罪人的道歉和补偿中得到慰藉,还有利于矫正犯罪,使主观过错不大的犯罪人重新融入社会,实现犯罪人的再社会化。刑事和解的内在观念与我国法律观念、刑事诉讼模式以及相关的制度设计存在较大的冲突,这些都是阻碍刑事和解制度在我国发展的因素。只有充分考虑阻碍因素,才可以从正反两方面来把握刑事和解在我国的全貌,这是构建可行的刑事和解模式不可缺少的前提。     

Interpersonal Behavior,Laboratory Learning Environments,and Student Outcomes in Senior Biology Classes

The purpose of this study was to investigate associations between students' perceptions of their biology teachers' interpersonal behavior and their laboratory learning environments and their attitudinal, achievement, and performance outcomes. A sample of 489 students from 28 senior biology classes in eight schools in Tasmania, Australia completed the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) and the Science Laboratory Environment Inventory (SLEI). Responses to two attitude questionnaires, achievement on an external written examination, and performance in laboratory practical tests were used as student outcome measures. Statistical analyses supported the reliability and validity of the QTI and the SLEI when used with senior secondary biology students. We investigated associations between students' perceptions of teacher behavior and their laboratory learning environment with student outcomes, including the unique and common contributions of the QTI and SLEI to variance in student outcomes. Associations with students' perceptions of the learning environment were stronger for the attitudinal outcomes than for the cognitive or practical skills outcomes. Some commonality between the QTI and SLEI scales was found in their contributions to the variance in attitudinal outcomes, but not in their contributions to variance in cognitive and practical skill outcomes. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 37: 26–43, 2000     

新形势下民意与刑事司法的博弈

民意自古以来就直接或间接地影响着法律的运行,被认为是评定司法公正和社会正义的双重标尺。在罪刑法定的刑法基调下,民意在司法运行中陷入了困境,这一切主要是源于我国所构建的封闭的刑法理论体系。鉴于司法机关传统的独白式刑法解释论,民意的理性引导和适当的介入便显得尤为重要。