Syllabus for AOJ-102-OL
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Introduction to Criminal Justice offers an overview of the entire criminal justice system. The focus is on the administration of police, court and correctional agencies, and the decision-making points from the initial investigation or arrest by police to the eventual release of the offender and his/her reentry into society. The emphasis is on the dynamic relationships between the various elements in the system as well as special problem areas. After completing this course, you should be able to:
Essentials of Criminal Justice, 6th ed., Larry J. Siegel (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2009). The textbook is available from the textbook supplier, MBS Direct.
Introduction to Criminal Justice is a three-credit online course. It consists of five study modules as well as an introductory and a concluding module. Modular study assignments include text readings and suggested Web sites. You are required to participate in five graded online discussions and an ungraded "Introductions" forum, which occurs during the first week of the semester. There are fifteen chapter quizzes, and a final position paper. For the course's assignment modules (study assignments, online discussions, and quizzes), go to the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site. The quizzes are found in the Tests & Quizzes area of the site. See also the Course Calendar for an overview of the assignments and for all due dates. You will find other helpful materials in the areas titled Module Summaries and Position Paper. In addition to an ungraded "Introductions" forum, Introduction to Criminal Justice requires you to participate in five graded class discussions. Communication with the mentor and among fellow students is a critical component of online learning. Participation in online discussions involves two distinct activities: an initial response to a posted question (discussion thread) and subsequent comments on classmates' responses. You will be evaluated both on the quality of your responses (i.e., your understanding of readings, and concepts as demonstrated by well-articulated, critical thinking) and quantity of your participation (i.e., the number of times you participate meaningfully in the assigned forums). Responses and comments should be properly proofread and edited, professional, and respectful. Meaningful participation in online discussions is relevant to the content, adds value, and advances the discussion. Comments such as "I agree" and "ditto" are not considered value-adding participation. Therefore, when you agree or disagree with a classmate, the reading, or your mentor, state and support your agreement or disagreement. Deadlines for posting responses to the discussion questions are given in the course Calendar. Specific directions for these activities, and the questions to be discussed, are given in the Assignment Modules area of the course Web site. There will be fifteen chapter quizzes for this course. The quizzes should be taken after you complete the reading assignments and online discussion for each module. There will be twenty (20) multiple choice questions on each of the quizzes, each worth 5 points. The quizzes will be worth 100 points each. You have up to 60 minutes in which to complete the quiz and may take it only once. To access quiz links, go to the Tests & Quizzes area of the course Web site. Consult the course Calendar for quiz deadlines.
Introduction to Criminal Justice requires you write a position paper as a final paper. Your objective in writing this position paper is to define an issue clearly and to formulate and clarify your position on that issue by reacting to a controversial statement.
For the guidelines and requirements of the position paper you may access the Position Paper area of this course web site. Prepare your position paper using whatever word processing program you have on your computer. Include your name at the top of the paper, as well as the course name and code and the semester and year in which you are enrolled. Before submitting your first assignment (position paper outline), check with your mentor to determine whether your word processing software is compatible with your mentor's software. If so, you can submit your work as you prepared it. If not, save your assignment as a rich-text (.rtf) file, using the Save As command of your software program. Rich text retains basic formatting and can be read by any other word processing program. When satisfied that your assignment represents your best work, submit it to your mentor by means of the
>>View/Complete Assignment link provided in the Position Paper area of this course web site. Use the Browse button within this link to locate and submit your position paper file. There is no proctored examination (midterm or final) in this course. A 7-10 page position paper acts as your final assessment and is worth 25 percent of your grade. You may begin work on this paper at any time during the course, but you must submit the outline and the paper itself by the due dates listed in the course Calendar area. Your grade in the course will be determined as follows: Letter grades for online participation, written assignments, and the final project are based on the following numerical grades: Note: To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of D or higher on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., assignments, projects, papers, etc.). You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted. First Steps to Success Study Tips |
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