Course Objectives

Students who successfully complete this course will be able to demonstrate a knowledge of the evolution of the Criminal Justice System of the United States of America.  They will develop an awareness of the objectives of the system, including an awareness of relevant social issues pertaining to it and the inherent crime problems within our society.  They will also gain an understanding of the role expectations of criminal justice personnel and the demands and requirements of the different career options within the justice system. The student will gain an appreciation for the need of a well organized Criminal Justice System, and the need of a highly educated and trained body of professionals to work within the Criminal Justice System. 

Instructions for Accessing the Course

The course will be accessible to students by Thursday, of the week preceding the first day of classes.  Please take some time to familiarize yourself with the class site and each of the sidebar buttons.  An introductory letter was sent out by email to all who were signed up for the course two to three weeks before the semester began. (To those who listed their email addresses when they registered).  If you did not receive a letter you may obtain the information you need to log into the course by going to the college web page, and looking at the criminal justice page.

Once logged in, go to the Discussion Board and Post a brief introduction of yourself so that we may become better acquainted.

E-Mail: To access the website go to the following URL: 
http://blackboard.reedleycollege.edu or... go to the Reedley College web site, then go to "Online classes" then click on "Blackboard courses" (RC,NC,FCC). 
LOGIN, using your user name (student ID number) and password (student ID number).  Go to Personal Information and enter your e-mail address.  You will need to be officially enrolled before you will be allowed to enter the site. 

If you do not have an e-mail address, you can obtain one for free through State Center Community College District (www.scccd.org); if you do not have Internet access at home, you can get low-cost access from this site as well.  Free e-mail accounts such as Hotmail (www.hotmail.com) or Yahoo (www.yahoo.com) are available as well.  Throughout the semester I will be using e-mail for announcements of assignments and special events, and you should check your account often. YOU MUST HAVE AN ACTIVE E-MAIL ACCOUNT AT ALL TIMES.  IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT TO COMMUNICATE WITH THE INSTRUCTOR FOR QUESTIONS, CONCERNS AND/OR PROBLEMS. If I do not hear from you for an extended period of time I will assume you have discontinued the course and I will make the course inaccessible to you. 

For a more complete discussion of what you need to know before taking an online class, please see "Electronic Necessities” by going to the "Documents" button on the Blackboard page, or go to the college web page and check out the online orientation information..

Necessary Programs:

•  Internet browser (such as Internet Explorer, Netscape)
• E-mail program
• Word processor (MS Word, see Submitted Paperwork below)   Other word processors like note pad, note book, etc.,  do not work .
• Adobe Acrobat Reader for research materials. 

Submitted Paperwork:

Some work must be submitted via the "Digital Dropbox."   The dropbox accepts files in the following formats: MS Word documents (*.doc), RTF, PDF or ASCII Text.  Unfortunately, Microsoft Works and WordPerfect do not work.  You must be able to ship your work to me in an acceptable format.  If I can't receive it ... I can't read it, which means I didn't receive it.

Attendance:

Although an online class does not chart attendance per se, you do need to make your presence known every week.  There will be credit/no credit assignments requiring a response from you every week along with Discussion Board assignments.  If you fall behind at any point during the semester, you will find it extremely difficult to catch up.  Most assignments will have both a date and a time that they are due.  I will accept no late assignments, unless you have contacted me prior to the due date and time.  There will be no makeup's of late reading response assignments for any reason.

Grading:

I will evaluate your participation in discussions; turn in assignments, quizzes and examinations.  Each will be given/posted a value.  At the close of the semester I will total all points that you have accumulated and calculate that against the total points possible for the course.  You will then receive a letter grade according to the following scale: 

If you miss an assignment, you may NOT make it up, however, you may obtain extra credit by doing the following:
Extra credit may be earned by Court Sittings or Ride-a-long’s with a law enforcement agency.  To receive credit for court sittings you must be present in the court room for a minimum of two hours while arraignments, a preliminary, or a court case is going on. You must obtain a stamp or signature form the court clerk or bailiff, and complete and turn in the college form.  To receive credit for a ride-a-long, you must ride around with a police officer for a minimum of four hours, obtain the officer's signature, fill out the college form and turn it in.  You may send them in by regular mail or drop them off at my office.  Each court sitting or ride-a-long is worth 25 points.  You may accumulate up to 100 points by this process.  The form is available in COURSE DOCUMENTS.  Just print yourself a copy as needed.  Use the same form for court sittings and/or ride-a-longs.  In order to receive credit all forms must be received by me no later than Friday of the week preceding finals week.

Academic Dishonesty:

Plagiarism … passing off another’s work as your own is dishonest and is a very serious offense; it is also easy to detect.  If you are caught you will face disciplinary action. Having someone else respond in your place to any of the assignments for this course is also dishonest and places your academic standing in jeopardy.