This course is asynchronous and therefore has no specific, regular meeting time. However, there are some examination and assignments deadlines which must be followed. In addition, it is essential that you access this course on a daily basis to check for messages and Discussions Page postings. This course is designed to teach you the books. It is reading intensive and its success depends on your effort.

WARNING: There are important technical issues regarding WebCT. Please click HERE for more information.

Instructor:

Dr. David Fabianic
Office: HPA1-321
Email: Course Mail
Phone: (407) 823-5940
Fax: (407) 823-5360

Address:

Department of Criminal Justice and Legal Studies
University of Central Florida
Orlando, FL 32816-1600

General Office Hours:

MWF, 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Course Description

This course will examine the topic of crime in America. It will include a review of the historical approaches to the study of crime and criminals; the role of law in the criminal justice process; the measurement of crime and production of crime statistics; and the consideration of crime victims. The course will devote time to the theories of crime causation ---- biological, psychological, and sociological, and integrated. Various typologies of crime and criminals, such as murder, political violence, property crimes, white-collar crime, and organized crime will also be studied. Included in the course is an overview of the police, courts, and correctional services. In all areas, issues and problems associated with crime and the criminal justice system will be identified, and the various arguments and controversies reviewed.

Caution

The topic of crime in America includes violence, and some of the information and material in this course may be harsh and offensive to some people. Those who might offended by descriptions or images of violence should not take this course.

Course Access

Access to the course will be possible after registration is complete and the term has begun. (Occasionally, the course can be opened a few days before the official beginning of the term.) All students whose names appear on the class roll compiled by the Registrar's Office will be able to access the course material that is available at that time. To access the course, go to your MyWebCT page at http://webcourses.ucf.edu. This page will require you to login and will present you with a list of all online courses you are enrolled in. You may also access this site by using your UCF portal page at: https://my.ucf.edu. Then go to the pagelet: Webcourses@UCF.

At the beginning of the term, you will need a NID (Network ID) to access the course. (This is not to be confused with the PID or Personal ID, that was issued to you for enrollment purposes) In order to get your NID go to the following site and follow the instructions. Your NID will be the first two letters of your first name followed by six randomly generated numbers. Your initial password will be P, followed by the two digit year, month and day of your birth. These two items (the NID and the Password) will grant you access to the course homepage.

http://reach.ucf.edu/passwords

Only students who have officially enrolled in the course will be able to access these pages. Please allow up to 48 hours after you have enrolled in the course for your name to appear on the official roster.

Once you have entered the course, your primary source of information will be the Announcements and Discussions Pages, so check it constantly for messages and instructions.

Course Format

This course is designed to teach the textbook. A large amount of information and reading will be made available to students, and students' progress will be determined by personal initiatives and efforts. The course is designed and intended for motivated self-learners. Please be aware that this course involves a significant amount of reading, and the exams are timed. Students who not respond well to this type of format probably would be better off taking the course in the traditional classroom setting.

As previously stated, this course is reading intensive. There is a large amount of material to be covered (around 600 pages), and this requires your attention and diligence. If you are not prepared to provide the required effort, please do not continue with the course because you will only be disappointed. Similarly, although the exams are posted on the web, they are timed. Some students do not like the idea of having exams timed on the web. If you are one of them, please drop the course now to avoid disappointment.

This course will be divided into four or more units. Each unit will have a reading assignment. There is a textbook aid available which outlines and summarizes each chapter of the text, and there is a listing of important terms with each chapter. There are also sample test items, glossary terms for each chapter, review questions, power point display, and study questions.

You will be examined incrementally. Usually four examinations are given. They consist of multiple-choice, true-false, and matching type questions. I also reserve the right to include short-answer and essay questions on examinations although this is not contemplated at this time. The final grade will be comprised of the following:

• Examinations: At least 80%, and usually close to 100%. However, the right is reserved to include credit for other work that could constitute as much as 20% of the final course grade. Throughout the term, students will accumulate points from examinations. Exam grades, and the final course grades, will be determined by an accumulation of points for each exam or the total point accumulation in the case of the final course grade. This means that those students with the highest scores will receive the better grades and those with low scores will receive the poorer grades. Grades will not be established by predetermined percentages or scale. The grading scale will vary from one examination to another as the total number of possible points varies. Usually, the students receiving point totals that are in the top 10 percent of the class are those that get the A's; the B's are usually made up of approximately the next 20 percent; the C's consist of approximately the next 40 percent; the D's approximately the next 20 percent; and the F's are approximately the lowest 10 percent. Please note that these percentage designations are approximate and the actual distribution may vary. The final grade in this course will be determined by an accumulation of points throughout the semester and the satisfaction of all course requirements. The final course grade is calculated using the same general method of grade distribution. No predetermined percentage scale will be used in relation to a letter grade. Plus and minus grades will not be given. Grades will not be changed unless there has been a mathematical error in its calculation.

• Again, at least 80%, and usually up to 100%, of the final grade is determined by the examinations. Web assignments, participation on the Discussion Pages, and other required or voluntary work may be allotted credit at the discretion of the instructor. Generally, students who make consistent, insightful and intelligent comments on the Discussion Pages may be given some benefit if their final course grade is marginal at the end of the term.

• Credit will be subtracted for lack of professionalism on-line. Please remember to always be courteous of others, including me.

• Final course grades will not be posted nor sent to you via email or course mail. You can access your final course grades through Polaris or whatever method you normally employ to receive your final course grades.

• You are required to complete all assignments in a timely manner. Failure to complete assigned work is an automatic failure in the course.

• Also, please note that you are responsible for checking the Discussions page, private mail, and email daily in order to receive messages, additional assignments, etc.

Textbook

You may purchase the book at the Campus Bookstore or from other sources if you choose. The Campus Bookstore is the only outlet that has been formally apprised of the textbook for this course.

This book is available at the main Campus Bookstore. Area Campus bookstores have not been apprised of the textbooks for this course. If you are located off campus, call the main campus bookstore in Orlando and place an order. They can mail the order to you. Another way to obtain the textbooks is to order directly from the publisher.

WARNING: IF YOU ORDER THE SIEGEL BOOK ONLINE, MAKE ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN YOU ORDER THE CORRECT BOOK. FOR EXAMPLE, THERE ARE TWO BOOKS ENTITLED CRIMINOLOGY BY SIEGEL. MAKE SURE YOU GET THE ONE TITLED AND PICTURED ABOVE.

NOTICE:IIN THE PAST, THERE HAS BEEN A WORKBOOK ASSOCIATED WITH THE SIEGEL TEXTBOOK. THE WORKBOOK, IF AVAILABLE, IS NOT REQUIRED FOR THE COURSE. THE WORKBOOK CONTAINS ERRORS AND MISTAKES IN SEVERAL PLACES. IN SPITE OF THIS, MANY STUDENTS HAVE FOUND THE WORKBOOK TO BE HELPFUL IN PREPARING FOR THE COURSE. USE YOUR JUDGEMENT AS TO WHETHER OR NOT TO BUY THE WORKBOOK. AGAIN, IT IS NOT REQUIRED, NOR IS IT RECOMMENDED. IN FACT, IT MAY NOT BE AVAILABLE ANY LONGER.

Examination Dates

Examination dates will be posted on the regular Syllabus and Overview when available.

Examination Dates
TEST	POSTED	DUE
FIRST EXAM	TBA TBA	TBA TBA
SECOND EXAM	TBA TBA	TBA TBA
THIRD EXAM	TBA TBA	TBA TBA
FOURTH EXAM	TBA TBA	TBA TBA

Please make the necessary arrangements to take the examinations at the scheduled times once they are determined. Please do not ask for some exception to this because of a wedding, vacation, or some other foreseeable circumstance.

In the event of a hurricane, an announcement will be made via Announcement page concerning examination status.

More On Examinations

With regard to examinations, I will make certain assumptions about your level of preparedness coming into this course, and your ability to communicate. This is a course for college juniors, seniors, and advanced sophomores, and I assume you are capable of functioning at that level.

A word or two about the examinations is in order because I want everyone to understand a few things about them before proceeding in the course. The examinations for this course will consist of multiple choice, true-false, and matching type questions. Essay and short answer questions are not anticipated at this time, but I reserve the right to include them on examinations. And take special heed of this: The examinations are very detailed.

In the event that essay questions are included, a word or two about them is in order. Essay examinations are different than multiple choice exams, and in fact an essay examination given over the web is a bit different from other essay examinations you may have taken in a regular classroom setting. The standards of performance are high. You will be given the questions and a time limit in which to respond. I will assume that anyone can search out a request for information and copy it to an answer. Some answers may require a modicum of this practice. However, most questions will involve the assumption that you have thought about the material and information that was assigned, and that you are able to integrate and synthesize that information into your existing frame of reference of American society.

For all examinations, I will assume you have disgested the information and you are able to draw conclusions and defend them. Similarly, This means that regardless of the type of question that is asked, if you wait until the test questions are posted to react, or in the event of essay or short-answer questions you believe that you can simply "cut and paste" the answers to the questions, you are making a mistake. This is not a "cut and paste" course, nor is it a course confined to looking up answers as you take the examinations. Good answers will require thoughtful responses, and this assumes you have the mastered the information, and taken the time to think about it. You should prepare for the examinations as thoroughly as you would for an examination in a "live" class.

If essay questions are involved in the examinations, and for each response I will be looking for particular items to appear in your answers. Some of these items will come directly from the text or overviews. Others will not necessarily appear in the text or the overiews. They should emerge as a result of your thinking about the material and being aware of basic American history and culture, etc. I am open to any presentation of thought if it is well documented, well presented, and to the point. This is subjective, of course, but essay questions and examinations are subjective. If anyone is uncomfortable with this prospect, I recommend rethinking taking the course.

Online courses are very convenient for students. But convenience should not be equated with being easy. I will insist on the same level of quality from online students as I do in a regular course. It is not my intention to punish people or to deliberately make things difficult. By the same token, students should not think that an online course is an excuse for neglect of academic responsibility. Please be prepared to conscientiously work and give this course the attention it deserves. And once again, please be prepared for a substantial amount of reading.

You are required to complete ALL assignments in the course in order to pass.

Plagiarism

You are expected to do your own work in this course. I reserve the right to require students to verify their identity and come to campus for further examination over course material. Cheating and plagiarism in any form is unacceptable in this course and will be dealt with using the most extreme measures possible. Plagiarism is misrepresenting, in any way, shape, or form, someone else's work as your own, or assisting in anyone else's effort to cheat or plagiarize. If you have doubts about what constitutes plagiarism, you are not prepared to take this course. Enrollment in this course means that you accept the responsibility for knowing what plagiarism is, and furthermore it indicates a commitment not to do it. For a refresher in plagiarism, check the relevant student handbook and The Golden Rule.

What I Expect of You

My expectations for you are simple and conventional. To begin, I expect you to comport yourself as you would for any academic offering. This includes participation in the class through the class Discussions Page. Your participation may be little or great, but I expect to hear from all of you several times throughout the term.

Second, I expect you to treat all communications professionally and respectfully. Please treat others with courtesy and politeness. We can, and will, differ on many topics, but let us be civil about it.

Third, I expect you to progress in a timely manner through the course. Units will be posted on a regular basis, but I will not post all the units in advance. Instead, a few units will be posted at a time to permit people to work at their own pace on the one hand, but discourage others from falling too far behind on the other. I also expect you to respond to all assignments in a timely fashion as well.

Fourth, the technology for this experience makes me vulnerable to "communication overload." Consequently, I expect you to help me keep this problem manageable.

Fifth, I expect you to be patient. This is a new medium and there will be difficulties. However, we will manage them as they appear and the course will proceed. The University has experience in this method of instruction, and we will be able to overcome most problems with your cooperation and a bit of patience.

Sixth, I expect you to do your own work and to stand by the work you do.

Last, I will need a current and valid e-mail address for you at all times during the course. E-mail will be an important form of communication, so this is a must. If you change addresses during the term, please notify me.

What You Can Expect From Me

You can expect from me everything I expect from you. In addition, you can expect the best effort I can lend to this experience to make it a success.

Announcements Page

This site is where messages concerning the course will be posted. These messages will be important because they will instruct your progress in the course from time to time.

Class Discussions Page

This site will be where you can find class discussion and commentary. One discussion page will be reserved for general use. That is, one discussion page will be used for any general comments you wish to make about any subject or topic. The page will be cleaned from time to time to move old items to an archive where they will always be availble for reference. Everyone will be able to access this site and all communications to this site will be open to everyone in the class. For example, it can be used for comments among yourselves about the course, arranging study sessions, or about technical problems you are having. Statements made on this site do not require an answer from me, although I will likely do so if it seems appropriate.

The primary use of discussion pages will be to comment on a specific question which I will post for your consideration. After a period of time, I will close out the discussion of that topic by posting a "Final Comment" of my own, and another question will be posted. Participation in the posted discussion pages is voluntary. Generally, students who make consistent, insightful, and intelligent comments on all the Discussion Pages may receive some benefit at the end of the term if their final course grades are marginal. Approximately 10 to 12 separate discussion topics will be posted throughout the term and these discussion topics will be open for at least 48 hours. If you wish to contribute to a discussion, if must be done within the period the discussion page is open. No posting will be credited after a particular discussion page has closed. Information that appears on the discussion pages may appear on examinations and therefore you are advised to read the discussion pages even if you do not contribute to them.

Course Tools

The Course Tools page includes information on how things run in the course. You should visit this page for information about posting messages, using the Discussion Page, or other matters.  

Chat Rooms

Chat rooms are places you can go to have active, current conversations with others in the class. Essentially, students organize their own chat rooms if they are interested. More information will be provided to you at a later date concerning the use of chat rooms.

Office

This site is my electronic office and is one way you can reach me. However, the preferred way is through the private mail system which can be accessed from the course home page. You can reach me by addressing your message to "Dr. Fabianic." Both of these addresses constitute my electronic office. Here is where you will come if you need specific assistance away from other students, etc. These communications are private, unless you gossip a lot. Remember, the private mail system included in the course format should be your principal method of communicating with me.  

Links

With each chapter, there are a number of "Weblinks" which are relevant to criminal justice. The inclusion of these links is not an endorsement of them and you should be aware that some of what appears on the Web and out there in cyberspace is weak, misleading or fallacious. Also sites go inactive from time to time, or are discontinued or change addresses and become inaccessible. However, the sites listed for this course were all active when last checked before the course started, and they all were germane to the study of criminal justice. As a consequence, you should find them interesting and useful.

Technology

The online course program at UCF, through the Office of Distributed Learning, has hired several people to provide technical assistance. Therefore, we will be beholding to these folks to provide us with the answers we need in order to get the right equipment and use it properly. In general, you need to be on the internet to begin with, and have access to the World Wide Web (WWW). You also need to have electronic mail capability. If you need assistance, more information is available concerning this at the Distributed Learning Office. Ask to speak to a Tech Ranger at (407) 823-3808. This is also the number to call if you have technical problems with the course throughout the term.

Getting Started

Although many of you want to get started immediately, it is necessary to proceed with some deliberation. To begin, once you have accessed the Course Home Page, go to the Syllabus and Overview, Announcements, Discussions Pages, Course Tools, and Assignments pages and see what's there.  

eCommunity

The eCommunity is a centralized place where you can post email, biographies, and photos for the rest of the class to access. You should go to the eCommunity site and verify or update your latest email address. A full description of the eCommunity is provided at http://reach.ucf.edu/ecommunity/what.html. The eCommunity is available at http://ecommunity.ucf.edu/.