Course syllabus
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CRIM 303: Gender, Crime and Justice
SEMESTER 2, 2020
15 points
Lectures: Fridays 11-1
Tutorials: Fridays 1-2, 2-3, 3-4, 4-5
Lecturer: Alice Mills a.mills@auckland.ac.nz
Office hours: Fridays 9-11
Office: room 911, Social Sciences Building
Tutor: Grace Low glow150@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Office hours: Fridays 1-2pm
Tutor: Jay Olivia Jayaweera kjay259@aucklanduni.ac.nz
Office hours: Fridays 3-4pm
Class rep: TBC
COURSE DELIVERY FORMAT
2 hours of lectures and 1 hour of tutorial
(Timetable and room details can be viewed on Student Services Online)
SUMMARY OF COURSE DESCRIPTION
Gender is one of the key social dimensions likely to affect experiences of crime, victimisation and criminal justice. Using a combination of readings, lectures, discussions, debates, films and dramas, this course is designed to introduce students to key aspects of the relationship between gender and crime and how gender may mediate experiences of and involvement in, the criminal justice system. We will begin with a critical discussion of traditional criminological theories and how they have ignored gender concerns and differences, before moving onto feminist criminologies and masculinities and how they have sought to explain gendered offending. The course then briefly looks at the representation of female offenders and victims in the media, before examining the differential treatment and experiences of men, women amd transgender persons in the criminal justice system as victims, suspects, offenders and criminal justice professionals.
The course employs an international, comparative approach and students will be exposed to materials from New Zealand, the US, the UK, Australia, and elsewhere, and expected to relate them to each other.
COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES:
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Evaluate the contribution of feminism to the field of criminology and our understanding of crime
- Evaluate the importance of gender to our understanding of criminal behaviour, victimisation and the operation of the criminal justice system
- Critically analyse gendered media representations of offenders and victims
- Critically assess the experiences of men, women and transgender people in the criminal justice system as suspects, defendants, offenders, professionals and victims.
To achieve the learning objectives listed above you will need to:
- Attend/engage with the weekly lectures and tutorials
- Read and understand each piece in the course reader
- Ask the course lecturer or tutors for clarification
- Complete all the coursework assignments and submit them on time
- Sit the examination
CANVAS
Powerpoint slides, and supplementary materials will be posted on CANVAS before the lecture. Lecture recording will be posted within three days of the lecture. To pass and get the most from this course it is strongly recommend that you attend lectures regularly if you can, participate in tutorials, do assigned and independent readings, complete the coursework, and sit the examination.
COPYRIGHT AND PRIVACY
Lecture materials and recordings are the intellectual property of the university and of individual lecturers. You must not sell, alter, or further reproduce or distribute any part of these lectures to any other person. Disciplinary action and/or legal action for copyright infringement may be taken against students who breach this direction.
Additionally, students are reminded to respect the privacy of the lecturer and not share private correspondence publicly, including on Facebook or similar sites.
ASSESSMENT SUMMARY
1500 word review paper (20%). Due Monday 31st August by 11.59pm
Essay title and abstract (5%). Due Friday 11th September by 4pm
2300 word research essay (35%). Due Thursday 8th October by 11.59pm
2 hour final examination (40%)
WORKLOAD AND DEADLINES FOR COURSEWORK SUBMISSION
The University of Auckland’s expectation is that students spend 10 hours per week on a 15-point course, including personal study. Students should manage their academic workload and other commitments accordingly. Deadlines for coursework are set by course convenors and will be advertised in course material.
Extensions: Please try your hardest to meet coursework deadlines. Extensions are possible if, for example, you or a family member falls ill, or some other circumstance beyond your control prevents you from completing your work.
You can apply for an extension by contacting me via email (a.mills@auckland.ac.nz) or coming to see me during office hours. You may need to provide supporting information, like a doctor's or counsellor's certificate, but the important thing is to get in contact and we can discuss it.
Late submission of coursework is possible without an extension, so long as you are ready to accept a penalty by losing marks. Late penalties help ensure fairness, otherwise some students would have more time to complete work than others.
The penalties for submitting work late when you do not have an extension are 2% per day, with no coursework being accepted if more than 7 days late.
Everyone confronts difficulties at some point. So please talk to or email me if you are experiencing troubles finishing or submitting coursework. I will work with you wherever possible and, of course, it is better to get an assignment in than not at all (even if it is incomplete).
GRADES/MARKS SCHEDULE:
The marking guide for the review paper and essay, below, will explain the criteria upon which these assignments will be graded.
A: Excellent. Papers and essays based on wide reading (properly acknowledged through footnotes and bibliography) that show excellent knowledge and understanding of the subject matter. These assignments offer well-constructed, critical arguments and show a clear grasp of the major issues. Outstanding assignments also exhibit independent and creative thinking and individual flair in expressing complex ideas. They observe the conventions of prose style appropriate to academic work.
B: Good/competent. Papers and essays which are clearly structured and where the well-supported argument leads to a logical conclusion. They are based on adequate reading (properly acknowledged through footnotes and bibliography) and a good to strong grasp of the major issues raised in the readings. Their meaning is clearly expressed in clear prose.
C: Satisfactory. Papers and essays which show a reasonable knowledge of the subject matter and attempt to answer the question but display one or more of the following faults: inadequate reading, misunderstanding of the sources, confused argument and/or structure, weakness of expression, or inadequate attention to footnotes and bibliography.
D: Fail. Papers and essays that display serious failings in one or more of these of the following faults: inadequate reading, misunderstanding of the sources, confused argument and/or structure, weakness of expression, or inadequate attention to footnotes and bibliography.
Marks Schedule
A+ high first 90-100
A clear first 85-89
A- bare first 80-84
B+ high second 75-79
B clear second 70-74
B- bare second 65-69
C+ sound pass 60-64
C pass 55-59
C- marginal pass 50-54
D+ marginal fail 45-49
D clear fail 40-44
D- poor fail 0-39
WHERE TO GO FOR HELP
Your wellbeing comes first and, if you need advice or support, you are welcome to talk to me. Moreover, the University has a range of support services for students that can be accessed here:
The university provides ongoing support for students with visible and invisible impairments. Information about that support is available here:
If you need to apply for an aegrotat or compassionate consideration for an exam, the relevant information can be found here:
WEEKLY TOPICS:
Week 1 Gender, crime and justice: An introduction and a critique
Week 2 Gendered criminology?
Week 3 Masculinities and crime
Week 4 Media representations of female offenders and victims: Deadlier than the male?
Week 5 Gender and policing
Week 6 Mad, bad or just misunderstood? Gender in court and sentencing
Week 7 Gender and penal sanctions
Week 8 Hate crime and gender identity (Dr Susann Wiedlitzka)
Week 9 Transgender persons - experiences of victimisation and criminal justice
Week 10 Infanticide (With Dr Susan Hatters-Friedman)
Week 11 Women and men as criminal justice professionals
Week 12 Course review and revision
PLEASE SEE THE COURSE OUTLINE LOCATED IN THE FILES TAB AND THE PAGES TAB FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE COURSE
Course summary:
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