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  2. Aboriginal Australians in the Criminal Justice System [CRI3120]

School: Arts and Humanities

This unit information may be updated and amended immediately prior to semester. To ensure you have the correct outline, please check it again at the beginning of semester.

  • Unit Title

    Aboriginal Australians in the Criminal Justice System

  • Unit Code

    CRI3120

  • Year

    2024

  • Enrolment Period

    1

  • Version

    2

  • Credit Points

    15

  • Full Year Unit

     N

  • Mode of Delivery

    On Campus
    Online

  • Unit Coordinator

    Dr Jamal Robert BARNES

Description

This unit examines the position in the Criminal Justice System of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. Students will consider the disparity between the numbers of Aboriginal people in the community and their disproportionate numbers in the Criminal Justice System and will attempt to throw light on this imbalance. They will consider relevant legislation and examine contemporary practice with respect to Aboriginal people within the three arms of the Criminal Justice System: the Police, the Courts and Corrections. As part of this, students will explore the issues surrounding Indigenous customary practices and laws and the possibility of their inclusion into substantive law.

Prerequisite Rule

Students must have completed a minimum of 120 credit points in the course.

Equivalent Rule

Unit previously coded CRI3102

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit students should be able to:

  1. Appraise the intersection between the behaviours arising from distinct practices of disparate Aboriginal groups and and the criminal justice system.
  2. Assess the effect of the media portrayal of Aboriginal people in general and in the criminal justice system in particular.
  3. Evaluate the effect of the Police, the Courts and Corrections in dealing with Aboriginal people when they become part of the Criminal Justice System.
  4. Debate the conflicts between Aboriginal customary law and substantive law.

Unit Content

  1. The currency and prevalence in the twenty first-century of ancient cultural traditions and practices and values.
  2. The exploration of the changes in the perception by Australian society of Indigenous people.
  3. The relevant legislation and its application through public policies.
  4. The role of customary law in the practices of Indigenous groups and its impact on their behaviours within the Criminal Justice System as both victims and offenders.
  5. The role of the media in the public perception of the minority groups.
  6. The roles of the Police, the Courts and Corrections, both in theory and in practice.

Learning Experience

ON-CAMPUS

Students will attend on campus classes as well as engage in learning activities through ECU's LMS

JoondalupMount LawleySouth West (Bunbury)
Semester 12 x 1 hour lectureNot OfferedNot Offered
Semester 12 x 2 hour seminarNot OfferedNot Offered

For more information see the Semester Timetable

ONLINE

Students will engage in learning experiences via ECU’s LMS as well as additional ECU learning technologies

Additional Learning Experience Information

This unit is available online and on campus. Weekly seminars introduce the core concepts relevant to understanding the experience of Indigenous Australians in the Criminal Justice System. Seminar activities are designed to support students to improve their critical thinking skills, communication skills and teamwork skills. There is a focus on the cultural and rehabilitative needs of Indigenous people. All information is delivered to online students via Blackboard: online modules and the discussion board.

Assessment

GS1 GRADING SCHEMA 1 Used for standard coursework units

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

ON CAMPUS
TypeDescriptionValue
EssayEssay40%
PresentationPresentation30%
EssayCorrections Essay30%
ONLINE
TypeDescriptionValue
EssayEssay40%
PresentationPresentation (recorded)30%
EssayCorrections Essay30%

Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), inherent requirements for this subject are articulated in the Unit Description, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the support for students with disabilities or medical conditions can be found at the Access and Inclusion website.

Assessment

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. Informal vivas may be conducted as part of an assessment task, where staff require further information to confirm the learning outcomes have been met. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

Academic Integrity

Integrity is a core value at Edith Cowan University, and it is expected that ECU students complete their assessment tasks honestly and with acknowledgement of other people's work as well as any generative artificial intelligence tools that may have been used. This means that assessment tasks must be completed individually (unless it is an authorised group assessment task) and any sources used must be referenced.

Breaches of academic integrity can include:

Plagiarism

Copying the words, ideas or creative works of other people or generative artificial intelligence tools, without referencing in accordance with stated University requirements. Students need to seek approval from the Unit Coordinator within the first week of study if they intend to use some of their previous work in an assessment task (self-plagiarism).

Unauthorised collaboration (collusion)

Working with other students and submitting the same or substantially similar work or portions of work when an individual submission was required. This includes students knowingly providing others with copies of their own work to use in the same or similar assessment task(s).

Contract cheating

Organising a friend, a family member, another student or an external person or organisation (e.g. through an online website) to complete or substantially edit or refine part or all of an assessment task(s) on their behalf.

Cheating in an exam

Using or having access to unauthorised materials in an exam or test.

Serious outcomes may be imposed if a student is found to have committed one of these breaches, up to and including expulsion from the University for repeated or serious acts.

ECU's policies and more information about academic integrity can be found on the student academic integrity website.

All commencing ECU students are required to complete the Academic Integrity Module.

Assessment Extension

In some circumstances, Students may apply to their Unit Coordinator to extend the due date of their Assessment Task(s) in accordance with ECU's Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000001386.

Special Consideration

Students may apply for Special Consideration in respect of a final unit grade, where their achievement was affected by Exceptional Circumstances as set out in the Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000003318.

CRI3120|2|1

School: Arts and Humanities

This unit information may be updated and amended immediately prior to semester. To ensure you have the correct outline, please check it again at the beginning of semester.

  • Unit Title

    Aboriginal Australians in the Criminal Justice System

  • Unit Code

    CRI3120

  • Year

    2024

  • Enrolment Period

    2

  • Version

    2

  • Credit Points

    15

  • Full Year Unit

     N

  • Mode of Delivery

    On Campus
    Online

  • Unit Coordinator

    Dr Jamal Robert BARNES

Description

This unit examines the position in the Criminal Justice System of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia. Students will consider the disparity between the numbers of Aboriginal people in the community and their disproportionate numbers in the Criminal Justice System and will attempt to throw light on this imbalance. They will consider relevant legislation and examine contemporary practice with respect to Aboriginal people within the three arms of the Criminal Justice System: the Police, the Courts and Corrections. As part of this, students will explore the issues surrounding Indigenous customary practices and laws and the possibility of their inclusion into substantive law.

Prerequisite Rule

Students must have completed a minimum of 120 credit points in the course.

Equivalent Rule

Unit previously coded CRI3102

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit students should be able to:

  1. Appraise the intersection between the behaviours arising from distinct practices of disparate Aboriginal groups and and the criminal justice system.
  2. Assess the effect of the media portrayal of Aboriginal people in general and in the criminal justice system in particular.
  3. Evaluate the effect of the Police, the Courts and Corrections in dealing with Aboriginal people when they become part of the Criminal Justice System.
  4. Debate the conflicts between Aboriginal customary law and substantive law.

Unit Content

  1. The currency and prevalence in the twenty first-century of ancient cultural traditions and practices and values.
  2. The exploration of the changes in the perception by Australian society of Indigenous people.
  3. The relevant legislation and its application through public policies.
  4. The role of customary law in the practices of Indigenous groups and its impact on their behaviours within the Criminal Justice System as both victims and offenders.
  5. The role of the media in the public perception of the minority groups.
  6. The roles of the Police, the Courts and Corrections, both in theory and in practice.

Learning Experience

ON-CAMPUS

Students will attend on campus classes as well as engage in learning activities through ECU's LMS

JoondalupMount LawleySouth West (Bunbury)
Semester 12 x 1 hour lectureNot OfferedNot Offered
Semester 12 x 2 hour seminarNot OfferedNot Offered

For more information see the Semester Timetable

ONLINE

Students will engage in learning experiences via ECU’s LMS as well as additional ECU learning technologies

Additional Learning Experience Information

This unit is available online and on campus. Weekly seminars introduce the core concepts relevant to understanding the experience of Indigenous Australians in the Criminal Justice System. Seminar activities are designed to support students to improve their critical thinking skills, communication skills and teamwork skills. There is a focus on the cultural and rehabilitative needs of Indigenous people. All information is delivered to online students via Blackboard: online modules and the discussion board.

Assessment

GS1 GRADING SCHEMA 1 Used for standard coursework units

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

ON CAMPUS
TypeDescriptionValue
EssayEssay40%
PresentationPresentation30%
EssayCorrections Essay30%
ONLINE
TypeDescriptionValue
EssayEssay40%
PresentationPresentation (recorded)30%
EssayCorrections Essay30%

Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), inherent requirements for this subject are articulated in the Unit Description, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the support for students with disabilities or medical conditions can be found at the Access and Inclusion website.

Assessment

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. Informal vivas may be conducted as part of an assessment task, where staff require further information to confirm the learning outcomes have been met. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

Academic Integrity

Integrity is a core value at Edith Cowan University, and it is expected that ECU students complete their assessment tasks honestly and with acknowledgement of other people's work as well as any generative artificial intelligence tools that may have been used. This means that assessment tasks must be completed individually (unless it is an authorised group assessment task) and any sources used must be referenced.

Breaches of academic integrity can include:

Plagiarism

Copying the words, ideas or creative works of other people or generative artificial intelligence tools, without referencing in accordance with stated University requirements. Students need to seek approval from the Unit Coordinator within the first week of study if they intend to use some of their previous work in an assessment task (self-plagiarism).

Unauthorised collaboration (collusion)

Working with other students and submitting the same or substantially similar work or portions of work when an individual submission was required. This includes students knowingly providing others with copies of their own work to use in the same or similar assessment task(s).

Contract cheating

Organising a friend, a family member, another student or an external person or organisation (e.g. through an online website) to complete or substantially edit or refine part or all of an assessment task(s) on their behalf.

Cheating in an exam

Using or having access to unauthorised materials in an exam or test.

Serious outcomes may be imposed if a student is found to have committed one of these breaches, up to and including expulsion from the University for repeated or serious acts.

ECU's policies and more information about academic integrity can be found on the student academic integrity website.

All commencing ECU students are required to complete the Academic Integrity Module.

Assessment Extension

In some circumstances, Students may apply to their Unit Coordinator to extend the due date of their Assessment Task(s) in accordance with ECU's Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000001386.

Special Consideration

Students may apply for Special Consideration in respect of a final unit grade, where their achievement was affected by Exceptional Circumstances as set out in the Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000003318.

CRI3120|2|2