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The changing face of criminology
We can profess that those of us in academia get to own a small nugget of knowledge on their chosen subject. This is how specialism is developed and cultivated. We start our long journey into knowledge first by learning the discipline as a whole, going through the different theories and issues, becoming aware of the critical debates, before we embrace the next step of in depth understanding. Little by little knowledge becomes a road full of junctions, intersections and byroads, constantly fueled by one of the most basic but profound parts of human experience, curiosity. Academia, was originally developed by a person looking up in the wider cosmos and wondering; surely there is more to life than this. When the recorded experience aligned with imagination it produced results; civilization emerged as a collective testament of being. Arguably the first ever question, whenever it was posed and however it was phrased, philosophy was born; any attempt to answer it generated reason and logic.
The process of learning is painstaking because education is a process and as such it requires us to grow as we absorb it. This process is never ending because “The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing” to quote Ecclesiastes and therefore learning is lifelong. In academia, in particular, this thirst for knowledge is unquenchable and because of it we progress our respective disciplines further, constantly expanding the boundaries. Anyone of us who had a discussion in or out of a classroom will testify that even on the same topic, with the same material, a seminar is never the same. The main reason for this is, education is active and as a learner I gain from whatever I can relate to and comprehend. Time and time again, I go back to my own learning as I adapt my pedagogy, because to teach is a dialectic; we impart an idea and we let it flourish to those who shall be taking it further.
There is a reason why I am so reflecting of education on this entry; recently we had a reunion of our alumni and in preparation of the event, I was looking back at the way we taught criminology, what changed and how things have progressed. Colleagues, moved on as expected and the student demographics may have changed but the subject is still taught. It is this ongoing process that fascinated me in that reflection. The curriculum and the ideas behind it. As an institution we offer a number of subject areas, criminology included, that other institutions around the world do, but no other institution will have the unique blend of what we offer. This part is quite astounding that in the reproduction of ideas and across the continuity of disciplinary knowledge, there is always a place for originality.
On the day, I could hear the stories from some of our alumni with a latent sense of pride as they spoke with some confidence about their life plans, work commitments and ideas. These were the same people who some years ago, blushed in a seminar from shyness, were anxious about their exam results and worried about their degree classification. Now with confidence, they embrace their education with the realisation that they have just made the first step into a terra incognita… their journey into learning continues. During the next weeks (and hopefully, months), a number of our alumni (and current students) will put pen to paper of their thoughts, on our blog and talk about their experiences and their criminology. We thank them in advance and are looking forward to read their thoughts.
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Graduation: the end of the beginning?
Helen is an Associate Lecturer teaching on modules in years 1 and 3.
I joined the University of Northampton as an associate lecturer in 2009, teaching at first on the Offender Management foundation degree and then joining the Criminology team, although I had been a visiting lecturer in Criminology for a number of years prior to that. I am sorry that a prior commitment means that I am unable to join you for the Big Criminology Reunion, although the occasion has inspired me to reflect on the professional journey that starts with graduation.
Last week I received an e-mail from a former student in the 2010 Offender Management cohort. She is just about to qualify as a probation officer and she was asking for advice about giving evidence at Parole Board hearings. It was great to think back, to remember what a vibrant and enthusiastic student she was, and to project forwards; perhaps I’ll see her at an oral hearing soon. She will probably make an excellent probation officer, and the fact that she is asking for advice before she even starts is evidence of that. She will possibly be the first of our offender management students to become an offender manager!
A couple of years ago I was at a Parole Hearing at HMYOI Aylesbury where I was very impressed by the evidence of the trainee psychologist. She had prepared a clear, concise but thorough and analytical report on the prisoner and she gave her oral evidence confidently and thoughtfully. After the end of the hearing, she popped back in to tell me that she had been initially inspired to take up prison psychology after hearing my guest lecture on Manos’ Forensic Psychology module. I saw her again earlier this year and she’s still doing a great job!
For undergraduates, completing a degree, submitting a dissertation, putting the pen down at the end of the last exam and then graduating with friends, seems like the end of a long and arduous process. And of course it is! But as the stories above show, it is also just the beginning. Just the beginning of a professional journey which may or may not involve direct application of the subjects covered on the course. Not all our students become probation officers or prison psychologists or academic criminologists, but they will take something of what they learn out into the world with them. It may be a more critical way of digesting the news, a wider appreciation of the social forces that shape our world, a readiness to reflect and question and see the world from different perspectives. All of that will help them on their journey. I hope that you all have a great time at the reunion and that as you compare each other’s journeys you have fond memories of the degree course that seemed a marathon at the time but was really only the first step!
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Remembering Stephen Hawking: A legacy for us all
On March 14th 2018, Professor Stephen Hawking died at the age of 76. For many people, his life was as much about his long battle with motor neurone disease as it was about his achievements as a theoretical physicist. The first thing I saw when clicking on news sites was this quote:
‘Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do, and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up’.
To me, this reflects the value he placed on the pursuit of knowledge, to see this as an opportunity, not a burden and to strive to make sense of it all. For him, it was the universe, the vast expanse of stars and galaxies to be understood in ways I could not even being to fathom. For those studying social sciences, our world is not out there beyond the Earth’s atmosphere, but it is a world we must also seek to understand and, as lecturers and students to communicate this understanding to others. There is a lot of concern in HE as to how to engage students, to consider what we can do to keep them attending and studying their chosen subject outside the classroom. I am beginning to think this is not just to do with our efforts in lectures and seminars, but also perhaps we don’t emphasise enough the opportunity students have, and the value of being in HE is so much more than the qualification itself.
One thing is clear – we should not be in the business of spoon feeding information, to be repeated in assessments, in order for students to be awarded a degree based on their strategy to work towards assessments, and little else. It may sometimes feel like this, so we do have to consider whether this is to do with the way we teach, or the way students respond to this. I think the latter needs as much attention, in that it needs to be clear that students must take responsibility for their learning, and one obvious way to do this is to make the most of opportunities provided by their university. There are students I have taught in my 14 years in HEIs who have clearly appreciated the opportunity they have been given – they make it all worthwhile. There are those who never seem to engage on any level, not even to pass assessments, and who realise HE is not for them. I have more respect for someone coming to that conclusion and seeking a different type of opportunity than those who muddle through and hope it just gets easier.
By the way, if the tone of this seems judgemental, it is not meant that way. My reflections are based on my experiences as a lecturer, but crucially, also as a student. Here is where I have to confess something. In my BSc I was one of those students who muddled through. Then half way through year 2, I realised I was wasting the opportunity I had been given, got a grip and graduated with a 2:2. I know I could have done so much better. The next stage of my academic journey was a combination of being in the right place at the right time and working in a university as a course administrator where one of the staff benefits was to subsidise the cost of degree programmes. The university was the London School of Economics and Political Science, the degree was an MSc in Criminal Justice Policy, and it was very heavily subsidised. My attitude to this opportunity was so different. I was amazed to be accepted onto the programme and found myself being taught by Professor Janet Foster, Professor Robert Reiner, Professor Andrew Ashworth, Professor Maurice Punch, and Professor Ben Bowling. Sorry for the name dropping, but this was the last thing I expected to happen to me. I came away with a Merit award and it set me on this path to be a criminologist. I engaged with the degree by attending everything, working during evenings and weekends, following advice and making the most of it. Then to find myself undertaking a PhD, well it has been a long and arduous journey at times, but I knew my experiences before had set me up well to take on the challenge. It can feel isolating and lonely sometimes, and it can take over your life, but once again, I value the opportunity not just as the pursuit of knowledge, but also the way it has made me overcome challenges and not give up.
The experience of studying for a degree when I was engaged, interested and committed was so much better, with less anxiety, a sense of achievement and I knew I had done my best. As I said earlier, as academics we can do our bit, and many of us do – we consider how best to communicate theories, concepts, policies, debates, and to empower students to have their say. We offer opportunities for interaction, discussion, challenging ideas and enabling students to think more critically. We do this so that students enjoy their studies, make the most of the opportunity and value this as a pursuit of knowledge, as well as the qualification. However, we can only do this successfully when students engage with this process and understand and then accept their role. My role as a lecturer in criminology is about to change significantly, as the move to a new campus changes teaching methods and provision. I have my anxieties about adapting my modules over summer to fit with this model, IT fails, and the usual issues about going through big changes. I know our students share the same anxieties, it’s natural. But, the one thing we can do is ensure that we, as staff and students alike recognise the important role we have, to embrace this change and make the best of it.
So, my plea to students is this. If we don’t keep seeking to expand our understanding and valuing this process of learning, if we stop being curious, then we don’t advance. That is the legacy of Professor Hawking, to remember to keep asking questions, to value learning and to strive to better understand the world around us. Sometimes it will feel like there are barriers put in your way and you cannot overcome them. At this point, it is worth remembering what Professor Hawking had to deal with on a daily basis and ask yourself what you can do to solve these problems. Not only will you do better in your studies, you will learn important skills for the future and will look back knowing you have done your best and overcame whatever life threw at you. That is a legacy to be proud of.
Susie Atherton, Humanoid, Planet Earth.
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How to stay motivated in a de-motivating environment
I’m afraid to say that this week’s entry lacks both criminological insight and positivity but in the absence of a more engaging and topical issue to debate I offer a reflective piece on staying motivated in a de-motivating environment.
Working in academia can be challenging, it’s certainly not a place to work if you have no passion for learning and engaging in healthy debate but of late I’ve found myself asking why I bother. We all know people who hate their jobs, who live for that Friday night escape and the freedom that a weekend affords and I’m thankful for the fact that I don’t feel that way…or I haven’t until recently. I’ve never hated Monday’s, possibly because academia doesn’t work on a 9 – 5, Monday to Friday basis but still, what I do has not felt like a chore until now. This term, as classroom engagement and attendance has dropped so too has my motivation and with each new pressure, training course, despondent student, stressed colleague and pointless meeting I’ve found myself wondering why I continue to hit my head against a brick wall. The future currently facing me and my colleagues is not one full of hope and prosperity but rather increased classroom time, even less hours in a day, increased pressure from those who have no understanding of what we actually do, more paperwork, more blame when things don’t work and even less time with those we love. This isn’t what any of us signed up for and it certainly isn’t enhancing our careers. So, what are my options and how do I stay motivated in this de-motivating environment?
I suppose the first thing to consider is whether or not I want to stay in this environment, I could simply walk away and do something else but deep down I know that my passion lies in this type of work so this isn’t a feasible option. I could change university but is the grass really greener on the other side? We are all acutely aware of the difficulties facing the sector and there is no shortage of stories in the news about campus closures and staff redundancies, not to mention the increasingly competitive nature of the job that demands more and more of us as researchers and income generators, so maybe the challenges we face pale in comparison to our colleagues’ experiences elsewhere. In eliminating these options I’m forced to look inward for organisational support mechanisms which take the form of courses such as ‘SMART working’, ‘Personal Effectiveness’ and ‘thriving in a changing environment’. However, while these options appear on the surface to be supportive they focus on us changing as individuals without any recognition of institutional pressures that we have no control over, such as staffing or resources. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against self-help approaches but in reality, it doesn’t matter how SMART or effective I am as a worker, there are only so many hours in a day and only so much I, or my colleagues can do without the very real danger of burnout. As such I’m left with only one, rather sad option and that is to embrace my selfish side and withdraw from anything which is not a contractual necessity. In practice this means the students will no longer get the above and beyond support they have come to expect, the university will no longer get my enthusiasm for helping to shape future policy and practice, and my colleagues will lose an active member of the team. In theory, I shouldn’t care about the impact that this might have on others, but in reality it pains me to think that this might be the only way to survive in the de-motivating environment.
Thoughts from the criminology team 