As part of the formal assessment for the programme you are required to submit a
Criminal Justice System essay. Please refer to your Student Handbook for full details
of the programme assessment scheme and general information on preparing and
submitting assignments.
Learning Outcomes:
After completing the module you should be able to:
1. Demonstrate a sound understanding of the structure and governance of the
criminal justice system in England and Wales.
2. Demonstrate a sound understanding of the social divisions in criminal justice in
terms of age, gender, class, `race` and definitions of criminal justice and of the
competing aims of the CJS.
3. Demonstrate the ability to analyse policy issues in relation to criminal justice.
4. Demonstrate the ability to apply effective information-gathering and literacy skills
in researching and answering questions about criminal justice in England and
Wales.
5. Understand and explain the implications of social change, including the value of
building new skills and expertise to analyse emerging problems.
Guidance
Your assignment should include: a title page containing your student number, the
module name, the submission deadline and the exact word count of your submitted
document; the appendices if relevant; and a reference list in AU Harvard system(s).
You should address all the elements of the assignment task listed below. Please note
that tutors will use the assessment criteria set out below in assessing your work.
You must not include your name in your submission because Arden University
operates anonymous marking, which means that markers should not be aware of the
identity of the student. However, please do not forget to include your STU number.
Maximum word count: 3000 words
Write an essay (maximum 3,000 words) answering any ONE of the questions below.
Note that for questions that are multi-part, you should answer all parts of your chosen
question.
Question 1
The criminal justice system is made up of several components. Assess how both wider
social changes and changes within separate criminal justice agencies might impact the
system as a whole.
Question 2
The prison system in England and Wales is considered to be in crisis.
a. Why is it in crisis?
b. What particular issues are of immediate concern?
c. What can be done to reduce or solve these issues?
Question 3
Consider evidence available to you to assess whether ethnic minorities are still
discriminated against in the UK criminal justice system.
a. What evidence exists for this discrimination? Who is discriminated against and
why does it happen?
b. What efforts have been made to reduce levels of discrimination? Have these
been successful?
You have the opportunity to submit an essay plan or draft of up to 1000 words to
receive formative feedback.
The feedback is designed to help you develop areas of your work and it helps you
develop your skills as an independent learner.
If you are a distance learning student, you should submit your work, by email, to your tutor,
no later than 2 weeks before the actual submission deadline. If you are a blended learning
student, your tutor will give you a deadline for formative feedback and further details.
Formative feedback will not be given to work submitted after the above date or the date
specified by your tutor - if a blended learning student.
