Foundations and Orientation to Corrections
Dr. Kimberly Greer
113 Armstrong Hall
Department of Sociology and Corrections - 389-1561
Office - 389-5612
email: kimberly.greer@mnsu.edu
Office Hours:
Monday and Wednesday 1:00-4:00
Friday 1:00-2:00 Or, by appointment
Purpose of the Course:
This course is an introduction for corrections majors to learn about the
discipline, the corrections program, and about professions in the field of
corrections. Additionally, this course will assist students in taking an
active role in their learning at MSU,M through the service learning
experience. Students will begin their educational portfolios by completing a
comprehensive, introductory essay describing their current interests in
corrections and competencies needed for success in the corrections field.
Students will contribute work products to this portfolio throughout their
academic career and will eventually use the portfolio to pull together their
academic career in the form of the field practice paper prior to graduation.
Course Description:
Course work will include student involvement in Service Learning (the active
participation of students in community service combined with classroom
reflection). Students will provide 6-10 hours of service to an agency
participating in the University placement process. Students will build
skills in analyzing social contexts and through both oral and written
communication will begin to plan for the competencies they wish to gain as
corrections majors
Course Learning Objectives:
1. Students will begin to form an understanding of the social context in
which they may be working as corrections professionals.
2. Students will have an opportunity to work with individuals who have come
in contact with the criminal justice system via various routes; students will
be able to interact effectively in diverse communities.
3.
Students will discover the value of volunteerism,
4. Students will reflect on their experiences in their service learning
placements and integrate those experiences with the knowledge being attained
through their course work; students will be able to engage in critical
thinking and analysis of correctional issues.
5.
Students will explore career options in the field of Corrections.
6.
Students will focus on improving communication skills – both oral and
written.

These course objectives are consistent with the goals of the
Corrections Program (please see attached program goals)
Book: True Notebooks
Service Learning
The term means a method...

Under which students learn and develop through active participation in
thoughtfully organized service experience that meet actual community
needs and that are coordinated in collaboration with the school and
community;

that is integrated into the students’ academic curriculum or provides
structured time for a student to think, talk, or write about what the
student did and saw during the actual service activity;
that provide students with opportunities to use newly acquired skills
and knowledge in real-life situations in their own communities; and


that enhances what is taught in school by extending student learning
beyond the classroom and into the community helps to foster the
development of a sense of caring for others (National Community Service
Act of 1990).
Letter to Students
Welcome to Foundations and Orientation (CORR 300), a very unique course in
the Corrections Program. I hope you enjoy the course and that you are
challenged by it. This is an unusual course in that a large percentage of
the course requirements falls within the area of service learning. You will
be asked to volunteer approximately 6-10 hours/week working with a local
governmental or non-profit human service organization. The purpose of the
requirement is at least threefold: we want you to develop experience working
with individuals who may be at risk of becoming involved with the Criminal
Justice System, we believe experiential learning will greatly enhance the
academic material, and finally, we want you to discover the value and
importance of volunteerism.
I very much want this to be a valuable learning experience for you. To that
end, I am committed to providing you with a comfortable and challenging
learning environment. I take this commitment seriously.
However, I also
want to emphasize that you are also responsible for your learning experience
as well. It is true that what you get out of the course will be directly
linked to what you put into it.
Course Requirements:
A. Each student will participate in an approved Service Learning position,
working an average of 6-10 hours a week. I realize this is a fairly
significant commitment of time; you should realistically consider if you can
make such a time commitment this semester. On Thursday, January 22, 2004,
from 10:30-12:30 the spring semester service learning fair will be held in
CSU rooms 253, 254, 255. You will need to attend this fair and decide with
which organization you would like to volunteer. Note: You will be required
to select and rank order 3 potential sites for yourself. Only authorized
placements are allowed. Therefore, if you are interested in doing your
service learning with an agency or organization not present at the SL Fair,
you will need to discuss this with me.
B. Class participation is essential for the reflection component of service
learning. Your learning will be enhanced by sharing your experiences with
classmates and hearing their insights as well. Therefore, class attendance
is required. Attendance will be taken daily and more than 3 absences will
result in the lowering of the course grade by one whole grade level.
Similarly, more than six absences will result in the lowering of the course
grade by two whole grade levels.
C. You will be required to complete five, short writing assignments.
Considerable effort will be placed on writing and communication skills. You
will be expected to make improvements to the papers before placing them in
your corrections portfolio.
D. For their SL placement, students will complete a learning contract
identifying learning objectives, methods for learning, and ways to evaluate
what has been learned. This contract will be submitted early in the
semester, after you decide where you will be volunteering. This requirement
is designed to help you focus on the knowledge you want to learn and the
skills you want to develop during your service learning experience. The
learning contract will be shared with the instructor and the agency
supervisor. At the end of the semester, you will be asked to evaluate to
what degree you were able to achieve your learning objectives.
E. Self-evaluation. Students will also maintain a (typed) double entry
journal analyzing their service learning experience and classroom
discussions; this journal will be turned in several times during the
semester. You will be asked to reflect on what you are doing and what your
are learning. Your journal should not highlight only what you did, but what
you thought about the activity, how you felt during the interaction, and how
what you are learning in your classes can be applied to this experience.
F. Summary of True Notebooks.
textbook.
Students will submit a summary of the
All parts of the portfolio essays must be submitted before completing the
course.
Evaluation/Grades
When considering how to evaluate student work, I agree with the following
quote from Judith Grunert (1997):
Evaluation or assessment is a great deal more than giving a grade. The
major part of evaluation, whether ongoing or final, should be in the
form of comments on projects and papers, responses to student
presentations, conversations, and other means of helping students to
understand how they can do better...It should include ongoing
assessment procedures that allow students to learn to evaluation their
own level of knowledge or skills.
To assist in helping you learn to evaluate your own level of knowledge and/or
skills, the course requirements above have been structured to encourage a
dialogue between you and I, between you and your supervisor at the SL agency,
and between you and your classmates so that you might begin to evaluate your
own performance - discovering your strengths as well as noting the areas
where you want to improve.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Satisfactory completion of the service learning component - 100 points
available
Writing assignments (evaluated for content, persuasiveness, and writing
skills) - 100 points available
Development of reflexive thinking skills (as indicated by class
participation and journal) - 100 points available
Learning Contract - 50 points available
True Notebooks - 50 points available
A
B
C
D
F =
= 360-400
= 320-359
= 280-319
= 240-279
239 or below
“Every attempt will be made to accommodate qualified students with
disabilities. If you are a student with a documented disability, please see
me as early in the semester as possible to discuss the necessary
accommodations, and/or contact the Disability Services Office at (507) 3892825 (V) or 1-800-627-3529 (MRS/TTY).’
Specific at a Glance:
January 23
February 6
February 20
March 5th
March 26th
April 9th
April 19th
Paper #1- Why am I majoring in Corrections?
Learning Contract Due
Paper #2- What competencies do I have?
Paper #3 - What is my philosophy of Corrections?
Paper #4 - What competencies do I want to achieve before I
graduate and how do I pan to achieved those goals?
Resume
Paper #5 - Using the Corrections Program Goals as a guideline,
first, discuss which learning goals you achieved this semester
and second, include an evaluation of the learning goals you
identified in the learning contract (service learning).
Other Important Dates:
Jnaurary 22nd - 10:30-12:30
Service Learning Fair - CSU Rooms 253-255
Some of the topics we will be covering during this course include:
Introduction to the course
Introduction to Service Learning
Introduction to Educational Portfolios
Ethical Issues in Corrections
Resume Writing
Competencies needed to work effectively in government bureaucracies
Competencies of an educated person
What field of study should I choose as a minor?
Competencies needed to work with individuals convicted of a law violation
Writing Skills
Prejudices, Biases, and Stereotypes
Planning for Field Practice and Capstone
Professional Socialization
Taking the Role of the Other
Boundaries
Careers in Corrections
Cognitve Skills
“Best Practices” in Corrections
What other topics would you like to cover this semester?