Scheme of Work for Crime and Deviance
Key Concepts:
What is Deviance?
Functionalism
Sub-Cultural Theory
Marxism
Interactionism
New Criminology
Left Realism
The New Right
Duration
Differentiated Learning Objectives:
25 Lessons
Students must be able to explain key concepts from these
ideologies.
Students should be able to link theories with appropriate
writers.
Students Could be able to assert strengths and
weaknesses to the theories learned.
Suggested Lesson/homework Details
and Assessment Focus
L1 Introduction to Deviance: What is crime, deviance.
Differences between criminal acts and deviance acts.
What stops crimes happening?
L2 – Case study of Colonel H Jones, Categorisation of
deviant and criminal acts, why do we admire criminals
etc.
L3. – What does the stereotypical criminal look like.
Individuals to draw criminals and consider what their
hair, gender, age, occupation, dress, speech, background,
name and build might be like. Why do people believe in
this stereotype?
L4 –L5 –. Official Statistics and Crime: Look at up to
date statistics on criminal acts. How criminal are you
exercise. Which crimes are reported exercise. Reasons
why people report or do not report crime. Strength and
weaknesses exercise of statistics. The role of the media in
‘amplifying crime’.
L6 /L7 – What is the True Level of crime in the UK?
Factors that affect crime reporting. Exercise that isolates
each explanation, The Dark Figure of crime. Use of Self
Report Study, based on Anne Campbell’s example. The
BCS What it, strengths and weaknesses.
L8 –L9- White Collar Crime and Corporate Crimes of
the Powerful: definitions of white-collar crime, corporate
crime, and occupational crime. Reasons for
underestimation of these crimes, Exercise to isolate
differences between white collar and corporate crime,
Examples. What is corporate crime, which are victims?
Lawmaker role-play example, Mix and match to
appropriate example, and true and false exercise on the
extent of white-collar crime.
At this point is it appropriate to set an essay on
criminal statistics and their problems/ and or how
agencies of social control use them.
L10/12 – Suicide: What is it, definitions, and explanation
of Durkheim’s classic quantitative study. What his theory
suggested, Different types of suicide, categorisation to fit
examples. Group then to do their on research on suicide
in Great Britain and produce poster to explain main
trends.
L11 – Poster to be completed with appropriate pictures
and examples.
L12/13 –Criticisms of Durkheim’s study of Suicide.
The work of Douglas, Jean Baechler, (Interactionists
studies) the work of the Phenomenologist Atkinson.
Taylor and Parasuicide. Case studies that look at suicide
and its methodological problems.
It is appropriate to set an essay on Suicide here.
L14/15–Deviance Functionalist Explanations: Why
functionalism developed and gained credence. Important
writers, Basic ideas. The work of Durkheim. The Positive
Functions of Deviance (according to Durkheim).
Example to link with his ideas. Strengths and weaknesses
of this work. .
L16 –The Graffiti board exercise. Students to place
Functionalist ideas on white board. You then take a
digital photo of the board and give to students. .
L17 – Robert K. Merton. Explain link to Durkheim in
relation to the structure of society leading to crime.
Explain the American dream of the 1930’s. Responses
isolated by Merton. Strengths and weakness of this
theory. Classification of different acts into his typology.
Table to explain cultural goals and institutional means.
And case studies to show relevance and lack of relevance
to Merton’s ideas.
L18/19/20- Sub-Cultural Theory: What are
contracultures, subcultures, The work of Cohen, Cloward
and Ohlin, Table to explain responses, source of anomie,
strengths and weaknesses of Merton, Cohen and Cloward
and Ohlin. General criticisms. The work of Walter Miller,
and Matza. Are their differences in middle class and
working class culture? To people drift into crime? British
studies that look at gangs. Willmott and Young. Mix and
match sentences to A grade essay.
L20-22 – Students to produce posters explaining each
writer with pictures. Use of Internet etc to be encouraged.
Display work useful to visual prompts.
L23 – Groups to look at excellent A grade essay and to
reassemble to pieces to make a united and complete
essay.
I set an essay on sub-culture at this point.
L24 – Interactionist View of Deviance – Howard Becker.
Who or what are Interactionists? Why it is different from
structural approaches. The work of Howard Becker. Who
Dun it exercise? The work of Cooley. Deviant career
exercise. The Police Training Manual example of
importance of labelling in relation to the police and
whom they think are likely to commit crimes.
L25 Jock Young: Labelling and Marijuana Users
Summary of main work i.e. bonding as a result of being
labelled by the agents of social control. Edwin M.
Lemert, Primary and Secondary Deviance. Examples of
Primary deviance and Secondary Deviance. A look at
Stuttering. Mix and match interactionist theories.
L26 – Goffman’s work on Asylums. The effects of
Strengths and weaknesses. Closed question exercise on
Interactionists in general.
L27/28 Traditional Marxist Perspectives on Crime: Basic
beliefs, Main areas of investigation for Marxists, i.e.
White-collar crime. Excessive prominence of crimes
against property, Walter Chambliss. Case studies of
Bhopal, Guinness, Mix and match sentences to explain
main concepts of Marxism, Mix and match to appropriate
theory. Strengths and weaknesses of Marxism.
L29/30/31 – Neo Marxist New Criminology: Look at
work of Taylor, Walton and Young. Explain A full Social
Theory of Deviance. Isolate headings that New
Criminologists think explain crime. Use Policing the
Crisis to exemplify these headings. Last lesson can be
used to use the explanation game involving the class to
explain each area in less than 10 words. See Radical
Criminology Exercise.
L32/33 – Left Realism: The origins of these writers. The
essential problems of earlier explanations. Their
explanation of crime, relative deprivation, sub-culture and
marginalisation. Strengths and weaknesses of this
approach.
L34-35 – The New Right: Explanations of each field of
the new right. Mix and match to correct new right
explanation, strengths and weakness, and common
ground for the new right.
Skills Developed
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Knowledge of Theories
Knowledge of Theorists
Interpretation and application of theories to UK
Cultural Difference awareness.
Evaluation skills.
Discussion and group work skills developed.
Resources
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Handouts as above
Internet
Video – World of Crime
Digital Camera
Whiteboard
Card for different areas.