Deck 3: Criminal Justice Educators: Ethical Issues in Teaching

Question 1

CJ educators have the same ethical responsibilities as any other professional in higher education.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Which of the following is not a guideline offered in this chapter to protect the ethical educator from false accusations and liability?

A)Avoid giving out your home address or phone number.
B)Never meet with a student alone.
C)Communicate with students using staff email.
D)All of the above are guidelines.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

CJ educators have an ethical responsibility to scholarship.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Which of the following is not considered one of the "three C's"?

A)Capability
B)Competence
C)Compassion
D)Confidentiality

Question 5

When criminal justice students disclose personal experiences,these statements made in the classroom are protected by an implicit privacy agreement.

Question 6

CJ colleagues have an ethical obligation toward each other with respect to

A)Privacy
B)Tolerance
C)Communication
D)All of the above

Question 7

Which of the following is an exception to sharing or disclosing otherwise confidential or sensitive student information?

A)The information is shared with other staff or professionals out of concern for student safety or well-being.
B)The information is shared with other staff as part of a discussion regarding student assessments or other legitimate educational interests.
C)The information has already been shared by the student in a public fashion-such as a disclosure in class or in social media.
D)All of the above

Question 8

Colleagues have an ethical obligation toward each other with respect to communication,privacy,and tolerance.

Question 9

Which of the following is true regarding FERPA?

A)It is also referred to as the Buckley Amendment.
B)Each educational institution decides how stringent policies regarding disclosure are.
C)It was not intended to guarantee an overall student right to privacy.
D)All of the above

Question 10

Education is a broad term that refers to academic study or achievement.

Question 11

What is the greatest threat to scholarship and professionalism?

A)Lack of integrity
B)Apathy
C)Indifference
D)Laziness

Question 12

By choosing to be a criminal justice educator,one chooses to be a professional role model.

Question 13

According to the proposed ethical guidelines for CJ instructions,educators should never meet with a student alone.

Question 14

Which of the following is true regarding a CJ employer with a criminal background?

A)Convicted criminals provide students with a poor example to follow.
B)Convicted criminals work against the creation of a safe working and teaching environment.
C)Convicted criminals generally cannot provide internship opportunities or letters of recommendation with any value.
D)All of the above

Question 15

FERPA sets a clear mandate with respect to what constitutes a formal student record.

Question 16

There is a limit to a CJ educator's freedom of speech.

Question 17

The CJ educator has ethical responsibilities to

A)Employers
B)Students
C)Research
D)All of the above

Question 18

There is an obligation for CJ educators to provide students with the ability to critically evaluate and faithfully integrate or refute anything new.

Question 19

__________ refers to possessing adequate resources for completing a particular task or serving in a particular appointment.

A)Capability
B)Justice
C)Morality
D)Competence

Question 20

_________ is best demonstrated with extensive research,practice,or experience marked by repeated success at achieving a desired aim.

A)Capability
B)Competence
C)Compassion
D)Confidentiality

Question 21

The criminal justice educator is either a constant student of the changes brought by the professional tide or irrelevant to the profession within a decade.Explain.
• Knowledge evolves with time.What is accepted today about the psychology of criminals,the best methods for criminal investigation and evidence testing,and even the law,will be different 10 years from now.
• Research continues,technologies emerge and advance,methodologies are refined,and the law (and its interpretation))evolves.These realities demand that the criminal justice educator know and provide knowledge that is up to date.
• Because knowledge evolves,there is also a corresponding obligation to provide students with the ability to critically evaluate and faithfully integrate or refute anything new that washes ashore.They need to be taught how to gauge the reliability,validity,and utility of that which is novel.This enables their professional growth and development beyond the classroom.Without such tools,students graduate with a limited base of knowledge and information-and then they shortly become irrelevant for failing to adapt (or failing to recognize the need to adapt)).

Question 22

What are the "three C's" that criminal justice educators must adhere to? Define each term and provide an example where appropriate.
• Capability
i.Capability refers to possessing adequate resources for completing a particular task or serving in a particular appointment.With respect to being a CJ educator,this means
• Professional competence
• Knowledge of effective teaching strategies
• A professional disposition that engenders respect and encourages learning
• The support of,or connections with,the criminal justice community
• Competence
i.Competence is defined by possession of the knowledge,skills,and abilities required to do something effectively.Competence is demonstrated by the ability to successfully recognize error in one's own work as well as that of others.
ii.CJ educators are expected to be competent in the subjects that they are assigned to teach,and educational institutions have an ethical obligation to screen potential instructors with diligence and to employ only those who are competent.
• Confidentiality
i.Instructors frequently learn details regarding the private lives of their students (for example,medical history,mental health history,personal tragedies,sexual activity/dating history,victimization,and of course,academic achievement)).
ii.Each learning institution has specific policies and procedures related to student confidentiality.Many institutions maintain necessary exceptions to sharing or disclosing otherwise confidential or sensitive student information,including
• The information is shared with other staff or professionals out of concern for student safety or well-being.
• The information is shared with other staff as part of a discussion regarding student assessments or other legitimate educational interests.
• The information has already been shared by the student in a public fashion-such as a disclosure in class or in social media.

Question 23

Explain why the employment of CJ educators with a criminal background is essentially corrosive to the goals of any criminal justice program.
• Convicted criminals provide students with a poor example to follow,sending the wrong message about acceptable character and conduct in the CJ community.
• They work against the creation of a safe working and teaching environment-often causing apprehension and fear among students and staff.
• They create enhanced institutional liability should any future harm come to students or staff.
• They generally cannot provide internship opportunities or letters of recommendation with any value to their students.
• Given that CJ programs are preparing students for work in the CJ system,and require its support,it is counterintuitive that convicted criminals should work as educators in such a program-although using criminals as guest lecturers can be quite instructive,providing cautionary tales and insight into the CJ system from a criminal's perspective.