LW1ICJ: Introduction to Criminal Justice

Module code: LW1ICJ

Module provider: School of Law

Credits: 20

Level: 4

When you’ll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Dr Abigail Rowe , email: a.e.rowe@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2025/6

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 14 July 2025

Overview

Module aims and purpose

A major element of criminology is studying the processes for preventing and managing crime, and administering justice. This module provides students with an introduction to the main criminological traditions and perspectives in the study of criminal justice, and the process by which criminal justice is made. It covers the development, role, organisation and governance of the main institutions and agencies involved in crime control and punishment, the limitations of criminal justice, alternative forms of justice and the experiences of both victims and offenders. The module supports students to engage critically with the field of criminal justice through an exploration of two themes: the aims and effects of policy, and power, inequality and justice.

This module aims to:

• Stimulate students’ interest in and enthusiasm for the field of criminal justice studies
• Encourage students to develop a critical understanding of contemporary responses to crime
• Introduce students to key agencies in the criminal justice system, including Crown Prosecution Service, Courts, Prisons, Police, Probation and Youth Justice
• Provide a foundation for understanding and critically evaluating criminal justice policy and research.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Understand how criminal justice policy is made, and analyse its aims and effects.
2. Understand the nature, roles, and obligations of contemporary agencies of the criminal justice, legal and penal systems.
3. Understand and apply key concepts relating to the criminal justice, legal and penal systems
4. Evaluate the strengths and limitations of key sources of evidence used in the study of criminal justice, and the methods used to produce them.

Module content

The module will explore a range of perspectives and areas of criminal justice policy and practice, including:

• THEMES:
  • The aims and effects of policy
  • Power, inequality and justice.
• TOPICS:
  • The purposes of criminal justice; models of criminal justice
  • The making of criminal justice policy
  • Policing
  • Prosecution and the courts
  • Sentencing
  • Punishment and prisons
  • Probation and alternatives to imprisonment
  • Youth justice
  • Victims’ experiences of criminal justice
  • Release and resettlement
  • Austerity and crisis in the criminal justice system

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The module will be taught by a combination of lectures, workshops and tutorials. Lectures provide an outline of the reading materials and introduce key concepts; tutorials and workshops  will explore in more detail themes and issues arising from readings and lectures and will be a forum for students to discuss, consolidate and extend their learning. In addition, workshops will have a particular focus on questions of policy, and emphasise collaborative working and the development of skills for assessment.

Students are expected to undertake at least 150 hours of independent study largely in the form of background reading.

Study hours

At least 37 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Level 3 (i.e. foundation modules for Part 0) and Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: /cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

• Students will present and discuss key ideas and insights from their court observations.
• Students will submit structured summaries and a preliminary thematic analysis of source texts for their policy briefing paper.

Reassessment

Additional costs