Department of Sociology,
& Criminal Justice

CRJ 4250 Terrorism

Instructor: Dr. Fran FullerSemester: Fall, 2010
Class Location: Richmond Community CollegeTime: Monday Evenings, 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Description
NOTE: This course outline was prepared for the semester opening Fall, 2010, and additional revisions may be made. Changes after Aug 23, 2010, will be discussed in class before they are made. F. Fuller. August 15, 2010

From the UNCP Catalog:
CRJ 4250. Terrorism
Examining both domestic and international terrorism historically, this course identifies common patterns in terrorism and related social phenomena such as political assassinations, guerrilla warfare, anarchism, revolutionary movements and violent cults, and attributes of known terrorists and terrorist groups. Credit, 3 semester hours.

Class methods: CRJ 4250-400 meets for three hours on Monday evenings for fourteen weeks. The class meeting on the fifteenth week (December 6) is the two & one-half hour final exam period. Class activities include lecture, in-class discussion seminar style, scenario games, and “friendly quizzes." Class preparation and follow-up, through reading the assigned text and through contributions of "current events" documentation is expected. Extensive online Blackboard participation is NOT expected and will not substitute for face-to-face participation.

Cooperative group work: is assigned during class time to “spread the workload” across many problems of interest, but no grades are given as “group grades.” All grading is for individual accomplishment.

An elective upper level course: in the Criminal Justice major area, CRJ 4250 Terrorism is of interest to juniors (including rising juniors) and seniors in other majors because of the broad impact of terrorism in the 21st century. Students from other majors are welcome and are counted on to add insights from their own major to a professional understanding of terrorism, as contrasted with the popular psychology or entertainment value of terrorism as presented through media supporting popular culture.

Because of the maturity of the students: and the variety of the material open for discussion and documentation, students exercise a good deal of personal discretion in their choice of content and skills to present for grading.

Objectives
The course operates as a forum for the application of the formal skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing as exercised in a social science discipline. With no specific prerequisites required, the course builds on concepts developed in sociology and criminal justice courses particularly (but not limited to) SOC 2090 Social Problems and SOC/CRJ 3670 Social Deviance. The basic elements of the social construction of social problems and social deviance are reviewed in introduction to the problems of terrorism in modern society.

Because of the diversity in the students enrolled in the class, diversity is expected in outlook, in academic preparation, and in anticipated use of the material knowledge gained in the course. By the end of the semester students will demonstrate, through in-class participation and through testing, some specific academic skills and knowledge, including:

1. In every day discussion outside the classroom students will be able to identify and respond appropriately in conversation to the shifting definitions of "terrorism" as terror is used as a social control mechanism among individuals (The Micro) and among social and political groups (The Macro).

2. In following the historical and theoretical arguments of the textbook author John Robb, students will be able to articulate the triangular relationship between war, terror, and globalism.

3. Students will develop techniques for keeping background files, briefing files, case files and interview notes in hard copy.

Course Materials
Textbook(s)
1. Text: Robb, John. 2007. Brave New War: The Next Stage of Terrorism and the End of Globalization. Wiley. (Available at the Richmond Community College Bookstore for $12.12, a price that includes tax!) REQUIRED.

2. Loose notebook paper and a dozen manila (plain colored) file folders. REQUIRED

Course Resource Links
Schedule
Constitution of the United States of America
APA format citation style from the WEB
CriminalJustice Websites, thru NC Justice Academy, Salemburg
The Justice Research Association (JRA)CYBRARY CYBRARY">
cj info

Grading Policy
General. Assignment due dates are announced in advance. There are no points-off penalties for late work while semester classes are in session. Grade F (zero) is earned by any assignment turned in later than the end of the Last Day of Class, unless arrangements are made for an incomplete.

Grade equivalents (the transformation of "the 100% correct" scale to letter grades and quality points) show on the scale below called "Final Grades."

Some grades count for more than others. In the section below called "Grade Components," weights are percentages given for each grade component. You may have many grades making up a grade component, as in class participation, for instance. Or you may have only one grade carrying the full "weight" of that component, as in final exam, for instance. The points (out of 100% total points representing Percent Correct for the semester) show for each grade in your Blackboard gradebook. That gradebook reports your grades to you as they are recorded. Only the instructor can see (or change!) all the student grades.

ADDITONALLY, PLEASE NOTE: The University supports a variety of accommodations to the needs of students with disabilities. The policy reads, in part: In post-secondary settings, it is the student's responsibility to request accommodations, if desired. It is important to remember that not every student with a disability needs accommodation. It is equally important to remember that even though two individuals may have the same disability, they may not need the same accommodation. Disability Support Services, UNC Pembroke. Please contact Dr. Fuller with questions and concerns about this and any other aspects of evaluation and grading.

Grades will be posted on Blackboard as they are earned. Students are responsible for contacting the instructor if they believe a mistake has been made in the grading or the reporting of the grade. Final grades are posted to BraveWeb for the official record.

For your information, any final grade can be challenged. See the Undergraduate Grade Appeal Process policy from the Faculty Handbook contained in full, below. This policy is also found in the Student Handbook.

Grade Components
 Name 
 Weight 
  Subject
Attendance & Participation
20%
 Everything counts.
Contributions to In-class Files
50%
 Cooperative development of a class intelligence filing system.
Fifth Week Exam
5%
 In-class Last Hour, Sept 27, 2010.
Tenth Week Exam
10%
 In-class Last Hour, Nov 1, 2010
Final Exam
15%
 Full Exam Time, Dec 6, 2010, Comprehensive, Oral and Written

Attendance Policy
Class attendance and participation is expected. Some issues regarding the impact of general emergency policies and procedures may require responses in the course of the semester, and a general request to address these issues in course outlines has been made by the University General Administration in Chapel Hill. Briefly,
  • (1) this class will only be suspended administratively if emergency requirements force facility closings at Richmond Community College where the class meets. This will require attention of students to Richmond rather than the main UNCP campus and the main webpages for information regarding forced closings. Please see Ms Julie Layne for emergency contact info for Richmond.
  • (2) A facility closing will not mean the automatic suspension of student responsibility to continue study and class contact other than face-to-face.
  • (3) Fall-back communication methods include Blackboard, email, telephone (910-733-5317 for contact with Dr. Fuller) and U.S. Mail.
  • (4) Minimum expectations for student participation, regardless of personal illness or institutional responses to threats, include contributions to the class documentation filing system and passing grades on 5th week, 10th week and final exams.
  • (5) Regarding personal illness: Flu symptoms have continued through the summer months and advice is no longer consistent, so please note this class policy on how you should treat your own personal illnesses of any kind: if you are ill (fever, chills, sore throat, stuffy head, upset stomach and digestive system, dizziness, coughing, head cold and sinus symptoms, or on medication that prevents you from thinking clearly, or if you have to care for a family member) STAY HOME and inform Dr. Fuller and three or four of your classmates to make arrangements for electronic participation (simultaneous and/or delayed.) There is no regular posting of assignments or lecture notes on Bb, but exceptions can be made for students with qualifying absenses. Absences due to the requirements of your employment also qualify.

Student Conduct & Honor Code
Students will read and adhere to The UNCP Student Honor Code. This should be a direct link to The Student Honor Code .

After reading the Honor Code, please email fran.fuller@uncp.edu to let me know whether or not you have (1) read the Honor Code, (2) have any questions about any part of it, and (3) agree or disagree with any portions of it.

Our academic honor code applies, in its entirety, to all aspects of the course. See UNC Pembroke Catalog, p. 47. In the online pdf version, scroll down to page 47. The code concludes with advice to instructors: "Students have the responsibility to know and observe the UNCP Academic Honor Code" (p. 50).

Looking for further assistance?
Any student with a documented disability needing academic adjustments is requested to speak directly to Disability Support Services and the instructor, as early in the semester (preferably within the first week) as possible. ACCOMODATIONS PROCESS LINK. .

All discussions with Disability Support Services will remain confidential. Please contact Disability Support Services, UNC Pembroke, DF Lowry Building, or call 910-521-6695.

This web-based publication is available in alternative formats upon request. Please contact Disability Support Services, DF Lowry Building, Room 197, or call 521-6695.

Retirement Alert!
Dr. Fuller formally retired July 1, 2009, and is teaching part time with only the responsibilities of an adjunct professor. Now that she's retired, you can call her Dr. Franny in person. She is available, at your convenience, on her cell: 910-733-5317. Call. Don't suffer in silence.

Name Change Alert!
Dr. Fuller was Dr. Haga until her marriage December 16, 2001 to Fred Fuller. The Fullers reside in Pembroke, North Carolina.

Other Information
Policy (Fuller) in Regard to Classroom and Personal Security: Issues concerning current events and matters touching on classroom safety and personal security are always part of a curriculum in Sociology and Criminal Justice. These matters and any pertinent classroom procedures will be handled as they arise. Pertinent procedures will be announced in class discussion. Students are encouraged to remember that classroom procedures vary widely in the University setting and students, as adults responsible for their own safety and security, are free to enter and leave the classroom as their personal needs dictate.

Updated August 15, 2010 | fran.fuller@uncp.edu | Copyright © 2010 The University of North Carolina at Pembroke