Criminal Justice Technology and Data Management
Professor:R. Cory WatkinsOffice Hours:TBA
Office Location:HPA 323 Class Time: TBA
Office Phone:823-0365Class Location: TBA
Email:
Website:pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~rwatkins
I. Course Description:
The primary objective of this course is to introduce students to spreadsheet and database management and their applicability to crime analysis. This course will address crime data integrity and manipulation issues. Specifically, students will be expected to work extensively with Microsoft Excel 2007 to complete a number of database and spreadsheet manipulation based projects.
II. Reading and Class Requirements:
1)Grauer, R. T. (Latest Ed.)Microsoft Office Excel 2007 Comprehensive.Saddle River, NJ:Pearson/Prentice Hall.
ISBN: 0-13-978-0-13-157465-6
2)MappingCrime: Principle and Practice (On-line PDF). MCPP
3)Jump/Thumb drive or Zip Disk
4) No prerequisites required!!!!!
III.Teaching Philosophy
This professor encourages discussion and participation during the class period as it will improve your understanding of the materials in this course. It is important that all people feel comfortable in freely expressing their opinions and comments so long as they are constructive and conducive to the academic environment. A computer course can be very intimidating but this course will be conducted in a very open, friendly, discussion type format. It is expected that students will help one another on the project assignments in addition to the guidance provided by the professor in this course.
It is my responsibility as the professor in this course to present the course materials to you in an understandable form. I will do this, and I will also address questions and concerns regarding the material covered in this course as they arise. In those instances where I do not have an answer, I will get it for you or I will direct you to the individual or individualswho can best provide answers to your question. It is the students' responsibility to work through the lesson assignments prior to class and come prepared to discuss and apply the material assigned for each particular day. I expect, as adults, this will be done. Finally, if an individual is not comfortable speaking in class, I strongly encourage meeting with me during my scheduled office hours or setting up an appointment to discuss the matters at hand.
IV. Course Requirements:
The following section lists the required components of this course as well as the points which may be earned toward the final course grade for each component.
- Class Projects: Over the course of the semester, 3 projects will be assigned to identify students' grasp on the material. I will develop different exercises/routines for each project that will assess students’ability to develop and manipulate data in spreadsheets, namely the Microsoft Excel environment. The contents and grading of these projects will be further explained as we get closer to the due dates (see class schedule). These projects will be timed proficiency exams completed in class. Your performance on these 3 projects will constitute the majority of your grade in this class.
- Class Assignments: Students will be given a variety of class assignments that may be completed in class or outside of class. These assignments will be created by the instructor and consist of criminal justice data that will require manipulation and cleaning to answer a series of questions. The skills gained from the textbook exercises as well as those demonstrated in class will assist with the completion of these assignments. Further, these assignments will significantly assist students in their preparation for the 3 class projects.
- Textbook Exercises: Each week a number exercises from the textbook will be assigned. These will help you familiarize yourself with the Microsoft Excel environment. These will be simply checked to make sure you are understanding data management techniques using Excel. These weekly exercises will also be used as a means for monitoring student attendance. These will be completed at home and at times worked on during class lab sessions Save all completed exercises and class material on thumb drive. I will randomly collect students drives to monitor progress.
- Class Participation: It is expected that students will contribute to the class discussion on a daily basis. I will expect students to routinely contribute information, ask questions and assist one another with the material. I want this to be an open seminar type course where everyone feels comfortable contributing irrespective of one's computer skill levels.
- Web Component: A number of announced assignments will be distributed over the course of the semester that will permit students to work from home rather than in the lab setting. This procedure will be explained further in class.
V. Course Grading:
The following scale will be used for grading:
Grading ScaleA+ / 98-100 / C+ / 78-79
A / 93-97 / C / 73-77
A- / 90-92 / C- / 70-72
B+ / 88-89 / D+ / 68-69
B / 83-87 / D / 63-67
B- / 80-82 / D- / 60-62
F / Below 60
The total number of points possible and grading will be discussed in class. Essentially, the following will be the basis for grading:
- Projects 1 and 2 – 20% each
- Project 3 – 30%, ,
- In Class Assignments – 25%,
- Attendance and Participation 5%.
VI. Course Policies:
A.Attendance: Students are expected to attend all class sessions. If you cannot makea particular session, I expect a phone call, or email prior to the missed class informing me of your reason for not attending class on that particular day. Further, it is expected that the readings will be completed on time and each student will attend class prepared and ready to participate in the discussion and lesion/s for that day.
B. Make-up Work: Make-up examinations will only be given in cases of extrememedical or personal emergency. Make-up article reviews will not be permitted. The student must provide the instructor with proper documentation to qualify for a make-up examination (documentation does not guarantee a make-up examination will begiven). Notification must be made within two days of the scheduled exam. It is at thediscretion of the professor how the make-up examination will differ from the originalexamination. Any other assignments that are not turned in on time are subject to a loss of 5 points every day past the original due date.
C.Accommodations for Disabled Students: If anyone has a need for note-taking ortest-taking accommodations, feel free to discuss this with the professor. Please do soas soon as possible.
D. Class Demeanor: Students are expected to conduct themselves in an appropriateprofessional manner. Any form of
racial,, ethnic, and/or other demeaning slurs will not be tolerated and students guilty of such behavior will be excused from the class.Students are also expected to respect their fellow classmates and the professor.Students practicing any behavior (i.e., eating, playing music, talking out loud whenothers are speaking) that consistently disrupts the class will be asked to excusethemselves from the class meeting.
VII. Academic Dishonesty:
SIMPLE, IT WELL NOT BE TOLERATED. Dishonesty of any kind with respect to examinations, course assignments, alteration of records, or illegal possession of examinations shall be considered cheating. University policy (see the UCF Golden Rule Handbook) will be strictly adhered to.
VIII. Precautionary Disclaimer:
The class schedule and grading procedure in this syllabus are subject to change in the event of situational exigencies. If changes are to be made, an announcement will be made in class. Announcements made in class are considered proper notice of change.
IX. Course Schedule:
The following page is a list of the date, tentative topics and reading assignments for the semester. Specific topics may be added or deleted at the discretion of the professor. The format of, and dates assigned for, exams and other work may change at the discretion of the professor.
COURSE SCHEDULE
Week / Topics/Assignments / ReadingWeek 1 / Distribute Syllabi and Introduce Course / None
Briefly Discuss Data Management Issues
Week 2 / Policing, Crime Analysis, Data Management Lecture
File Management Issues
Download Data from Website
Introduce Data Integrity Assignment / Foreword, Preface, Chapter 1-3 MCPP
(Guest Lecture)
Week 3 / Further Discuss Crime Analysis and Data Integrity issues
Introduction to Excel
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Capstone Exercise
Data Integrity Assignment Due / Chapter 4 and 6 MCPP
Chapter 1(pp.1-69)
Week 4 / Creating Workbooks, Formatting Spreadsheets,
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Capstone Exercise / Chapter 1 (pp. 69-137)
(On Line Session)
Week 5 / Formulas and Functions
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Capstone Exercise
Begin In Class Assignment 1 and 2 / Chapter 2
Week 6 / Charts: Graphic Presentation of Spreadsheet Data
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Mid Level Exercise 4
Complete Mini Case – The Convention Planner
Complete Capstone Exercise
In Class Assignment 1 and 2 Due / Chapter 3
Week 7 / PROJECT #1
Week 8 / Graphic Data Presentation, Manipulating Worksheets / Chapter 3, 4
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Mid Level Exercise 4
Complete Capstone Exercise
Week 9 / Working with Data Tables
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Mid Level Exercise 2 and 4
Complete Capstone Exercise
Begin In Class Assignment 3 / Chapter 5(On Line Session)
Week 10 / Auditing Workbooks, Data Validation, Templates
Complete Hands On Exercises
Complete Mid Level Exercise 1
Complete Capstone Exercise
In Class Assignment 3 Due / Chapter 6
Week 11 / PROJECT #2
Week 12 /
Data Consolidation
Complete Capstone Exercise
Begin In Class Assignment 4 /
Chapter 7
Week 13 / Data Management, Data Conversion
Importing Data, Cleaning Data, Sorting Data,
Working with Census Data
Begin In Class Assignment 5
In Class Assignment 4 Due / Chapter 5 MCPP
Data and Information to be distributed in class
Week 14 / Working with Census Data
Data Management Macros
In Class Assignment 5 Due / Chapter 5 MCPP (On Line Session)
Data and Information to be distributed on line
Week 15 / Automating Repetitive Tasks: VBA and Macros (Assignment to be announced) / Chapter 8
Week 16 /
PROJECT # 3