Date of Award
2002
Document Type
Practicum
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Programs for Higher Education
Advisor
Jean Higgins
Keywords
adult education, criminal justice, crime analysis, curriculum development, instructional delivery, intelligence analysis, law enforcement, literature review, Mercyhurst College North East, police training, professional development, technology crime, technology training, workforce education
Abstract
The problem under investigation was that adult students engaged in law enforcement work were not receiving adequate education and training regarding technology crime. Information received by way of input from regional police chiefs and other criminal justice administrators supported this premise. The purpose of this study was to develop a curriculum for technology crime that would be available to criminal justice students at Mercyhurst College North East. The two research questions were: "What are the appropriate and valid criteria for the development of a curriculum for criminal justice technology training?", and "What are the valid and appropriate components and delivery system of a curriculum for criminal justice technology training?"
The development problem solving methodology was used in the study. A literature review was conducted, and the criteria were created, thoroughly reviewed and validated. A formative committee critiqued the development of the curriculum through the various required stages. Finally, the curriculum was discussed by a summative committee and was approved for implementation at the college.
The results established the valid and appropriate criteria for both the crime technology curriculum, and the best method of delivery. The conclusions were that the literature review and the experts agreed upon the criteria necessary for the curriculum and the instructional delivery system. Both the formative and summative committees also supported these conclusions.
It was recommended that Mercyhurst College North East implement a technology crime curriculum as soon as feasible. Recommendations were also discussed to use the classroom technology that will be purchased to explore other topics that may be offered such as crime analysis and the use of intelligence information in crime prevention.