There is an article assignment in this class. It is worth 100 points and 20% of your overall grade. For this assignment, students will analyze recent (within 18 months) newsworthy event documented in a journal article or reliable source with respect to class, race, gender and crime. The purpose of the article assignments is to encourage critical thinking and analysis about issues of class, race, and gender in relation to inequality and privilege or bias, as well as the effect of criminal justice policies on these concepts. The assignment will also help students understand the past, current, and future direction of policy and practice with regards to class, race, gender, and crime.
While there is no minimum word count for these assignments, it is still necessary for students to fully explore the significance of the events discussed within their journal articles. To accomplish this, students should make an effort to understand more than just what’s happening in the immediate present. Hence, students will (1) first summarize the facts of the event. Then, they will (2) critically think about the historic value of an event. Next, students will (3) discuss how the event affects the current environment. Finally, students should (4) discuss possible ramifications of the event for future direction of policy and practice. (5) In considering these possible subsequent actions, students should let history and/or current law be their guide. 
As with all written assignments, students should present original work that is informed by academic resources. In developing their thoughts, students should utilize at least two other academic sources of information. This is to enable students critically analyze the events based on other perspectives, apart from their chosen article. These sources can include the assigned text and one other academic source. Students should use APA format for both in-text citations and to construct a proper reference section.