This module is a resource for lecturers   

 

Guidelines to develop a stand-alone course

 

This Module provides an outline for a three-hour class, but there is potential to develop the topic further into a stand-alone course. The scope of such a course will be determined by the specific needs of each context, but a possible structure is presented here as a suggestion.

Session

Topic

Brief description

Week 1

Introduction and the History of Victimology

  • Introduction of Module themes and assessment methodology.
  • Lecture to define and illustrate essential concepts and introduce the key international standards regarding victims. (The Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power (1985)).
  • Each class should close with a short debrief - to acknowledge the sensitivity of the issues, and to remind students of options for additional information or support, if required.

Week 2

The impact of crime - and understanding trauma

Week 3

The right of victims to an adequate response to their needs

  • Lecture based on the materials presented in second part of Topic two of the Module.
  • Deliver an exercise in which small groups of students are each assigned a crime type. Crime might include burglary, carjacking, rape, homicide, child sexual abuse, image-based abuse, etc. Ask each group to brainstorm the victims' justice needs (prompting students to think about immediate victims and their families, etc). This exercise can prompt a stimulating discussion or even a formal debate (as a follow up exercise) about whether practical needs (i.e. safety, housing, healthcare, etc are considered justice needs).
  • Following this exercise, screen the following video, and use this as a basis to discuss the importance of ensuring that interventions for victims, deliver their intended result.
  • Does court order of protection help victims of domestic violence? (3:26 minutes)

Week 4

Victims and their participation in the criminal justice process

Week 5

The gender dimension, and justice for victims of sexual and gender-based violence

Week 6

Justice for child victims and witnesses

Week 7

Restorative Justice and victims

Week 8

Justice in the digital era

Week 9

Victims of crime and international law

  • Deliver a lecture based on the materials presented in Topic seven of the Module.
  • Deliver an exercise in which students are required to access the "cases and situations" section of the website of the International Criminal Court. Encourage students to consider the needs of victims involved in these situations (or in the cases, if indeed cases are underway). Where students have access to the Internet they can be encouraged to undertake additional research, to better understand the situation that has given rise to international criminal proceedings, in these respective cases, and to better understand the needs and rights of victims.

Week 10

Course wrap-up

  • In addition to the shorter debriefing sessions at the close of each class, lecturers should ensure that the final session in the course follows the advice about a strengths-based approach and ideas to inspire students to act as agents of change.
  • Deliver the multiple choice quiz, to test students' knowledge.
 
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