Comments from Criminal Psychopathology

Student:

I signed up for this class

initially because in the past internet classes have been an

easy time for me.� They have mostly been �do the work and

get the grade�.� This has honestly been harder then some of

the classes that I have taken even in the traditional

setting.� You challenged us and I think as a class we

[accepted].� It feels good to earn a good grade from such a

challenging instructor.�������� Even though initially [I enrolled] to do

an easy class, I have learned so much.� What causes

aggression, the different types of homicide and why people

do it, mental disorders and how they may contribute to

crime just to name a few topics that have stuck in my mind.

�I have learned the topics in this class.....not just

regurgitated information.�����

Student:

Being this was my first Internet course, I wasn�t sure what

to expect and I was somewhat skeptical of the medium�s

ability to deliver. But after the first few days of class,

I quickly realized the potential and I took full advantage

of it. I contributed to class every session (most of the

time multiple postings in one day) and that allowed me to

benefit from the active forum that took place making the

material more interactive instead of plain pages in a book.

Most of the time I went beyond the resources that was

provided in class and I researched topics via the internet,

published books and on two occasions I went specifically to

the court houses in my area to obtain certain facts

pertaining to cases that we were discussing in class.

Throughout my postings on the bulletin board I tried to

maintain a collegiate level of discussions and I stayed

away from irrelevant anecdotal stories.

I completed all of the quizzes and assignments in a timely

manner (unless I had a prior excuse) and I read all of the

assigned chapters, cases and slide shows.

The success in this class is totally dependent on the

student�s willingness to actively participate much more

vigorously than a traditional classroom setting. I know

that I have given this class more time and attention than

any of my other classes, and it is reflected by the amount

of knowledge that I�ve gained from this class. The grades

that I�ve earned throughout the semester reflect the

knowledge that I�ve retained.

Student:

I think what made this class hard for me was realizing I

had to rethink everything I did as a student.� In all my

classes I have read the chapters, taken notes, and

contributed to lecture.� I never thought about anything I

said.� It wasn�t until this class that I realized I was

just regurgitating what I had read and fitting into things

I had experienced in life.� It seemed fine and it made me

feel important.� After about a month I began realize that

most of the stuff that had happened to me had no importance

to learning the material presented in class.� Acknowledging

what I was doing was the hardest part.� I even started to

resent several of my classmates, because they seemed so

thorough in discussion and offering additional website

information.� That was supposed to be me, I was supposed to

be the smart one making the extra contributions.� I tried

to rationalize by thinking �well I hate surfing the web,�

or �they must have more time than me.�� It is hard to

change a pattern that you have held on to for so long (now

I understand addiction more).� I did notice myself thinking

twice in other classes.� I would remind myself that no one

wanted to here my theory �because it happened to me.�� Even

while thinking about this evaluation, I started

rationalizing my behavior, I was planning on writing an

evaluation full of excuses like:� I didn�t contribute more

because I was too busy, I didn�t make more posts because

everyone else said what I wanted to say, etc.� Looking at

from a grading perspective: did I do A work, probably not.

I know I did B work.� Looking at the grading from a

personal perspective I earned an A.� No other class has

taught me the value of research, the value of looking

outside of the box, the value of other people�s opinions.

I have a new perspective on learning.� I am working on not

jumping to conclusions and coming up with an answer, just

to be right.� Now, I wish I weren�t graduating to try out

what I have accomplished!� I know it will carry over to any

potential job I �hopefully� will attain.� I did achieve the

academic goals, I loved the book, and it is the best text I

have purchased.� I was fascinated by the different

interpretations that everyone had of the subject material.

I made a good amount of posting and my posts were thought

out, not as long or in depth as I had wanted or hoped they

would be.� I put more thought into my quiz answers.� The

personal knowledge I have gained from this class, I feel

outweighs the academic.� This was a good class for me; I

really needed �the cold water in my face�.

Student:

This was the first class that I have started on the

text before the semester began. I got through chapter 4

before the end of Christmas Break. At first, I didn't know

how I was going to like the internet setup. I've been

really wary of internet classes, but once I got into the

swing of things, I really enjoyed it. This has been a class

that I haven�t minded putting the effort into. I believe

this field is where I would like to direct my studies in

psych. Overall, I thought the class was great.

I have tried to maintain a standard for myself in this

class, and I feel I have done a good job. There have been a

couple times that I have felt that I didn't participate or

contribute to the level that I should have, but for the

most part, I have kept my grades in the A range. I have

done well to make sure I have gone through all the material

before posting. I have tried to get at least one posting in

a day but. One thing I have tried hard not to do is post

just for the sake of putting something on the bb. I have

also tried very hard to demonstrate my mastery of the

material and not just spit out the exact thing that the

text said. Anyone can copy the book. I also feel that I

have done well on the quizzes.

Student:

I will close by saying that this class has been one of the

best learning experiences I have had in my University

career; I think that the class via the internet is very

conducive to learning.� I have enjoyed the readings and the

class in general.�

Student:

I devoted an average of 14 hours a week to this class [NOTE:�

regular semester course]. In addition to the required activities,

I provided many references and internet sources for additional

Information to enhance the learning experience for any student who

chose to follow up on the information.� �� This class was

presented and prepared in a totally different way from any other I

have taken to date.� It was fun as well as extremely educational.