Students get a taste for Day of Crime
22 June 2012
Over 150 young people with an interest in criminal justice, law and psychology attended the School of Law’s recent Day of Crime courses as part of the School’s Student Outreach programme.
The events, which ran over three days, gave young people the opportunity to participate in a variety of interactive sessions focussing on crime, criminality and criminal justice, the criminal law and the criminal body, and criminal personality.
The events were organised by Stuart Taylor, Senior Lecturer in Criminal Justice in association with the LJMU Student Outreach team.
Day of Crime programme enabled Year 12 students from local colleges and schools to visit LJMU and to get a taste of what university life is like.
Zoe, a student who attended a day said; "It has been a brilliant day. I've learnt so much and this has changed the way that I think about crime and the law. It has also made me want to come to university and study these areas in more depth. Thank you for organsing this for us."
Pauline, a teacher who accompanied a group to the event said; "I just wanted to say how much my students enjoyed the day of crime event at LJMU. The sessions were superbly delivered and the facilitators enthusiasm for the subject was infectious. Thanks for a wonderful day."
Stuart delivered sessions alongside three of the School’s most talented students. Rebecca Crook, Janine Davis and Hayley Rhodes will all graduate in July with first class degrees and were invited to facilitate sessions on the course.
Commenting on her experience as a facilitator, Rebecca Crook said; "This has been an incredible opportunity to develop our skills and add to our CVs. I absolutely loved the event and I'm still buzzing about how rewarding I found teaching the students."
The Day of Crime also combined empirical research alongside recruitment and graduate development.
Stuart explained that attendees completed questionnaires before, during and after the event to measure their attitudes about crime and justice and to assert whether the Day of Crime has any impact on these.
The collected data will go towards Stuart's continued research in this area. He will present the results at the ANZSOC conference in New Zealand later this year having already delivered earlier findings at conferences in Belgium and Japan.
Commenting about the event, Stuart said; "The programme was a great success and ticked a number of boxes. Those who attended were educated and in some cases enlightened about the subjects studied. The participants were introduced to LJMU and the courses we offer which will hopefully see some of them apply to study here. The programme also enabled us to further develop the skills and confidence of some our most talented students by allowing them the opportunity to facilitate the sessions. Finally, it has allowed me to continue and further my own research interests. Overall therefore it has been a worthwhile event and in my humble opinion, a standout achievement for the School of Law."
If you would be interested in delivering any similar Outreach / Recruitment Activities to promote any courses, please contact outreachteam@ljmu.ac.uk or call 0151 904 6385.
For more information about the School of Law and its research activities, visit the web pages www.ljmu.ac.uk/law.
