Convergence of validity for the results of a summative assessment with confidence measurement and traditional assessment

This research examines the use in IT education of an innovative online assessment tool that incorporates confidence measurement. The tool is based on the traditional Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) format with an additional component that permits the user to register their confidence for each answer. The tool is referred to as the Multiple Choice Question with Confidence Measurement (MCQCM). A cohort of 52 Data Communication students utilized the MCQCM as their primary revision tool throughout a semester and then for a test in class. As part of the review they were then asked to give feedback on using the MCQCM as a formal summative assessment tool. The test was graded using the traditional method as well as by calculating a further grade from the student’s registered confidence. The results demonstrated a good correlation and convergence of validity between the dual marks supporting the use of the system as a summative assessment option. It was also observed that the majority of high achievers scored less for the MCQCM grade than for the traditional MCQ. In addition, the students’ perception of the MCQCM as a graded assessment task was quite positive. These results are very encouraging and will be further investigated as part of this ongoing research

Why repeat victimization matters

The basic facts of repeat victimization are well known. Substantial proportions of differences in rates of crime are attributable to differences in their concentration on particular targets, whether those targets are defined in terms of people, organizations or households. Four of the chapters in this collection detail the extent and correlates of such rates in continental Europe and worldwide (by Farrell and Bouloukos, van Dijk, Kleemans, and Mawby). As is evident from these chapters and from other publications, establishing precise levels of repeats is by no means easy. While problems with police data on recorded crime are well-recognized, victimization surveys also have attendant difficulties. Once this is acknowledged and set aside,whether a level of repeats is high or low depends upon the prevalence of crime. Low levels of repeats will be important in countries or re-gions of low crime prevalence. High levels of repetition will always be important, but less remarkable where high crime-prevalence is found

Drug offenders in the global criminal justice system

The present work assesses the extent, variation and changes in drug trafficking, drug possession and all drug offences in criminal justice systems around the world between. Across the five years of study there was a strong international trend over time, showing relatively small but widespread increases in drug offenders for each stage from suspects arrested by law enforcement, through prosecutions and convictions, to prison admissions. The international mean for all drug offences as a percentage of all offences was 7% of suspects, 7% of prosecutions, 6% of convictions, and 11% of prison admissions in the most recent year for which data was available. The non-parametric sign-test is used to show that the international trends were statistically significant in terms of the number of countries increasing or decreasing the proportion of drug offenders. It seems that, in general, criminal justice systems around the world are characterised more by the similarities than differences in the proportions of drug offenders at different stages. However, several statistically deviant countries are identifiable at different criminal justice stages and at different times. Some specific issues are worthy of further examination. In particular there is the possibility that the United States is not particularly more punitive at sentencing or imprisonment than other countries when it comes to drug offenders, but rather, that it has a relatively greater tendency to prosecute drug offences cases. Further, at the stage of imprisonment, drug offenders constitute a larger proportion of all offenders imprisoned in Belgium, Italy and Germany, than they do in the United States. Although people are often quick to identify the US the world's penal sadist when it comes to drug offenders, the present data set suggests that for the early 1990's at least, there is no conclusive evidence that this is the case. The further investigation of these and other issues may provide information of relevance to drug policy or criminal justice policy at the national or international level. Variations in sentence lengths for drug offences are also examined, although the data is more fragmented. For those countries that responded, the international median sentence length for possession offences is around one year compared to somewhere between three and five years for trafficking. The findings and their interpretation should be viewed with caution due to the limitations of the data. However, the analysis suggests that the United Nations crime survey has been under-utilised as a means of developing knowledge and information of relevance to national and international drug policy and criminal justice policy. A range of possibilities for furthering the present work is suggested

A comparison of Blackboard CAA and an Innovative self assessment tool for formative assessment

This comparative study analyses the responses of a cohort of students using both the Blackboard Multiple Choice Computer Aided Assessment (CAA) package and another Multiple Choice Question package that utilizes Confidence Measurement (MCQCM) for revision. The Blackboard test was the simple Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) format of a stem followed by four simple text options; the other utilized the traditional MCQ format with multiple possible answers. The MCQCM evolved from a series of studies in the IT discipline where the system was used over sequential semesters to elicit feedback to improve its functionality and usability. A total of 74 students completed a questionnaire as part of the standard subject evaluation for the participating subjects. The questions were designed to evaluate their opinion of the testing procedure identifying their preferences and concerns. The results were analyzed producing some encouraging observations. It was observed that there was a strong overall acceptance of the innovative self assessment tool MCQCM as a valuable contributor to the learning experience. In addition, the MCQCM was rated equally by the participants to the Blackboard CAA in influencing their direction of learning and identifying the areas of concern. The results show that MCQCM has promise and recommends further study

History of the Domestic Violence Coordinating Committee: 1987-2000

This chapter describes the emergence of an entity dedicated to improving inter-agency coordination in domestic violence service delivery, the Domestic Violence Coordinating Committee (DVCC), then charts its work and activity level from its formation in 1987 to the time this research was conducted in 2000. In addition to an overview of the history of the DVCC, this chapter includes a discussion of the factors found pertinent for success and failure of DVCC, and a concluding section where these themes are drawn into an analytical framework. Special attention is given to the role of the police department and its relationships over time with the DVCC and with the individual agencies in the domestic violence service community

Process evaluation of the implementation of an anti-stalking protocol by the Philadelphia Police Department

Process evaluation of the implementation of an anti-stalking protocol by the Philadelphia Police Departmen

Transnational organised crime in Europe and North America: towards a framework of prevention

Previous volumes of the HEUNI regional reports have paid little or no attention to transnational organized crime. Although the literature on transnational organized crime (hereafter TOC) is expanding rapidly, there remain fewstandardized measures of the problem. There is even less of a formal framework for thinking about how to prevent TOC in its various forms. The present chapter begins to address these issues, with an emphasis upon practical aspects of the latter. In the following section, TOC is defined and set in a global context, a broad overview of factors relating to recent changes is given, and international legislative responses are described. This is followed by the presentation of a framework that is frequently used in discussions of more general crime prevention efforts. It is proposed that its utilization in this context will help inform the analysis of efforts to prevent TOC

The shadow economy

The shadow econom

Multiple victimisation in Northern Ireland

Multiple victimisation in Northern Irelan

Preventing repeat victimization: a systematic review

In any given year, most crimes occur against targets that have already been victimized. The crime prevention strategy deriving from this knowledge is that targeting repeat victimization provides a means of allocating crime prevention resources in an efficient and informed manner. This report presents the findings of a systematic review of 31 studies that evaluate efforts to prevent repeat victimization. Most of the evaluations focus on preventing residential burglary, but commercial burglary, domestic violence, and sexual victimization are also covered. The main conclusion is that the evidence shows that repeat victimization can be prevented and crime can be reduced. Over all the evaluations, crimes decreased by one-sixth in the prevention condition compared with the control condition. The decreases were greatest (up to one-fifth) for programmes that were designed to prevent repeat burglaries (residential and commercial). There were fewer evaluations of programmes designed to prevent repeat sexual victimization, but these did not seem to be effective in general. There are indications about what factors increase the success of prevention efforts. Appropriately tailored and implemented situational crime prevention measures, such as target hardening and neighbourhood watch, appear to be the most effective. Advice to victims, and education of victims, are less effective. They are often not prevention measures themselves and do not necessarily lead to the adoption of such measures. The effectiveness of these crime prevention measures increased as the degree of implementation increased. There were many problems of implementation, including poor tailoring of interventions to crime problems, difficulty of recruiting, training and retaining staff, breakdown in communications, data problems, and resistance to tactics by potential recipients or implementers