Course Syllabus
NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE
COURSE SYLLABUS
COURSE AND INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Course title: Criminal Investigations
Course prefix, number, and section number: CJSA1342 0490
Semester/Year of course: Spring 2026
Semester start and end dates: January 12- May 9, 2025
Modality (Face to face/Synchronous or Asynchronous online/Hybrid): Hybrid
Class meeting location, days, and times: Tuesday 11-1220am Corinth Campus rm 210/online
Lab meeting location, days, and times: n/a
Semester credit hours: 3
Course Description: Investigative theory; collection and preservation of evidence; sources of information; interview and interrogation; uses of forensic sciences; case and trial preparation.
Course prerequisites: none
Required course materials: Criminal Investigation, 13th Edition by Charles Swanson
McGraw Hill- Connect
Name of instructor: Diane Patterson
Office location: Gainesville Campus, 2100 Building, Office 2107
Telephone number: 940-668-3313
Email address: dpatterson@nctc.edu
Office hours for students:
Monday & Wednesday 10am-2pm on Gainesville Campus office 2107 or WebEx
Tuesday & Thursday 10am-1045am and 1230pm-2pm Corinth Campus 270
Should these offices hours need to be adjusted, you will be notified ahead of time and given an alternative time.
SYLLABUS CHANGE DISCLAIMER
The faculty member reserves the right to make changes to this published syllabus if it is in the best interest of the educational development of this class. Any such changes will be announced as soon as possible in person and/or writing.
SUMMARY OF COURSE ASSIGNMENTS
List of graded assignments: Percentage of final grade
Attendance/Participation 10%
Chapter Assignments 22 10%
Chapter Quizzes 22 20%
Learning Outcome Essays 3 20%
Discussion Forums 7 10%
Investigation Project/QEP 1 10%
Mid-Term Exam 1 10%
Final Exam 1 10%
Extra Credit 1 5%
Final grade scale: A 90 - 100
B 80 -89
C 70 -79
D 60 - 69
F Below 60
No assignments will be accepted late. You must read the Instructor Insights and Learning Activities section each week to ensure you are submitting your assignments on time.
SEE CANVAS FOR THE COMPLETE COURSE CALENDAR, OUTLINE, DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF GRADED WORK, AND OTHER RELATED MATERIAL.
COURSE POLICIES
Academic Integrity Policy: Cheating or collusion is prohibited. Each student is responsible for their own assignment. If you make the decision to cheat and you are caught cheating, you may or could be dropped from the course and receive an F. Criminal Justice practitioners are held to a higher standard.
Attendance Policy: Attendance is taking during class time and by your participation in the discussion forums and completing assignments. Simply logging in does not constitute attendance.
Withdrawal Policy: A student may withdraw from a course on or after the official date of record. It is the student’s responsibility to initiate and complete a Withdrawal Request Form.
Last day to withdraw from the course with a “W” is: March 30, 2026
Student Learning Outcomes:
- Define the goals and objectives of criminal investigation
- Demonstrate ability to conduct proper crime scene investigations
- Illustrate the use of forensic science for various statutory offenses
- Organize the criminal case including field notes, reports, crime scene activities, and mandatory documentation of statutory warning
Core Objectives: REQUIRED CORE OBJECTIVES (For classes in the Core)
o Critical Thinking
o Communication
o Empirical and Quantitative
o Teamwork
o Personal Responsibility
o Social Responsibility
COLLEGE POLICIES
STUDENT HANDBOOK
Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the Student Handbook.
ADA STATEMENT
NCTC will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to contact the Office for Students with Disabilities to arrange appropriate accommodations. See the OSD Syllabus Addendum.
STUDENT SERVICES
NCTC provides a multitude of services and resources to support students. See the Student Services Syllabus Addendum for a listing of those departments and links to their sites.
AI STATEMENT
Absent a clear statement from a course instructor, use of or consultation with generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other similar technologies shall be treated analogously to assistance from another person, agency, or entity. In particular, using generative AI tools to substantially complete an assignment or exam is not permitted. Students should acknowledge the use of generative AI (other than incidental use) and default to disclosing such assistance when in doubt.
When students use generative AI to replace the rigorous demands of personal engagement with their coursework, it runs counter to the educational mission of the college and undermines the heart of education itself. Artificial Intelligence, large language models, and other such technologies hold promise for deploying knowledge in service to others and accelerating the discovery of new knowledge. However, such technology poses new challenges to pedagogy and to integrity. Within the context of the teaching mission of the college and consistent with the Student Code of Conduct, the authority to define the appropriate use, study, and deployment of these technologies rests with the faculty.
Individual course instructors, in coordination with their divisions, set policies regulating the use of generative AI tools in their courses, including allowing or disallowing some or all uses of such tools. Course instructors will set such policies in their course syllabi and clearly communicate such policies to students. Students who are unsure of policies regarding generative AI tools are encouraged to ask their instructors for clarification.
Artificial Intelligence Policy:
Prohibited
This course assumes that all work submitted by students will be generated by the students themselves, working individually or in groups. Students should not have another person/entity do the writing of any substantive portion of an assignment for them, which includes hiring a person or a company to write assignments and using artificial intelligence tools.
LIBRARY
NCTC has brick-and-mortar libraries on the Gainesville, Corinth, Flower Mound, and Bowie campuses that are staffed by credentialed librarians wanting to help you succeed in your college career. All students are welcome at any library.
LIBRARY addendum.docxDownload LIBRARY addendum.docx
addendum_OSD_2022_2023.docxDownload addendum_OSD_2022_2023.docx
QUESTIONS, CONCERNS, or COMPLAINTS
The student should contact the instructor to deal with any questions, concerns, or complaints specific to the class. If the student and faculty are not able to resolve the issue, the student may contact the chair or coordinator of the division. If the student remains unsatisfied, the student may proceed to contact the instructional dean.
Name of Chair/Coordinator: Teresa Laman
Office location: Suite 170, Office 173
Telephone number: 940-498-6263
E-mail address: tlaman@nctc.edu
Name of Instructional Dean: Debbie Huffman
Office location: Gainesville Campus, Room 2106
Telephone number: 940- 668- 3357
E-mail address: dhuffman@nctc.edu