This was developed as a ‘learning artifact’ as a part of a documentary method of using multimedia as curriculum. Following the auditor experiment with Drew Whitworth I started to use the audio recording as a tool for capturing a lesson and developing a researched learning resource for the world wide web. This has been made particularly easy by people like Fergus and Drew who are interested in sharing their knowledge.
“Justice is the first virtue of social institutions, as truth is of systems of thought. A theory however elegant and economical must be rejected or revised if it is untrue; likewise laws and institutions no matter how efficient and well-arranged must be reformed or abolished if they are unjust. Each person possesses an inviolability founded on justice that even the welfare of society as a whole cannot override. Read more…
Fergus McNeill is Professor of Criminology and Social Work at the University of Glasgow in the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research and in Sociology. Before working in academia he worked in residential drug rehabilitation and as a criminal justice social worker. This is a podcast of a talk he gave exploring the issues of crime, punishment and concepts of rehabilitation. Read more…
In my experience, during this journey of a reformed man, I have come to realise, that, to some in society, it matters not how much an individual, being released from prison, has turned their life around and rehabilitated. Ready for life in the free world into the supporting arms of an accepting society! Surely that should be the case, should it not? Isn’t that why we have a prison system. Read more…
As I am an avid prison reform campaigner it should not be difficult to imagine there are many aspects of the criminal justice system of which I am unhappy or disappointed with. One such aspect which leaves me utterly frustrated, is the constant search from some quarters for the utopia of blame! WHY? Read more…
Four years ago, I was invited to take part in a Ministry of Justice (MOJ) review designed to reform the long-discredited system of Independent Monitoring in our prisons.
I genuinely expected this vital review would finally bring the crucial ‘root and branch’ reform to prison monitoring that so many, myself included, had spent years calling for – looking back four years now, and at the new system of governance that as a result of the review that comes into effect today [1st Nov], I really should have known better. Read more…
It can be slightly annoying to hear people’s feedback about a film. It seems not to matter what you do, audiences will tend to take what they want from it. Sometimes it’s best to ignore them and let the film do the talking, other times you try to disabuse them of their mistakes. Read more…