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CRIM11002 - Policing and Investigations

General Information

Unit Synopsis

This unit offers a critical exploration of policing and investigative practices within Australian and global contexts. You will examine the historical foundations of policing in Australia, with particular attention to colonial and postcolonial legacies that continue to shape contemporary law enforcement. The unit encourages you to engage with complex debates surrounding the role of police in diverse, democratic societies, including tensions between public safety, civil liberties, and the discretionary powers of law enforcement. Through analysis of various policing and investigative models and agencies, you will gain insight into the diverse structures, functions, and jurisdictions that underpin the modern law enforcement ecosystem. Investigative strategies will be explored through case studies and practical scenarios, enabling you to critically assess their purpose, application, and effectiveness in addressing different types of crime.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 1
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 4
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites There are no pre-requisites for the unit.

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026

Term 1 - 2026 Profile
Online

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 20%
2. Written Assessment 40%
3. Written Assessment 40%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 1 - 2025 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 84.62% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 11.02% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Students feedback - email, in class and in formal feedback.
Feedback
Students appreciated the evening class to allow for better study life balance.
Recommendation
Continue offering evening workshops where possible.
Action Taken
Class scheduling was not offered for evening classes due to staff workload. Instead, lectures are pre-recorded, live workshops are recorded for students who cannot attend, and Teams spaces where activities and discussion points were provided for students to engage with when they could. Care is taken to acknowledge and address students who will be watching the recording.
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students indicated assessment feedback was not useful.
Recommendation
The Unit Coordinator will review assessment instructions to improve students' understanding of what is required. A review of the marking guidance will be carried out to improve the usefulness of assessment feedback.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students noted assessment expectations could be clearer.
Recommendation
The unit will review assessments to ensure clearer instructions are provided to help students know what is expected. The Unit Coordinator will run dedicated assessment sessions to explain assessment expectations.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students appreciated the study guides and additional resources.
Recommendation
The study guides will continue to improve and be engaging, and efforts will be made to enhance and maintain additional resources.
Action Taken
In Progress
Source: SUTE
Feedback
Students appreciated the teaching style and subject passion of the Unit Coordinator.
Recommendation
The Unit Coordinator will continue to provide an engaging learning space and deep connections between the teacher, learner, and topics.
Action Taken
In Progress
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Explain the historical development and impacts of policing in Australian society, considering colonial and post-colonial contexts.
  2. Identify and describe different approaches to contemporary policing and investigative practice.
  3. Critically reflect on the balance between public safety, civil liberties, and police discretion in a diverse and democratic state.
  4. Critically assess the purpose and effectiveness of different policing and investigative strategies.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Written Assessment • •
2 - Written Assessment • • •
3 - Written Assessment • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Communication • • •
2 - Problem Solving •
3 - Critical Thinking • • •
4 - Information Literacy •
6 - Information Technology Competence •
10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10