Step 1: Choose a Topic Treatment of witnesses Treatment of victims Role of defen
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Step 1: Choose a Topic
Treatment of witnesses
Treatment of victims
Role of defence counsel
Role of the accused
Role of the crown attorney
Role of the judge
Leniency in sentencing
Bail supervision
Technology in the courtroom
What observations should I record?
“Fieldnotes” are the notes you make while doing research “in the field” (i.e. in court).
To help you get organized, I have created a fieldnote template that you can print and
bring with you to court. I recommend documenting your observations in 15 minute
increments under the following broad headings:
Setting (architecture, furniture, layout, general “vibe”, rituals, routines)
People (key actors, gender, race, clothing, facial expressions, spoken words)
Interactions (friendly, professional, task-oriented, interruptions, who’s in charge?)
Reflections (thoughts, feelings, judgments, expectations, assumptions, misconceptions)
How do I record my observations?
Step 1: Jot Notes
These are the notes you make in your fieldnote template. They are brief notes that will
help you recall additional details later on.
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Step 2: Recap Timeline
I recommend heading to a coffee shop, library or home computer shortly after your
court observation and begin drafting a chronological description of what you
observed.
Documenting your fieldnotes in 15 minute increments will assist very much with this
task. These descriptions will feed directly into your essay. Sooner is better than later as
you will find it hard to recollect what you observed.
Step 3: Describe Relevant Scenes and Events
Shortly after your court observation, you will also want to provide a detailed
description of relevant scenes and events. These should tie directly to your topic.
Remember, the goal of this assignment is to record what you observe, but also to
make some claims in relation to your chosen topic.
Example
Topic: Role of defence counsel
Jot Notes: accused = young woman, crime = theft under
5k lawyer delayed, judge annoyed, room 201
Timeline: I entered room #201 at 9:55 a.m. The judge emerged from her chambers
shortly before 10:00 a.m. The proceedings were scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. The
proceedings began at 10:10 a.m.
Relevant Events: I entered room #201 shortly before the proceedings were set to begin
at 10:00 a.m. The accused was approximately 25 years old and appeared nervous. She
was a slender woman with medium length black hair. The accused was charged with
theft under $5000 for a shoplifting incident that took place at Polo Park mall. When the
judge emerged from her chambers, she inquired about the whereabouts of the accused’s
lawyer. The accused stated her lawyer was caught in traffic and would be arriving
shortly. The judge frowned and said they would only wait for “a few minutes” before
rescheduling the case.
Step 4: Analyze Your Fieldnotes
Once you have transformed your jot notes into a timeline and described several key
events, I recommend setting your work aside for a few days and then returning
with the intention of connecting your observations to your topic using the following
questions as a guide:
What are people doing? What are people trying to accomplish?
Who has/does not have power? How do people talk about what is going on?
What strategies do they use? What assumptions are people making?
What do I see going on here? What is at stake?
What did I learn from these notes? How does it all fit together?
Step 5: Incorporate Your Fieldnotes into an Essay
Once you have analyzed your fieldnotes and sketched some preliminary connections to
your topic, you are ready to incorporate your fieldnotes into an essay. I highly
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recommend using the essay outline template as this helps you organize your ideas.
Please include the following elements:
Introduction: What is your topic? What claim(s) are you making in relation to
your topic? E.g. The role of X is to Y
Setting the Scene: How and where did you gather your data? (use fieldnotes)
Provide evidence for your claim(s): What did you observe? How does this relate to
your claim? (use fieldnotes)
Conclusion: What are the implications? Questions for future contemplation?
**All assignments must be uploaded to the appropriate Dropbox folder which is
located under the “Assessments” tab. Late assignments will not be accepted without
proper medical documentation. Please keep a paper copy of this assignment for your
