Criminalizing the Classroom

We first started discussing Backward Design in the classroom but because I have recently become an avid watcher of Criminal Minds, I cannot help but draw the astonishing parallel between Profilers and Professors.

Profilers of the Behavioral Analysis Unit of the FBI have the crime first. If the desired result is to understand who committed the crime then the assessment is an intimate attempt to reach inside the criminal’s mind. There are bigger and broader questions that begin their assessment like is this a crime of vengeance, passion, or prank, or is it a crime of terror? Next they assess the evidence and question whether the criminal is organized or disorganized. The BAU studies the victimology of those involved looking for a common thread or theme. They ask themselves what role each victim plays in the bigger picture and how they are connected to the criminal. Sometimes this leads to a deeper understanding of the criminal’s motivation for his crime. Rather than merely collecting the hard evidence and fact-based knowledge they seek to understand the ins and outs of the crime by studying the criminal. Quite often, the criminal will inject himself into the investigation in order to gain a sense of power or deter the police. Once the BAU has their criminal, they entertain the possible types of mental illnesses or specific influences and stressors in the criminal’s life. These events and possible stressors will only make sense in the grand scheme of things if all the other avenues of the crime are explored and understood. Profilers are to investigate the details of the crime and must make them relevant to the investigation in order to obtain a warrant for the arrest of the criminal.

One episode of Criminal Minds was oriented toward the concept that the profile is a greater weapon than even a gun. This logic suggests that when the professor approaches their curriculum like a crime scene then Backward Design, just like the profile ought to be the weapon of choice. The profilers and the professors alike must learn to empathize with the criminals and the students in order to understand their particular process toward acquiring victims or knowledge. Once the professor can assess how a student thinks and the ways they organize knowledge then their course design will be both stimulating and fruitful and dare I say...deadly.