Our Learning Styles and How They Compare

Our Learning Styles and How They Compare

Learning Team B

Evan Martinez

Shakiya Y. Matthews

Magan Taylor

Nathan White

University of Phoenix – CJS/211 (Ethics in Criminal Justice)

Our Learning Styles and How They Compare

        Working in a team environment is very crucial in the criminal justice field. It requires certain skills that all members of the team should possess. Now this is not to say that all of the team members will share the same character traits or values and this is what makes them unique. All members will bring their own individual sense of who they are to the team and this creates a challenging but great group dynamic. When working in the criminal justice field one has to follow various laws and principles but most of all, they must attain a sense of ethics. Learning Team B took individual assessments during week one to determine what their ethical learning styles were and it was found that although they are all different and come from different states; it was interesting to see that out of four individuals, two shared the same learning styles with another.  Nathan and Evan were aligned with “obligation” and Shakiya and Megan were aligned with “character”.  They found that although their learning styles are different, they all shared the desire of meeting the same objective to work together effectively and in the most ethical way possible.

Obligation

        The definition of obligation is as follows 1. Something by which a person is bound or obliged to do certain things, and which arises out of a sense of duty or results from custom, law, etc. ("Dictionary. Com", 2015). 2. Something that is done or is to be done for such reasons: to fulfill one's obligations. ("Dictionary. Com", 2015). 3. A binding promise, contract, sense of duty, etc. ("Dictionary. Com", 2015). 4. The act of binding or obliging oneself by a promise, contract, etc. ("Dictionary. Com", 2015). 5. Law an agreement enforceable by law, originally applied to promises under seal. b. a document containing such an agreement.

An obligation is a debt that has to be repaid in return for training or favors. There are other types of obligations one owes to their families and themselves to be good role models and provide for them. People are committed to meet their obligations which are also like promises and fulfill the conditions that are set before them. If they are obligated to protect the public and their families from becoming victims of crime then they must meet these requirements also. In a legal contract there are obligations to be met so the person does not lose the credit they have. When making a large purchase of a car or home there is an obligation to pay on time and not be late because it can hurt credit ratings. Staying out of debt is another obligation owed because of the high finance rates that go with repaying a loan. There is an important role to be gained from obligation because he/she owes themselves and their family a reason to know the system is there for the whole commitment.  In law enforcement officers are obligated to help people and victims of crime while still maintaining the law and seeing to the safety of the suspect until they are proven guilty. Everyone has an obligation to know right from wrong and the consequences if they choose the wrong style of career.

When it comes to dealing with how each style relates to the criminal justice field and how it relates to making decisions as part of a team, obligation is very important. Obligation is the idea that a person treats others the way that they want to be treated. This is very much true in the criminal justice field. To be a street officer and have a mind frame of one that is not open and clear to the ideas that others come from different circumstances can lead to serious complications when dealing with the general public. It is said that having an obligation in the criminal justice field is to treat others how one would want to be treated; this is the right way to act in the criminal justice field and it’s easy. Would he/she want an officer to treat them as though they are just a number that they can add on to their belt of how many people they have arrested in their career, or would he/she rather have an officer that treats them with respect from the moment they arrive as they would expect from some one that is trying to understand the problem and reach an understanding to the problem without bias? Without having obligation as part of one’s everyday practice they become numb and unwelcoming in their actions towards others, not only in their professional field but as well as in the community. No one should be treated as a mark or slash on a belt that proves nothing but how bias the officer is. Having obligation in one’s daily work practices helps them to understand others’ issues with more sympathy and empathy. An officer may never know what they may come across on a daily basis. They may realize that that they have more in common with the victim and possible offender than they think. Using these abilities may seem as a form of bias but one becomes able to understand both sides without feeling compelled to see just one end.