The Scout Report -- Volume 26, Number 2

Educators, particularly teachers in history departments, may enjoy Beyond the Bubble. Created by the Stanford History Education Group, this resource uses the Library of Congress's digital archives to generate a series of History Assessments of Thinking (HATs). HATs consist of short videos, images, or other lesson accompaniments and corresponding assessments that shift students' focus from fact recollection to critical thinking. For example, students may be asked to compare two documents and use their historical knowledge and context clues to determine which document was written first. Users should begin by creating a free account to gain full access to the materials. From there, you may want to browse the complete list of HATs, which range in topic from the First Thanksgiving to the Haitian Revolution. Each HAT comes with a student worksheet and a rubric guide, both downloadable with a free account. Educators may also find value in the "Going Deeper" videos, which provide additional tips and context for using this resource to assist students' learning. [EMB]

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Our Shared Seas is an open-access, one-stop-shop for all things ocean conservation, including upcoming events, data reports, and news articles. The objective of the resource is to "elevate the collective understanding of the state of ocean health and shape future directions for philanthropy, practice, and research." They pursue this mission by compiling a wealth of resources, such as expert interviews with researchers, summaries of major reports, and easy-to-digest visuals of "ocean trends." In doing so, they provide users with a more holistic picture of how "the ocean is intrinsically connected to sustaining life on Earth." Users should begin on the Key Findings page (accessible via the Primers tab, using the menu on the right-hand side), which summarizes major facts and provides context for many of the sub-categories of oceanography included on the site. From there, they may want to navigate the Downloads page, where they can search for reports and presentations specific to subcategories that pique their interest, such as Marine Fisheries and Pollution & Development. Finally, those looking for expert opinions can read interviews with researchers under Insights. [EMB]

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Launched in 2013 with the goal of igniting "an exciting era of storytelling revival," The Apple Seed is a daily radio show perfect for those interested in audio storytelling. The Apple Seed creates a platform to lift up stories that span across the globe and across generations. Episodes are generally around two hours long and feature stories on topics ranging from love to dogs to cowboys, or as the website describes, tales of all varieties: "tall tales, fairy tales, folk tales, personal tales, historical tales, and more." The Apple Seed continues to provide a respite space for storytellers to share and story lovers to listen and learn by offering "an invitation to use the stories on the show as inspiration to share stories with each other." The show is broadcasted through Brigham Young University's radio station and hosted by Sam Payne (a singer, songwriter, poet, and storyteller). Listeners can stream episodes on Apple Podcasts and at the link above. [EMB]

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Delve deeper into space exploration, law, and policy with Space Policy Online. This website features "news, information, and analysis about the policy aspects of the full scope of the U.S. space program." From in-depth reports to legislative fact sheets, this resource compiles a wealth of information covering current events and policy changes relating to space. For example, the News section features articles on the next steps for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Reports section summarizes relevant hearings and meetings from events (for example, the August 2019 National Space Council public meeting), as well as providing a linked list of reports from the National Academies, the Government Accountability Office, and others. Space Policy's founder, Marcia Smith, has over "four decades of experience in space policy," which is evident in this site's exploration of relevant news stories, legislative bill tracking, and other helpful insights. The website also features sections dedicated to civil, military, commercial, international, and space law policy, bringing together news and resources from all corners of the space sector. Ad astra! [EMB]

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Readers engaged in research and dissertation writing may enjoy Academic Phrasebank. This website serves as a "general resource for academic writers," by providing guidance on style, structure, and substance from introduction to conclusion. Visitors may wish to start by reading the sections devoted to overall writing structure, accessible from the tabs at the top of the site, beginning with Introducing Work. The site also topically breaks down key writing features, such as Defining Terms, Giving Examples, and Writing about the Past. Users will find these sections in the menu on the left-hand side. In addition to defining and describing best practices related to each of these topics, the site also provides various examples. For instance, under the Defining Terms section, users can explore examples of introductory phrases, find common diction used to define "general meanings," and learn how to incorporate terminology common to academic writing into their work. Academic Phrasebank was created by Dr. John Morley, director of the University-wide Language Programmes at the University of Manchester, and draws on the work of English linguist John Swales. [EMB]

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What is life really like behind bars? Get an inside look into criminal justice with this weekly literary series from The Marshall Project (a nonprofit journalism platform dedicated to criminal justice), that gathers "first-person essays from those who work or live in the criminal justice system." This resource features short nonfiction essays from various perspectives of stakeholders in the criminal justice system (including those who are currently or were formerly incarcerated, lawyers, police officers, judges, and victims of crime). Pieces cover the complexities of human experience - loss and redemption, a search for meaning, and different definitions of "justice" - and uplift voices that are underrepresented in most storytelling settings. In addition to this "front-line" look at our criminal justice system, The Marshall Project's full site hosts a wealth of data, reports, and interactive resources. Founded in 2014, The Marshall Project is committed to "educat[ing] and enlarg[ing] the audience of people who care about the state of criminal justice" and provides useful insights to journalists and justice stakeholders alike. [EMB]

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PBS's "four-part documentary film series," College Behind Bars follows the lives of incarcerated individuals enrolled in the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI). BPI gives individuals an opportunity to earn associate's and bachelor's degrees while they are incarcerated and is known as "one of the most rigorous and effective prison education programs in the United States." The series encapsulates the "transformative power of education," by demonstrating the common struggles that incarcerated students share with traditional students - long hours spent studying, tedious paper re-drafts, and preparation for debate competitions, to name a few. The series also invites viewers to share in intimate stories of loss, pain, and second-chances. The four episodes are available to view at the link above under Watch Now. Educators may also want to check out the For the Classroom section, where they will find a lesson plan on "Education as a Means to Citizenship." This curriculum features five video clips on topics such as "The Politics of Incarceration," Support Materials such as discussion questions and handouts, and standards information. College Behind Bars was directed by Lynn Novick, produced by Sarah Botstein, and executive produced by Ken Burns, all of whom have won awards for their work in the film industry. [EMB]

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Readers interested in understanding the intersection of conflict, colonialism, and criminology around the world may enjoy Oxford Transitional Justice Research Seminars. Housed within the University of Oxford's Centre for Criminology, Oxford Transitional Justice Research (OTJR) brings together "an interdisciplinary network of academics," studying a wide variety of themes relating to transitional justice, or the use of judicial and non-judicial measures to redress legacies of human rights abuses. The OTJR brings users an audio database of recorded seminars presented at the Centre from 2009 to present. The seminars feature global leaders who research various themes of human rights issues and carceral responses. Topics span many subjects and locations, such as internal conflict in Peru, land disputes in Sudan, and victimhood in Ireland. Each recording features a different expert lecturer - for example, the November 2019 seminar on "Documenting Crimes in Syria and Iraq" from Sareta Ashraph, a barrister who focuses on international criminal and humanitarian law. Recordings range in length from about 20 to 50 minutes, on average. Readers can listen to the full collection of OTJR Seminars at the link above. [EMB]

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The Sentencing Project (featured in the 11-28-2000 and 12-04-2015 Scout Report) has been a staple resource for members of the criminal justice community for over 30 years. Since we last featured the site, the Sentencing Project has continued to add to their resource collections and reports. Highlighted here is the State-by-State Data section, including three subsections that allow users to better understand the concentrated effects of the American justice system at the state level. Under the first tab, State Data Map, is an interactive tool that allows users to scroll over each state and see a detailed breakdown of incarceration rates, racial disparities, juvenile custody rates, disenfranchisement, and expenditures based on that state's prison, probation, and parole populations. Selecting the Detailed State Data tab allows users to compare states against each other or against federal data, including gender, race, and juvenile imprisonment statistics. Finally, clicking the State Rankings tab graphs all 50 states against the United States total, allowing users to see states at the high and low ends of incarceration, racial disparities, juvenile custody, and disenfranchisement rates. In its entirety, the State-by-State Data section uses statistics and data visualization to help users better understand the macro- and micro-level impacts of criminal justice in the United States. [EMB]

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Educators looking for a lesson on the intersection of media and equity should check out "Media Constructions of Social Justice." This toolkit is designed to "explore how people in the United States have perceived social justice over the past 180 years and how the U.S. media has constructed that public perception." The curriculum is broken into nine units that cover intersectional aspects of social justice work, beginning with the abolition of slavery and concluding with environmental justice. Instructors may wish to begin by reading the "Overview" and "How to Use These Materials" documents, both downloadable as PDFs from the Kit Documents list on the left-hand side. The curriculum is suggested for high school through college level courses. Every unit is subdivided into three sections, each with downloadable PDFs of lesson plans, teacher guides, student readings or activities, and more. Users are required to create a free account in order to access the materials. "Media Constructions of Social Justice" is a branch of Ithaca College's Project Look Sharp, which strives to enhance media literacy and critical thinking on and beyond their campus. [EMB]

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Last featured in the 09-07-18 Scout Report, The Digital Panopticon: Tracing London Convicts in Britain & Australia continues to provide users with insights into the stories encompassed by interactions with the criminal justice system.

Launched in 2017, The Digital Panopticon is a fascinating research project exploring the impacts of various punishments on approximately 90,000 people who were sentenced at London's Old Bailey between 1780 and 1925. This project brings together "millions of records from around fifty datasets" into a searchable database, including trial records, transportation records of convicts who were sent to Australia, and many more. Of particular interest are the Convict Lives pages, which feature brief biographies of individual convicts whose life histories were "reconstructed using the Digital Panopticon website," while the Historical Background section offers helpful contextual information about the British criminal justice system at that time. Students and educators will want to check out the Research and Teaching section, which contains themed research guides and resources for using The Digital Panopticon in classrooms. Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, The Digital Panopticon is "a collaboration between the Universities of Liverpool, Sheffield, Tasmania, Oxford, and Sussex," with Barry Godfrey, professor of Social Justice at the University of Liverpool, as its principal investigator.

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