Involving Forensic Students in Integrative Learning—A Project Proposal

Abstract

In our experience, university students enrolling in health science and forensic science degrees show difficulty in retaining and integrating basic scientific knowledge learned in their first academic year. Furthermore, in the forensic sciences case, many students have oversimplified and unrealistic expectations as a result of the exposure to crime TV shows, internet blogs, and other social media platforms. Our pedagogical proposal is focused on second-year university students, aiming at promoting effective learning and the integration of scientific knowledge from previous courses, in this particular example, molecular and cell biology and biochemistry, with more advanced forensic courses, such as forensic anthropology and odontology. Teams composed of students and tutors from the teaching staff, with the help of dichotomous keys, are challenged to analyze a crime scene and choose the relevant evidence to further investigate, determine the scientific approach, execute the experimental work, interpret the results and, finally, resolve the case. To assess the pedagogical advantages and the receptivity of this project, a survey is to be carried out among students, and respective statistical analysis is also proposed. Finally, we hope this project outline may be adapted to other subjects, and, therefore, be used to address different pedagogical questions in forensic studies.