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Commentary
Teaching To Avoid the "CSI Effect". Keeping the Science in Forensic Science
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Because of the popularity of shows such as CSI and Cold Case there has been a documented increase in student interest in the sciences. This has been a boon to all of the sciences and brought new life into many programs. Along with the positive effects, however, there have also been some serious negative effects. One of these negatives, called the "CSI effect" by many, is that potential jurors have increased—and sometimes wholly unrealistic—expectations of science presented in the courtroom. Unfortunately, the way that forensic science is sometimes presented in the classroom can exacerbate the "CSI effect". In some cases, forensic science gets reduced to the equivalent of a standard laboratory exercise: follow these steps to perform this test, compare the results, match one of your results to "the culprit". The result is that students may also be getting an unrealistic set of expectations about how real forensic science is performed and a very skewed understanding of scientific methodology. Rather than simply catering to a current trend, this re-awakening of interest in science should be seen as an opportunity to advance understanding of the basic principles of science and critical thinking.
Keywords (Audience):
First-Year Undergraduate / GeneralKeywords (Domain):
CurriculumKeywords (Feature):
CommentaryKeywords (Pedagogy):
Misconceptions / Discrepant EventsKeywords (Subject):
Forensic ChemistryCiting Articles
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This article has been cited by 4 ACS Journal articles (4 most recent appear below).
A Multi-Technique Forensic Experiment for a Nonscience-Major Chemistry Course
Paul S. Szalay, Lois Anne Zook-Gerdau, and Eric J. SchurterJournal of Chemical Education2011 Article ASAPA Multi-Technique Forensic Experiment for a Nonscience-Major Chemistry Course
Paul S. Szalay, Lois Anne Zook-Gerdau, and Eric J. SchurterJournal of Chemical Education2011 Article ASAPThis multi-technique experiment with a forensic theme was developed for a nonscience-major chemistry course. The students are provided with solid samples and informed that the samples are either cocaine or a combination of drugs designed to mimic the ...
DNA Profiling of Convicted Offender Samples for the Combined DNA Index System
Julie T. MillardJournal of Chemical Education2011 Article ASAPDNA Profiling of Convicted Offender Samples for the Combined DNA Index System
Julie T. MillardJournal of Chemical Education2011 Article ASAPThe cornerstone of forensic chemistry is that a perpetrator inevitably leaves trace evidence at a crime scene. One important type of evidence is DNA, which has been instrumental in both the implication and exoneration of thousands of suspects in a wide ...
Crime Scene Investigation in the Art World: The Case of the Missing Masterpiece
Katharine J. Harmon , Lisa M. Miller and Julie T. MillardJournal of Chemical Education2009 86 (7), 817Crime Scene Investigation in the Art World: The Case of the Missing Masterpiece
Katharine J. Harmon , Lisa M. Miller and Julie T. MillardJournal of Chemical Education2009 86 (7), 817The relationships between chemistry, crime, and art are explored in an outreach activity for middle and high school students that investigates a possible art fraud. Students characterize pigment samples via spectroscopy and chemical analysis to determine ...
Forensic Analysis of Canine DNA Samples in the Undergraduate Biochemistry Laboratory
Tobin M. Carson , Sharonda Q. Bradley , Brenda L. Fekete and Julie T. Millard , Frederick J. LaRiviereJournal of Chemical Education2009 86 (3), 376Forensic Analysis of Canine DNA Samples in the Undergraduate Biochemistry Laboratory
Tobin M. Carson , Sharonda Q. Bradley , Brenda L. Fekete and Julie T. Millard , Frederick J. LaRiviereJournal of Chemical Education2009 86 (3), 376Recent advances in canine genomics have allowed the development of highly distinguishing methods of analysis for both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. We describe a laboratory exercise suitable for an undergraduate biochemistry course in which the ...
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- Received: August 03, 2009
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