New Perspectives in Science Education

The investigation of crimes fascinates people of all ages and genders and is a topic of great interest in many branches of the entertainment industry [1]. This interest is echoed in a new course concept for schools and student laboratories, in which students of the upper secondary level take on the role of forensic technicians as addressees of this course offer in order to clear up a fictitious murder case.
Using simplified forensic chemistry methods for trace analysis, learners can visualise important traces of searches such as fingerprints, soil samples and at the same time understand the scientific background, which is often left unclear in movies and series. The laboratory course comprises several experiments that can be carried out with comparable little effort, school-suitable chemicals and equipment (e.g. digital measuring stations [2]).
In addition to discussing the subject matter, special emphasis is further placed on promoting analytical and logical ways of thinking. In order to be able to track down the criminal, the concept requires careful working methods and protocols. A theoretical introductory seminar and an evaluation seminar will provide a framework for the courses offered.
Building on the diversity of the experiments, a holistic didactic examination of the contents takes place. This includes links to the K12 school curriculum as well as approaches to the practical implementation of the experiments in student laboratories or school lessons. The developed course offer is piloted and optimized in the Agnes-Pockels-SchülerInnen-Labor of the University of Braunschweig in order to guarantee a high quality of the offer.

Keywords: Chemistry Education, School Laboratory, Forensic Chemistry.

References:
[1] D. Höttecke (Ed.), Naturwissenschaftlicher Unterricht im internationalen Vergleich. 2007, LIT, Münster.
[2] Wejner, T. Wilke (2019): Low Cost – High Tech: The Digital Measurement System LabPi, CHEMKON, 7 (26). DOI: 10.1002/ckon.201900016