Forensics class in full force
Sami Joubert
Staff Writer
Have you ever been surprised to see your teacher being questioned by a random group of students who came to the door while you were sitting in science class? Well, this is just one of the many things that students of the forensics class at Westford Academy get to do in order to solve the crime scenarios they are presented.
During the year, students learn different types of skills that include fingerprinting, handwriting analysis, hair analysis, blood typing, and DNA extraction and amplification. Each of these techniques is mainly practiced during labs, and for the most part, the bulk of the work is done in class.
“It’s a lot of in-class work, there’s no homework really except studying for quizzes,” says Teresa Burke, forensics teacher.
Students of the class are then given different types of projects in order to test their abilities to use the skills they have learned. They also get to use a variety of equipment, such as ultraviolet lights, microscopes, and lasers to examine evidence they find. Fake blood is used for the crime scenes.
Some of these projects include leaving the classroom to go examine crime scenes in other parts of the school.
“It’s really unique, you’re pretty much independent for everything you do in the class,” says student Thomas Socorelis.
The final exam for the class is much the same and takes place over the course of much more than just one day. Students get to use the techniques they learn to examine evidence and solve the scenario they are presented. Some examples of these scenarios include a drug deal, a stolen purse, a love triangle, and a stolen pen.
“The final is a performance-based assessment, each one has their own skill set and they come together as a group to find out what happened. They take their skills learned over the whole semester and use them during the final,” says Burke. “They may not get the right answer with their final, but as long as they use the right technique it’s okay.”
The subject of forensics is closely related to chemistry, however one doesn’t have to enjoy or be good in chemistry class in order to find forensics enjoyable. As for math, very little is involved during the entire semester. Students only have to do one basic calculation to get by. Biology is somewhat involved during the practices of DNA analysis and blood typing.
“There’s still blood on Mrs. Garland’s door, it’s still hanging there,” said Socorelis.