Forensics in the Classroom: Court TV comes to Atlanta Schools

by: Stacy Andell

Chemistry and biology students at Atlanta Schools North Atlanta High School put their laboratory skills in action for a crew of Court TV movie on April 11. As part of forensic medicine "in the classroom," the program, students learned how to collect and analyze evidence from a crime scene. They were not blind. Instead, they were using a range of criminal investigation experts, beginning with the head of science department, Dr. Cadence Spearman. In addition to Dr. Spearman, students interact with Court TV host Rachelle Savoia, lieutenant Police H. Cotton - Technology Authority, the Police Department investigators from the Fulton County, and an instructor from Bauder College of Criminal Sciences.

Organized crime has taken place in the school cafeteria and acts of vandalism and a cut gas line. Students worked through the crime scene, learning the procedures for collecting evidence. The evidence they have collected, including hair fibers, stomach contents, and blood makeup, was then analyzed in the laboratory of the school.

The exercise showed that new standards - based on programs developed by the forensic Court TV, the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, and the National Science Teachers Association. The program combines technical standard laboratory high school with a mystery solving element.

Students at North Atlanta High School participated in the Forensics Unit Four "in the Classroom" Curriculum. Called "The Cafeteria Caper," the crime they investigated involved a school cafeteria that might have wrecked high be linked to an underground club. The laboratory techniques necessary for the investigation consisted of an enzymatic test and hair analysis, blood and DNA - all within their own school laboratory.

To begin the exercise, students were given documents that explain the basic information of the crime they would be in the investigation. They are also given several papers explaining the nature of the inquest and how legal techniques are used to solve crimes.

Students study a range of evidence. Some of them come from the scene of the crime itself, but students also have access to a website layout that details the practices of the underground club they are studying. The site provides additional information for the physical evidence they collected, helping to match the evidence with suspects from the site.

The Forensics "in the Classroom" Curriculum provided detailed lab manuals to conduct the necessary experiments. After reaching their conclusions, they were instructed how to complete the crime lab reports documenting their evidence.

The "Coffee Caper" addressed five of the national forensics curriculum standards. These include:

Develop an understanding of the cell (including enzyme function, organic molecules and indicators)
Develop an understanding of the molecular basis of heredity (including chromosomes, DNA and the genetic
Understand and perform scientific inquiry
Analyze and synthesize several pieces of data to draw a conclusion
Develop an understanding of science and technology

The Forensics "in the Classroom" Curriculum consists of five units designed along the same lines as the Caper "Coffee." With names such as "It's Magic," "The" celebration ", the car" floats, and "Beware of the tenant, each unit promises a unique story and a different set of laboratory techniques to use. The five units are available for free from Court TV to www.courttv.com.

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, provides free, in-depth reports on all public and private U.S. schools K-12. Stacy has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues. To learn more about schools visit Atlanta http:www.schoolsk-12.comGeorgiaAtlantaindex.html

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