According to TV’s CSI, forensic science can do no wrong. Thus, if you are a criminal, wear gloves and a hairnet, brush over footprints left in the dirt, and leave no evidence behind.

Remember the O.J. Simpson trial for the murder of Nicole Brown? It appears the police botched the evidence collection, calling the investigation into question. How many times have you seen your local paper run a story about a person who was wrongly convicted and later freed from prison based on new DNA evidence?

The NYTimes.com reports that the National Academy of Sciences will release a study this month documenting shoddy forensic techniques across the country’s law enforcement agencies. Further, forensic witnesses tend to exaggerate evidence at trials. The report calls for better training of technicians, national standards, and independence of forensic investigations from law enforcement agencies.

The report puts law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, on the defense. But everyone who has been wrongfully convicted and everyone else who has the potential for such an experience should welcome the report. Understandably, defense lawyers are big supporters too.

How to Turn This News Event into an Inquiry-Based, Standards-Related Science Lesson

Forensic science seems to be inherently interesting to students. They love the mystery, and the good versus evil theme. But do they realize the full scope of disciplines involved in this field? The article lists “anthropology, biology, chemistry, physics, medicine and law.” This is a good opportunity to introduce middle school students, who are just beginning their understanding of what science is, to the various science disciplines and to see applications of the scientific way of knowing in fields like law.

Put students in teams and have them look up each of these fields. After they learn from each other what each field is about, present them with a crime scenario. There are several to choose from at http://www.colorado.edu/Outreach/BSI/k12activities/forensics.html. How would each discipline play into investigating such a crime? How will we know the investigation is rigorous and executed according to methods in science?

If appropriate, have students work in cross-disciplinary teams, representing the fields listed above, to investigate the crime. Create a rubric for students that emphasizes methods in science. Criteria should include:

Finally, help students make explicit connections between the investigation process and methods in science. For example, though the rubric may not have required students to make a hypothesis, the point in the investigation when students thought, “OK, if John Doe committed this crime, then X,” represents hypothesizing.

According to the National Academy of Sciences, America needs well-trained forensic scientists. Their training can begin now with getting a good handle on what scientific investigations require and the teamwork needed to execute them. Training students in scientific thinking will serve them well for the rest of their academic career and beyond.

Here are additional resources from the National Science Digital Library Middle School Portal: Genetics, (a tutorial including a section on forensics); DNA Interactive Applications: Science Sampler: Forensic Measures, and The Evaluation of Forensic DNA Evidence

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