Creating, Implementing, and Evaluating Forensics Activities Kits in a Remote Learning Modality

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in many learning institutions switching from the traditional face-to-face instruction to remote learning. This study highlights the use of forensics activities kits for an introductory forensics lecture course that was taught remotely during the Spring 2021 semester. Each student within the course received a forensics activities kit which included a packaging evidence kit, fingerprinting kit, handwriting/chromatography kit, and a blood spatter kit. At the end of the semester, students were surveyed for feedback regarding the kits. The majority of the students agreed that the individual kits were effective activities for learning the respective material. All students agreed that overall, the kits helped them to further understand the forensics concepts as well as increased their confidence in understanding the material. This study suggests that forensics kits are effective hands-on activities for students and should be considered when developing a remote or distance education course. Further research into using hands-on activities kits within virtual forensics courses should be explored.