Have you ever wondered what is going on in different science classes? Are you trying to plan your courses for the next year and want to see if a class is right for you? Well then this is the place for you. In this column, we take a peek into different FHS science classes, and this time, we’re covering one of the most popular electives: Forensic Science.
Forensic Science is a class taught by Ms. Carrie Cummings. She even helped build the curriculum for this course and just this year, added a new element which she cleverly named “True Crime with Cummings.”
She says, “As my knowledge, education and understanding of Forensic Science has evolved over the years, in addition to my interactions and experiences with professionals in the field, I have worked to incorporate my own learnings into class experiences for my students.”
“True Crime with Cummings” was inspired by the popularity of the course and the deep fascination of true crimes. Ms. Cummings says, “True Crime is such a hot topic right now and there are just so many cases that I know students would enjoy learning about and engaging with…I thought, why not just incorporate a true crime component into my class this year and see how it goes.”
Ms. Cummings describes this new element as “a step up from the regular day to day learning and lab experiences that gives students an opportunity to dive deeper into cases and then share their thoughts with each other in the classroom.”
She shares that her favorite part of teaching Forensics is “seeing the engagement of students as [they] cover cases and lab experiences that [she knows] they have an interest in.” She adds, “I can talk Forensics and True Crime all day long, and there is nothing more satisfying than having students who share the same passion.”
When it comes to teaching Forensics in the future, Ms. Cummings looks forward to “not only finding those students who love True Crime like [she does], but also engaging with the students who did not start out with this passion but developed a love for it throughout the school year.”
As for her takeaways from teaching this class, Ms. Cummings says that this is a topic that “sadly, always has updated content.” She goes on to say that she knows she has “done [her] job and [she yearns] to do more when [she gets] an email or correspondence from a prior student, and they are sharing True Crime with [her].”
Ms. Cummings goes on to add her own humorous touch, saying that her biggest takeaway from teaching this class is “how to commit a murder and get away with it.” She shares that her actual biggest takeaway is “to be able to follow true crime and happenings in the future and have an educated understanding of the information being presented to them (just in case they are selected for a jury on the next big crime case).”
Fallston High School senior, Kelli McGee, has some thoughts of her own to share regarding the course. “By taking forensic science, not only can kids trying to purse the career get a look into the field, but even just kids who took the elective for a filler class can take away problem solving skills and analytical thinking,” Kelli says.
When you are planning your courses for next year, make sure to keep Forensic Science in mind! It’s a great opportunity to explore famous forensic cases as well as the different levels of people who handle crimes, crime sciences, and criminal hearings. Plus Ms. Carrie Cummings, despite the nature of the topic, always knows how to brighten your day!
