Engaging student learners with real-world experiential education: Undergraduate research in entomology courses to prepare future forensic scientists

Experiential learning can have a profound impact on the ability of learners to engage with the content through active participation, exposure to novel practices, addressing real-world issues and reflecting on their learning. In the entomology course,
Forensic Investigation

, students learn about crime scene investigation techniques and participate in a semester-long cold case research project. Students in this course work in small groups to research unresolved cases and the project teaches students research techniques, digital and information literacy, designing infographics and advocacy skills. Students engage with community partners as they work on the cold case investigation, which prepares students to be Citizen Detectives and offers a chance for active learning by participating in cold case research and generating visualizations for cold cases. This project provides a problem-based learning framework to introduce students to the concepts of investigations and research techniques using cold cases, while providing a thorough understanding of the consequences of violent crimes beyond the crime scene. Students reflect on their learning and engagement in this research at the beginning and end of the semester. This presentation will provide examples of student deliverables, discuss the outcomes of student reflections, providing insights into learning, confidence and research abilities gained through experiential learning.