UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDAFORENSIC SCIENCE

DISTANCE EDUCATION

Mary EdwardsSpring 2010Distance Education Leadership & Management

Contents Introduction Program Overview Accreditation and Oversight Marketplace Context Leadership Program Features Success Factors Conclusion

Introduction The recent growth in popular television

shows like CSI, NCSI highlights the work of forensic scientists and popularized the field:“Interest in forensic science has increased dramatically in the past 10 years.” – From the below referenced Technical Working Group on Education and Training in Forensic Science Report

Forensic Science Education programs are at the Undergraduate and Graduate (primarily Masters) level

Introduction University of Florida offers Masters

Degrees and Certificate Programs in general Forensic Science and specific concentrations

Students refer to themselves as “investi-Gators”

An interdisciplinary program based out of the Colleges of Pharmacy and Veterinary Medicine

Library Support: Provided by the Health Science Center Library

Program Overview Program Website: http://www.forensicscience.ufl.edu/ Offerings:

Certificates (12 credit hour) Master of Science

Certificates: Environmental Forensics Forensic Death Investigation Forensic Toxicology Clinical Toxicology Drug Chemistry Forensic DNA & Serology

Degrees: MS in Forensic Toxicology MS in Drug Chemistry MS in Forensic DNA & Serology MS in Forensic Science

Program Overview Has demonstrated continual growth

including a 50% enrollment increase over last year

Currently 928 students enrolled Students are working professionals in

a variety of settings including crime & industry labs and schools

Many students are currently deployed active duty military personnel

Program Overview Global Forensic Science Education =

Partnerships with the University of Edinburgh and the University of Canberra

Demonstrates an interest in incorporating technology to enhance teaching and social networking to enhance the community of practice

Won the 2006 (Association for Distance Education) ADEC Excellence Award

Success Factors Success factors include:

A specific niche market experiencing growth

A visionary leaderContinual expansionGlobal partnershipsSolid curriculaA strong sense of student community

Accreditation and Oversight

From the Technical Working Group on Education and Training in Forensic Science (of which Dr. Ian Tebbett was a member)“To ensure that these programs adequately prepare practitioners for their careers in operational laboratories, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has supported West Virginia University’s establishment of the Technical Working Group for Education and Training in Forensic Science for the purpose of recommending best practices for educational curriculums in forensic science. “

Recommendations for Graduate Degrees

What the report says about graduate degree programs:“Graduate programs can move students from theoretical concepts to discipline-specific knowledge. Exemplary curriculums can include such topics as crime scenes, physical evidence, law/ science interface, ethics, and quality assurance to complement the student’s advanced coursework…By emphasizing written and oral communication and report writing, graduate programs can prepare students for future courtroom testimony. “

Marketplace Context Forensic Science education is growing

and there are an increasing number of face-to-face programs that provide undergraduate and graduate degrees (taskforce report)

The UF program leads the market for online Forensic Science Education

Makes use of a third party tools including google analytics, google ads and a marketing service

Marketplace Context A positive employment outlook results in

growth of educational programs. From the Occupational Outlook

Handbook:Jobs for forensic science technicians are expected to increase by 20 percent, which is much faster than average. Employment growth in State and local government should be driven by the increasing application of forensic science techniques, such as DNA analysis, to examine, solve, and prevent crime.

Leadership Program co-directors: Ian Tebett and Eileen Oliver

Ian Tebbett is a visionary leader and under his leadership the program has: Added degrees and concentrations Experienced continued phenomenal enrollment

growth He is an advocate for global partnerships

and models this ideal in his programs His forensic programs are self-funded and

profit generating

Leadership Dr. Tebbett is involved with distance

education leadership initiatives on campus and beyond

Examples of campus involvement: Campus wide distance education taskforces Self-funded program approval committee

He constantly seeks technological solutions to improve the learning experience of his students, but is mindful of pedagogical value and doesn’t adopt “cool tools” for their novelty

Examples of Technological Innovation

Example: Pedagogical Problem – Recreating a crime scene and introducing elements of interactivityTechnology Solutions – Second Life and virtual worlds were trialed but were rejected because of graphic qualityWorking with a developer to create an interactive 360 degree camera view mobile application

Program Faculty Faculty come primarily from 2 UF

Colleges: Pharmacy and Veterinary Medicine

UF faculty are campus based and also teach in other programs

Other program faculty come from the University of Edinburgh (Scotland) and University of Canberra University (Australia)

Leveraging expertise by the use of excellent adjunct faculty

Program Features Overview

Curriculum Global Goals Collaboration Student Community Engagement

(high levels of student-student interactions)

Program Features: Curricular

All programs require a few core courses and electives in the area of concentration

It is expected that students have prior knowledge and use of equipment from undergraduate lab courses

Many of the students are working in lab settings (state or federal crime labs, private forensic labs, corporate and industry labs) and use the lab access to build upon the theoretical knowledge in coursework

Core Courses Literature Survey in Forensic Science (or

Forensic Toxicology, DNA Serology, etc. based on area of concentration – requires a literature search and review

Principles of Forensic Science Special Topics (includes a face-to-face

component with oral and written comprehensive exams) – usually taken in the final semester

Students can substitute other experiences (like workshops for the literature class) but Special Topics is required for graduation

Program Features: Global Goals Global Goals:

“The goal is to make quality educational materials in forensic science available internationally and in multiple languages in an effort to develop an international network of organizations involved in training and education in crime detection and prevention” (Dr. Ian Tebbett, Program Director)

Collaboration and Partnerships Partnerships with a variety of

international institutions and organizations to develop and deliver their programs : the University of Edinburgh in Scotland University of Canberra Canberra Institute of Technology Australian Federal Police Silpakorn University in Bangkok Feevale University in Brazil

Program Features: Community Anecdotal evidence (from student quotes,

comments, and forum participation) indicates a strong sense of community and connectedness with peers regardless of the distance

Many students continue to participate in program communication after leaving the program via the program announcement discussion boards

Students get together at conferences and meetings whenever possible (from periodioc observation of the discussion boards)

Program Features: Community

See the following slides and screen captures for examples of the community and participation of forensic science students:Elearning announcement sectionForensic Science BlogFacebook group

Current and past students provide positive feedback regarding their overall learning experience

Students comment on the sense of community within the program

The Forensic Science Blog leverages web 2.0 philosophies of RSS news feeds, interactive web design, and the participatory web

Social networking tools like Facebook are utilized to increase student engagement and provide a social outlet for prospective, current, and past students. Anecdotal evidence from the program director (Ian Tebbett) suggests that the facebook group has served a secondary function as an effective (and surprising) marketing tool

Conclusion Program growth and feedback from

students is evidence of success Strong and Innovative leadership Relevant curriculum The UF Forensic Science Program is

responding to a market place need in 2 ways: By offering graduate level forensic science

education By offering high quality distance education

geared toward working professionals

References American Academy of Forensic Sciences –http://www.aafs.org/pdf/NIJReport.pdf Society of Forensic Toxicologists – http://www.soft-tox.org/ Occupational Outlook Handbook, Bureau

of Labor Statistics - http://www.bls.gov/oco/

THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF ONLINE LEARNING - http://online.education.ufl.edu/mod/resource/view.php?id=49285