6 EC
Semester 1, period 2
5274OBBT6Y
| Owner | Master Forensic Science |
| Coordinator | dr. E.J.A.T. Mattijssen |
| Part of | Master Forensic Science, year 1 |
| Links | Visible Learning Trajectories |
Numerous disciplines in forensic science rely on a human, as the 'instrument' of analysis and interpretation. The course Observer-based Techniques deals with the pros and cons of this. During the course forensic techniques such as firearm examination, tool marks, handwriting and fingerprints will be addressed. We will focus on the similarities between these different observer-based techniques, their validity and reliability, and criticism on these techniques. The latter includes the lack of data concerning their validity and reliability and the effect of context information on the expert’s decision-making process. We will also discuss potential ways of improving these disciplines by either procedures or making better use of data to objectify forensic examinations.
During the course we will elaborate on two specific fields of interest, namely: fingerprints and ballistics.
For fingerprints we will focus on the different approaches on assessing the quality of the fingerprint to the final interpretation on source level. Furthermore the new developments and their potential in the field will be addressed.
For ballistics the essentials of trace comparisons and the reconstruction of a crime scene will be discussed. This will prepare the students to work on a mock shooting scene and to act as an expert in that examination. From a combination of their own findings, observer-based comparisons and fictitious lab results events have to be reconstructed and a final overview of the findings of the crime scene has to be laid down by the students.
Handouts of the presentations
This course consists of lectures, tutorials and practicals.
In general, a topic will start with a lecture about (a part) of the theory after which you will receive a team assignment. (Poster)presentations on assignments will be given a few days later. The assignments will be given to illustrate the different concepts addressed during the module. In addition to the lectures, tutorial and practicals the student is expected to read the indicated literature. Due to scheduling some weeks of the course will be more demanding of the students’ time than others and the amount of literature will vary as well. We recommend students to study the schedule and plan the necessary hours for reading the literature at the beginning of the course.
The tutorial and all practicals are mandatory for the scheduled teams. To be able to offer every team the same material, the practicals will be given multiple times during a day. Because of limited time and space, each team should come to the appropriate scheduled session (cannot be exchanged).
|
Activity |
Hours |
|
|
Excursie |
10 |
|
|
Hoorcollege |
26 |
|
|
Practicum |
8 |
|
|
Tentamen |
3 |
|
|
Werkcollege |
16 |
|
|
Self study |
105 |
|
|
Total |
168 |
(6 EC x 28 uur) |
This programme does not have requirements concerning attendance (OER part B).
Additional requirements for this course:
Attending all scheduled education activities is strongly advised. By doing so, you actively contribute to a lively learning community and significantly improve your chances of successfully completing the course. The designated mandatory activities play a crucial role in achieving the course objectives and are essential for your overall progress.
Additional requirements for this course:
Students are expected to participate in the (online) classes, but the lectures are not mandatory. The (online) student presentations, tutorials and practicals are compulsory for all students. When unable to attend please inform the instructor in good time to figure out a possible solution.
| Item and weight | Details |
|
Final grade | |
|
50% Tentamen | Must be ≥ 5.5, Mandatory |
|
30% Mock shooting scene - upload reports | Must be ≥ 5.5, Mandatory |
|
20% Presentations and tutorials combined (20%, where the case example assignment and the tutorial terminal ballistics will constitute for 5 of the total 20%) | Must be ≥ 5.5, Mandatory |
1. Presentation
The assignment focusing on a real case example will be assessed by the instructor. Your group-wise self-assessment on your primarily formulated scenario and possibly changed scenario will be assessed. The instructor will provide a numerical grade.
The assignment on approaches in fingerprint evaluation will be assessed on the basis of the poster for the final presentation. Assessment will be performed by the instructor at group level. The instructor will provide a numerical grade.
2. Practicals
The mock shooting scene will be assessed by two reports at group level:
1) A written expert's report on the firearm examination and bullet trajectory reconstruction of the mock shooting scene
2) A written report on scenario formulation and crime scene reconstruction following the mock shooting scene
Grading of the report will be done by the instructors. They will provide a numerical grade. Aspects to be considered during grading, and there weight, will be provided to the students at the start of the assignment. Both reports will count as 50% for the final grade of the assignment.
3. Written Examination
The final exam of this course will be an Multiple Choice examination based on the content covered during the lectures, practicals and literature. The exam will be assessed on an individual basis.
4. The calculation of the final grade
All components will be graded on a scale from 1 to 10, with a maximum of one decimal after the point. These grades are used to calculate the final grade. In order to pass the course, all components and the final grade have to be sufficient, i.e., at least a five and a half. When a student has not fulfilled this requirement, the examiner will register the mark ‘did not fulfill all requirements’ (NAV) whether or not the averaged grade is sufficient.
The components will be weighted as follows:
The final grade will be announced at the latest 15 working days after the final course activity (January 14th). Between this date and 35 working days after the final course activity (February 11th), a post-exam discussion or inspection moment will be planned. This will be announced on Canvas and/or via email
| LO | Tested in component | EQ 1 | EQ 2 | EQ 3 | EQ 4 | EQ 5 | EQ 6 | EQ 7 | EQ 8 | EQ 9 | EQ 10 |
| 1 | 2, 3 | x | |||||||||
| 2 | 2, 3 | x | |||||||||
| 3 | 1, 3 | x | |||||||||
| 4 | 2, 3 | x | |||||||||
| 5 | 3 | x | |||||||||
| 6 | 3 | x | |||||||||
| 7 | 2, 3 | x |
Table of specification: the relation between the Learning Outcomes (LO) of the course, the assessment components of the course and the Exit Qualifications (EQ) of the Master’s Forensic Science (described in the Introduction in the Course Catalogue)
The presentations
The assignment focusing on a real case example will be assessed by the instructor. Your group-wise self-assessment on your primarily formulated scenario and possibly changed scenario will be assessed. The instructor will provide a numerical grade.
The assignment on approaches in fingerprint evaluation will be assessed on the basis of the poster for the final presentation. Assessment will be performed by the instructor at group level. The instructor will provide a numerical grade.
The practicals
The mock shooting scene will be assessed by two reports at group level:
1) A written expert's report on the firearm examination and bullet trajectory reconstruction of the mock shooting scene
2) A written report on scenario formulation and crime scene reconstruction following the mock shooting scene
Grading of the report will be done by the instructors. They will provide a numerical grade. Aspects to be considered during grading, and there weight, will be provided to the students at the start of the assignment. Both reports will count as 50% for the final grade of the assignment.
The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl
Use of GenAI in MFS
Within the Master Forensic Science, you are allowed to use Generative AI (GenAI) to support your learning process process but according to the policy framework and guidelines as defined by the University of Amsterdam. For example, you can use large language models (LLMs) to help your self-study by generating flashcards or generating explanations of concepts. GenAI should be a support tool to help you reach the course's learning objectives, not a system to which you delegate activities that are meant to promote your learning. The course examiner has final say on which use cases are permissible or not within their course.
You may not use GenAI to create any content you submit for assessment, regardless of whether it's graded numerically or on a pass/fail basis. The only exception is if an assignment description explicitly allows GenAI use. In such cases, permissible use is delineated by the course instructor.
Never share personal information, research data, or course materials with a GenAI system, except for UvA AI Chat. This UvA-hosted system was built with GDPR compliance and data security in mind. If in doubt about sharing information, don't share. You can always check with your course coordinator whether any intended use case is responsible.
Teachers are never allowed to use GenAI to grade your work. They may, however, use it to formulate their feedback. Only tools allowed by UvA should be used in research and education. If there is no UvA license for software, use cannot be mandatory in education. This implies that learning objectives must be achievable without the use of non-licensed tools. UvA AI Chat can be used, if used with due consideration and care.
Use within OBT
Within Observer-based Techniques, GenAI use is allowed to explore concepts and enhance your understanding of the course material. When working on exercises or practice problems, you are highly encouraged to first solve them independently and then discuss your approach with your fellow students. You may use GenAI to experiment with alternative reasoning paths or reflect on your solutions. Always critically evaluate the output of GenAI tools. Use it as an opportunity to analyze alternative approaches and identify possible reasoning errors—either in your own solution or in the genAI's. You are not permitted to use GenAI to prepare for presentations, for written reports, or reading and assigment tools such as Perusall. These are intended for sharing your own reasoning, questions, and insights. However, you may post questions or comments that were inspired by GenAI output, provided you clearly acknowledge the source and believe the discussion could contribute to your learning process and that of your fellow students.