In this module, students were introduced to the core roles and professional competencies associated with the work of registered forensic psychologists, as identified by the BPS and the HCPC, and were given a range of activities to embed their knowledge and understanding in these areas. Students were asked to upload the results of tasks to the virtual learning environment (VLE) discussion board in order to share their knowledge and reflections from the task and generate discussions about how this knowledge could be embedded within a professional, practical context. In addition, students were encouraged to utilise their independent study time to identify cases within current forensic psychology literature and media resources, where a forensic psychologist could play a role. They then identified which element of the professional competencies this role would fall into and uploaded their findings onto the VLE.
Developing students’ knowledge and understanding of the core roles and competencies had the added benefit of making the students more employable, and more attractive to universities to whom they were applying to undertake postgraduate study. For example, when writing personal statements to be included in applications to MSc courses in forensic psychology, students were able to link the work that they had done over the last academic year to the professional competencies and core roles, and identify key areas of work that they had undertaken to develop and embed this knowledge, while also developing a strong grounding in ethics, professionalism and reflective practice.
Evidence-informed approaches were consistently used to direct the teaching on this module. For example, Bleakly and Brennan (2011) identified a number of key recommendations for teaching practitioner-based subjects like forensic psychology, such as the use of structured, experiential learning to ensure that professional standards and client interaction are at the heart of the student experience. These strategies were adopted in various ways, such as developing sessions where students role-played as both the practitioner and client, and creating a task where students had to undertake data collection for a psychological autopsy within a simulated investigative environment.
Evidence of the impact of these teaching practices can be found within the extremely positive student feedback for this module from the 2015-16 cohort. For example, 100% of students reported feeling engaged with the module, and all felt that it had challenged them to develop their thinking. In addition, all students felt that the assessments had stimulated their learning and developed their skills and knowledge. These extremely positive results suggest that the innovative teaching practices on this module are helping to create a strong, effective and professionally-centred module, which not only benefits the students but is also a pleasure to deliver.
References
Bleakley, A., & Brennan, N. (2011). Does undergraduate curriculum design make a difference to readiness to prcatice as a junior doctor? Medical Teacher, 33(6), 459-467.