Ridgewood High school classroom mimics crime scene
MARCH 21, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, MARCH 21, 2014, 12:31 AM
BY LAURA HERZOG
STAFF WRITER
The classroom was a crime scene.
Caution tape was everywhere.
A dead body lay sprawled on the floor.
This, of course, wasn’t a real crime (or a real body), but it was there to help simulate a real investigation.
The fake, model body on the floor was part of a lesson in Karen Walters’ forensics class for Ridgewood High School (RHS) seniors. Now in its second year, the new interdisciplinary college-level course allows students to learn a variety of subjects while using hands-on techniques, sometimes to solve classroom crimes.
And it’s not just faux deaths that the class investigates.
Once, the students discovered that their classroom had – surprise – been the subject of a burglary.
That classroom burglary was executed before class by Walters, who said she “should have gotten an Emmy” for her acting performance that day.
“I said, ‘What happened?!” she recalled.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/high-school-classroom-mimics-crime-scene-1.747145#sthash.Le9BpJPr.dpuf
Once again RHS is letting fluff courses take the place of basic meat and potatoes courses. High school is for learning the basics. HS students do not need to learn Forensic Science, Mandarin Chinese, Psychology, or any number of other courses that should be taken in college. These provide glitz and glitter in the high school, but they take the place of any number of other building blocks curricula that the students should be concentrating on. Question: are the grammar and spelling of the student reports in this Forensic Science class being corrected? My son was in RHS in the 1990’s, and he regularly brought home reports, homework, etc, that were riddled with uncorrected errors and marked as an A.
Spelling a word correct was never a priority in Ridgewood schools so it should not come as a surprise.
As long as you can have lunch delivered to the HS, Who cares about anything else??
It is an elective, not a core course. Einstein, please tell me what makes this a fluff course? Do you know the prerequisites, the tests/homework and papers assigned? It is “fluff” because it is interesting and not a class offered when you went to school in the 60’s?
Dr. Walters is a fabulous teacher and while the class may be fun, I’m sure it is challenging. Great job Dr. Walters!!!
Dr. Walters is no doubt fabulous and the class is probably fun and challenging. But, it is taking the place of something else, something like spelling, grammar, world history, things that are definitely,lacking in the RHS curriculum requirements.
#6. It does not take the place of a social studies class, it is a science elective. A student must complete science requirements in addition to this class. You are criticizing something that you know nothing about. Select classes for your own child and leave the interesting science classes for the rest of us.
There are no spelling classes in the high school either.
Exciting inquiry lesson. I’m sure the students learned a great deal.
#6 – I thought like you until my RHS child took the SATs and scored extremely well; well enough to get accepted into the top colleges of his choice. I am happy to report his is exceling at his studies in an extremely challenging program. Taking fun and interesting electives like “Physics, Engineering and Art”, “Criminal Justice” and woodshop did not hurt him. In fact, he is well rounded and happy.
Just my personal experience.