Budding detectives and scientists in Singapore were put through their paces by Murdoch University education and forensic science undergraduates recently as part of an innovative New Colombo Plan initiative.

The five students designed and implemented CSI Singapore – Are You a Natural (Science) Detective, an interactive program for visitors to Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum to showcase how forensic science and nature can come together to solve a crime – in this case the ‘murder’ of the director of the museum.

The students worked closely for months to put together displays and presentations that could be enjoyed by a wide range of participants, from the ages of seven and up, encouraging the development of their teamwork and communication skills.

Led by Murdoch forensic scientist Dr Paola Magni, the group took full advantage of the opportunity to communicate their passion for science to hundreds of museum visitors and school groups, earning positive feedback and pushing them outside their comfort zones.

Education student Darcy Jacobson, from East Victoria Park, said she enjoyed working across disciplines to communicate the science content to a wide, international audience.

“The teamwork throughout the process, as well as the personal learning I’ve had to do to be able to effectively communicate our science content, has been enjoyable,” Darcy said.

“Our team has grown together and it has been really enjoyable to get to know the other girls, we’re always laughing!”

Forensics student Georgia Cottnam from Rockingham said being able to share her passion for forensics with a wide variety of people from a range of academic and cultural backgrounds had been a highlight.

In one of our first groups on the program I had a young girl come up to me and tell me that she wanted to be a forensic scientist just like me one day. It was incredibly fulfilling to hear I’m inspiring young girls to pursue STEM careers,” Georgia said.

Education student Shailey Rushton from Mount Pleasant said the experience had given her the opportunity to step outside her role as a classroom teacher and see how her degree could help her in other situations.

“Providing opportunities for STEM education has made me love it more. I can now use what I have experienced on the trip to help shape my teaching in Perth, and who knows maybe solve a murder or two!”

Forensics student Kirsty Summers from Butler said the experience in Singapore had been the most challenging and rewarding experience in her degree so far.

“I’ve gained a confidence in myself through breaking out of my comfort zone and public speaking to a range of ages every day,” Kirsty said. “Learning the key tips in how to share the wonderment and spark curiosity in all ages through how we communicate our knowledge has been an invaluable lesson learnt from Paola!”

Forensics student Naomi Strettles from Secret Harbour said seeing the spark of interest in childrens’ eyes during her presentations had been exciting.

“It's that same look I got when I first found out how much I loved science and I loved being able to share my knowledge and help kids to learn and explore their passions,” she said.

Students reaped the rewards

Dr Magni, who recently made the final of the international science communication competition FameLab, said the students had made the most of the unique opportunity to design and run CSI Singapore.

“The work and personal experiences they gained from this opportunity, especially in an overseas and intercultural set up, were amazing,” Dr Magni said.

“They worked very hard over several months to create the case, the material for the hands on activities and then they led the experience for 100 people daily. They worked hard but reaped the rewards.”

The New Colombo Plan is a Federal Government initiative which aims to increase Australians’ knowledge of the Indo-Pacific by supporting undergraduates to study and undertake internships in the region.

The CSI Singapore project was a collaboration between Dr Magni, Dr Amanda Woods-McConney from Murdoch’s education discipline, Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum and Murdoch’s Singapore campus.

Picture caption: Murdoch students and staff with representatives of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum in Singapore. From left Jharyathri Thiagarajah, Irene Link, Paola Magni, Professor Peter Ng Lee Kin, Darcy Jacobson, Naomi Strettles, Kirsty Summers, Shailey Rushton and  Georgia Cottnam.