Active-learning implementation in an advanced elective course on infectious diseases.

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Infectious Diseases
• Pharmacy Curriculum

Background:

• Traditional didactic methods may not fully engage students in complex subjects like infectious diseases.
• Developing critical thinking and literature evaluation skills is crucial for pharmacy students.
• Active learning strategies offer a promising approach to enhance student engagement and knowledge retention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To detail the creation, execution, and evaluation of an advanced infectious diseases elective.
• To assess the impact of active learning strategies on student learning outcomes.
• To determine student perceptions of active learning's role in pharmacy education.

Main Methods:

• An advanced elective course on infectious diseases was developed incorporating active learning.
• Active learning methods included mini-lectures, journal clubs, and debates, comprising 30% of course time.
• Forty-eight students participated in the 4-week course, with activities designed in a stepwise progression.

Main Results:

• Student awareness of antimicrobial resistance significance significantly increased (p ≤ 0.05).
• Active learning enhanced students' ability to critically evaluate infectious disease literature and apply it to clinical judgment (p ≤ 0.05).
• Students reported improved critical-thinking, literature-evaluation, and self-learning skills.

Conclusions:

• An active learning-based infectious diseases course effectively integrated literature evaluation, critical thinking, and clinical judgment.
• This blended approach led to increased knowledge and awareness of infectious diseases among pharmacy students.
• Students strongly supported the inclusion of active learning strategies in the pharmacy curriculum.