Pharmacy Immunology-challenges of teaching a new course in a COVID-affected world of education.

Abstract

Abstract Immunology education in US schools and colleges of pharmacy do not have a standardized curriculum. Half of 142 colleges of pharmacies have a dedicated course of Immunology with three fourth of them in the first year of pharmacy education. Although it is a part of core curriculum yet more private than public schools allocate about 3 credit hours. Chicago State University College of Pharmacy offered a new 2-credit course of “Pharmacy Immunology'' in the fall of 2021 to twenty-four second year pharmacy students for the first time. Ten lectures on basic immunology, i.e., innate and adaptive immunity, prepared the students to understand disorders and diseases associated with the immune system. Four workshops of 3-hours each, on Hypersensitivities, Autoimmunity, Transplantation and Tumor Immunology were added to the syllabus. The workshops employed a Modified Flipped Classroom, Team-Based Learning (TBL), Case-Based Learning (CBL), YouTube videos as a combination of various teaching methods. The course was offered as a standard in-class on-campus module. Student’s performance was assessed by tRAT and iRAT. Data of student performance and perception was collected and analyzed. 58.3% of students agreed that the workshop's mode of learning helped them. TBL appealed to 29.2%, CBL 45.8%, and PowerPoint lectures 79.2% of the students. Overall, 33.3% of the students disliked workshops as a tool for offering an interactive educational tool. Assessment data confirmed that the pass rate was 100%, with 20.8% passing in iRAT as compared to 79.2% in tRAT. Final assessment and course evaluation data suggest that a hybrid approach including a blended learning technique was the best option, catering for the needs of most students having a diverse learning style.