Curricular Framing of the Undergraduate Immunology Classroom

Immunology education has historically been delivered at the graduate level. Calls for reform in biology education and increased workforce demand for individuals trained in immunology have spurred efforts to examine immunology education at the undergraduate level. The Undergraduate Immunology Education Consortium, a newly formed international group of immunology educators representing diverse institutions, is contributing to this effort through the development of curricular resources and student learning outcomes. We have identified a set of fundamental concepts that are critical to the understanding of immunology for undergraduate students and align with the 2011 AAAS Vision and Change Report. To identify consensus among immunology educators this group distributed an initial online survey to immunology educators to evaluate the identified fundamental concepts. Following survey feedback, the concepts were revised, submitted for further evaluation by immunology educators in focus groups, and then distributed in a final survey. Analyses of the data from the initial survey demonstrated that the respondent pool represented a varied and diverse range of expertise. Although teaching experience and current role in teaching influenced the proportion of time allotted to some immunology subtopics, topics of greatest emphasis included innate immunity, adaptive immunity, host-pathogen interactions, and molecular mechanisms. An understanding of current curricular practices by immunology educators will further aid in the refinement of the fundamental concepts, their interdisciplinary use in a diverse range of undergraduate science curricula, and future collection of assessment data to analyze effective best practices.