Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #107207

Mark Kaelin, EdD, Department of Health Professions, Montclair State University, College Avenue, Upper Montclair, NJ 07043, 973-655-7123, kaelinm@mail.montclair.edu

Based on the interest in our presentation at the 2004 APHA Meeting (Detectives in the Classroom: An Epidemiology Curriculum for Science, Mathematics, and Health Educators), this session will focus on the status of epidemiology education in grades 6-12. To do so, a panel of presenters, who have developed epidemiology curricula for grades 6-12, will review the pedagogical rationale, format, and content of their work and engage attendees in portions of selected lessons. (For example: The Young Epidemiology Scholars curriculum “… is interdisciplinary and can bring new relevance and excitement to the classroom. It is intended to foster the development of analytical skills such as critical thinking, reasoned analysis, deductive reasoning, and problem solving.”) These presentations will be followed by a discussion of the challenges of infusing epidemiology education into an already packed school curriculum at a time when standardized testing is of increasing importance. The session will conclude by identifying components of a plan for addressing these challenges.

Learning Objectives:

• Consider the public health and educational rationale for teaching epidemiology to students in grades 6-12.
• Review selected epidemiology curricula for grades 6-12 (For example; Excellence in Curriculum Integration through Teaching Epidemiology (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), Young Epidemiology Scholars Program (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and College Board), and Detectives in the Classroom.
• Participate in components of lessons from the above curricula.
• Identify the challenges to getting epidemiology taught in grades 6-12.
• Explore ways the public health community can address these challenges.

Keywords: Education, Epidemiology

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation