We describe an innovative, semester-long course in biology and communication skills for master's degree students in biostatistics. The primary goal of the course is to make the connection between biological science and statistics more explicit. The secondary goals are to teach oral and written communication skills in an appropriate context for…

This article provides insight into how the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated many in academia to redefine, and consequently restructure public health internships. Specifically, it presents a brief overview of traditional vs. virtual internships, provides more in-depth information about the pros and cons of virtual internships, proposes guidelines for…

Organizations around the world are challenged with managing complex decisions; however, many students do not have practical experience with the way in which these organizations go about this process. In this article, we outline an experiential case, based on a contemporary, real-world health policy challenge, which illustrates the ethical and…

We provide context and motivation for an instructor to use real-life examples in the calculus classroom. To this end we describe two specific project ideas, one related to the devastating impact of methylmercury fungicide in a grain seed supply and the other to a catastrophic methane leak. By using calculus in contexts that have social justice…

Nudge theory describes how indirect suggestions and positive reinforcement can influence decision-making. We used nudge theory to implement a traffic-light labeling and choice architecture (modifying product placement) intervention at Harvard University cafeterias, but found no significant change in sales. Survey and focus group data showed that…

Seattle Children's Research Institute has built a series of in-person education programs to inspire and empower students to explore futures in biomedical research and healthcare. The COVID-19 pandemic prevented us from offering an in-person laboratory program, forcing a rapid pivot to an online format. The Virtual Research Training Program (VRTP)…

As the COVID-19 crisis continues to develop, communities around the world find themselves living in new and uncertain times. School and university closures are significantly disrupting the lives of students, educators and researchers alike. With the sudden shift to online learning platforms, the limitations on research projects and the lack of…

Team teaching can be a valuable means of enabling cross-disciplinary collaboration, interdisciplinary study, and pedagogical innovation, but the logistical and intellectual challenges can seem too daunting to overcome. Here, we share the story of how four faculty members from professional writing, communications, and computing sciences developed a…

Social distancing and school closures forced by the COVID-19 pandemic present extraordinary challenges for education. While the nation is just beginning to understand the impact of the last few months and what the months ahead will mean for students, families, and educators, the depth of students' connectedness to school and the quality of their…

This paper describes assignments that have been implemented in a General Chemistry I course to promote science literacy. This course was chosen in particular because it reaches a broad audience, which includes nonscience majors. The assignment series begins with several discussions and tasks to develop information literacy, in which students find…

In this UniCollaboration plenary session, Barbara Moser-Mercer speaks on setting up education classrooms in refugee camps with University of Geneva students. She starts off with a video which speaks to the virtual exchange idea and how students from the University of Geneva are working together with students in Macau and how that could be…

Understanding the social determinants of health, health equity, and social justice from a social ecological perspective is vital for public health students. This paper provides an example of a creative method for teaching health disparities, using the HBO television series "The Wire." Methods: The pedagogical strength of "The…

A service-learning project appropriate for a biochemistry or advanced biochemistry course was designed and implemented. The project involved students partnering with a homeless shelter to design informational pamphlets to be displayed at the shelter for the clients' use. The pamphlet topics were based on diseases studied within the course.…

While there are recognized and demonstrated benefits of service learning for student outcomes, challenges professors may face using such approach for competency-based teaching have seldom been discussed. This paper describes the integration of service-learning pedagogy in teaching a project-based course on program planning to new Masters of Public…

Action research assumes the active engagement of the stakeholders, such as the community, in the research, and a multiple-level process of reflection in order to evaluate and monitor the actions taken. This makes action research a suitable methodology to increase the critical understanding of the participants. In this paper we describe the…