Addressing undergraduate misconceptions about antimicrobial resistance: a two-phase study of student reasoning and community engagement

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, misconceptions about antimicrobial resistance (AMR) were widespread among undergraduates. Since then, few studies have reexamined students' thinking about AMR, and even fewer have offered strategies for educators to address these misconceptions. In this study, we assessed undergraduate conceptions of AMR using an adapted Cognitive Construal Framework. We then examined two pedagogical strategies for addressing students' AMR misconceptions. Inquiry-based learning positioned students at the center of the process, giving them flexibility to analyze data from communities beyond their own, while community-based learning (CBL) required students to identify issues within their own communities and engage directly with the problems shaping them. We hypothesized that CBL would best prepare students for taking action to correct misconceptions outside the classroom. We found that both student-centered approaches significantly improved students' conceptual understanding of AMR, but CBL marginally increased a student's likelihood of engaging with misconceptions beyond the classroom. Notably, the incorporation of CBL (i.e., connecting AMR concepts to students' own communities) increased student engagement and promoted students' sense of responsibility to act on public health issues outside the classroom. These findings highlight the importance of contextualizing microbiology curricula in ways that are personally meaningful to students and provide a foundation for future research on post-pandemic science education and the enduring impact of COVID-19 on student thinking.