Evaluating Film and Anime as Tools for Introducing Immunology to Students 2257917

Abstract Introduction Film and anime offer a unique way of relaying information to students. The goal of this study was to evaluate the use of media, specifically “Cells at Work!” (CAW), an animated series centered on immunology, and “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (IBS), a movie used as an analogy for immunological concepts, as learning tools for immunology. Methods First-year medical students (classes of ‘27, ‘28, ‘29) at California Northstate University College of Medicine (CNUCOM) were recruited to participate. For CAW, students took a pre- and post-video quiz (Group 1) or only the post-video quiz (Group 2). For IBS, students watched the movie prior to seeing the analogies in lecture. After attending lecture, students took a subjective survey on the analogy’s effectiveness. After the summative examination, all study participants completed a subjective survey on their perception of these learning tools. Results For CAW, Group 1 (N = 53) had a pre-video average of 64.2% and post-video average of 75.5%, showing a significant increase (p-value = 0.00024). Compared to Group 1’s pre-video average, Group 2 (N = 49) had a significantly higher post-video average of 73.6% (p-value = 0.0024). The post-summative subjective survey (N = 79) revealed that 97.5% agreed that CAW would be helpful for introducing immunology to first-time learners. For IBS, the post-lecture subjective survey (N = 76) revealed that 84.2% agreed that they enjoyed and were engaged by the movie analogy. For the post-summative subjective survey (N = 61), 82% agreed that they felt more confident in their ability to learn immunology after learning the IBS analogy. Conclusion The results suggest that film and anime can be helpful tools for learning immunology, enhancing understanding and positively influencing student perceptions. This study highlights how media can be leveraged to provide a more entertaining approach to difficult subjects, supporting further exploration into less conventional educational methods. Funding Source (1) Seed grant from California Northstate University, College of Medicine; (2) Seed grant from California Northstate University, Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence (ITLE) Topic Categories Immunology Education and Communication (EDU)