Online Resources for Educating Students about Ebola and Other Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases

该项目将开发一套基于网络的教学材料和资源，将最近的埃博拉疫情作为主要叙事，教育初中生了解这种疾病、其病因、传播方式，以及应对和控制疫情的方法。中学生将获得有价值的信息，他们需要对当前的埃博拉疫情进行批判性思考，并拥有强大的知识基础。这些资源将加强他们获取、理解和评估他们找到的信息并将其应用于了解疫情对他们自己生活的影响方面的技能。以埃博拉疫情为基础的教学材料将被用作为其他新出现和重新出现的疾病开发类似材料的门户。这一延期至关重要，因为埃博拉危机将很快结束，但流行病和流行病的威胁将继续存在。最近西非爆发的埃博拉疫情在这个国家引发了广泛的担忧和毫无根据的担忧。为了避免对这些流行病的过度反应和不适当的反应，也为了确保在发生真正威胁时做好明智的准备，公民必须有关于这些疾病的基础知识来建立基础。解决民众缺乏理解的一个有效方法是在中学教育期间向学生介绍这一主题。大多数课程和标准没有明确包括这一重要的研究领域，尽管学生通常对这一主题很感兴趣，而且它为学习生物学的基本概念提供了一个引人入胜的工具。学生需要了解他们需要哪些进一步的信息，具备从错误信息中确定可靠信息的评估技能，并知道如何应用这些信息来确定需要采取哪些行动。该项目将为学生提供他们需要批判性思考的宝贵信息，并为他们提供关于当前埃博拉疫情的强大知识基础。

This project will develop a Web-based set of instructional materials and resources that will use the recent Ebola outbreak as the overarching narrative for educating middle and high school students about the disease, its causative agent, how it is spread, and approaches for responding to it and controlling the epidemic. Secondary school students will receive valuable information that they need to think critically and with a strong knowledge base about the current Ebola outbreak. The resources will strengthen their skills in accessing, making sense of, and assessing the information they find and applying it to understanding the implications of the outbreak to their own lives. The instructional materials based on the Ebola outbreak will be used as a gateway to developing similar materials for other emerging and re-emerging diseases. This extension is critically important because the Ebola crisis will end, hopefully soon, but the threat of epidemics and pandemics will continue. The recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa has resulted in widespread concerns and unfounded fears in this country. To avoid overreaction and inappropriate responses to these epidemics, and also to ensure sensible preparation in the event of a real threat, citizens must have a foundational knowledge about these diseases to build upon. One effective way to address this lack of understanding in the populace is to introduce students to the topic during their secondary education. Most curricula and standards do not explicitly include this important area of study even though students are generally fascinated by the topic and it provides an engaging vehicle for learning fundamental concepts in biology. Students need to understand what further information they need, to have the evaluative skills to determine reliable information from misinformation, and to know how to apply this information in determining what actions need to be taken. This project will provide students with valuable information that they need to think critically and with a strong knowledge base about the current Ebola outbreak.