Developing an international concept-based curriculum for pharmacology
education: core concepts and concept inventories
Abstract
Many science and health profession graduates lack fundamental
pharmacology knowledge and the ability to apply pharmacology concepts in
practice. This article reviews the current challenges faced by
pharmacology educators, including the exponential growth in discipline
knowledge and competition for curricular time. We then argue that
pharmacology education should focus on essential concepts that enable
students to develop beyond ‘know’ towards ‘know how to’. A concept-based
approach will help educators prioritise and benchmark their pharmacology
curriculum, facilitate integration of pharmacology with other
disciplines in the curriculum, create alignment between universities,
and improve the application of pharmacology knowledge to professional
contexts such as safe prescribing practices. To achieve this, core
concepts first need to be identified, unpacked, and methods for teaching
and assessment using concept inventories developed. The International
Society for Basic and Clinical Pharmacology Education Section
(IUPHAR-Ed) Core Concepts in Pharmacology (CCP) initiative involves over
300 educators from the global pharmacology community. CCP has identified
and defined the core concepts of pharmacology, together with key
underpinning sub-concepts. To realise these benefits, pharmacology
educators must identify, unpack, and develop methods to teach and assess
core concepts. Work to develop a concept inventories is ongoing,
including the identification of student misconceptions of the core
concepts and the creation of a bank of multiple-choice questions to
assess student understanding. Future work aims to develop and validate
materials and methods to help educators embed core concepts within
curricula. Potential strategies that educators can use to overcome
factors that inhibit adoption of core concepts are presented.