Teaching epidemiological concepts in academic settings poses a challenge due to the intricate nature of the discipline as both a science and a practice. Whereas traditional classroom-based teaching methods are commonly employed, evidence suggests they may not be the most effective approach for fostering core competencies and skills required in real-life scientific work. In this article, we describe our process of transitioning from traditional classroom teaching of epidemiology towards practice-based coaching to convey epidemiological concepts to bachelor's and master's students in Biomedicine. We chose the framework of randomized controlled trials (RCT) since they offer a great opportunity to teach epidemiological concepts in a hands-on course. This practice-based course encompasses the entire life cycle of a study, allowing students to design and conduct a short-term experiment, analyse its data and prepare a scientific paper. We provide a comprehensive overview of the course structure, content, learning objectives and course evaluation, while also discussing the advantages and disadvantages of this innovative format. Our approach offers a promising alternative to classroom teaching by incorporating practical, hands-on experiences offering students a high level of independence and self-determination, as well as facilitation and coaching by faculty. It has the potential to be applied across diverse academic settings, providing students with valuable skills and competencies in epidemiology.

中文翻译：

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使用随机对照试验框架对流行病学核心能力进行循证辅导：苏黎世方法。


由于该学科作为科学和实践的复杂性，在学术环境中教授流行病学概念提出了挑战。尽管普遍采用传统的课堂教学方法，但有证据表明，它们可能不是培养现实科学工作所需的核心能力和技能的最有效方法。在本文中，我们描述了从传统的流行病学课堂教学过渡到基于实践的辅导，向生物医学学士和硕士生传达流行病学概念的过程。我们选择了随机对照试验（RCT）框架，因为它们提供了在实践课程中教授流行病学概念的绝佳机会。这门基于实践的课程涵盖了研究的整个生命周期，允许学生设计和进行短期实验、分析数据并准备科学论文。我们全面概述了课程结构、内容、学习目标和课程评估，同时也讨论了这种创新形式的优点和缺点。我们的方法通过结合实际的实践经验，为学生提供高水平的独立性和自决性，以及教师的便利和指导，为课堂教学提供了一种有前景的替代方案。它有潜力应用于不同的学术环境，为学生提供流行病学方面的宝贵技能和能力。