Food Protection Trends - May/June 2020 - 165

nationwide offer a food science program that meets the
standards for degrees in Food Science set by the Institute
of Food Technologists (IFT) Higher Education Review
Board (HERB) (6). The food science major is considered a
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics)
discipline by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
(2). Since 2000, STEM-related majors have represented
only one-third of all bachelor's degree awarded in the U.S.,
and the rate of transfer out of STEM into a non-STEM field
by U.S. undergraduate students averaged around 20% in
2014 (11). Coupled with a 7% decrease in enrollment at the
undergraduate level between 2010 and 2017 in the U.S., a need
exists to attract students to this important field of study (10).
Many strategies have been implemented to attract students
to STEM-related fields, and food science has proven to
be a good mechanism, since it is a multidisciplinary field
that includes microbiology, engineering, chemistry, and
processing, among other areas. Researchers (13) have worked
with students from elementary school through high school
on a project that used foods to demonstrate the principles
of phase change, sensory analysis, shear, formulation,
energy and chemistry. Approaches of the activities varied
according to the students' level of education. As an example,
ice cream frozen with liquid nitrogen was the food model
used to teach about phase change and heat transfer. Children
from kindergarten to 4th grade learned that liquid nitrogen
is colder than ice cream mix, whereas students from 4th
to 8th grade observed the changes from liquid to gas for
nitrogen and liquid to solid for ice cream, which highlighted
the difference between heat requirement and heat release.
Students in 9th to 12th grade focused on the phase change
at the molecular level. Through these activities, researchers
(12) showed that science can be taught at a young age and
attract students into STEM at a very early stage. "Food science
is the study of the physical, biological, and chemical makeup of
food and the concepts underlying food processing," according to
the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) (7). Usually, the
curriculum includes a food microbiology course as a core
class, typically composed of lectures and practical laboratory
sessions, during the junior or senior year. Engaging students
on the importance of microbiology and safety of the food
supply can be challenging for the instructor who relies on
lectures alone. Several studies (1, 4, 12) have demonstrated
that students are more successful when engaged in an active
learning process rather than in a traditional lecture course.
Basically, any activity that involves participation of the
students (group problem solving, workshop course designs,
or worksheets) rather than being in a traditional listeningonly course contributes to engagement of the students
(4). Further, activities in which students participate in
experiential learning, such as surveys, research group projects
or outdoor work, promote more in-depth understanding
of the subject (1). Therefore, the overall goal of the present
study was to evaluate strategies to engage undergraduate

students with regard to the importance of food safety and
microbiology. Three different approaches were used during
the semester: agar art, outbreak case studies and a research
group project. Quizzes, in-class discussions and appraisal
of laboratory notebooks were used as means of assessing
learning outcomes.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Classes: Food microbiology lecture (FDSCI 600) and
food microbiology laboratory (FDSCI 601)
At Kansas State University, food microbiology is taught
in two classes, FDSCI 600 (lecture component) and
FDSCI 601 (laboratory component), in the 15-week fall
semester. This upper level undergraduate course is also
open to graduate students. Both classes are usually medium
size in enrollment (60 students) and meet for two 50-min
lectures and two 2-hour laboratory sessions per week. The
classes have an instructional team composed of 1 full-time
instructor, one 50%-time teaching assistant, and one 30%time teaching assistant. The course fulfills a requirement for
several majors (food science and industry, animal science
and industry, and grain science) and colleges (Agriculture
and Arts and Sciences). Thus, students arrive to this course
with different backgrounds and experiences, but typically
are in their junior and senior years. The classes address
the role of microorganisms in foodborne illness and food
quality, spoilage, and preservation, as well as the control and
reduction of microorganisms in foods. The laboratory session
(FDSCI 601) complements lecture materials (FDSCI 600)
by providing hands-on experience with lecture concepts.
Laboratory sections consist of a maximum of 30 students per
section, and students perform activities in pairs.
Engaging strategies tested
Agar art. In 2015, the American Society of Microbiology
(ASM) launched the ASM Agar Art contest to share the
beautiful and diverse world of microorganisms with the
public (14). Inspired by the ASM initiative, students in
FDSCI 601 had the opportunity to create their own art
and to practice isolation and identification techniques
on their own. Students were provided a sample of red
meat (10 g) experimentally inoculated with 105 CFU/g
of E. coli ATCC 12435. Instructors guided students on
the principles of dilution and plating, demonstrating
techniques. Samples were placed in 90 ml of 0.1% peptone
water (BD Difco, Sparks, MD) and stomached for 1 minute.
Appropriate dilutions, based on instructor suggestions,
were performed, and diluted samples were plated on 3M™
Petrifilm™ E. coli/Coliform Count Plates (3M, Saint Paul,
MN). A presumptive colony of E. coli, a blue colony with
gas (based on manufacturer instruction), was picked and
streaked for isolation on TSA (Tryptic Soy Agar, BD Difco,
Sparks, MD), a non-selective medium. Students were
provided the 3M™ Petrifilm™ E. coli/Coliform Count Plate

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