Data Sheet 1_AVAXX101x: assessing the first edX course on antivaccination and vaccine hesitancy.pdf

Vaccine hesitancy remains a significant global health challenge, yet accessible, systematic courses addressing this issue have been scarce. To fill this gap, the University of Queensland developed and launched “AVAXX101x: Antivaccination and Vaccine Hesitancy” on the edX platform in 2021. This was the world’s first edX MOOC focused on countering antivaccination claims and addressing vaccine hesitancy. The course aimed to educate healthcare workers, public health professionals, and the general public, offering evidence-based strategies to address vaccination doubts. This paper discusses the course’s objectives, content, design, and descriptively examines student demographics and survey responses, along with learner feedback. Findings reveal that AVAXX101x attracted a diverse cohort from 144 countries, including significant representation from UN-identified developing economies and a higher-than-average proportion of female learners. The course achieved respectable completion rates and garnered overwhelmingly positive feedback. Cumulatively, AVAXX101x successfully met its objectives by enhancing students’ understanding of vaccines, vaccine safety, and vaccine hesitancy. It further demonstrates how open online courses can be effective tools to equip learners with strategies for addressing vaccine hesitancy, as well as an educational means to sway vaccine hesitant participants.

疫苗犹豫仍是全球重大公共卫生挑战，但针对该问题的可及性强、体系化课程仍较为匮乏。为填补这一空白，昆士兰大学于2021年在edX平台开发并上线了“AVAXX101x：反疫苗与疫苗犹豫（AVAXX101x: Antivaccination and Vaccine Hesitancy）”课程。这是全球首个在edX平台开设、聚焦驳斥反疫苗言论并应对疫苗犹豫问题的大规模开放在线课程（MOOC）。该课程面向医护人员、公共卫生从业者及普通大众，旨在传授基于循证依据的策略以消解民众对疫苗接种的疑虑。本文阐述了该课程的目标、内容与设计思路，并从描述性分析维度探究了学员群体特征、问卷反馈及学习者评价。研究结果显示，AVAXX101x吸引了来自144个国家的多元学员群体，其中包含大量来自联合国认定的发展中经济体的学员，且女性学习者占比高于平均水平。该课程取得了可观的完课率，并收获了压倒性的积极评价。总体而言，AVAXX101x通过提升学员对疫苗、疫苗安全性及疫苗犹豫问题的认知，成功达成了预设目标。此外，该课程还证实了开放在线课程可作为有效工具，帮助学习者掌握应对疫苗犹豫的相关策略，同时亦可作为教育手段，扭转疫苗犹豫群体的态度。