**Background:** The COVID-19 pandemic exposed longstanding racial and ethnic disparities in health outcomes in the United States, with minoritized populations experiencing disproportionately higher morbidity and mortality. Research has established strong associations between race, educational attainment, wealth, and health outcomes. The study aimed to use socioscientific issues (SSI) pedagogy—real-world problems with moral and ethical implications—to engage ninth-grade students in investigating how community-level factors related to COVID-19 infection rates in Massachusetts.
**Methods:** Twenty-six rising ninth-grade students (14–15 years old; 16 girls, 10 boys) participated in a summer 2020 early college program at a state university in the northeastern United States. The racial breakdown was 19% Asian, 8% Black, 54% Hispanic, and 19% White; 42% received free/reduced lunch; 39% were potential first-generation college students. The three-week instructional unit was delivered via Zoom (two 1-hour sessions per week). Students completed a KWL chart on COVID-19, reviewed CDC guidelines, watched a Trevor Noah monologue on COVID-19 disparities, and used U.S. Census and Massachusetts state data to research per-capita income, educational attainment, and COVID-19 infection rates (count/100k and rate/100k) for assigned cities and towns between January 1–July 1, 2020. Students created line graphs comparing infection rates versus per-capita income and versus educational attainment. Data analysis used constant comparative methods across three phases, conducted by the author and two post-baccalaureate teacher candidates.
**Key Results:** Students demonstrated nuanced understanding of COVID-19 before instruction, knowing it was a respiratory virus affecting millions, impacting marginalized populations more, and affecting elderly people with underlying conditions more severely. After instruction, students identified clear patterns: cities/towns with lower per-capita income had higher infection rates that increased over time, while communities with higher per-capita income had lower infection rates that remained stable or increased minimally. For example, by July 1, 2020, Dover (per-capita income $115,686; 2% without high school diploma, 47% with advanced degrees) had a COVID-19 rate of 345.41 per 100k, while Everett (per-capita income $26,591; 19% without high school diploma, 5% with advanced degrees) had a rate of 3,636.45 per 100k—more than 10 times higher. Fall River (per-capita income $21,257; 28% without high school diploma) had a rate of 1,783.18 per 100k. Students concluded that "the more educated the city the less the rate of coronavirus in the city" and that communities with more financial resources were less impacted. Students expressed disappointment, sadness, and confusion about these disparities, with one student writing: "Only the rich get the best and are safe while the poor suffer to survive." Students also demonstrated scientific skepticism, questioning whether CDC had complete facts about the novel virus, while agreeing with evidence-based prevention guidelines.
**Clinical Implications:** This study demonstrates that SSI pedagogy can effectively engage middle school students in understanding how social determinants—specifically wealth and educational attainment—drive health disparities. Students developed evidence-based reasoning skills and advocated for policy changes by writing letters to mayors or creating public health brochures. The findings underscore the importance of science education that equips students to critically evaluate information, recognize health inequities, and become informed advocates for community health. The study also highlights the need for science curricula that address real-world issues to counter scientific skepticism and misinformation, particularly as vaccine hesitancy continues to drive COVID-19 morbidity and mortality.