Faith Matters: “HBHE 710: Religion, Spirituality and Health” at the University of Michigan

Abstract

This essay is an overview of the author’s experiences in developing and teaching a course on religion, spirituality (R/S) and health in the Department of Health Behavior and Health Education (HBHE) in the University of Michigan, School of Public Health. The first section describes her professional background in relation to this content area, including a discussion of her research on R/S, as well as her personal experiences with diverse forms of religion and spirituality. This is followed by a description of the development of content for the course, perspectives presented and content boundaries, learning goals and student competencies, and how these elements were aligned with course assignments. The next section reflects on classroom climate, establishing multicultural ground rules, and student reception and experiences with course material and assignments. Finally, the essay ends with comments on student reception and experiences and the author’s reflections on areas for revision and improvement in delivering a course on religion, spirituality and health to MPH level students.