As this course nears completion, we were asked to provide a final reflection on our learning journey. As I think back to when the university announced that it would offer courses on health promotion, I was motivated to sign up as this is a topic of personal interest. However, it was not one which I had a lot of direct experience. Therefore, in many of the units I learned about topics that I had heard of but did not have any depth of understanding such as Ottawa Charter and Sustainable Development Goals.
I have been reflecting on the learnings that I will take forward into my work world and one in particular comes to mind. This course provided learning on a variety of models, theories and frameworks related to health promotion. As a person who likes structure, theories and frameworks appeal to me and I wondered were some of these “new to me” models, theories and framework only applicable to health promotion? It also caused me to reflect on the model and theories that I regularly draw on in my current role. Are the ones I use now the most relevant to my work? Do I tend to default to the models and theories that I have used in past and/or are most familiar with? This course has taught me to be open to explore different theories or models when considering topics and to ensure support or alignment with the ideas for program development.
My overall feelings on this course are very positive. I feel that it has been provided a lot of learning and increased my understanding of the complexities of health promotion. However, I go forward with the understanding that this learning journey will continue.