Gender, Health, and Human Development

Belize Mayterm 2015 Proposal

Gender, Health, and Human Development

Purpose. In July 2013, The World Bank voted to move Belize from the category of low-middle income country to upper middle-income country. This indicator based on gross national income should demonstrate significant progress on all levels within the country. However, on the human development index (HDI), which ranks not only income, but also social development such as life expectancy and educational attainment, Belize remains in the bottom 1/3 of the world. Where is the disconnection between these two paradigms and how does the shaping of personhood affect overall health and development in the country?

The focus of the program is to examine the intersection between culture, family, and community development in Belize. Successes gained through economic advancement will be balanced with explorations of how traditional gender roles, stereotypes, and socialization have hindered advancement. Particular attention will be given to programs and organizations aimed at human development, such as the UNDP’s initiative through the Ministry of Human Development and Social Transformation, which began in 2008 to support single mothers.

The program will contribute towards meeting the College mission of developing thoughtful scholars and grateful servants for global engagement with the academy, church, and world. Students will gain an understanding of the intersection of Belize’s social, political, and cultural forces and how those forces shape community development. The program will address disparity in gender and family and examine ways of reducing poverty, building stronger economies and promoting posterity at the community level.

Academic Content. The academic program focuses around a 4-unit academic class and a 1-unit internship placement. Students may opt to stay longer for up to 4 internship credits.

PSY 150/SOC 150/KNS 150: Gender, Health, and Human Development
Internship Experience

Students will earn a total of 5 academic units for Mayterm. (Up to 8 units for an 8 weeks placement).

By visiting with families and communities and talking with NGO’s and civil society organizations, students will hear first hand narratives. Students will engage via travel with the Mayan, Creole, and Mestizo cultures that exist in various areas of Belize.

Course listing and approval will be sought through the Senate Review Committee as well as departmental approval for courses meeting major and minor requirements, as well as G.E. Committee’s approval for general education credit.

Identify Student Pool. The program is designed for psychology majors and minors, sociology majors, and kinesiology majors and minors. It would also be applicable to minors in Gender Studies. The course is envisioned to satisfy the Thinking Globally component of the GE curriculum. Internships will satisfy the GE requirements of Serving Society.

Risk Management. Please see attached document.

Personnel. Andrea Gurney and Cynthia Toms will co-teach the course and internship placement. Services for homestay placements and internship placements will be subcontracted to CCSP staff. Bio included.

Itinerary. Please see attached for detailed 4-week itinerary.

Faculty Compensation. The 2015 Mayterm salary will apply to Andrea Gurney at the Associate Professor level. Cynthia Toms will not be accepting additional salary. Administrative stipend $4000 (11-20 students) will go to Cynthia Toms.

Budget. See Attached.

Course Proposal:

Health and Development in Global Context

Westmont College

KNS 167/Soc 150

Off all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.

–Martin Luther King, Jr.

May 2015Cynthia Toms, PhD

Credit Hours: 4.0322 Winter Hall

Class Times: TBDOffice Hours:

Course Description

This course will introduce students to international and global health concepts in relationship to health, well-being, and developmentStudents will gain an understanding of how health and well-being affect international development. In particular, students will examine the impact of social, political and cultural forces affect maternal health, community wellness, and overall human development.

Students will examine health indicators and how socioeconomic and demographic disparities in Belize influence the burden of disease.Other critical determinants of health, including environmental, behavioral and cultural influences will also be presented. Special attention will be given to the role of the United Nations Development Programme in Belize as 2012 marked the 30th anniversary of the UNDP’s support in Belize and a renewed commitment to Gender Equality and addressing HIV/AIDS.

The course will also explore how evidence from research can inform policy and be transferred into practice, using case reports from around the world.The effectiveness of top-down government initiated approaches will be evaluated alongside international volunteer organizations, interventions and initiatives.

Students will reflect on their own social location in global context as well as their faith in light of social responsibility.Students will learn that solving international health problems requires a multidisciplinary team approach that privileges indigenous knowledge constructs and asset-based approaches as demonstrated by lecturers drawn from multiple fields including public health, medical sciences, ethics, economics, and sociology.

Internship
Course assignments and projects can be oriented toward majorinternship requirements. In particular, case study examples and the faith/culture integration project. Please see instructor for additional course materials or supporting resources.

Course Objectives

To introduce key concepts and frameworks used to examine international health indicators
To encounter varied development paradigms from a community perspective
To understand the distribution of health and disability around the world and to understand the individual, social, and institutional factors that affect the burden of disease
To explore issues and controversies in international health and development issues in an interdisciplinary manner
To gain perspectives from indigenous knowledge constructs and traditional medicine pathways
To explore local community health initiatives that utilize universal global health deliverty techniques

Course Materials

Required course books (each will be read in its entirety):

Novogratz, Jacqueline. The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World. Rodale Books, 2010. ISBN 978-1-60529-476-6
Karlan, Dean and Jacob Appel. More Than Good Intentions: Improving the Ways the World's Poor Borrow, Save, Farm, Learn, and Stay Healthy. Dutton Press, 2011. ISBN

978-0525-951-896

Kidder, Tracy. Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World. Random House Trade Paperbacks, 2009. ISBN 0-8129-7301-1

Additional Readings from the following text will be available:

Daniels, N. (2007). Just Health: Meeting Health Needs Fairly. Cambridge University Press. New York, NY.

DeLaet, D. L. & DeLaet, D E. (2012). Global Health in the 21st Centurty: The Globalization of Disease and Wellness. Paradigm Publishers, Golden, Co.

Apart from these books, there are a number of articles that will be required and indictated on the syllabus. There are also a series of texts that are recommended reading material.

Course Schedule

Week 1:

Day 1 & 2: Introduction to Global Healthand Development

We all seek magic to avoid hard slog to make the world right.- V.S. Naipaul

Required Text Readings:

UNICEF, Unite for Children. “Belize Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey Final Report 2012.”

Students will be given an assigned section to report to class.

Chapter 2. “Key Concepts in Global Health.” DeLaet, D. L. & DeLaet, D E. (2012). Global Health in the 21st Centurty: The Globalization of Disease and Wellness. Paradigm Publishers, Golden, Co

Kenny, Charles. Getting Better: Why Global Development is Succeeding – and How We Can Improve the World Even More, Basic Books, 2011. Prologue and Chapter 1 (page ix-x, and 1-14)

Day 3-5: A Conceptual Framework

When I feed people they call me a saint. When I ask why there is poverty, people call me a communist.- Com Helder, Archbishop of Recife, Brazil

Chapter 2. “What is the Special Moral Importance of Health?” Daniels, N. (2007). Just Health: Meeting Health Needs Fairly. Cambridge University Press. New York, NY

Chapter 8. “Global Health and Human Rights.” DeLaet, D. L. & DeLaet, D E. (2012). Global Health in the 21st Centurty: The Globalization of Disease and Wellness. Paradigm Publishers, Golden, Co.

Suggested Further Readings:

Kristof, Nicholas and Sheryl WuDunn. Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide, pages xi -21 (Introduction and Chapter 1), pages 233 -254 (Chapter 14).

Sen, Amartya. “More Than 100 Million Women are Missing,” The New York Review of Books, December 20, 1990

Jacobsen, K. (2008). “Maternal and Child Health.” in Introduction to Global Health (P.55-89).

Hutton G., & Bartam J. (2008). Global Costs of Attaining the Millenium Development Goal for Water Supply and Sanitation. Bull WHO, 86 (1): 13-19.

TED Talk: “What Happens when an NGO admits Failure?” David Damberger, April 2011.

UN Millennium Project. 2006. Public Decisions, Private Choices: Sexual and Reproductive Health and the MDGs

Follow Up Class/Re-entry:

Chapter 13. “International Health Inequalities and Global Justice: A Concluding Challenge” Daniels, N. (2007). Just Health: Meeting Health Needs Fairly. Cambridge University Press. New York, NY

Class format and expectations

In true seminar format, the instructor will help “frame” discussions, ask “priming” questions, give short presentations, monitor discussion, and synthesize course material. AS students leaders (pre-assigned), you will be asked to help facilitate discussion of main ideas and questions and at times will incorporate the “Socratic method.” This method helps you to learn to think on your feet and to take an active stance in your learning endeavors. In order for a student-led process to work, this is what will be expected of you:

1. Complete all assigned readingprior to each class session—and thoroughly enough so that you can be called on to discuss any source. Seminars only work well when the participants (students and professor) come to class prepared. Don’t just read or view for information; ask what the text seems to want you to think. How does the point of view contribute to your thinking about changing the world? What would be the consequences of these ideas if they were taken seriously?

2. Bring your text and class notes with you to every class session.

3. Come consistently and on time. Your best performance (and the success of your classmates learning) depends on timely completion and submission of assignments, along with regular attendance.

4. Listen and engage with the ideas presented. Try to respond to questions from your classmates as well as your instructors. Disagree intelligently and respectfully. Do not expect the instructor to respond unless asked to.

5. Stay focused. Only utilize your computer or other electronic devices when necessary. These technologies draw your attention outside of the group discussion into your personal/individual world.

Class Assignments:
Faith Integration Assignment: Personal epistemology and mission

Internship

Attendance Policy:

PSY 150: Gender, Education, and Family Systems

Belize Mayterm, 2015

Professor: Andrea Gurney

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Psychological and behavioral tendencies are rooted and embodied in culture. We are all, to some extent, a product of our environment. In this course, we will examine key aspects of personhood and environment that shape us. Specifically, we will look at the impact and interrelation of gender, education, and family systems utilizing a cultural framework.

As a part of this course, students will engage with individuals and families who have been shaped by traditional gender roles, limited access to education, and the multiple cultures that Belize embraces.

Through class lectures and discussions, homestays, and internships, we will take a closer look at gender as a socialized construct, the underrepresentation of women in education, and the family hierarchy system; we will examine how gender, education, and family structure impact social problems. Finally, we will examine how social action and change occurs in cities and villages through specific initiatives.

GENERAL EDUCATION CREDIT

This course meets the requirements for GE credit in Thinking Globally.

COURSE LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The objective of this course is to understand the impact of culture on gender, education, and family systems.

In addition to advancing knowledge that is specific to cultural and family psychology, gender studies, and education, this course also addresses itself to the broader Student Learning Standards that the College has established.

 Knowledge Base: Demonstrate the ability to identify, recognize, or otherwise articulate key elements of culture’s impact on the science of human development and community development. (Departmental Goal: Knowledge Base)

Christian Understanding/Practices/Affections: As students better understand the nuances of culture, they will be better able to construct a worldview that encompasses Christian theology and tradition. (Departmental Goal: Values and Character)

Diversity and Global Awareness: Engage as active global citizens with an awareness of cultural diversity, one’s own culture/s, and the responsibility of self towards others. (Departmental Goal: Values and Character)

Critical/interdisciplinary thinking: Students will critically examine the foundational concepts for contemporary areas of education, gender studies, and cultural and family psychology, and they will more deeply appreciate the multi-disciplinary forces at work in these areas. (Departmental Goal: Scientific Research Methods and Skills)

Written and oral communication: Students will be responsible for active engagement in class discussions and written reflections in a daily journal. (Departmental Goal: Written and Oral Communication)

Research and Information Literacy: Students will be responsible for field notes, lecture notes, and reflection papers. [Students will have access to Creation Care Study Program’s _library?] (Departmental Goal: Scientific Research Methods and Skills)

Active societal and intellectual engagement: Students will engage as active agents in their homestays and internships, , bringing their intellectual and academic abilities and interests to bear on improving the lives of those around them. (Departmental Goal: Applications)

REQUIRED SOURCES

McGoldrick, M. & Hardy, K.V. (2008), Re-Visioning Family Therapy: Race, Culture, and Gender in Clinical Practice, New York: Guilford Press.

ADDITIONAL BOOKS

ASSIGNMENTS & GRADING CRITERION

Each student will be required to maintain a daily journal of their experience in the Belize culture, detailing observations in gender roles, family dynamics, societal values, beliefs, and norms.

Two essay exams. One will be a reflective paper on the life and struggles of the village people and some suggested strategies that could bring hope and help to families in the village.

Your grade in this course will be based on your performance on the following criteria:

Journal (.40)

Two Essay Exams (.30 each =.60)

INTERNSHIP??

Each assignment is scored on a scale of 0 to 100, and the final grade can be calculated by multiplying each score by its respective weighting factor from above and summing all of the weighted scores.Course grades will be assigned on the basis of this total score, using cut-point scores of 90, 80, 70 and 60 for grades of A, B, C and D, respectively (+ and – grades will be assigned at the professor’s discretion).