Why does creating a personal philosophy of public health education matter? Your personal philosophy influences the decisions you make and actions you take as a public health educator. And, as expressed in the quote above, you are more likely to take responsibility for the choices you make as a public health educator by clearly articulating your beliefs and perspectives. Developing a personal philosophy has additional professional benefits. For instance, employers in an interview may ask you to state your personal philosophy of public health education. Knowing your personal philosophy not only prepares you to respond, it also allows the employers to determine whether you fit within their organization’s culture.

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Review the process for developing a philosophy of public health education, as well as the examples of public health education philosophies, provided in Chapter 3 of the Cottrell, Girvan, and McKenzie course text.
• Begin to draft your own personal philosophy of public health education practice and the approaches you will use in your work.
• Review the “Predominant Health Education/Promotion Philosophies” section of Chapter 3 and be prepared to compare your philosophy with these philosophies. Use the questions at the end of the “Developing a Philosophy” section to guide your comparison.

To complete this Assignment, write a 2- to 3-page paper that includes the following:

• Your personal philosophy of public health education (1–2 pages), which should be based on one of the five predominant philosophies of public health education
• A comparison of your philosophy to one or more of the five predominant philosophies of public health education
• Note: Your personal philosophy is not about “telling your story.” Rather, it involves thinking about your own practice of health education and how you will apply theories in the field.

Your written assignments must follow APA guidelines. Be sure to support your work with specific citations from this week’s Learning Resources and additional scholarly sources as appropriate.