Class record · THEO · MCAS

THEO 1430

Buddhism and Christianity in Dialogue · 10 instructors on record · 43 sections

What the course score is made of

85BC evaluations43 records · weight ×1.0 · Fall 2021 – Spring 2026

—Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute

—RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

That is the class itself, averaged across everyone who taught it. Who taught it, and how each of them scored, is the board below — that is what a student picking a section is actually choosing between.

What the challenge rank is made of

43rdMore challenging than 43% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

90BC — “Intellectually Challenging”43 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question for this class only — students answer it positively about courses that stretched them, so it measures intellectual challenge and NOT grading, workload or quality. Almost every BC class scores high on it, which is why it is shown as a rank rather than a score.

What the workload rank is made of

46thMore work than 46% of BC classesranked against every one we hold

56BC — “Workload”43 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload for this class only as one of five bands, not as a number of hours, and it does not publish what the bands mean — so this site will not translate it into hours. Higher means more work, which is not the same as worse.

This course is both an introduction to Buddhism and to Buddhist-Christian comparative learning. In early weeks we study concepts and practices of Theravada and Zen Buddhism from Southeast and East Asia. We then explore some areas of Christian thought that can be compared with Buddhism--understandings of faith, God, Jesus, sin, spiritual rebirth, sacramentality, and social ethics. Finally, from Buddhist and Christian perspectives, we focus on one or more of the following topics: spiritual practices of deepening care and discernment, faith-based action, interfaith learning, ecology, and/or feminism. Satisfies Core requirement for: Theology (Sacred Texts and Traditions)

The board

10 instructors · ranked on this class onlyCompare the top 3

Scores are real averages. The order also accounts for how many records back each one — the count is under every score — so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them. 3 of the 10 rows carry a mark saying so.

Rank	Instructor	Overall	Workload	Challenge	RMP overall
1	Tiffany LeeTheology Provisional	942 records	78th	58th	1002 ratings · all classes
2	Scott MolonyTheology Provisional fewer records	971 record	—	48th	—no page
3	John MileskiTheology Provisional	912 records	25th	31st	—no page
4	Matthew KrugerAssociate Professor of the Practice; Director of Undergraduate Studies · Theology Provisional fewer records	931 record	—	48th	988 ratings · all classes
5	Louis PetilloTheology	895 records	78th	61st	9830 ratings · all classes
6	Tiffany Hartnell-HowdenTheology	8921 records	46th	43rd	—no page
7	John MakranskyAssociate Professor · Theology Provisional	892 records	39th	36th	965 ratings · all classes
8	Dorothy GoehringTheology Provisional	821 record	78th	43rd	—no page
9	Michael CostasTheology Provisional fewer records	781 record	78th	42nd	—no page
10	Matthew ValeTheology	827 records	47th	41st	706 ratings · all classes

How this board is orderedPositions account for how many records stand behind each number, so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them. Every score shown is the real average — only the ordering is adjusted. The comparison here is the class itself: a thin record is read against how this class was rated overall, not against the university.

Every instructor with an evaluation record for this class is on this board — it is not a top ten, and nothing is hidden behind a “show more”. Overall is the instructor's blended score for THIS class only, and its one contributing source is Boston College's evaluations for the sections in the row's record count — nothing on this board is an average across the other things they teach. Workload and Challenge are RANKS against every class we hold, not scores: BC's questions all sit near the top of the 1-5 scale, so a raw number would put almost every row in the high eighties and tell you nothing. Challenge is BC's “intellectually challenging” item, which students answer positively about courses that stretched them — it is not a measure of difficulty or grading. Neither column is ever marked better or worse. 7 of 10 rows are marked provisional: fewer than 3 records stand behind the number. That is thin evidence, not a bad instructor — the record count is in every row. The RateMyProfessors column is an instructor's overall figure across everything they teach; that site has no course dimension, so it is shown for information and kept out of the ranking.

The line

All 13 items · means across 43 records

The Professor4 items

Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.

9345th pctl

Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.

9134th pctl

Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.

9240th pctl

Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.

9340th pctl

The Course3 items

Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.

9357th pctl

Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.

9250th pctl

Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.

9141st pctl

Assignments & Feedback3 items

Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.

9153rd pctl

Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.

8728th pctl

Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.

8726th pctl

Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings

WorkloadHow much work the course took outside class, on Boston College's five-band scale — the band boundaries are not published, so this is not a number of hours.

5646th pctl

Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.

9043rd pctl

Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.

8936th pctl

Bar length is the rank against every comparable record we hold, not the raw score: BC's questions all have a median around 4.5, so a raw-scale bar would be nearly full on every row and would tell you nothing. Every bar is one ink colour — nothing here is graded green or red. The hatched bars are not ratings at all: a higher number on either describes a different course, not a better one.

Game log

43 sections · newest first

Instructor	Term	Sec	Instr	Course	Work
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Spring 2026	01	90	84	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Spring 2026	02	94	92	60
Matthew Vale	Fall 2025	01	80	80	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2025	02	92	90	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2025	03	89	87	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Summer 2025	01	89	87	—
Louis Petillo	Summer 2025	02	97	95	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Summer 2025	03	100	90	—
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Spring 2025	01	94	92	60
Matthew Kruger	Spring 2025	02	93	88	—
Scott Molony	Spring 2025	02	97	88	—
Matthew Vale	Fall 2024	01	79	75	60
Michael Costas	Fall 2024	01	78	75	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2024	02	87	83	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2024	03	91	89	40
Louis Petillo	Summer 2024	01	80	84	60
Louis Petillo	Summer 2024	02	91	85	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Summer 2024	03	87	87	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Summer 2024	04	90	90	100
Matthew Vale	Spring 2024	01	79	79	60
Matthew Vale	Spring 2024	02	74	74	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Spring 2024	03	92	90	40
Matthew Vale	Fall 2023	01	86	87	60
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2023	02	92	86	40
Tiffany Hartnell-Howden	Fall 2023	03	88	85	60

Showing the first 25.

How to read this boardInstructors are ranked on their record in this class only, never on their average across everything they teach. Scores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Workload is BC's own five-band figure, not a number of hours, and is shown as a rank. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero.