BVV3020 Foster home Course description

Knowledge

The student:

• has knowledge of how and why creative and aesthetic methods can be used in child welfare and social therapy work
• has knowledge of how activities and aesthetic forms of expression can be linked to human rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
• has knowledge of child welfare and social work in a multicultural perspective
• has knowledge of how aesthetic learning processes/methods can challenge people to reflect on their own attitudes, allow self-development and expand professional understanding
• has knowledge of how to help children and young people to understand their experiences and feelings and put them into words through aesthetic and symbolic expression

Skills

The student:

• can employ activities that promote play, learning, inclusion, mastery and participation
• can apply knowledge and professional judgement in multicultural settings for children and young people
• has an understanding of how creative and aesthetic methods can shift boundaries and make room for self-reflection and alternative ways of thinking and acting
• can cooperate and work on tasks in international (multicultural) and interprofessional contexts

General competence

The student:

• has knowledge of their own creativity and how to develop creative solutions in professional interaction with children and young people in child welfare and social work
• has knowledge of how to develop and apply creative solutions and use aesthetic methods in professional interaction with children and young people in arenas for child welfare and social work
• has knowledge of the importance of being able to communicate in English in a multicultural and interdisciplinary knowledge area
• has knowledge of the importance of cooperating with other professional groups

The course is taught through lectures, self-study, group work and other teaching methods as needed. The students will plan and carry out a project in small groups, where creative and aesthetic methods are used in work with children and young people. A large degree of student activity is required throughout the course. The course will be taught in English if students from abroad are enrolled.

Knowledge

The student:

• has knowledge of the challenges experienced by foster children, foster families and biological parents
• has knowledge of safeguarding foster children’s right of participation
• has broad knowledge of attachment and rejection
• has knowledge of the special needs of ethnic minority children
• has knowledge of placement with relatives and networks

Skills

The student:

• can explain what a foster home is
• has insight into and can reflect on foster parents’ need for guidance
• can reflect on key topics that are important when providing guidance to foster parents
• can make discretionary assessments in foster home work

General competence

The student:

• has broad knowledge of foster homes and foster home work
• can reflect on professional and ethical dilemmas that characterise foster home cooperation
• is aware of a broad scope of research and knowledge on foster homes and foster home cooperation

Work methods include group work, talks and discussions in plenum, and short lectures by internal and external lecturers.

The exam comprises a group project report and an oral presentation. The report should build on experience the students acquire through the course and from carrying out the project in the field of practice. The report should be 15 pages long, +/- 10%. Font and font size: Calibri 12-point. Line spacing 1.5. The approved citation style APA for assignments must be complied with. The report and presentation will be assessed together.   

Candidates who fail or who were absent from the ordinary exam for a valid reason can take a resit/rescheduled exam. Students with a valid absence from the oral part of the exam complete an adapted individual presentation.

All aids are permitted, as long as the rules for source referencing are complied with.

Pass/fail.

All exam papers are assessed by one internal and one external examiner.

Svein Fuglestad

Marie Føleide og Eirik Gundersen