SIW4210 Knowledge Production in Social Sciences - Quantitative Methods Course description

The teaching consists of lectures (including electronic lectures), seminars and tutorials related to the coursework requirements. Students are expected to play an active role.

None.  

The examination in the course is a national assessment exam in law organised by the Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT). The exam form is a individual supervised exam of 4 hours.

After completing the course, the student should have the following overall learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student has

• thorough knowledge of the research process 
• advanced knowledge of qualitative research designs: their appropriate use as well as strengths and limitations
• advanced conceptual tools to be applied in discussing, evaluating, and exploring social phenomena

Skills

The student can

• relate research processes to scientific theory and ethical principles
• apply research methods in a reflective manner and appropriately choose methods that are relevant for different kinds of research questions
• use relevant methods for producing, analysing and interpreting diverse types of empirical data (e.g. literature, interviews, and field observations)
• evaluate research based on qualitative methodologies in terms of methodological quality and appropriateness

General competence

The student

• has knowledge of general research ethics
• has the ability to reflect critically on the ethical dimensions of data collection, analysis and presentation of data
• has the ability to think critically concerning the development, design and execution of research

The course consists of lectures, seminar group- and individual exercises.

Course meetings are divided into lecture and seminar portions. In the seminar, student project groups and/or individual students work with practical exercises. The seminars will be supervised on demand. Students will complete practical exercises in each seminar, which will be collected in a "project portfolio". Portfolio work will receive feedback from the instructor and at specified times throughout the semester and a selection of the work will comprise a portion of the final exam.

The following coursework requirements must have been approved in order for the student to take the exam:

• Coursework 1: Participation in at least 80% of the seminars
• Coursework 2: An oral presentation, presented by the student project group, as well as peer feedback to another group's work. The presentation can be anything from a presentation of results from that group's work, to presenting the most interesting group discussion or reflection on course related topics.

Attendance during the group presentation is mandatory, and presentations and feedback must be approved by the course lecturer. Students who are not present or who have not provided input to the group or have not participated in providing feedback to a peer group, or have presentations that are not approved, will have to submit an alternative qualification to be able to sit for the examination.

Lack of an approved course work requirement will disqualify the student from taking part in the final examination.

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

None. 

After completing the course, the student should have the following overall learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:  

Knowledge 

The student has 

• advanced knowledge of the child welfare service’s position and duties in the Norwegian welfare services, and the child welfare service’s social remit in a social policy context  
• in-depth knowledge of the main features of the child welfare service’s history at the national level and an understanding of child welfare in a comparative and international context  
• knowledge of international conventions and national immigration policy in light of child welfare legislation, as well as knowledge of the special rights of indigenous peoples and national minorities and their consequences for child welfare work 
• advanced knowledge of the role of the state in children’s upbringing. 
• advanced knowledge of what children’s and families’ living conditions and life experience mean for their everyday lives, practices, relationships and encounters with the support system  
• in-depth knowledge of basic social science concepts such as power, structure/actor, social inequality and marginalisation  
• in-depth knowledge of perspectives on children and families from minority backgrounds, including indigenous peoples and national minorities, as well as knowledge of the significance of living conditions, labour market participation, education, upbringing, marginalisation, racism and discrimination for how people exercise the role of parent   
• in-depth knowledge of how violence, crime, substance abuse, poverty, health issues and disabilities affect children and families’ living conditions, relationships and everyday life  

Skills 

The student can 

• analyse and discuss child welfare phenomena on the basis of social science theory and research  
• analyse problems relating to child welfare on the basis of the discipline’s history, traditions, distinctive nature and place in society  
• analyse and take a critical approach to the child welfare service’s position of power in society and its importance for cooperation with children, young people and parents   

General competence  

The student can 

• critically analyse and reflect on how power relations and political guidelines constitute conditions for child welfare work  
• analyse and reflect critically on how attitudes, language and cultural norms and values influence child welfare work  
• analyse relevant professional ethical issues in child welfare work  

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

At least 25% of the exam papers will be assessed by two examiners. The grades awarded for the papers assessed by two examiners form the basis for determining the level for all the exam papers.