SP9260 Children in the Welfare State: Understandings and Research Approaches Course description

This course addresses children's position in a welfare state context, children's everyday life within Childhood institutions like Kindergarten and School, in families and in encounters with welfare services and state professional's. The course has particular emphasis on academic traditions that contribute to contextualized analyses of the everyday life, upbringing and development of boys and girls; sociocultural theory, intersectional theory and interdisciplinary childhood studies. The rights of children and young people, with particular emphasis on their right to participation, are a topic in the course. Methodological approaches to investigating connections between children's different everyday arenas with their varied relationships, activities and internal connections, are presented. Modes of knowledge compricing children's understanding of themselves and their situation are central in the course. The reading list for the course includes classic and recent texts from Scandinavian and international childhood research.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• has acquired in-depth knowledge of and insight into the field of education and development in the South, and how conceptions of sustainable development are manifest in the South
• has an overview of recent research-based knowledge of education discourse and the production of knowledge from both a North and a South perspective
• has broad knowledge of international perspectives and discussions concerning comparative and international education

Skills

The student

• is capable of explaining the role of education in societies in the South characterised by socio-economic, cultural, epistemological and ethnic diversity
• is capable of comparing and critically assessing theories and methods used to study education, culture and sustainable development
• is capable of analysing recent research on connections between education, gender, globalisation, culture and the production of knowledge in the Global South

General competence

The student:

• has extensive knowledge of how to assess how recent research on education and development is relevant to work on the education sector in the Global South
• is capable of explaining and problematising relevant theory in the research field
• is capable of using and disseminating new knowledge and academic issues relating to education in the context of the South

The student must have been admitted to the study programme.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• is familiar with the professional role of the pharmacist in a historical, current and future-oriented perspective
• is familiar with the role of pharmaceuticals in the health service in a national and global perspective
• is capable of explaining different perspectives on health and illness, in addition to social differences in health
• is familiar with how the health care system in Norway is organized
• is familiar with the pharmacy's place in Norway, including the development of health services at pharmacies
• is capable of explaining relevant laws and regulations
• is capable of explaining ethical theories, ethical dilemmas and the importance of professional ethical guidelines
• is capable of explaining key concepts in the field of communication theory and challenges related to intercultural communication
• has an understanding of the challenges in the guidance of vulnerable patient groups such as children, young people and the elderly
• is familiar with the use and the limitations of different sources of information about pharmaceuticals
• has an understanding of the challenges associated with the use of pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements and plant-based drugs
• is familiar with the methods used in social and natural sciences and which forms of knowledge are central to the health disciplines
• is familiar with the research process involved in pre-clinical and clinical studies, the requirements for approval of pharmaceuticals and plant-based products and how pharmaceuticals are marketed
• is familiar with pricing of pharmaceuticals including import and general economy

Skills

The student

• is capable of carrying out simple searches for information, referencing scientific sources and preparing a literature list
• is capable of using interview as a qualitative data collection method
• is capable of using digital tools in group work with fellow students
• is capable of cooperating and communicating with people from different cultural backgrounds by being open and taking an interest

General competence

The student is capable of

• identifying and reflecting on the professional ethical dilemmas in the field of pharmacy and critical reflection on his/her own values and efforts in simple projects and tasks relevant to the profession
• reflecting on the similarities and differences between his/her own and other's access to health services in a national, global and cultural perspective
• acting with empathy and respect and promoting equality that promotes co-determination in work, which is process and goal-oriented

Examination support material is permitted.

Letter grades ranging from A to F are used, with A being the highest grade and E the poorest pass grade, and F being a fail grade.

The exam will be assessed by one internal and one external examiner.

Education and development in the Global South

The focus in this topic is development and education in the South. It covers important issues such as different and often competing education paradigms (e.g. ‘Western’ versus Indigenous education approaches and epistemologies), the relationship between tradition and modernity in the education system, development of national curricula, and the modes of pedagogical practice. A central focus is on the exploration of efforts within the Global South to apply education to development.

Education as and for sustainable development

Building on the first topic, the focus here is on pressing global phenomenon of advancing models of sustainable development, and how these relate to education and development initiatives within the Global South. A prominent concept is cultural understanding and the relationship between cultures, ecologies, development and education, and the instersections with particular ideologies, class, gender and ethnic identities, and school-community relationships. This topic includes consideration of advances within the countries of the Global South to re-define development in ecologically sustainable terms, and incorporate these cultural projects into education systems.

Educational aid, management and planning

The topic focuses on issues relating to international education as they are experienced and understood at an implementation level - locally, nationally and regionally, at school and in the local community, and on changes in the role of teacher and education.

The topic deals with educational aid, and the critical consideration of important lending and donor institutions (e.g. the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund), and the use of educational research by Aid agencies.

Students’ own professional experience will also be discussed in this context. The inclusion of fictional literature from the South will help to elucidate the relationship between national culture and identity in a post-colonial context.

Pass/fail

The target group for the course are candidates from the PhD programme in Social Work and Social Policy, but it will also be open to PhD students on other programs who wish to study the field in dept.

Internal candidates register the course in their Studentweb and send a summary, maximum one page, of their project to the PhD administration.

External candidates apply through the Søknadsweb. The following documentation must be enclosed:

1. Confirmation on admission to a PhD program

2. Summary of your research proposal (approx.one page) and how this PhD course will be relevant for your research project

Maximum number of participants is 15.

One external and one internal examiner will assess at least 30% of the candidates. Two internal examiners will assess the remaining candidates. The external examiner's assessment shall benefit all the students.