STKD6050 Innovative e-governance in Local Democracy Course description

Electronic governance (e-governance), generally understood as the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in various spheres of political life, plays a significant role in democratic societies. Researchers in computer and social sciences have examined e-governance as a tool for strengthening local democracy and realizing direct participation of citizens in political life.

The main topic of this course will focus on the role of ICT in enhancing the accessibility, transparency, and accountability of public services in contemporary democracies. Communication between citizens and government has historically been challenged by inefficiencies and limited opportunities for dialog.

The course will also provide a platform for further research, co-creation and co-production on the following topics:

• empirical analysis of ICT in political systes.
• comparative local e-governance in different types of democracies.
• local ICT policy reforms and their implementation.
• ethical reflections on security, privacy, and surveillance of e-governance solutions cooperation in intercultural and interdisciplinary communication and networkin.

In addition to the general requirements for the Summer School, students need to have completed a Bachelor's degree to be admitted to the course.

After completing this course the student should have the following learning outcome:

Knowledge

On successful completion of the course, the students will have advanced knowledge on:

• the fundamentals of e-governance and e-democracy.
• local government systems and participation processes in general.
• the use of ICT for local administration, service production, and democratic participation.
• the possibilities and constraints which ICT brings about to local governance, security and privacy issues as well as ethical dilemmas connected to using ICT for political participation.

Skills

On successful completion of this course the students will have the ability to:

• develop ICT-centric ideas and solutions for communities and local governments concerning citizens political participation and effective communication among State and non-State actors.
• use critical thinking and interdisciplinary approaches to examine e-governance approaches in a variety of democratic political systems.
• analyze quantitative and qualitative data on the role of ICT in political participation.
• effectively present complex information in a way that is understandable and accessible for the general public prototype new ICT tools for e-governance.

General competence

On successful completion of this course, the students understands:

• e-governance as a concept and its development through time.
• the role of cooperation of various actors in the political field including government agencies and the ICT industry.
• ethical reflections on the role of ICT in political participation.
• relevant interdisciplinary research collaboration and intercultural communication.

The target group is everyone who wants to take a bachelor’s degree in occupational therapy in order to practise as an occupational therapist, or as the starting point for further studies.

The admission requirements are the Higher Education Entrance Qualification or prior learning and work experience.

In connection with admission to the occupational therapy programme, the applicant must submit a transcript of police records, cf. the Regulations for admission to Higher Education.

The use of clothing that covers the face is incompatible with taking the programme.

The students submit the following individual assignments:

1. An oral 30 minute presentation, which counts for 40% of the final degree.
2. A student-project which counts for 60% of the final degree.

The student-project can be either a 4000 – 8000 word rapport, or in a multimedia format to agreed with course instructor. With the multimedia format the students can either select one or combine different types of media (text, audio, video, pictures, graphics, etc.) into a single cohesive product.Each partial exam must be assessed to E or better for the course as a whole to be given a final grade.The oral presentation cannot be appealed.aa

The programme is divided into 12 compulsory courses and incorporates both practical and theoretical teaching at the university and external practical training. Each year of the programme has a scope of 60 credits.

The first year of study is divided into five courses. One of these courses is common to students at the Department of Rehabilitation Science and Health Technology, and provides an introduction to living and working in a digitalised world. The four subject-specific courses comprise basic knowledge of human occupation and participation throughout life.

The second year of study comprises four courses focusing on occupational mapping, assessment and intervention in rehabilitation, habilitaton and treatment. Focus will be on how occupational therapists can contribute to bridging the gap between the individual's preconditions and the requirements of the surrounding environment, among other things through occupational rehabilitation, compensation for loss of function, grading and adaptation of activities and the environment.

The third year of study comprises three courses about health-promoting and preventive work locally and globally, project development, innovation and management and explorative and critical reflection of professional practice. The work on the bachelor thesis must be connected to a research or development project at OsloMet or at a partner institution.

The courses build on each other with gradual progress both in terms of theoretical and practical knowledge. All the courses conclude with a final assessment. The figure shows how the courses are organised in the programme. Reference is made to the course descriptions for more detailed information about of the content of the individual courses in the programme.

The academic year is 40 weeks long, and the expected normal workload is 40 hours per week. This includes scheduled activities, students’ own activity, coursework requirements and exams.

INTERACT – Interdisciplinary teaching activity at OsloMet

INTERACT (Interprofessional Interaction with Children and Youths) is an interdisciplinary teaching activity at OsloMet, where students from both the health and social care subjects and the teacher/kindergarten teacher education programmes meet in interdisciplinary groups. The aim is to ensure that the students acquire the skills needed to meet society’s demands for a better coordination of services that affect children and young people. The teaching activity builds on pedagogical principles of interactivity and spiral learning, with extensive use of digital learning and assessment tools to improve the learning outcomes.

The teaching (INTER1100, INTER1200 and INTER1300) is carried out in the first teaching week each spring semester for students in the first, second and third study year, respectively.

See https://www.oslomet.no/forskning/forskningsprosjekter/interactfor a more detailed description of INTERACT.

Participation in INTERACT (INTER1100, INTER1200, and INTER1300) is required and must be approved to be awarded a diploma.

Study progress

The following progress requirements apply to the programme:

• ERGOB1000 and ERGOB1110 must be passed before the student can start ERGOBPRA1
• The first year of study must be passed before the student can start the second year
• The second year of study must be passed before the student can start the third year

The final assessment will be graded on a grading scale from A to E (A is the highest grade and E the lowest) and F for fail.

The work and teaching methods will facilitate the integration of knowledge, skills and general competence and have the greatest possible transfer value to professional practice. Emphasis is therefore placed on using a variety of work methods and alternating between theoretical studies and practical training. Teaching activities should stimulate active learning and engagement.

The occupational therapy programme aims to educate independent, creative and flexible candidates who are capable of dealing with social change and cultural diversity. Therefore, emphasis is placed not only on the content, but also on the learning process itself, whereby the students develop critical thinking, clinical reasoning and the ability to cooperate; skills for lifelong learning.

The students will receive follow-up throughout the programme in the form of supervision and feedback. In some cases, the students will assess each other’s work and provide feedback to each other (peer reviews). Students who have progressed further in the programme can be required to teach students at lower levels.

More detailed descriptions of the most common work and teaching methods used in the programme are provided below. The individual course descriptions state which work methods each course employs.

Independent work

As an occupational therapist it is important to be able to work independently, but at the same time cooperation in different arenas is essential. Independent work will therefore include both cooperation with fellow students and individual work. Students are expected to work independently with the curriculum, digital resources, assignments and teaching preparations, and are also responsible for their common learning environment.

Skills training

The students acquire skills through practical training with each other, through role play, simulation or together with users/patients. They develop the therapist role through supervision and teaching that promote reflection on their own professional practice.

Activity analysis

Activity analysis means that the students work systematically on activities through testing and observation where they apply analysis tools and terminology to understand all factors that influence occupational performance. This might include risk assessments, analysis of the influence of the environment, the skills and functions required to perform activities, activities’ possibilities for grading and adaptation, and analyses of occupational activities’ roots in culture and society.

Seminars

Seminars can be in the form of case-based teaching where the students solve complex assignments based on cases from their practical training. Seminars can also be discussion forums that emphasise different perspectives on key topics, or that help to summarise learning outcomes at the end of a course. Seminars normally require the students to come prepared, for example by using digital resources such as video clips or podcasts, academic texts, articles and interactive assignments.

Project work/Field work

Students often work on project assignments in groups over time. Projects often entail field work off campus.

Lectures

Lectures are primarily used to present new subject matter, explain connections, review cases from practical training or highlight main elements in important topics.

Group work and student-driven teaching

Group work is as a learning method used in most courses. Work on different issues, exchange of ideas and solving assignments together strengthen the students’ competence in group leadership, collaboration and communication. The programme emphasises the importance of students learning from each other. Occupational therapists must be able to teach, supervise and advise others, which is why parts of the teaching is student-driven. Students give lectures to each other, present projects, summarise experiences and discuss and provide feedback on each other’s assignments.

Practical training makes up one third of the programme. Each year of the programme includes a period of practical training, and the forms of practical training will vary for individual students. Practical training is supervised. This means that a supervisor from the practical field follows up the student throughout their practical training in cooperation with the contact lecturer from the university. During the first part of the practical training, the student, in cooperation with the practical training supervisor, will write a cooperation agreement where the learning outcomes for the practical training are specified in relation to how the student is to achieve the learning outcomes in the individual practical training establishment. The cooperation agreement must show how the student is to apply theory in practice, and it must be approved by the practical training supervisor and the contact lecturer at the university. The learning outcome descriptions must be concrete, relevant, realistic and measurable.

During the practical training, the students must learn to plan, carry out and evaluate the professional practice of occupational therapy. The practical training is an important arena for practising and learning occupational therapy through experience, and for strengthening the students’ professional identity. During the practical training, the students work on different assignments related to the learning outcomes as an integrated part of the practical training.

Assessment of practical training takes its point of departure in the learning outcomes in the course, the cooperation agreement and the formative assessment. The formative assessment, i.e. the assessment of the students’ knowledge, skills, general competence and suitability carried out during the period practical training, is summarised halfway through the period and at the end of it.

Practical training takes place in an interprofessional context in the municipality and specialist health service and in other arenas where occupational therapists work. The programme's location in the city provides opportunities for close cooperation with university hospitals and city districts. Practical training can also be organised as projects with public, private and voluntary parties where the students work in arenas that promote persons’ occupation and participation.

The practical training establishments that cooperate with the occupational therapist programme at OsloMet are primarily located in Oslo or elsewhere in Eastern Norway. The students must expect some travel in connection with the practical training. The students follow the practical training establishment’s rules for clothing. The various establishments may also have special requirements for tests and vaccinations. Separate attendance requirements apply to practical training, see ‘Assessment of practical training’.