BLH3220 Culture and Identity - Nordic Childhoods Emneplan

Culture and Identity is one of the courses under Nordic Childhoods. Joint events with the other Nordic Childhoods courses are integrated into the course. The student`s cultural background is a resource during lectures and class room discussions, through experience-based learning and critical reflection. The course includes fieldwork observations in kindergartens and schools, in addition to visits to relevant sites.

Important components in the pedagogical work with children in a Nordic context are play, learning related to play, nature and community surroundings. In this course, the focus is on the Norwegian educational system in both a broader and more specific Norwegian context.

Culture and identity adress the question of who we are, and is related to definitions of the other, as well as by the other: Who are 'we' and who are 'the others'. These are not static concepts, but are rather subject due to sociocultural change both nationally as well as globally.

One of the defining forces of culture and identity is religion. Religious diversity is part of cultural diversity and the changes that have developed globally, hence it also affects culture and identity in the Norwegian context. How does this affect Norwegian childhoods?

The power-relations and political forces around the child and childhoods are important drivers of these changes, producing various kinds of school systems, and preschool and kindergarten systems. Culture and identity is therefore not only about who we are, but also very much about childhood perspectives and construcs and how they affect us. The question becomes not only who we are, but also 'Who do they want us to be'?

Norway, like most other societies today, is a 'multicultural' society. The Sami indigenous people living in the Nordic countries have long been a part of this cultural diversity. Related to this, it is also important to focus on power relations between minorities and majorities. Culture and identity, involving definitions of 'us' and 'them', also enables racism and discrimination towards ethnic and linguistic minorities, as well as the politics of assimilation of the Sami. In this and many other regards, Norway and Nordic societies are no different from other countries, showing attributies similar to those of he rest of the larger global system, which Norway is a part of.

The language of all teaching and supervision is English, and the students should therefore have a working knowledge of both spoken and written English.

The course is an optional course in the PhD Programme in Social Science.

The course focuses on the reciprocal relationships between participation in the labour market and health, and the ways in which these are structured by social stratification. A running theme is how these phenomena and their interrelations are shaped by national and international institutions and contexts. The degree to which Western societies are able to integrate disadvantaged groups in the labour market is arguably one of the most crucial preconditions for their sustainability in the future. The course will apply an interdisciplinary perspective and draw on disciplines and research fields like social epidemiology, health research, sociology, labour market research, political science, and comparative social policy. The course will cover topics like concepts of health, in particular dimensions related to functional status and work capacity; the social distribution of health and its social determinants in different types of societies; international trends and patterns in labour market inclusion and exclusion; pathogenic and salutary aspects of work; policies and measures to include and retain disadvantaged groups in the labour market.

No prior knowledge required

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• Active participation in classes and discussions (minimum 80% attendance)
• Individual presentation of one's own culture with reference to educational challenges
• One paper on a topic addressed in the course, of approx. 2,000 words +/- 10 %

Course requirements shall be met by the deadlines. Course requirements are evaluated as pass/fail.

The right to take the exam depends on the successful completion of coursework requirements. Compulsory coursework assignments that are not completed by the agreed deadline will not be accepted, and the student loses their right to take the exam. Students are themselves responsible for keeping informed about relevant deadlines. In cases of illness or other inconveniences, students must make an appointment with their tutors for an extension, within the deadline for the coursework. Coursework that has been handed in at the right time but that has not been accepted, will be given a new deadline.

In cases where coursework is handed in on time but is not accepted, students are entitled to maximum two new attempts. Students who have lost their right to take the exam because of unmet coursework requirements, must get in touch with their tutors to organise completing the coursework requirement the following term/study year.

The final assessment consists of two parts:

• Oral exam based on the course syllabus and experiences from fieldwork (50% of the final grade)
• Semester paper of 6,500 words +/- 10%, on a topic addressed in the course and based on an extended period of fieldwork (50% of the final grade).

The grades in the two parts are equally weighted and used in the calculation of the overall grade for this course. The final certificate of 30 ECTS will be awarded on completion of the above-mentioned requirements and exams.

Resit exam

If a student fails the exam or is absent at the time of the exam for a valid reason, the student is entitled to resit the exam the following semester. The resit exam will be organised in the same manner as the ordinary exam. The students are themselves responsible for registering for the resit by the given deadline.

All examination support materials are permitted. However, sources must be stated in accordance with applicable rules for source References.

Students must write an essay, in English, of 8-10 pages in connection to the course. The essay shall take the candidates project as its point of departure and be related to the course content. The essay must be handed in for assessment no later than two months after the end of the course. A passed essay is a precondition for being awarded the 5 ECTS credits. If the essay is awarded a fail grade, the candidate can submit a revised essay once, by a specified deadline. The essay will be graded by the course lectures.

Final assessment will be reviewed and approved by internal and external examiners.