EPN-V2

VERB1210 The Welfare State and Person-Centered Care Course description

Course name in Norwegian
Velferdsstaten og personsentrerte tjenester
Study programme
Bachelor's Programme in Social Education
Weight
10.0 ECTS
Year of study
2025/2026
Course history

Introduction

The purpose of the course is for the student to acquire basic knowledge of the health and welfare policy framework within which the social educator provides services. Furthermore, the student will acquire basic knowledge about disabilities and disabilities and the care ideologies that have guided the social educator's service performance. The student should also acquire the basic steps in evidence-based practice and be familiar with the contribution of the natural and social sciences to knowledge-based service provision. The course runs over 6 weeks.

Required preliminary courses

The student must have been admitted to the programme.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of the course, the student has the following learning outcomes classified as knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

  • can give an account of different theories and models about disabilities and disability
  • can give an account of living conditions for people with intellectual disabilities and for people with other disabilities
  • can give an account of welfare policy guidelines in the past and now and what consequences they have for the social educator's service provision
  • can give an account of central legislation for the welfare services and legislation that regulates the services for people with disabilities
  • can describe the theoretical basis for the subject areas included in the social educator education
  • can give an account of scientific theory and research methods and the significance this has for the social educator's service
  • can describe the basic features of quantitative and qualitative research methods
  • can apply the PICO model (Population, Interest, Comparison, Outcome) to formulate a research question for searching for a research question, searching databases and critically assessing with the help of checklists in relation to a chosen source

Skills

The student

  • can demonstrate skills in groups that promote cooperation

General competence

The student

  • can discuss political goals, policy instruments and welfare schemes that regulate services for people with disabilities
  • can discuss strategies for inclusion of people with disabilities

Teaching and learning methods

The teaching and learning methods include lectures, self-study, group work and project work. The students will be divided into project groups where the syllabus, as well as articles, will be used to shed light on a given case that will be handed out at the start of the course. The project group's case work is discussed and guided in seminars consisting of several groups with the same case. Finally, the project group will present its project work to the fellow students.

Course requirements

The following required coursework must be approved before the student can take the exam:

  • Project work in groups of 6 students:
    • Minimum 80 percent participation in group work
    • Participation in 3 out of 4 seminars
    • 100 per cent participation in the digital presentation of the project for fellow students

Assessment

Individual written examination with invilgation, 5 hours.

Permitted exam materials and equipment

None

Grading scale

Grade scale A-F

Examiners

All answers are assessed by one examiner.

An external examiner is used regularly, at a minimum of every third completion of the course. When selecting answers for external evaluation, a minimum of 10 percent of the answers shall be included, with no fewer than 5 answers. The external examiner’s assessment of the selected answers shall benefit all students.

Overlapping courses

10 credits overlap with VERN1210/VERNL1210/VERN1210/VERB1200