Children and Childhoods

Children and Childhoods asks students to relate their own ideas concerning children and young people to articles on childhood drawn from a wide range of subjects (e.g. History, Sociology, Psychology, Geography, Women's Studies, Ethnicity, Anthropology, Fictional Literature, etc). The course encourages students to investigate, compare and contrast a diverse number of representations of childhood in academic writing, literature, film, drama, art, news papers and so forth. The central aim is to develop the students' understanding of and ability to utilise different theories of childhood to understand their own and other people's everyday values, taken for granted assumptions, patterns of behaviour and work practices. Students will be asked to identify how topical aspects of childhood relate to different representations of childhood within childhood studies literature. Particular emphasis is placed on sociological and psychological understandings of social action, socialisation and development. These perspectives will be contrasted with representations in the media and literature of children as passive, vulnerable, good, evil, unruly and in need of protection. This theoretical perspective will underpin later courses that explore childhood and the family, childhood law & policy and practical work-based modules concerning project evaluation, working in, developing and managing organisations. Credit Level: 8 Year taken: Year 2 Undergraduate