| Unit name | Constructing Childhoods |
|---|---|
| Unit code | SPOL10023 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Roy |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School for Policy Studies |
| Faculty | Faculty of Social Sciences and Law |
Why is this unit important?
This unit will introduce students to the discipline of Childhood Studies, providing a firm foundation for the rest of the degree programme. It provides an overview of the historical, sociological and psychological construction and understanding of childhood (and children). It also introduces students to key thinkers and theories in the field of childhood studies.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This is a mandatory year 1 unit for all childhood studies students. Key concepts, theories and skills are introduced in this unit which are then built on in other mandatory and optional units throughout the degree programme.
An overview of content
What is a child? Childhood is a universal experience - we have all been children - yet our understanding of why a child is defined as a ‘child’ and not an ‘adult’ varies depending on time, space and place. This unit explores the construction of childhood through history and introduces students to the academic discipline of Childhood Studies. It aims to enable students to recognise that childhood is dynamic, fluid and culturally subjective. The unit explores different ways that children and young people have been conceptualised, understood and treated within historical and contemporary contexts.
Drawing on history, sociology, psychology and anthropology, students on the unit will be encouraged to critically engage with and challenge narrow definitions of ‘childhood’. The unit explores a diverse range of childhood experiences and understandings of childhood through history. By drawing on a wide range of primary sources such as official documents, statistics, diaries, novels, artwork, and oral histories, different representations and experiences of childhood will be compared.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Students will understand what the discipline of Childhood Studies is, and how the historical construction of childhood underpins and informs their study of contemporary childhood issues across the degree programme. Students will be able to engage with different assessment types, as evidenced through the portfolio.
Learning Outcomes
After completing this unit successful students will be able to:
The unit consists of a weekly mix of seminar, lecture and guided independent activities. These activities combine teacher delivery to students, asynchronous activities such as narrated slides and other teaching materials, student discussion, student group work and student independent activities including structured reading, engaging with audio/visual resources and analysing primary sources.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
The summative assignment for this unit is a portfolio of seminar-based activities (100%). Formative feedback will be provided within the seminar for tasks that are undertaken as part of group or individual work. The timing of formative feedback will be communicated with students at the beginning of term. The summative assessment for this unit recognises and rewards consistent engagement over the whole unit. The portfolio therefore draws together selected activities which students are asked to undertake over the unit as evidence for this engagement.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Portfolio of structured learning activities (3000 words, 100%). This assessment covers all of the ILOs.
When assessment does not go to plan
Subject to the university regulations for taught programmes, unsuccessful students may be offered an opportunity for reassessment. This will comprise a task of the same format as the original assessment. Some of the tasks do have group input activity, however all the work submitted is individual and can be undertaken individually if necessary for reassessment.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. SPOL10023).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
