A History of Children and Childhood in Modern Europe
| Module title | A History of Children and Childhood in Modern Europe |
|---|---|
| Module code | HIH1022 |
| Academic year | 2019/0 |
| Credits | 15 |
| Module staff | (Convenor) |
| Duration: Term | 1 | 2 | 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duration: Weeks | 11 |
| Number students taking module (anticipated) | 30 |
|---|
Module description
Is childhood natural and universal? How do children as social actors shape the worlds in which they live and how do their social worlds shape them? In this module, we will grapple with the social experiences and cultural meanings of childhood in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Europe, and look at how experiences of infancy, childhood and youth have been constructed across both time and geography. The module will trace this development from the emergence of the notion of the innocence and sanctity of childhood in the nineteenth century, through the radical redefinition of children's rights and duties in early to mid-twentieth century, to the recent discussions of children, politics and violence. It will draw on a variety of social, cultural, medical, legal and political sources, and explore how the status of children was affected by the radical changes in the nature, purpose and structure of families over the two centuries. Moreover, different conceptualisations of family and parental authority have been indicative of broader social, cultural and political shifts, and the module will consider how different perspectives on children and childhood affected discussions of social relations and political organisations.
Module aims - intentions of the module
The module aims to:
- Introduce you to a large variety of historical sources such as legal decrees, government and international organisation records, newspaper articles, medical journal articles and other scientific literature, medical and psychiatric records and patient case files (including psychoanalytic case studies), photographs and films, art, cartoons, fiction, police reports and trial records. It will also explore different ways in which historians can recover children's voices and perspectives, and will expose you to a broad range of children's writings, such memoirs, diaries and letters. You will conduct your own research into these sources, evaluate their significance and limitations, and use them to explore particular themes in depth.
- Consider questions such as: Did childhood exist in the past, or is it a modern invention? Is childhood a biological or 'natural' and universal stage of human development, or is it the product of society, culture, and history? How do experiences of growing up vary depending on class, race, gender, and other social factors? Can we identify change in some areas and continuities in others, and why? In Europe’s recent history, children were often constructed as essential for the development, survival and prosperity of the nation; the module will explore the consequences of such potentially volatile coupling of children and nation-building. Moreover, the twentieth century saw many attempts to directly involve children in both democratic and authoritarian politics, which significantly affected both experiences and perceptions of childhood, and at times led to extreme violence committed both towards and by children.
- Address the emergence of the figure of the child 'expert' – the paediatrician, psychologist, educator, social worker – and consider their role in shaping our views towards children and in defining 'normality' for them. At the same time, we will trace how the legal status of children changed over time, and how and why the concept of children's rights emerged. In considering these questions, we will address themes such as inequality, victimisation, education, children's literature, parenting and different cultural representations of children.
Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)
ILO: Module-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 1. Understand and assess the main developments in the history of children and childhood in modern Europe
- 2. Work critically with a range of written and visual sources relating to the topic
ILO: Discipline-specific skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 3. Identify the problems of using historical sources, e.g. utility, limitations, etc, and compare the validity of different types of sources
- 4. Present work orally, respond to questions orally, and think quickly of questions to ask other students
ILO: Personal and key skills
On successfully completing the module you will be able to...
- 5. Conduct independent study and group work, including the presentation of material for group discussion, developed through the mode of learning
- 6. Digest, select and organise material to produce, to a deadline, a coherent and cogent argument, developed through the mode of assessment
- 7. Work with others in a team and to interact effectively with the tutor and the wider group
- 8. Write to a very tight word-length
Syllabus plan
Whilst the content may vary from year to year, it is envisioned that it will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Modern childhood: Inventing innocence
- The changing figure of an orphan: From Charles Dickens to post-WWII Europe
- Childhood in a cross-cultural perspective
- Childhood and inequality: Race, class and gender
- Children and violence
- Childhood and sciences: The emergence of a 'child expert'
- Psychoanalysis: Constructing children's sexuality
- Comrade Pavlik: Children as political actors
- The notion of children's rights and the changing legal status of children
- Parenting: The making of ideal mothers and fathers
Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | 128 | 0 |
Details of learning activities and teaching methods
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 2 | 2 hour lecture: Introduction to module |
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 20 | 10 x 2 hour seminars. At a meeting of the whole class generally a different group of 3-4 students will give a presentation to the whole class, followed by class discussion and working through the sources for that week carefully. Additional sources may be issued in the class and the lecturer will also use the time to set up issues for the following week |
| Guided Independent Study | 128 | You prepare for the session through reading and research; writing five source commentaries and an essay and preparing one group presentation in the course of the term. |
Formative assessment
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group presentation (3-4 students) | 10-15 minutes | 1-7 | Oral feedback |
| Lowest mark from portfolio of 4 source commentaries | 750 words | 1-3,5-6,8 | Mark and written comments |
Summative assessment (% of credit)
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0 | 0 |
Details of summative assessment
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 highest marks from portfolio of 4 source commentaries | 100 | 2250 words (750 per commentary) | 1-3,5-6,8 | Mark and written comments. |
Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 highest marks of portfolio of 4 source commentaries | 3 highest marks of portfolio of 4 source commentaries | 1-3,5-6,8 | Referral/Deferral period |
Re-assessment notes
Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.
Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.
Indicative learning resources - Basic reading
Basic reading:
- Higonnet, Anne. Pictures of Innocence: The History and Crisis of Ideal Childhood. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1998.
- Mead, Margaret. Coming of Age in Samoa: A Psychological Study of Primitive Youth for Western Civilisation. New York: American Museum of Natural History, 1928.
- Shapira, Michal. The war inside: Psychoanalysis, total war and the making of the democratic self in postwar Britain. Cambridge: CUP, 2013
- Schumann, Dirk, ed. Raising Citizens in the 'Century of the Child'. New York: Berghahn Books, 2010
- Kelly, Catriona. Children's World: Growing Up in Russia, 1890-1991. London and New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007
- Kelly, Catriona. Comrade Pavlik: The Rise and Fall of a Soviet Boy Hero. London: Granta Books, 2005.
- Zahra, Tara. The Lost Children: Reconstructing Europe's Families after World War II. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2011
- Hopkins, Eric. Childhood Transformed: Working-Class Children in Nineteenth-Century England. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1994
- Plotz, Judith. Romanticism and the Vocation of Childhood. New York: Palgrave, 2001
- Winnicott, Donald. Playing and Reality. London: Tavistock, 1971
- Toltoy, Leo. Childhood, boyhood, youth. 1856
Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources
| Credit value | 15 |
|---|---|
| Module ECTS | 7.5 |
| Module pre-requisites | None |
| Module co-requisites | None |
| NQF level (module) | 4 |
| Available as distance learning? | No |
| Origin date | 19/05/2016 |
| Last revision date | 08/07/2019 |