Work in child welfare service (BBA202)

Content

The course deals with law and administration in child welfare work. It will provide broad knowledge about the child welfare service’s tasks in relation to vulnerable children and their families through analytical, critical, reflective, legal and ethical competence.The course provides students with legal competence and administrative understanding as a starting point for good child welfare work.

The main task of the teaching activity is to combine the most important legal frameworks with child welfare assessments in order to carry out investigations and implement assistance and care measures within the child welfare context. Observation and interviewing are particularly used as methods in the investigation of care situations involving children, and children’s and parents’ involvement in encounters with the child welfare service is central.

Learning outcome

After successfully completing and passing the course, candidates will have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in the form of:

Knowledge

• Broad knowledge about the provisions of the Child Welfare Act relating to administrative procedure in child welfare cases, including notification, investigation and various types of measures, as well as key articles in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
• Broad knowledge about the various theories, empirical data and values that form the basis for child welfare assessments made in the implementation of investigations and measures in a child welfare case.
• Broad and up-to-date knowledge about key protection and risk factors that may affect the care situation of children and young people.
• Knowledge and understanding about different decision theories.
• Knowledge about social science methods, especially with a focus on interviewing and observation and their possibilities and limitations.
• Knowledge that decision-making processes can be understood from different perspectives.

Skills

• Can apply the provisions of the Child Welfare Act in relation to the processing of incoming reports, conditions for opening an investigation case, collection of information during the investigation phase, and conditions that must be met in order to implement various types of measures/interventions pursuant to the Act.
• Can reflect on the basis of understanding relating to child welfare and conduct an investigation and implement measures in a child welfare case in accordance with this.
• Students can apply different decision theories in order to understand decision-making processes in a child welfare case.
• Can, openly and clearly, account for the basis for assessment regarding discretion.
• Must have a conscious understanding of knowledge that forms the basis for understanding the best interests of the child.
• Can reflect on their own values when exercising discretion.
• Can apply research, practice and experience-based knowledge in order to investigate children and young people’s care situation and behaviour, and facilitate appropriate measures.
• Can apply research knowledge, experiential knowledge and knowledge from children, young people and parents as a basis for knowledge-based practice in encounters with children, young people and families in their own services, and make referrals if necessary.

General competence

• Have developed analytical, critical, reflective, legal and ethical competence in their work in the child welfare service for vulnerable children and their families.

Required prerequisite knowledge

Recommended prerequisites

Exam

Coursework requirements

Both compulsory activities must be approved in order for the student to take the examination. Approval/non-approval of compulsory activities is announced on Studentweb, normally no later than 7 days before the examination. Students who lack approval of one or more compulsory activities will be withdrawn from the examination.

Written assignment: Submission of a written piece of individual coursework. Scope: 2500 words (+/- 10%), excluding table of contents and bibliography. Referencing style: APA 7th.

Attendance requirements: 75 % attendance requirement at teaching, group work and seminars. Students who have less than 75% attendance at the seminars lose the right to take the examination, regardless of the reason.

Course teacher(s)

Study Program Director:

Course coordinator:

Method of work

Self-study, lectures, seminars and group work will prepare students for the course’s written examination (6 hours).

The main task of the teaching activity is to combine the most important legal frameworks with child welfare assessments in order to carry out investigations and implement assistance and care measures within the child welfare context. Observation and interviewing are particularly used as methods in the investigation of care situations involving children, and children’s and parents’ involvement in encounters with the child welfare service is central.

Literature