Required prerequisite knowledge

Candidates must have passed a year study in Intercultural understanding, Intercultural communication, Pedagogy or equivalent / other relevant background.

Recommended prerequisite knowledge

Year study in Intercultural understanding, Intercultural communication, Pedagogy or equivalent / other relevant background.

Relevance within study programme

Optional course in the Intercultural Studies bachelor program.

Learning outcomes descriptors

On completion of the course, the candidate should have achieved the following learning outcomes: 

Knowledge

The student

• has knowledge of different anthropological and cultural science approaches to the study of learning and education in different societies.
• has comparative knowledge of what learning and education can entail in different societies, including learning as a cognitive, cultural, and physical process.
• has knowledge of the differences between formal and informal forms and contexts for learning and education in different societies.
• has knowledge of connections between language, reading and writing skills and education, with special focus on illiteracy, adult education, multilingualism, and mother tongue teaching.
• has knowledge of the connections between education and development issues.
• has knowledge of human rights and transnational organizations' objectives, follow-ups and challenges for -Education for all by the year 2015- (EFA).
• has knowledge of the connections between learning, education and social differences such as gender, class and ethnicity.
• has knowledge of the connections between learning, education and social mobilityhas knowledge of education in processes related to nation building, decolonization and the identity and rights of indigenous peoples.

Skills

The student

• can apply knowledge of different anthropological and cultural science approaches to studies of learning in different societies
• shows the ability for comparative reflection on what learning and education can mean in different societies, as well as what formal and informal contexts can mean for the learning process.
• can reflect critically on the connections between development and education, including transnational organizations' goals for education for all (EFA framework)
• can assess the impact of social inequalities such as gender, ethnicity and class in access to education, and its role in social mobility.
• can point to how education has been a central component in historical and contemporary political and social processes related to colonialism and nation building, as well as indigenous peoples' struggle for distinctive rights and self-assertion.
• masters relevant subject terminology

General competence

The student

• has comparative insights into relevant academic issues related to learning and education in different societies
• know the most important opportunities and challenges education provides for people in different societies
• can reflect on the connections between social identity and access to learning and education in different societies.

Content

The course offers a comparative exploration of learning processes and education in different societies around the world. Education is historically one of the most important core areas within anthropology and cultural studies, not least since these subjects are concerned with how different societies produce and maintain knowledge about themselves. Thus, there is an overlap between the anthropological interest of intercultural studies in understanding and creating knowledge about different societies, and these societies' own learning and knowledge production. The course therefore begins with an introduction to different cultural-scientific approaches in the study of learning and education. While a common understanding of learning and education is that this is a process that mainly happens in our heads and minds while sitting in classrooms, the course will examine how learning is not only a cognitive but also a cultural and bodily process. We will then discuss the differences and impacts of learning and education as it formally takes place in schools, and against the learning that takes place in informal contexts, such as at home and with teachers, in different societies. A key aspect of the course is to reflect on who has access to education. What are the consequences if one lacks access to education because of one’s gender, ethnic or class background? What happens if what one learns about one’s ethnic background breaks with one's own self-perception? The language one is taught in can have a strong impact on one’s ability to study, because what do you do if you do not understand what the teacher is saying? Illiteracy in children and adults is a major problem in many countries, which has major social, economic, and political consequences beyond the impact this has on the life of the individual. The course will therefore focus on the work done by transnational organizations such as the UN to spread access to quality education worldwide. In this context, the course includes a critical discussion on the connections between education and economic development in different societies. The course therefore has a macroscopic perspective on global development processes, but just as important is its microscopic focus on the importance of education for social mobility. The course concludes with a discussion of the connections between education's place in nation-building processes, colonial societies, decolonization processes and indigenous peoples' self-assertion and rights.

Teaching and learning methods

Lectures.

Scope

Approximately 300 hours.

Coursework requirements

N/A

Grading, coursework requirements

N/A

Final assessment

5 days individual home examination, 2500 words (+/- 10%).

Permitted aids under examination

None.

Grading, examination

Grades are given on a scale from A to E for a pass grade and F for a fail grade.

Assessment language

English. Norwegian and Scandinavian languages by application.

Progression requirements

N/A

Practice

N/A

Credit reductions

10 credits for IKF204 IKF204 Utfordringer i utdanning i det globale sør/Challenges in Education in the Global South.

Incompatible courses

N/A

Course evaluation

The students will be given the opportunity to evaluate the course through oral evaluations and through standardised, anonymous web-based evaluations.

Other rules

N/A

Available for Course Students

Yes.

Digital reading list

Follow this link for reading list and academic resources.