Course content

This course offers a critical examination of children's rights in an international context, focusing on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989. The course presents a historical overview of the development of children's rights and discusses the principles of the current Convention, such as the principle of the 'best interest of the child' and children's rights to provision, protection and participation. The course addresses local and global values of children's rights and highlights some of the current problems in policies and practices relating to children, applying it to a range of children's issues.

Learning outcome

The main objectives of the course are to provide students with knowledge of:

• The historical background of children's rights.
• The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC); articles, principles and practices.
• Global perspectives and regional conventions on children's rights (e.g. the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child).
• Contemporary issues related to children's rights (e.g. education, child labour, migration, child protection, health services, media, etc.)

Learning methods and activities

Total lecture hours: approximately 20 hours.

Course materials

Information will be given at the beginning of the semester.

Credit reductions