Content, progress and pedagogy of the module

• To supplement the student’s knowledge and skills in a way that may form part of the student’s choice of educational and professional profile

Learning objectives

Knowledge

• International human rights law with an emphasis on human rights of the child
• The concept of human rights from a legal point of view, including considerations on universal applicability
• International legal sources in relation to children's rights, including international conventions, application and analysis of case law from the European Court of Human Rights, application and analysis of decisions from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child
• General knowledge of the international development in children’s rights and basic principles and terms in relation to children’s rights
• Current challenges and issues in the field of child welfare, the right for children to family life, child friendly justice, positive state obligations with regard to children’s rights, and human rights of refugee and migrant children.

Skills

• Master the law, terminology and concepts of the field and independently locate relevant legal sources in the field and applying them
• Identifying legal problems in regional and international human rights, including those relating to children, and applying relevant sources of law in solving these
• Researching, presenting and analyzing decisions, general comments, concluding observations and recommendations adopted by human rights treaty monitoring bodies, including the Committee on the Rights of the Child. Also applicable to illustrative case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECrtHR)
• Communicating issues relating to international Children’s and human rights law in a clear and well-structured manner, using the applicable terminology

Competences

• Independently identifying legal issues in the field of children's rights and analyze critically
• Being able to work problem oriented by independently composing a problem and working with it in a analytical and structured way and apply relevant international legal sources as well as basic principles and concepts to address issues in the area of children’s rights
• The ability to assess and analyze rules and regulations as well as the consequences of the rules
• Disseminate research-based knowledge and discuss scientific issues in the field of child-law based on children's rights

Type of instruction

• Workshops

Students are expected to physically show up to class to participate in group and project work.

Extent and expected workload

• 270 hours

Exam

Exams

Additional information

Child-law deals with issues that specifically concern children's legal position, often based on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. This means that the subject passes across different areas of law and focuses on the influence of international law on national law enforcement. Through six workshops, the students will work with practical and theoretical issues in identifying children's rights and how they are implemented in practice. The themes are frequently based on current issues regarding children and young people's meeting with the authorities. For instance concerning integration, crime, imprisonment, violation or abuse, migration or other relevant problems. In connection to this, students will also be asked to deal with questions regarding the legal consequences of a possible breach of children's rights. The six workshops are thematically dealing with children’s civil and political rights and economic, social and cultural rights. The course is interdisciplinary within the field of law and provides the students with skills that are relevant to a wide range of legal professions.