Course syllabus
Welcome to Children and Young Adult Literature in English at Dalarna University
This undergraduate course looks at a selection of modern and contemporary children’s and young adult works from the English-speaking world. It introduces basic literary terminology for the analyses of the works as well as theoretical perspectives to childhood and the study of children’s and young adult literature. These broaden the understanding of the genre and increase the awareness of how the perception of children is created and transformed, and the implications of this for debates over both childhood and children’s and young adult literature.
This course has two versions: distance and campus.
- If you are enrolled as a campus student, then you will attend the seminars at Dalarna University Campus, Falun. Most of your seminars will be on campus. If you are a enrolled as a campus student, then being on campus is an expected requirement, With a few exceptions in which there are two scheduled distance occasions, you cannot suddenly move yourself to distance seminars.
- If you are enrolled as a distance student, then your seminars are held on the zoom platform where you are required to have a camera (turned on during the seminars), microphone, & speakers. Your internet connection must be stable.
The teaching language in seminars is English. Assignments must be written in English.
Learning Outcomes
- demonstrate a good understanding of modern as well as contemporary children’s and young adult literature in English by critically analysing and interpreting a selection of texts
- orally and in writing communicate and argue for their own interpretations of the texts making use of basic literary concepts.
- orally and in writing explain and discuss scholarly arguments on the study of childhood and children’s and young adult literature.
Course Assessment
- Active participation in seminars
- Written pre-seminar assignments
- Written paper on a children’s or young adult text in English
Grades
This course uses the A-F grading scale which is one of the official grade scales at Dalarna University
| A (Framstående) | Excellent |
| B (Mycket bra) | Very Good |
| C (Bra) | Good |
| D (Tillfredsställande) | Satisfactory |
| E (Tillräckligt) | Sufficient |
| F (Underkänd) | Fail |
To receive a grade, you must successfully fulfil ALL of the learning outcomes according to all of the assessment modes.
We hope you engage in inspiring, interesting, and challenging discussions with your teachers and fellow students. As with all courses at Dalarna University, this course has a strong foundation in theory and research.
Seminars Days and Times.
- Campus: Seminars are on Tuesdays 1030 - 1200
- Distance: Seminars are on Thursdays 1030 - 12:00
Click the links to open the excel documents for seminars for the Distance Course and seminars for the Campus Course.
Reading list
The seminars deal with each of the below texts. To prepare for the seminars, please go into "Modules", (see left menu). Below are the literary texts for this course.
| 1 | Barrie, J. M. (1911). Peter and Wendy (or any edition of novel). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. (or any edition) |
| 2 | Dahl, R. (2016). Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (or any edition of novel). London: Puffin. ISBN: 9780141369372 (or any edition) |
| 3 | Dr. Seuss. (2003). The Cat on the Hat (or any edition of text). London: Harper Collins Children's Books. ISBN: 9780007158447 |
| 4 | Gaiman, N. (2008). The Graveyard Book (or any edition of novel). HarperCollins. ISBN: 9780060530921 |
| 5 | Jiménez, F. (1997). The Circuit. Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child (Any edition). USA: University of New Mexico. ISBN: 9780826317971 (Provided by the Lecturer) |
| 6 | Park, L. S. (2012). When my name was Keoko (or any edition). New York: Sandpiper. ISBN: 9780547722399 |
| 7 | Sheth, K. (Red.). (2006). Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet (1 uppl.). New York: Argo Navis Author Services. ISBN: 9780786754656 (Provided by the lecturer) |
| 8 | Additional course material is provided by the lecturer |
Course Coordinator and Lecturer
| Lecturer Name |
Dr. Anita Purcell-Sjölund |
|
I try to answer email enquiries as soon as I am able to. Please remember that delays could occur as I could be teaching, at a meeting or conference, or am away. I do not respond to emails outside of working hours or during the weekend. |
|
| Phone (work) |
Please note that I may not answer immediately as I am either teacher, at a meeting or conference. I am unavailable after working hours |
Course summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|