Course syllabus

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Children and Young Adult Literature Canvas Room for Distance and Campus Students.  

Those who  study on this course come from a variety of study discipline.  However,  the focus is Children and Young Adult literature as a literary genre and research discipline within English Literary Studies (litteraturvetenskap).

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This course has three "course occasions" or application pathways. 

1. Distance Elective/Freemover (for those who applied to take this course as distance course) 

  • If you applied to study this course online, note that the time for all seminars is local Swedish time (Central European Summer time during the summer [till Sun, 26 October]  & Central European Time in the winter). If you live in a country within a different time zone,  you need be aware of the time difference. 

2. Campus Elective/Freeemover (for thos who apply to study on campus)

3. Erasmus Campus Course (for international Erasmus exchange students who must study on campus). 

For ALL campus students,

  • if you applied for the campus (NML) course,  you understand that you have applied to study this course on campus. Your acceptance to the course  is an acknowledgement of your intention to study on campus.  For Erasmus exchange students,  your studying on campus is part of your learning agreement between your home university and Dalarna University. 
  • All campus seminars are held at Falun Campus.  Please see the schedule below and in Modules. 

Course Seminars  

  • All campus seminars are held  Wednesdays 13 - 14:30.  The campus room is C327, apart from  the first seminar which is in E151.  Please check the full schedule in Modules
  • All distance /zoom seminars are held Tuesdays 1300 - 1430 in zoom 102.    Please check the full schedule in Modules. 

The course begins week 37 (7 - 11 Sept, 2026 and will end week 2 (11-15 Jan, 2027)

Click to open a preliminary schedule dated 30 July Children and YA Literature Schedule HT26-1.docx

Your First seminar for the term

  • The first distance seminar will be on  Tuesday 8th September 13 - 14:30 in zoom room 102
  • The first campus seminar will be on Wednesday 9th September, 13 - 1430 in room E151, Falun. 
  • Go into modules to see how you can prepare for the first seminar 

Seminar 1 Material as well as how to prepare for the seminar is available in Modules.  Please read the articles before seminar 1. 

For Distance Students: Accessing the Zoom Room Platform

To access the zoom room for the first seminar click on the link from the university's home page and scroll until you see "samtalsrum102" on the menu to the right of the page. https://www.du.se/en/study-at-du/study-tools2/onlinemeetings/?epslanguage=en

To participate in the meeting, you must: 

  • download the zoom app.  Go to the following university webpage for information about zoom  https://www.du.se/en/services-and-offices-for-students/zoom-for-employees/
  • have a working camera and microphone (the camera must be on during the seminar.   A distance seminar in this aspect is no different to a campus seminar in that there is an obligation for you to be seen and present).  
  • A working PC.   Do not try and participate in seminars using your mobile phone.  It is too unstable.  
  • Be in a place in which you will not be distracted.  Your environment is important as your camera will be on, therefore, any distractions in the background of your environment must be minimal to avoid distraction and interference.   
    • this includes:
      • being on the move.  You should not be walking, driving, etc while online.  
      • talking to someone else who is in the same environment with you, 
      • answering your phone or doing something else online while participating in the online seminar.  
  • Be appropriately dressed and act accordingly as you are in a university seminar.    
    • being dressed comfortable in your own environment is important but respect that you are in an online learning environment with others. 

What is the Children and Young Adult Literature Course about? 

This course is a first year undergraduate elective (freemover) course as part of English Literature Studies in the English department.   In brief, English Literature Studies is an academic field that explores written English language literary works  - such as novels, poetry, drama, essays, etc - using literary theory as a key interpretative tool.  By applying theoretical approaches such as Marxism, post-colonialism, Eco-criticism,  or areas of feminism, etc,  English Literature Studies analyses how literary texts from different historical periods and cultures produce meaning, represent power, identity, culture and history as well as how literature both reflects and challenges social values and human experience. 

This course treats a selection of classic 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 historical and theoretical perspectives of "childhood" as a social construct, and the literary 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.

All teaching is conducted in English.

What books  do I need for the Course? 

You are required to read the reading material in preparation before every seminar.  You must also read the literary text for discussion BEFORE the seminar.  In the seminar module for the text, use the preparatory questions as guides to help in your critical reading of the literature.   This means you must have access to the literature discussed in this course.  You are responsible for making sure you can access the texts on this course's reading/literature list.   Some  literature texts will be provided - but not all.  

Accepted forms of the course literary texts

  • Traditional print versions,  e-book text versions as well as pdf versions are accepted forms of literary texts. 
  • Audio versions cannot be used as literary texts in the course (see the learning outcomes below).   
  • Film adaptations of the literature will not be treated as "literature" as 1)  this is not a film course and film adaptation and theories belong to a different academic field of study,  and 2) literary transmediality is not part of the course and learning outcomes. 

NB:  if you have a disability that presents challenges for you in studying this course, then you must contact   the Disability Coordinator and apply for study support through NAIS.   I will be given advice on how to best help you study on this literture course and fulfil the learning outcomes of the course and examination modes for this course.   For m,ore information click on the following link:  https://www.du.se/en/student-web/services-and-tools/student-health-services/studying-with-a-disability/

The literature discussed in this course are:

  • Barrie, J. M. (1911). Peter and Wendy (or any edition of novel). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
  • Gaiman, N. (2008). Coraline (or any English edition). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. ISBN: 9780747594062
  • Itäranta, E. (2015). Memory of water (or any English edition). London: Harper Voyager. ISBN: 9780007529940
  • Iweala, U. (2005). Beasts of no nation (or any English edition). London: John Murray. ISBN: 0-7195-6843-9
  • Jiang, A. (2023). I am AI : a novelette (First edition). Förenta staterna: Shortwave Publishing. ISBN: 9781959565093   (provided in the course)
  • Jiménez, F. (1997). The Circuit. Stories from the Life of a Migrant Child (Any edition). USA: University of New Mexico. ISBN: 9780826317971   (provided in the course)
  • Övriga noveller och litteratur material som tillhandahålls av läraren.

NOTE: Some of the novels in the list above have been adapted as films of which I have seen as an academic/researcher specialising in film and media studies, cultural studies, and literary studies.   There is the temptation to avoid reading the literature by watching film adaptations. The issue is that film adaptations do no necessarily follow the original literary texts.    

Literature study websites can be useful,   but they should not replace reading a literary texts.  Literature study websites provide basic information about texts by summarising, describing, and explaining.  They cater for lower levels of learning (Blooms Taxonomy of learning): remembering and understanding.  Higher levels of learning, namely applying,  analysing, evaluating, creating,  interpretation,  and argumentation form part of the learning outcomes below and they cannot be achieved by just relying on literature study sites  alone. 

Using AI:    As a researcher in trans-and- posthumanism,  I am not against using AI to help you with your study,  and in some seminars, we will use AI.   However,    AI should not be used as a ghost writer.  Using AI has its limitations, particularly when it comes do demonstrating higher cognitive levels such  Any work that you submit for grading must be your own work developing your own ideas.   YOU need to demonstrate the learning outcomes NOT AI.  

 

To successfully pass the course,  you must demonstrate throughout the course  ALL of the course learning outcomes  (key skills are in bold) 

  • 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.

Assessment Methods for this Course. 

All forms of assessment are aligned with the learning outcomes. 

  • Active participation in seminars
    • while not specifically stated in the syllabus,  the implication is regular seminar attendance and consistent effort in demonstrating the key skills highlighted in the learning outcomes 
    • Clarification of the term 'active'  is given in "modules"
  • Written pre-seminar assignments
  • Written paper on a children’s or young adult text in English
      • End of term argumentative-analytical essay of  2500 - 3000 words.
        • Information about the essay will be provided during the course.

Where do I find my university email address  to contact my lecturer?  

Dalarna University uses Office 365 for all emails. As a registered student you will be given a university ID and password.  Your university ID will form part of your email address which would be something like  h25abcd@du.se       

Please  use your university email address for all matters related to your study. 

To access Office 365 email, 

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Click on "Webmail" and you will be taken to the "Email" page.  https://www.du.se/en/student-web/services-and-tools/study-tools/email/

Once in the email page (see screen shot below),  click "Email in Office 365" and follow the online instructions. 

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To access the full course syllabus 

 (Swedish version)  https://www.du.se/sv/utbildning/kurser/kursplan/?code=GEN33R

 (English version) https://www.du.se/en/study-at-du/kurser/syllabus/?code=GEN33R

To access the Course Literature List 

https://www.du.se/sv/utbildning/litteraturlistor/?applicationcode=V3PQ8

Lecturer & Course Coordinator Contact. 

The lecturer and course coordinator for the course is Dr. Anita Purcell-Sjölund,  aps@du.se 

I am responsible for the organisation and context of the course. 

Do not use the canvas email messaging option.  

Email me using your university email address through outlook in office 365

I answer emails within working hours 0900 - 1600 Mon-Thurs as I am working at this university at 80%.  Please note this if you you email me outside of working hours or my working week.  I cannot answer all emails immediately as I am either teaching, at meetings, doing research,  or at an academic conference.  The maximum time I have to answer your email enquiry is three working days.  However,  I do try to answer emails as quickly as I can.  

Enquiries regarding Course Admission, Registration and Technical Issues regarding zoom 

Please contact support@du.se 

For technical issues during a zoom seminar,  you can always to to supportcafe zoom.  Click on link and scroll the zoom room list to "support"   https://www.du.se/sv/utbildning/studieverktyg/ListaVideomoten/

 

 

 

Course summary:

Course Summary
Date Details Due