HS1CFL-Childhood and Family Life in the C19th & early 20th

Module Provider: History
Number of credits: 10 [5 ECTS credits]
Level:4
Terms in which taught: Spring term module
Pre-requisites:
Non-modular pre-requisites:
Co-requisites:
Modules excluded:
Current from: 2023/4

Module Convenor: Dr Jacqui Turner
Email: e.j.turner@reading.ac.uk

Type of module:

Summary module description:
This module is optional for SINGLE HONOURS STUDENTS ONLY.

Aims:

Provide students with the ability to relate contemporary concepts of childhood and family to attitudes in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

To evaluate and interpret primary and secondary sources on the history of childhood in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Britain.

To engage with children's writing and contemporary evidence, understanding the challenges and benefits. Also, evaluating oral and written memories of childhood and autobiographical accounts.
Construct written arguments and engage in oral debate that demonstrate academic maturity displaying some empathy for the subject but without emotion.

Assessable learning outcomes:

By the end of the module it is expected that students will be able to:

• identify the sources of the topic in question • trace its historical development


• be aware of differing historiographical interpretations of the pattern and causes of this development


• understand how ideas and events are shaped by their historical contexts


• organise material and articulate arguments effectively in writing, both under timed conditions and in assessed coursework


• demonstrate familiarity with bibliographical conventions and mastery of library skills.

Additional outcomes:
The module also aims:
' to encourage students to think independently
' to help students develop good oral and written communication skills
' to develop the effectiveness of students in group situations
' to develop IT skills through the use of relevant resources.

Outline content:
What is a child? What is a family? How had this changed and why? Are boys really different to girls?

This module will consider the changing perceptions of childhood and the development of the modern family unit in Britain from the C19th to 1945. The module will explore how the family and the lives of children have changed under the influence of social and economic conditions but also in relation to government policies. We will also look at what happened when all parental rightsand responsibilities were suspended during the evacuation of British children to the countryside in World War Two. A wide variety of primary and secondary sources will be used including oral memories of childhood and the written evidence left by children themselves. A such, at least 1 week will be held in the Evacuee Archive at University of Reading, London Road.

' Introduction & the construction of childhood
' Gender and socialization
' Motherhood & Fatherhood
' Parental Rights and Responsibilities
' Education
' Working children
' Children in wartime
' Child welfare

Brief description of teaching and learning methods:
Teaching is by eight two-hour seminars over one term. Students are reminded to email their tutors for help and advice whenever needed and to note office hours.

Summative assessment- Examinations:

Written exam 50% 

one 1-hour unseen paper requiring 1 answer

Summative assessment- Coursework and in-class tests:

Written assignment 50%:

1 written assignment of c. 1,250 words, to be submitted once via Blackboard on Turnitin, by 12 noon on the submission deadline in Week 11 specified on the module site on Blackboard.

Formative assessment methods:

Penalties for late submission:

Assessment requirements for a pass:
A mark of 40% overall.

Reassessment arrangements:
Where a re-sit is permitted, students will be assessed on the failed element(s) only in August. Any element(s) already passed will be carried forward if it bears a confirmed mark of 40% or more. Any element which is re-sat in August is capped at 40%. Failed coursework must be re-submitted by 12 noon, on the last Friday of August.

Additional Costs (specified where applicable):
1) Required text books:
2) Specialist equipment or materials:
3) Specialist clothing, footwear or headgear:
4) Printing and binding:
5) Computers and devices with a particular specification:
6) Travel, accommodation and subsistence:

Last updated: 30 March 2023