Youth Development in Context: an Interdisciplinary approach

Course goals

After completing this course, students are able to: 

1. Understand important (inter)disciplinary theories and concepts related to the development of youth and apply these to societal questions within complex and changing social contexts;  
2. Understand and approach the development of youth from a systems perspective;  
3. Understand, analyze and evaluate why interdisciplinarity is necessary and how it works in the field of youth;  
4. Critically reflect on the defining characteristics of their own discipline, understand limits of (their own) disciplinary approach(es) and demonstrate disciplinary humility;  
5. Receive, process, and provide feedback in a constructive manner;  
6. Write an academic essay with coherent argumentation, integrating information and ideas 

Content

This course will help you to understand and apply different theories and concepts – from social, spatial, legal, medical and governance perspectives – to make sense of the lives and development of young people nowadays. You will learn about the added value of interdisciplinary approaches in addition to disciplinary concepts and theories. We will furthermore discuss the relevance of several contexts (such as family, friends, school, neighbourhood, society) in the lives of young people and will explore the changing situations – at a local, national and global level – that affect young people, their families and communities. Moreover, you will learn how young people shape the world around them and have the power to make structural changes to society. You will apply this knowledge to different real-life situations. In this course you will also work on developing academic writing and peer feedback skills.