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This course focuses on the notion of the child and the adolescent as they have been constructed in literature, and the ways in which literary narratives of youth in turn affect social and cultural understandings of the experience of growing up. It takes a literary approach to the study of a range of novels, films and shorter fiction, considering narrative modes, structures, and genres, particularly the Bildungsroman. This reinforces the literary skills established in earlier Literature courses. The course will have cross-disciplinary appeal for students studying in the School of Education, as well as covering texts and approaches relevant for students in the School of Arts and Communication.

The emerging popularity of Children's and Young Adult Literature as a field of study provides a critical and theoretical framework for this inquiry which begins with the Victorian romanticisation of childhood, the invention of the teenager in the twentieth century, and the more recent rise of Young Adult fiction which seeks to engage directly with a range of adolescent issues, while often ultimately containing the threat of adolescent rebellion. Students will be encouraged to consider the ideological implications of the adult interests vested in the production of texts for children and young adults. The course will open a space in which `classic' children's literature and `young adult' literature can be analysed in terms of their key literary features as well as the way narrative influences our understanding of the process of growing up.

On completion of this course students should be able to demonstrate:

1. an advanced academic and professional knowledge of the development of the main genres of children鈥檚 literature, and contemporary debates surrounding the field as well as recognising several narrative forms (literary, filmic, shorter fiction) and how these literary constructions affect cultural and social understandings of the child;
2. effective discipline-based skills in identifying and interpreting theoretical concepts and approaches; evaluate and draw on appropriate secondary sources to consolidate and expand on core course knowledge;
3. the application of skills related to Objectives 1 and 2 in the interpretation and understanding of literature and culture in both oral and written form;
4. ethical research and enquiry skills by adhering to principles of academic integrity;
5. utilisation of creative skills and processes in developing innovative approaches to identified critical issues;
6. evidence of reflective practice by developing the final research essay directly based on feedback from earlier assessment.