Education for sustainability and social entrepreneurship – how can ECEC institutions make a difference as an active social actor, when it comes to inclusiveness and diversity and creating a larger common “WE”?

Social entrepreneurship is about innovation and developing solutions to complex problems that run across sectors and disciplines. In this course we will focus on how early childhood educators can engage in co-creation by inviting different partners in to equal collaborative partnerships to define, design, implement and drive solutions together. You will experience professional development in project management, co-creation, social entrepreneurship and new ways to work with sustainability

This course is for  the following students:

• students on exchange semester abroad, but where the host institution does not offer studies for credits.
• students in the in-depth study ECEC for Sustainability who do not travel abroad.
• international students at Queen Maud University of Early Childhood Education 

The course consists of a social entrepreneurship project connected to how ECEC institutions can work with the sustainable development goals. The course is internationally oriented, and will include virtual exchange and collaboration between local and international students. 

The course contains elements from the following subjects:

• Pedagogics (6 ECTS)
• Social Sciences (6 ECTS)
• Natural Sciences (3 ECTS)

In order to get diverse perspectives, the course will draw on both local and international guest lecturers.

Knowledge

The student is able to

• Describe the UN’s sustainable development goals
• Analyze the various dimensions of sustainable development
• Explain social entrepreneurship as tools for innovation and development in local communities

Skills

The student is able to

• Demonstrate ability to cooperate and communicate with various partners in and outside the ECEC institutions
• Initiate and design a real project on social entrepreneurship of relevance to early childhood education
• Promote and stimulate sustainability in pedagogical work with children and staff in ECEC settings

General competence

The student is able to

• Integrate the relevance of social entrepreneurship for sustainability to his/her professional role as ECEC teacher
• Discuss the significance of ECE institution's contribution to positive change and development
• Reflect critically on sustainability in ECE institutions
• Discuss the role of children as change agents and the responsibility of the staff inn ECEC in cooperation with adults in the local community, to support and encourage the active participation of children in change processes. 

Social entrepreneurship project, group work, international collaboration through interaction with international students, virtual exchange and guest lecturers. Oral and written presentations in group and individually. Various methods of supervision and group work will be emphasized. Independent work with learning material and learning processes.

Oral exam: Group presentation of an innovation project as well as questioning by the examiners.

Assignmenst that must by approved to take the exam: 

MUN1: F-TF2 and  F-TF5
OPG1: F-TF1 and F-TF4

Assignments equivalent to former assignments:

F-TF1 is equivalent to AK 1
F-TF2 is equivalent to AK 2