Child, Family, and State
Spring term, Block C
T,W 10:25 AM - 11:55 AM
Professor Elizabeth Bartholet
3 classroom credits LAW-32000A
This course will focus on children's rights and interests in the context of family, education, and child welfare, and consider how our society shapes the meaning of childhood. We will look at what role the government does and does not play in supporting families so that they can provide children with appropriate nurture, and assess the potential of programs designed to provide special support to fragile families, such as early home visitation and family preservation. We will look at how law divides responsibility for children between parents and the state, and consider how the balance should be drawn. We will look at law and policy governing parent rights, child abuse and neglect, foster care, adoption (domestic and international), education, and juvenile justice. Throughout we will think about how we could change law and policy to create a better world for children and families.
This course is part of the Child Advocacy Program (CAP), whose other courses are: The Art of Social Change: Child Welfare, Education, & Juvenile Justice, the Child Advocacy Clinic, and the Future of the Family seminar. Students participating in this Child, Family, and State course will get a preference for admission to the Winter-Spring and Spring versions of the Child Advocacy Clinic and related fieldwork placements, and to the Future of the Family seminar. Enrollment in all the CAP courses is encouraged but not required.
There will be a take-home examination for this course.
Cross-registrants are welcome.