Child welfare (5 ECTS)

Objective

The student

• is familiar with the current debate related to child protection
• is aware of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
• understands the principles and content of the Child Welfare Act and other legislation governing child protection
• knows and can apply fundamental concepts related to child protection
• can identify the reasons for the need for child protection and understand the stages of the child protection process
• is familiar with the child protection service system
• identifies ethical issues related to child protection
• is able to reflect on their professional conduct and understands their professional role in multidisciplinary cooperation in child protection.

Content

UN Convention on the Rights of the Child

Child Welfare Act and other legislation governing child protection

The mission, core values and principles of child protection

The best interests, participation and rights of the child in child protection

Preventive child protection

• Child and family-specific child protection

• Child protection process

• Child protection service system

• Simple Finnish vocabulary and key phrases used in client interaction

Location and time

20.10. klo 12.30 - 15.45
23.10. klo 9.00 - 11.45 independent group work
24.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00
30.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00 independent group work
31.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00
6.11. klo 12.45 - 16.00 study visit
7.11. klo 9.00 - 11.30 independent group work time
10.11. klo 12.45 - 16.00 independent group work
18.11. klo 9.00 - 16.00 Children's Day Activity Day
21.11. klo 12.30 - 15.45 Group work presentations
24.11. klo 9.00 - 11.45 Group work presentations

Exam in the EXAM system 27.11. - 7.12.2025.

Materials

All materials will be in Moodle workspace

- The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
- Tasks, core values, and principles of child protection. The best interests of the child, inclusion, and rights in child protection. Preventive child protection. Child protection process. Child Welfare Act. Social Welfare Act in relation to the Child Welfare Act. The child protection service system.

Teaching methods

Lectures, group work, individual studying, Moodle-materials, study visit, activating methods, exam

Attendance in the orientation / first lecture is compulsory as according to Metropolia Study Guidelines (clause 16): "The students must confirm their attendance for a course implementation by being present when tuition begins or in the manner requested by the lecturer."

Employer connections

Study visits to child welfare service providers.

Exam schedules

Exam in the EXAM system between 27.11. - 7.12.2025.

Re-exams during spring term 2026.

International connections

The study group is international, with students coming from different countries.

Completion alternatives

Recognition of Previous learning /courses related to the topic needs to be submitted before the course starts. Do the RPL via Oma to the teacher responsible for the course: Tanja Saariaho.

Student workload

Lectures hour by hour tunti tunnista
Individual studying before/after lecture 1-2hours/per lecture
Reading materials (difficult text/ foreign language) 100 pages /14 hours
Written tasks 120 words /1 hour


- In this course there are scheduled lectures/group works aprox. 42 hours (includes group study times)
- Student need to read the materials during the course to be prepared for the exam count 4-6 hours per week for that (36hours)
- Preparing your group assignment individually and in groups include groups own study visit to the service provider related to their topic. 18 hours per student (done in groups)
- Individual microlearning diary 4-6 pages, every topic/lecture/group work meeting short reflection what did you learn and what you still need to learn more, refer at leats 4 sources (13 hours)
Reading for the exam 26 hours

CHANGES ARE POSSIBLE

Content scheduling

20.10. klo 12.30 - 15.45 Orientation and why children need protection (ACE) / history, tasks, core values and principles. The development of the child protection service system in Finland.

- Moodle materials about the topic
- read the lecture materials afterwards
- write to your learning diary

23.10. klo 9.00 - 11.45 independent group work

24.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00 The best interests of the child, inclusion, and rights in child protection. Preventive child protection + Child protection process.

- read the lecture materials afterwards
- write to your learning diary
- Moodle materials about Children's Rights (UN CRC)

30.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00 independent group work

31.10. klo 12.45 - 16.00 We continue with Child welfare process (open care, alternative care, after care)

- read the lecture materials afterwards
- write to your learning diary
- make sure that your group work is on process!
- Moodle materials about the child welfare process

6.11. klo 12.45 - 16.00 study visit in groups (visiting different child welfare service providers)

7.11. klo 9.00 - 11.30 independent group work time
10.11. klo 12.45 - 16.00 independent group work time

18.11. klo 9.00 - 16.00 Children's Day Activity Day: we will have interactive sessions during this week, which is The Children's Rights Week. We will have activities about children's rights and a potential work life visitor.

21.11. klo 12.30 - 15.45 Group work presentations based on field visits
24.11. klo 9.00 - 11.45 Group work presentations based on field visists

Exam in the EXAM system 27.11. - 7.12.2025.

Further information

The course includes Sosiaalialan suomi (Finnish for Social Services) meetings, which Finnish language learners attend as part of this course. The schedule for Finnish language meetings for Social Services will be announced in August. The meetings will start in August and end in December. They will be held regularly throughout the first and second periods.

At the beginning of the course, the teacher will explain the policies for AI use. Use of AI in assignments where it is specifically prohibited constitutes academic misconduct. Similarly, insufficient referencing of AI use is also considered misconduct. Metropolia's AI guidelines can be found on the Student Desktop: https://opiskelija.oma.metropolia.fi/group/pakki/opiskelijan-opas/ohjeet-ja-saannot

Evaluation scale

0-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

Framework of assessment is attached in the curriculum's description.

Assessment criteria, approved/failed

Framework of assessment is attached in the curriculum's description.

Assessment methods and criteria

0- 5

Individual learning diary (pass-fulfill):
The aim of a learning diary is to get students to take note of what they have learnt, to reflect on what they have already learnt in relation to their own previous knowledge and to develop as a professional. Not all of this process needs to be reported, short notes are sufficient and therefore the total number of pages is 4-6 pages and the assessment is pass/fail.

Group assignment (pass/fail): In order to pass the course, students prepare group presentations about various child welfare services based on their field visits. Each student must participate actively in the group work. There will a final self and group evaluation done by the students.

Individual exam 100% of the grading.

Late return of the learning diary or not taking an active part in the group work can lower the grade.