The aim of the education programme, etc.

The education programme for a Bachelor Degree in Social Education is geared towards the entire educational occupational area, with specialisation within a specific occupational, functional or academic field.

The programme is to provide professional qualifications for working with development and care assignments within the following areas: children and young people (including working in day nurseries, daycare centres, pre-school classes, recreation centres/school-based leisure time facilities, after school clubs, 24-hour service institutions), institutions for children, young people and adults with reduced psychological or physical capacities, adults with social problems (homelessness, substance abuse, mental disorders), family institutions, and child and youth psychiatric hospitals. Additionally, the education provides qualifications for working in the field of crime prevention in, for example, neighbourhoods as well as working within the Prison and Probation Service.

The programme provides students with the foundation for further education and training, for example in a range of educational diploma programmes within, for example, psychology, educational work, social psychiatry, social work, special needs and youth education.

Where does the education programme take place?

As of 1 January 2008 the education programme will be available at any of the country’s 8 university colleges. The university colleges are independent institutions under public administration. The colleges provide professional bachelor education programmes with regional geographical coverage as well as continuing and further education in connection with these programmes.

The two education profession bachelor programmes, Bachelor in Social Education and Bachelor of Education, are, in terms of the total number of students, the largest medium-cycle higher education programmes.

The length, structure and content of the programme of education

The programme of education lasts 3½ years, amounting to 210 ECTS credits, and consists of formal teaching at the educational institution as well as practical training at relevant institutions. There are three periods of practical training during the programme. The total amount of time of the education programme spent on practical training amounts to 1 year and 3 months.

The programme of education consists of the following subjects and academic elements:

• Educational theory and practice
• Danish, culture and communication
• Individual, institution and society
• One of the following main subjects according the student’s own choice:
  a) Health, the body and exercise
  b) Expression, music and drama
  c) Arts and crafts, science and technology
• Practical training
• Specialisation within one of the following occupational or functional fields:
  a) Children and young people
  b) People with reduced functionality
  c) People with social problems

At the conclusion of the education programme each student must complete a bachelor project.

Admission requirements

Admission to the Bachelor of Education programme is available to people who have completed one of the following education programmes or subjects:

• An upper secondary education (a general upper secondary education, a higher preparatory examination, a higher commercial examination or a higher technical examination)
• A social and healthcare training programme, including C-level Danish and science and D-level English
• The basic educational training programme (PGU), including C-level Danish and social science and E-level English
• Four individual subjects at the upper secondary level: A-level Danish, B-level English, C-level social science as well as an elective subject at a C-level
• Applicants who, based on an evaluation of prior learning, have qualifications that are equivalent to the admission requirements outlined above.

The education institutions make the decision regarding the admission of individual applicants.

Relevant student information

The education costs are covered by the state and the programme is free for the students. The students are themselves responsible for acquiring the relevant educational material. The programme gives the student the right to receive Danish Education Support (SU) according to the applicable rules. Students receive a salary for the programme’s two final practical training periods.

The students must participate actively in the programme. Attendance is obligatory for teaching during the first academic year of the programme as well as for the three periods of practical training.

Apart from daytime teaching, certain institutions offer more flexible forms such as net/distance teaching.

The programme of education can also be offered as a specially designed part-time education for “meritpædagog” (an accelerated programme of learning for students awarded credits for prior learning experience). Admission to a “meritpædagoguddannelsen” programme is contingent on the applicant having work experience of an educational or equivalent nature, normally amounting to a minimum of five years of fulltime employment, apart from the regular admission requirements for the education programme. The “meritpædagoguddannelsen” programme does not include the two final periods of practical training.

Assessments, examinations and marks

Examinations in the different subjects can either be internal, external, written, oral, and practical or a combination of these forms. The bachelor project for the programme is assessed at an external oral examination at the conclusion of the programme. Marks are giving according to a 7-point marking scale, with marks between -3 and 12.

The assessment of the practical training periods is on a Passed/Failed basis, and the educational institution bases its assessment on recommendations from the faculty of the institution as well as the staff of the institution where the practical training took place, along with any possible comments that the student may deem relevant for consideration.

All examinations take place in Danish. However, it is possible for the examinations to take place in Swedish, Norwegian or English, unless the aim of the examination is to document the student’s skills in Danish.

Quality control of the examinations is conducted by a body of external examiners appointed by the Ministry of Education.

Teacher qualifications

The social educator training programme is a professional bachelor programme, and it is a typical characteristic that the teaching staff of the programme as a whole must have a level of qualification that is higher than that of the final level of the programme. By level of qualification is meant educational competence and documented theoretical, academic and/or professional competence.

A teacher at a social educator training programme is usually appointed as a lecturer. Teachers appointed to positions as lecturer must at the latest after 6 years of employment have acquired the necessary qualifications for transferring to the position of senior lecturer. An academic assessment committee appointed by the Ministry of Education conducts an assessment of the qualifications. Should approval as senior lecturer fail to be granted, the teacher is dismissed.

Management and financing of the education programme

Regarding the regulation of the education. Each educational institution draws up a curriculum formulating the key requirements of the programme’s content and structure.

The Ministry of Education is obliged to supervise the educational institutions with respect to both the education and training programmes and the institutions’ finances.

Concerning institutional management

From 1 January 2008, the training programme will be carried out at one of the 8 university colleges in Denmark.

The university colleges offer a wide range of professional bachelor degree and diploma programmes, which include the teacher-training programme, the social educator training programme, the nurse’s training programme, the medical laboratory technologist’s training programme, and the social worker’s training programme.

The university colleges have a unified management structure with one board, which can have 10 -15 members. The board must contain persons with experience of and insight into professional bachelor training programmes aimed at private and public occupations and professions and with experience of and insight into the needs of the private and public labour market for the training programmes, including in the regional area. It must also contain persons with extensive experience in strategic management, organisation and finance. The Regional Council and the municipalities in the catchment area of the university college together appoint two members. Two board members are elected by and from among the students at the university college. Two board members are elected by and from among the staff of the university college.

The board lays down the organisation of the university college, and appoints educational committees for each undergraduate programme and associated in-service and further education programme with external representation.

The board shall safeguard the interests of the college as an educational institution and decide on the guidelines for the external work of the college and its longterm development. The board is, furthermore, responsible for the running of the college, including the administration of the budget.

One new element is that the board of each university college enters a development contract with the Minister for Education. The contracts are to contribute to strengthening the strategic focus of the management by defining objectives and result requirements within selected focus area.

The Rector is responsible for the day-to-day running of the college, i.e. the college’s teaching and its finances.

The students at each university college have the right to elect a council: ”The Students’ Council”.

Concerning financing

The social education programme primarily receives its funding through various taximeters. The programme receives funding based on teaching, building maintenance, common, practical training and completion taximeters. The disbursement of the taximeters is based on the number of semesters the students complete. The taximeters cover the expenses for teaching, materials, building maintenance, expenses associated with the practical training of the students, etc.

In 2008 the average annual taximeter funding per student per will total DKK 36,433.

The educational institutions receive, in addition, institutional and quality development funding, which in 2005 comprised approximately 5 per cent of the total funding for the short- and medium cycle higher education programmes. The institutions have been able to make use of the funding for quality assurance of the programmes and competence development of the teachers.