Skip to 0 minutes and 18 seconds Few people would disagree that every child deserves a good start to life, but what does that actually mean? A good education? A stable family income? A safe home? A place to play, and time with friends and family? There are no easy answers to the question of what constitutes a good childhood - in this course, we’ll explore children’s lives around the world and we ask what lessons might be learned from the countries where children seem to fare best.
Skip to 0 minutes and 43 seconds Some would argue that a fair society is impossible if some children don’t receive a fair start to life and as the newspaper headlines you have just seen show, some countries do much better than others in ensuring that key policy interventions improve children’s lives. Over the four weeks of this course, we’ll debate the meaning of a good childhood and we’ll explore the many competing ways in which it can be measured. We’ll also look at what children have to say about their own lives. We’ll pay particular attention to how inequalities impact on children’s lives, focusing on income, health and children’s own subjective understandings of their well-being.
Skip to 1 minute and 20 seconds For analyis of differences in child well-being across rich countries, we will explore the implications of inequalities for child well-being, and will ask what governments might do to improve children’s lives. The course draws on the University of York’s world-leading expertise in social policy and our particular strengths in researching child poverty and child well-being. Join us, in exploring some of the debates around child well-being, and considering what lessons we can learn from around the world.
