Youth Law and Youth Criminology

6 ECTS credits
150 h study time

Offer 2 with catalog number 1023669BNR for all students in the 1st semester at a (B) Bachelor - advanced level.

Semester

1st semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Impossible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Taught in

Dutch

Partnership Agreement

Under interuniversity agreement for degree program

Faculty

Faculty of Law and Criminology

Department

Criminology

Educational team

Jenneke Christiaens (course titular)
Els Dumortier

Activities and contact hours

18 contact hours Lecture
12 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
100 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study

Course Content

This course is composed of two parts, a judicial (Youth law) part and a youth criminological part. The course however approaches the judicial and criminological issues as intertwined. The course therefor starts with an introductionary class on the criminological and judicial origins of youth justice. Afterwards the course splits into, on the one hand, judicial lectures and, on the other hand, youth criminological lectures concerning youth crime and youth justice.

In the judicial part of the course, the following themes are handled: 1) the federal state, the communities and their competences, 2) children's rights, 3) youth crime and youth justice, 4) children in need of care, 5) procedural aspects and 6) interventions towards parents.

In the youth criminological part focusses on the phenomenon of juvenile delinquency and the social reaction. Different topic are planned: (1) the phenomenon of youth crime; (2) explaining youth crime and backgrounds of juvenile delinquency; (3) models and practices of social reaction.

During this course also more interactive and practical sessions and seminars are held such as debates, inviting fieldworkers, working with judicial texts, etc. These sessions and seminars take place during or just after the general classes.

Course material

Handbook (Required) : Thema wetboek jeugdrecht, Put, J., 6de, Larcier, 9789400014022, 2023
Handbook (Required) : Handboek Jeugdbeschermingsrecht, Put, J., 4de, Die Keure, 2000002007562, 2023
Digital course material (Required) : Reader (jeugdcriminologisch luik), Canvas
Digital course material (Required) : Les slides beschikbaar, Canvas

Additional info

Studymaterial consists of:

For the judicial part of the course:

Textbook on youth law (title will be made available via canvas)
Legal acts (title will be made available via canvas)
Slides (will be made available via canvas)

For the "youth criminological" part:

a reader and a bibliographical list of relevant texts and a assignment note will be available in canvas.

This course is also available for the special (evening) students program: They have to fulfill the same tasks and the same exam. For these students three evening sessions will be hold to accompany their self study.

For Erasmus students, there is a reading course organized.

Content: This course treats aspects of both the Belgian youth justice model and of youth criminological topics.
Study material: reading course (to be discussed with the responsible professors).

Learning Outcomes

General competencies

The course Juvenile law and juvenile criminology aims at acquiring insight in the evolution and the social reaction towards delinquent and deviant juvenile behaviour.

The student acquires knowledge of the fundamental characteristics of the Belgian/Flemisg Juvenile justice system and the international children’s rights framework.
The student has insight in the legislation and the implementation of the law and of juvenile justice practices in Belgium/Flanders concerning delinquent (MOF) and non delinquent cases (VOS), both towards minors as towards parents, and is able to discuss important issues that are part of the related socio-political as well as scientific debate.
The student is able to reflect critically on these scientific and socio-political debates that have influenced the development (historically and contemporary) of Belgian juvenile justice.
The student is able to present different approaches and argumentations in these debates and formulate an own opinion/vision.
The student is able to find relevant articles in legal texts and to comment them in a judicial/youth criminological manner.

This course is a prerequisite/preparation of the Profile Youth Criminology (Master).

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Written Exam determines 80% of the final mark.
PRAC Teamwork determines 20% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Part "youth law" with a relative weight of 50 which comprises 50% of the final mark.
Luik jeugdcriminologie with a relative weight of 30 which comprises 30% of the final mark.

Within the PRAC Teamwork category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Part "youth criminology" with a relative weight of 20 which comprises 20% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

Written examination (50%) - on the Youth law part of this course:

Open questions such as a case study
Closed questions
Multiple choice questions
the legal texts must be taken to the oral examn

For the Youth criminology part (50 %):

This Youth criminology part is evaluated by a written examination (8/10) as well as an (individual/group) assignment (2/10). The assignment is directly related to the topics dealed with during the course. At the beginning of the semester the yearly assignment is detailed and discussed. The evaluation of the assignment is part of the final written exam.

Between two examinations in one and the same academic year, a transfer of the obtained and successful partial mark for the juvenile criminology component (for the written exam) and/or the youth law component (for the written exam) is possible. Such transfer is not possible between two academic years.

Evaluation for Erasmus students:

Students have to make a scientific short paper on the Belgian youth justice model from an international-comparative perspective and defend and discuss this paper during an oral examination (50/100),
Students have to make a written paper on a youth criminological topic (50/100).

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context