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World Regional Geography

Vak
2020-2021

Admission requirements

Required courses:

  • *Birth of the Modern World

Description

First and foremost this course approaches the world as a collection of regions. Second, it investigates the complex nature of what regions are and how they are defined. Third, it focuses on major themes in human geography within a number of regions as well as relevant global challenges, as appropriate. The thematic elements may include cultural, urban, environmental, agricultural, and political geography; sustainable cities, human health, and migration. As a way of dividing the world, regions are not always clear or easy to define which provides room to explore how and why geographers particularly along with other scholars at times apply a regional approach in their work. A number of selected world regions will form the focus of the course during which we will discuss characteristics that define these places as well as connections between regions in the past and/or the present. Relevant themes in human geography which relate to global challenges will be used as focal points for each selected region, for example we could focus on the illicit drug trade across Middle and South America. The goal of this course is for each student to walk away with a better understanding of the world as a whole particularly with regard to geography and culture, and generally how different and distant places all fit together from the past into the present to inform a larger picture of our world.

Course Objectives

Skills:

  • Students will work on their groupwork skills.

  • Students will build on their knowledge of mapped locations and use of visual tools to communicate spatial information.

  • Students will work on writing a clearly formed narrative about geographic concepts.

Knowledge:

  • To be able to articulate the concept of regions, their complexity, and why scholars choose to organize space in this way.

  • Student will be able to apply spatial thinking in different contexts, such as mapping.

  • Students will improve their understanding of academic geography and its importance in understanding and addressing global challenges, such as developing sustainable solutions to current environmental challenges.

Timetable

Timetables for courses offered at Leiden University College in 2020-2021 will be published on this page of the e-Prospectus.

Mode of instruction

This course will be taught completely online with expectations of weekly individual and group engagement with readings, concepts, and other forms of instruction in addition to live sessions.

Assessment Method

  • Engagement (participation) 15%; ongoing

  • Mid-term Essay 20%; due end of Week 4

  • Group project (might be subdivided into smaller pieces to result in a portfolio) 25%; due end of Week 6

  • Final Essay 40%; due end of Week 8

Reading list

(subject to change)

  • Matthews, John A. and David T. Herbert. 2008. Geography: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Other readings are listed in the weekly outline and will be made available digitally. These will include chapters from stand-alone academic books, edited volumes, and journal articles.

Registration

Courses offered at Leiden University College (LUC) are usually only open to LUC students and LUC exchange students. Leiden University students who participate in one of the university’s Honours tracks or programmes may register for one LUC course, if availability permits. Registration is coordinated by the Education Coordinator, course.administration@luc.leidenuniv.nl.

Contact

Dr. Sarah E. Hinman, s.e.hinman@luc.leidenuniv.nl

Remarks

The reading for the first class meeting and similar relevant information will be emailed to the class the week before classes begin.