CP0364: Geography and Planning

School Cardiff School of Geography and Planning
Department Code GEOPL
Module Code CP0364
External Subject Code 100666
Number of Credits 10
Level L6
Language of Delivery English
Module Leader Dr Laura Boyer
Semester Spring Semester
Academic Year 2015/6

Outline Description of Module

This module introduces students to a variety of themes in the field of geography, and explores how geographic analysis informs public policy and planning decisions. Students will acquire a broad understanding of key concepts principally in the fields of economic, political, and urban geography, including influential contemporary debates. It addresses these concepts in the context of real-world examples, providing students with relevant explanations and definitions of the processes of economic and political change across cities, regions, and nations. Topics include uneven development, globalisation, city development and planning, and culture and well-being. The module explains and demonstrates the importance and significance of these issues in terms of the changing economy and society in which we live today, and how governments can influence such change.

On completion of the module a student should be able to

  • Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of core and contemporary concepts in the fields of economic, political, and urban geography.

 

  • Apply geographic concepts to understand real-world processes of economic and political change.

 

  • Understand the challenges facing policymakers and planners in seeking in to implement new policies and practices at the city, regional, or national level.

 

  • Explain why different cities, regions, and nations have developed and changed in different ways.

 

  • Analyse the advantage and disadvantages associated with different forms of economic and political development.

How the module will be delivered

The main mode of delivery for the module is a weekly session, which incorporates a combination of lectures and seminars involving individual and group student presentations and discussions. Therefore, at times you will be required to make presentations and/or lead discussions. In these cases students will be given sufficient time to prepare and practice your contribution Lectures are usually supplemented with PowerPoint slides and handouts summarising content at a reasonable level of detail. Handouts are usually made available on Learning Central at least 24 hours before the session.

Skills that will be practised and developed

This module will allow students to practice and develop a range of both transferable and subject-specific skills. In particular, students will learn to critically analyse and evaluate both theoretical and policy-oriented literature, and reach an informed view with regard to the relevance, reliability and validity of this material. It will further allow students to develop their research skills and to develop independent ideas and problem-solving abilities. Students will be given the opportunity to improve their communication and presentational skills, as well as team working capabilities. Student will also gain a range of subject-specific skills, especially the capability to identify and assess how issues of geography underpin the economic, political and societal changes at play today.

How the module will be assessed

 

The mode of assessment for this module consists of one written essay assignment accounting for 100% of the total module mark.

 

Type of assessment

 

%

Contribution

Title

Duration
(if applicable)

Approx. date of Assessment

Essay – 2,000 words

100%

Assignment briefs to be provided

-

Spring

 

 

 

The opportunity for reassessment in this module

 

Students are permitted to be reassessed in a module which they have failed, in line with the course regulations. The reassessment will usually take place during the summer.

 

 

Assessment Breakdown

Type % Title Duration(hrs)
Written Assessment 100 Essay N/A

Syllabus content

The module begins with a series of overview lectures highlighting the core themes to be explored in the forthcoming lectures. The themes include the link between geography and planning, concepts of space and place, uneven economic development, the geography of culture and well-being, and urban geography. The second part of the module seeks to examine these issues in more depth and to utilise particular case studies and examples, with the key areas of study including: the competitiveness and creativity of places; the geographic unevenness of money and enterprise; specialisation, agglomeration and the evolution of economic space. All sessions are mandatory.

Essential Reading and Resource List

  • Albrechts, Louis and Mandelbaum, Seymour (2005) The Network Society: A New Context for Planning, London: Routledge.
  • Peter Hall (1998) Cities in civilisation, Wiedenfeld and Nicholson
  • Huggins, Robert and Hiro Izushi (2007) Competing for Knowledge: Creating, connecting, and growing, Routledge, London

Background Reading and Resource List

  • Dunning, J. (ed) (2000) Regions, Globalization, and the Knowledge-Based Economy, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  • Florida, Richard (2002) The Rise of the Creative Class, Basic Books, New York.
  • Hall, P. A. and D. Soskice (2001) (eds.) Varieties of Capitalism: The Institutional Foundations of Comparative Advantage. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
  • Harvey, David (2005) A Brief History of Neoliberalism, Oxford University Press
  • Hoftstede, G. (1980) Cultures Consequences: International Differences in Work Related Values, Beverly Hills, CA: Sage
  • Saxenian, A. (1994). Regional advantage: Culture and competition in Silicon Valley and Route 128. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
  • Sen, A. (1999) Development as Freedom, Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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