| Unit name | Geography: Past, Present and Future |
|---|---|
| Unit code | GEOG10007 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Morgan |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None. |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None. |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None. |
| School/department | School of Geographical Sciences |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science |
Geography Past, Present and Future introduces students to the study of geography at university. It addresses the history of the discipline, the contexts and narratives that have shaped its present form, and looks forward to future directions in geographical research.
The unit serves as a general introduction to the breadth and diversity of geographical research and provides students with an awareness of geography’s histories and legacies, and how they continue to shape the discipline today. Alongside this, the unit develops key academic and study skills that are essential to the successful completion of an undergraduate degree.
This unit offers a critical understanding of the history of geography and the contexts in which it emerged, institutionalised and developed. Divided into three sequential sections, the unit offers a disciplinary history tracing the genesis and evolution of the subject from the early modern period to the present, highlighting the plurality of global geographical traditions, the centrality of colonial and imperial histories in shaping the western geographical tradition, and the contribution of geography and geographers in the making of the modern world. It then explores how key disciplinary concepts and practices inherited from and within modernity shape present geographical concerns, both in terms of their possibilities, but also their analytic limitations. Contemporary geography is witness to a profusion of critical registers seeking to work with but also transform many of the inherited categories and assumptions about what constitutes the geographical imagination necessary for our present planetary conjuncture. The unit will introduce many of these energies with a view to understanding the present landscape and the forces seeking to transform it. We end with geography’s futures and the cutting edge of geographical work being undertaken here in the School of Geographical Sciences. Alongside this focus on geography’s past, present and future, students will develop crucial study skills through a series of skills seminars.
The unit will deepen knowledge and understanding of the relationship between geographical knowledge and the contexts in which it has been produced. Students will be able to reflect on geography’s role in histories of colonialism, scientific exploration, industrialisation and development. These capabilities will provide a platform for thinking critically about geographical knowledge practices encountered elsewhere on geography degree programmes. Students will also gain key study skills relating to reading, writing and managing time effectively for university study.
On successful completion of this unit, students should be able to:
This unit will be taught by weekly lectures and regular study skills seminars. Lectures will be supported by independent study and reading.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
A formative mid-term essay will provide a first opportunity to write a university-level essay, and will be focussed on composition and expression of ideas.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
A summative end-of-term essay will assess students’ knowledge and understanding of the past, present and future of geography, drawing on the material covered and the skills developed through lectures, readings and study skills seminars (100%) [ILOs 1-4]
When assessment does not go to plan:
Reassessment will be by essay, to be completed in the summer reassessment period.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. GEOG10007).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
