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2021/2022

Places and Regions in Human Geography

Code: 100333 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2500256 Social and Cultural Anthropology FB 1 2
2500501 History FB 1 1
2502758 Humanities FB 1 2
2503710 Geography, Environmental Management and Spatial Planning FB 1 1
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Angel Cebollada Frontera
Email:
Angel.Cebollada@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
catalan (cat)
Some groups entirely in English:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
Yes

Other comments on languages

At the start of term, in the group in English, students must demonstrate that they have already acquired, at least, a B2 level in English language. This is a basic requirement in order to be able to participate in activities of this course.

Teachers

Nuria Valdovinos Perdices
Angel Cebollada Frontera
Rafael Vicente Salar
Borja Nogue Alguero
Ricard Morén Alegret
Anna Ortiz Guitart

Prerequisites

Apart from the general knowledge acquired for passing university access exams, the only other general requirement for participating in this course is to have interest for learning about complex issues. This is a general requirement for any university student along the years.

In addition, students should also have at least basic knowledge in some Romance languages (e.g. Spanish, Catalan, French, Portuguese, Italian) and English in order to be able to read geographical texts in various languages. 

At the start of term, in the group in English, students must demonstrate that they have already acquired, at least, a B2 level in English language. This is a basic requirement in order to be able to participate in this course.

Objectives and Contextualisation

This course is mainly devoted to first year students of the BA in Anthropology, the BA in History, the BA in Humanities andBA in Geography.

Goals of the subject: It constitutes an introduction to the main human geography topics for social sciences and humanities students. It pays preferential attention to some of the most significant aspects of the contemporary world.

The program is structured in four main issues: human population dynamics and structure; economic geography; political geography; and cultural geography. These issues will be approached from a world perspective, paying special attention to interrelations in the uneven, interrelated and unequal planet that we inhabit.

At the end of the academic term, students will acquire the following:

  1. Basic and fundamental knowledge on each topic approached.
  2. A command on the most important concepts in human geography.
  3. A global vision and some basic interpretative tools about the world order functioning.
  4. An understanding of the main geographical elements, which form the structure of territories around the world.
  5. A capacity to analyse and to interpret geographical information and data.
  6. A capacity to connect in a significant way a variety of topics in the course program. 

Competences

    Social and Cultural Anthropology
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
    History
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills in order to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
    Humanities
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
    Geography, Environmental Management and Spatial Planning
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Systematically analyse and interpret environmental, demographic, urban and landscape elements.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analysing the main dynamics of today's world from a geographic viewpoint.
  2. Analysing the main dynamics of today's world from a geographical point of view.
  3. Carrying out an individual work that specifies the work plan and timing of activities.
  4. Comparing and contrasting the different interpretations of geographic maps.
  5. Contrasting and comparing several interpretations of geographical maps.
  6. Describing spatial relationships of the physical, economic, social and cultural diversity of territories on different territorial scales.
  7. Describing the economic, social and cultural world's main problems.
  8. Describing the main economic, social and cultural contemporary problems in the world.
  9. Describing the spatial relationships, on different territorial scales, of the physical, economic, social and cultural territorial diversity.
  10. Explaining the structure of today's world from a geographic viewpoint.
  11. Explaining the structure of today's world from a geographical point of view.
  12. Identify geographical diversity on a global scale in human processes.
  13. Identifying the main ideas of a related text and drawing a diagram.
  14. Identifying the main ideas of a subject-related text and making a diagram.
  15. Interpreting today's main events from physical, economic, social and cultural diversity.
  16. Presenting the specific concepts of Geography.
  17. Producing an individual work that specifies the work plan and timing of activities.

Content

  1. Presentation
  2. Human population
  3. A geographical vision of the world economy
  4. Political geography: a complex and changing world
  5. Cultural geography

Methodology

-The evaluation will be continuous and mainly on-site. It will include in-class exercises, assignments, homework, participation, a written exam, a written essay, an oral presentation of the essay, field visits and assessments. 

-All activities have a deadline that must be met strictly, according to the proposed schedule.

-The student must take into account the news and information weekly published on the Virtual Campus / Moodle.

-If the student does more than a 0% of the course tasks, s/he will be assessed.

-To pass the subject students need a 5 (minimum).

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Practicals and/or seminars 15 0.6 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 6, 12, 14, 13
Theoretical classes 32 1.28 2, 5, 8, 6, 10, 12, 13, 15
Type: Supervised      
Tutorial supervision of the course essays 10 0.4 1, 5, 7, 3, 10, 14, 15
Type: Autonomous      
Personal study effort 37 1.48 8, 6, 11, 12, 14, 15, 3
Preparation of Practical work 50 2 2, 5, 8, 6, 3, 17, 11, 12, 13, 15

Assessment

 

Some of the main evaluation activities are the following:

1) Written exams: capacity to interrelate the different geographical issues studied in the course until the moment of each exam.

2) Practices activities: It can include: a) practices exercicies in the classroom and in the whole campus to solve specific problems. b) course report / essay on reading materials; students should show capacity to search for information, to select it, to synthesise it and to organise it in a rational way. In addition, capacity to submit formally presented, almost impeccable texts, including the correct citation of all sources of information and data.

At the start of term, the lecturers of each group will indicate further details about evaluation procedures and dates.

Recovery

On the first day of class, each teacher will inform the students of the recovery process, which evaluation activities may be subject to recovery and under what conditions and will publish them on the group's Campus Virtual (Moodle).

 

 Not assessed/Not submitted

The student will receive the grade of "Not assessed" in the event that he / she does not take some of the final written tests or does not do the course work requeried.

 

In the event that the tests cannot be done in person, their format will be adapted (maintaining their weighting) to the possibilities offered by the UAB’s virtual tools. Homework, activities and class participation will be done through forums, wikis and / or exercise discussions through Teams, etc. The teacher will ensure that the student can access it or offer alternative means,which are available to them.

 

VERY IMPORTANT: Partial or total plagiarising will immediately result in a FAIL (0) for the plagiarised exercise (first-year subjects) or the WHOLE SUBJECT (second-, third- and fourth-year subjects). PLAGIARISING consists of copying text from unacknowledged sources -whether this is part of a sentence or a whole text- with the intention of passing it off as the student's own production. It includes cutting andpasting from Internet sources, presented unmodified in the student's own text. Plagiarising is a SERIOUS OFFENCE.Studentsmust respect authors' intellectual property, always identifying the sources they may use; they must also be responsible for the originality and authenticity of their own texts.

 In the event that the student commits any irregularity that could lead to a significant variation in the grade of an assessment act, this assessment act will be graded with 0, regardless of the disciplinary process that may be instructed. In the event of several irregularities in the evaluation acts of the same subject, the final grade for this subject will be 0.

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Exam 40% 3 0.12 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 6, 10, 11, 16, 12, 14, 13, 15
Practices activities I 30% 3 0.12 1, 2, 8, 9, 6, 10, 11, 16
Practices activities II 30% 0 0 4, 5, 9, 6, 3, 17, 12, 14, 13, 15

Bibliography

GENERAL REFERENCES:

Agnew, John A.; Duncan, J.S. (2011) Human Geography, Malden, Mas., US: Wiley-Blackwell.

Attané, Isabelle; Burgeilles, Carole; Rault, Wilfried (2015) Atlas mondial des femmes. Les paradoxes de l'émantipation. París: Autrement

Dallenne, Pierre; Buchy, Frédéric (2013). La mondialisation. Nouvelles dynamiques géopolitiques et géoéconomiques. París: Ellipses.

dell'Agnese, Elena (cur.) (2009) Geo-Grafia. Strumenti e parole. Milà: Unicopli.

Dorling, Danny; Lee, Carl (2001) Geography. Londres: Profile Books.

Dunlop, Jérôme (2012) Les 100 mots de la géographie. Paris: Presses Universitaires de France.

Durand, Marie-Françoise; Copinschi, Philippe; Martin, Benoît; Placidi, Delphine (2008). Atlas de la globalización. Comprender el espacio mundial contemporáneo. València: Publicacions de la Universitat de València.

Hiernaux, Daniel; Lindón, Alicia [eds.] (2006). Tratado de geografía humana. Barcelona: Anthropos.

Jones, Andrew (2012) Human Geography. The Basics, Abingdon, UK & New York, US: Routledge.

Loda, Mirella (2008) Geografia sociale. Storia, teoria e metodi di ricerca. Carocci Editore.

Marshall, Tim (2020, de la traducció) Prisioneros: Geografía. El mundo explicado en 12 sencillos mapas, Barcelona: Planeta. (Marshall, T. (2016) Prisoners of GeographyLondon: Elliot & Thompson.)

Murphy, Alexander B. (2020). Geografía. ¿Por qué importa?. Madrid: Alianza Editorial.

Morén-Alegret, Ricard & Wladyka, Dawid (2019) International Immigration, Integration and Sustainability in Small Towns and Villages. Socio-Territorial Challenges in Rural and Semi-Rural Europe, Londres: Palgrave Macmillan / Springer.

Ortiz, Anna [coord.]; Badia, Anna; Cebollada, Àngel; Mendizàbal, Enric; Solana, Miguel; Vera, Ana (2011). Visions geogràfiques del món. Bellaterra: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Servei de Publicacions (Materials, 222).

Pelletier, Philippe (2017) Quand la géographie sert à faire la paix. Lormont: Le bord de l'eau.

Richardson, Douglas et al. (eds.) (2017) The International Encyclopedia of Geography: People, the Earth, Environment, and Technology, Chichester, UK; Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Romero, Joan [coord.] (2007). Geografía humana. Procesos, riesgos e incertidumbres en un mundo globalizado. Barcelona: Ariel, 2a ed.

Solana, Miguel [coord.] (2016). Espacios globales y lugares próximos. Setenta conceptos para entender la organización territorial del capitalismo global. Barcelona: Icaria.

United Nations Development Program / Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Desarrollo (2018). Human Development Report 2018 Informe sobre DesarrolloHumano 2016, New York: UNDP/PNUD (http://www.hdr.undp.org/en/2018-update/download ).

Unwin, Tim (1995). El lugar de la geografía. Madrid: Cátedra.

Urry, John (2017). Offshore: la deslocalización de la riqueza. Madrid: Capitán Swing. 

 

BIBLIOGRAFIA TEMÀTICA:

Davis, Mike (2007). Planeta de ciudades miseria. Madrid: Foca.

Lacoste, Yves (2010). Geopolítica.Madrid: Síntesis.

Livi-Bacci, Massimo (2002). Historiamínima de la población mundial. Barcelona: Ariel.

Méndez, Ricardo (2011). El nuevo mapa geopolítico del mundo. Valencia: Tirant lo Blanch.

Naím, Moisés (2013). El fin del poder. Barcelona: Debate.

Nel·lo, Oriol (2001). Ciutat de ciutats: reflexions sobre el procés d’urbanització a Catalunya. Barcelona: Empúries.

Tertrais, Bruno; Papin, Delphine (2018) Atlas de las fronteras. Madrid: Cátedra.

 

 

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Són molt útils els diferents atles publicats per Le Monde Diplomatique els darrers anys:

Atlas medioambiental (2008)

Atlas Geopolítico 2010 (2009)

Atlas de las civilizaciones (2010)

Atlas de las migraciones (2010)

Atlas Le Monde Diplomatique (2010)

Atlas de las mundializaciones (2011)

Atla histórico. Historia crítica del siglo XX (2011)

Atlas de las minorías (2012)

Atlasde los conflictos de fronteras (2013)

Atlas de las metrópolis(2014)

Atlas de las batallas por la energía (2014)

Atlas de las utopías (2014)

Atlas de historia crítica y comparada (2015)

 

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Atlases published in various languages by Le Monde Diplomatique during the last years can be useful, see: https://mondediplo.com

During the course, additional academic books, journal articles and databases will be recommended.

Software

The main computer programs used by students are Word, Excel, PDF, Power Point ... In addition, the MOODLE platform and, where appropriate, TEAMS will be used, as well as, eventually, social networks such as TWITTER.