New Urban Course in Geography for Undergraduates (GEO 170)
Course Title: Post-Socialist Space (Geography 170)
Instructor: Dr. Melanie Feakins
When: Monday & WEdnesdays 12:30-2:00pm
Location: 145 McCone Hall
Course Description:
The 'Fall of the Wall' in Berlin in 1989 and the USSR break-up in 1991 were events that created unfathomable chaos and inimitable circumstances for transformation of modern developed industrial societies. Using a variety of source materials (books, newspaper articles, academic articles, pictures, media representations, films, policy recommendations, ethnographic accounts) we will examine the changes that have been taking place in East Center Europe and the Former Soviet Union in the post-socialist period. Among the topics dealt with in the class are: territoriality and new citizenship regimes, borders and new forms of exclusion, urban transformations (memory and its destructions, creation of 'real-estate' new forms of intensification/abandonment, international architectural competitions), urban migrations and rural desolations, property privatizations programs and strategies, prostitution, and human tracking.
Course Structure:
We will meet on Monday and Wednesday afternoons for lecture with discussion. Students are expected to complete the readings before the lecture and will assume that students are prepared. We will watch several films in the course and students are responsible for attending when the films will be shown.
Course Evaluation:
There is one mid-term exam, one book review assignment and one final exam. The system is based on 100 points for the entire course. The mid-term, book review, final exam and course participation each constitute a part of the final grade. They contribute to the final assessment as follows:
Midterm Exam 30 points
Book Review 30 points
Final Exam 30 points
Participation 10 points
The exams include short answers and essays. The book review is an essay of 2500-3000 words. Students can choose from among a list of five books. A detailed description of this assignment, including the grading rubric will be distributed in class. The grades given for exams and the book review are final. No exceptions will be made. No special consideration for anyone, regardless of plans for graduate school, GPA needs , etc.
Final Exam: December 20th, 11:30am-2:30pm
Instructor: Dr. Melanie Feakins
When: Monday & WEdnesdays 12:30-2:00pm
Location: 145 McCone Hall
Course Description:
The 'Fall of the Wall' in Berlin in 1989 and the USSR break-up in 1991 were events that created unfathomable chaos and inimitable circumstances for transformation of modern developed industrial societies. Using a variety of source materials (books, newspaper articles, academic articles, pictures, media representations, films, policy recommendations, ethnographic accounts) we will examine the changes that have been taking place in East Center Europe and the Former Soviet Union in the post-socialist period. Among the topics dealt with in the class are: territoriality and new citizenship regimes, borders and new forms of exclusion, urban transformations (memory and its destructions, creation of 'real-estate' new forms of intensification/abandonment, international architectural competitions), urban migrations and rural desolations, property privatizations programs and strategies, prostitution, and human tracking.
Course Structure:
We will meet on Monday and Wednesday afternoons for lecture with discussion. Students are expected to complete the readings before the lecture and will assume that students are prepared. We will watch several films in the course and students are responsible for attending when the films will be shown.
Course Evaluation:
There is one mid-term exam, one book review assignment and one final exam. The system is based on 100 points for the entire course. The mid-term, book review, final exam and course participation each constitute a part of the final grade. They contribute to the final assessment as follows:
Midterm Exam 30 points
Book Review 30 points
Final Exam 30 points
Participation 10 points
The exams include short answers and essays. The book review is an essay of 2500-3000 words. Students can choose from among a list of five books. A detailed description of this assignment, including the grading rubric will be distributed in class. The grades given for exams and the book review are final. No exceptions will be made. No special consideration for anyone, regardless of plans for graduate school, GPA needs , etc.
Final Exam: December 20th, 11:30am-2:30pm