Professor Michael Brown (he/him)
TA: Benjamin Trumble
The discipline of Human Geography can be difficult to pin down. This course explores key concepts, themes, and debates in the field generally for the past century. Students will creatively apply what they learn to their own contexts and experiences. No background in the field is required.
Learning Outcomes:
- To learn about the history of geographic thought, considering both continuities and debate.
- To develop your own geographical imagination with creativity and relevance.
- To understanding Geography as an intellectual discipline, as well as a UW department, which have particular foci and expertise.
- To appreciate how knowledge is produced both individually and collectively.
Assessment:
- Your own geographies (15%)
- Applied geographic thought (25%)
- Applied geographic thought (25%)
- Final Poster-Presentation (25%)
- Engagement with Lectures and Sections (10%)
Course Structure & Content
Course Outline:
- Basic Concepts
- An Historical Geography of Geography
- Classic Debates
- Recent and Current Debates
The course is scheduled to meet MWF 9:30-10:20 in Raitt 121. Sections will meet weekly on Fridays. Department of Geography expects students to attend class in the mode of instruction (in person) indicated in the quarterly Time Schedule. Students should plan to attend lectures and sections regularly, and to participate in all activities in both class and section. Please review your registration accordingly.
As we are a course at the University of Washington, we recognize the Coast Salish people of this land, which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Duwamish, Suquamish, Tulalip, and Muckleshoot nations.
Class Policies:
If you are having problems (including illness or quarantine), it is best to notify your TA and Professor Brown as soon as possible. The sooner we are aware of issues, the easier it is to help you with them. It is frequently structurally impossible to help you late in the course or after the course has ended.
Please let your TA and Professor Brown know as early in the quarter as possible if you require DRS accommodations. It is always a good idea to check with both the instructor and your TA to make sure we have received instructions from DRS. We cannot make accommodations for you unless we receive correct paperwork from that office.
Late assignments: Contact your TA and Professor Brown as soon as possible if you expect you will be unable to complete an assignment on time. We can be much more flexible with extensions if we know in advance. Please bear in mind that any extension granted will structurally limit the amount of time you have to complete the subsequent assignment. It is often not possible to provide accommodation or flexibility if you come to us at the very end of the class or after missing several assignments.
We follow the University rules on plagiarism. Please don't do it. We will not grade work determined to be plagiarized. All work submitted must be by your own labor. We will be checking for it. Please put the information into your own words. When in doubt, use quotation marks, cite page number of the quote, and give a full citation in the bibliography. If you have a broader question about plagiarism speak in person with your TA or Prof. Brown.
Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at https://registrar.washington.edu/. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request/).
The Department of Geography is committed to ensuring a classroom environment that contributes to optimum teaching and learning for all students. Individuals who engage in disruptive behavior that creates a negative or threatening environment for teaching and learning will be asked to leave the classroom by the instructor. These requests are not negotiable. Disruptive behavior includes: verbal or physical aggression toward other students or faculty/TAs, threats of violence, unyielding argument or debate, yelling inside or outside of the classroom, untimely outbursts, violating class policies about technology use or seating, refusing to follow faculty or TA directions, and entering and exiting the classroom in disruptive ways.
You are also expected to follow the UW student Code of Conduct.
Grade Conversion Table
% gpa letter grade
97-100 4.0 A+
96-95 3.9 A
93-94 3.8
91-92 3.7 A-
90 3.6
89 3.5
88 3.4 B+
87 3.3
86 3.2
85 3.1 B
84 3.0
83 2.9
82 2.8 B-
81 2.7
80 2.6
79 2.5
78 2.4 C+
77 2.3
76 2.2
75 2.1 C
74 2.0
73 1.9
72 1.8 C-
71 1.7
70 1.6
69 1.5
68 1.4 D+
67 1.3
66 1.2
65 1.1 D
63-64 1.0
61-62 0.9 D-
59-60 0.8
54-58 0.7
<54.0= 0.0