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GEOGRAPHY 201

HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

INSTRUCTOR: Patrick Buckley, Assoc. Prof.

OFFICE: AH222 or AH10 PHONE: 650-4773 or 650-3284 e-mail: patrick@cc.wwu.edu

OFFICE HOURS: 1:00 MTWF (or gladly by appointment)

TEXTBOOK: Rubenstein, James M. 1998 or latest edition. The Cultural Landscape: An Introduction to Human Geography, Latest Edition. St. Paul: West Publishing Co.

Course Description--Understanding human spatial patterns etched into the environment and landscape based on demographic, cultural, political, and economic processes across the landscape.

 Theme--All human activity occurs in a spatial perspective. When we were young we learned to recognize and memorize exact locations and their associated activities. Geography was the memorization of state capitals and location of countries, an activity that many of us found tedious at best. Now as we mature intellectually, understanding why activities occur at particular locations becomes important (how are sites different, what makes a site attractive, what aspects of the spatial situation are important in choosing between sites). Such understanding can occur at a variety of levels. Our early education concentrated almost solely on the descriptive level, now it becomes necessary to develop an understanding of the processes that have created patterns on the landscape. As we better understand these processes we can then move on to the applied predictive and prescriptive levels -- how will the world change in our lifetimes and how can we effect beneficial changes in our environment.

By understanding the processes of demographics and migration we can estimate which counties of Washington State or which regions of the world will experience population increases or decreases over the next decade. By understanding the people undergoing these processes we will better know the cultural, linguistic, and religious changes that will result. Finally to close the loop, by understanding how economic activities are an integral part of demographics and migration we can better understand the means of altering and channeling the flow of people across the landscape. One last point, which underlies our basic understanding of this entire spatial process, is the means of political organization and boundaries. How have we organized ourselves into states, how might we be organizing ourselves into future multi-state "free trade" blocs. It is amazing that at the same time that one of the last colonial empires, the former USSR, has broken into smaller and smaller nation-states, Western Europe is moving towards greater integration. We think of the United States as "one nation... indivisible... under God...", should we?

Objectives-- There are four major objectives of this course:

1. Recognizing human spatial patterns upon the landscape. In a brief, understanding WHERE human activities are located be they nuclear waste dumps, cities, or rapidly growing third world countries.

2. Understanding the theories provided by Geographers and other social scientists to explain WHY these patterns exist and how they evolve and change over time. In brief human spatial patterns are neither pre-determined nor accidental. In order to do this it will be necessary to master some of the concepts, language, and theories used by geographers.

3. Demonstrate how a series of inter-linked themes help in understanding these patterns and processes in action across space. After a brief introductory chapter further introducing the field of geography, the organization of space, and human relations to the environment a series a themes will be studied. They are:

Demographics: the heart of human activity -- that which increases or decreases the number of actors impacting on the landscape.

Migration: the flow of human activity across space -- in which directions are humans moving over the landscape.

Language: the means of transmitting and carrying ideas across space -- beyond the relocation of individuals ideas also flow across and impact on the landscape. This is the mechanism for organizing, transmitting, and saving human ideas.

Religion: one of the most basic organizing principles of humans is their basic beliefs in why and how the landscape exists and hence how we should then interact with it. This is the "soul" of human impacts.

Culture and Custom: human organization and activity extends beyond the religious and linguistic realm, this theme looks at all the other "baggage" that groups of humans bring as they interact with the spatial environment. This is how we interact with or environment on a daily basis.

Political: as humans organize their landscape they create spatial groupings within which culture, language, and religion can play a primary role. This can lead to both greater harmony as well as contention, especially during times of demographic change accompanied by large-scale migration. This is how humans organize themselves across the landscape.

Development: humans for some unknown reason have historically been found to always want MORE. Development summarizes this desire under the guise of more efficient use of scarce resources from the environment. Development in turn has major impacts on demographics, migration, spread and use of language, religion, culture and even politics. If demographics is the heart of human activity then development could be thought of as the ever-evolving "mind" of humans.

Agriculture: are those economic and developmental traits associated with directly extracting human basic needs from the landscape, especially food.

Industry: with development, humans have discovered exciting new ways to interact with the environment beyond mere extraction. By combining our labor with resources we can create new entities that previously did not exist. Again, the basis for this activity is to meet basic needs, but over time needs have evolved beyond food, shelter, and clothing. Again, as a theme related to development, industry is related to, effected by, and in turn effects all other themes.

4. The final objective is to help students teach themselves HOW TO LEARN. This always is the major objective of your college career. A Human Geography course is not to teach all that there is to know about the world, but how to read, organize, and understand materials that explain it. This is why facts (Patterns), good study habits, and general theories (PROCESSES) are crucial. Theories represent frameworks upon which we can organize facts. The facts are the patterns on the landscape and the theories our best guess at the process creating the pattern. By learning the general relationship of theory to fact we develop methods for understanding not only geography but also all of our secular knowledge.

Grading: Course grades will be based upon the following parts:

Quizzes will occur on the class meeting following the completion of a chapter unless an exam is scheduled. One lab will occur midway through the quarter to introduce GIS (geographic information systems) to the students, an extremely valuable and important new tool in geography. Quizzes will be based on multiple choice questions. The questions will be read aloud to the class and will be based on the recently completed chapter's readings and lectures. The quizzes will contain up to 5 simple questions, and about 5 minutes of class time at the end of class will be devoted to them.

There are three exams plus a comprehensive final. Tests can refer back to concepts learned in earlier sections of the course, especially when earlier ideas are directly related to new themes and ideas. All tests will be scored on the anchor score system, that is the average of the three highest test scores represents the maximum number of points possible on the test. A curve is then developed around this. Be forewarned that students in the past have found these tests to be challenging, requiring good recall of important facts (PATTERNS) and thorough understanding of the theories (PROCESSES) used to explain spatial patterns on the landscape.

 Final Grade--Will be determined based on a weighted summation of all of the points received on the two major quizzes, a mid-term, a final exam, labs, and Friday quizzes. Letter grades will then result from a translation of the above into a distribution that will resemble the following:

100 to 93% of maximum possible points = A

92-81% = B

80-69 = C

68-57% = D

Below 57% = F

In addition, the final grade can be varied up to one letter grade up or down for individual students if extraordinary and special circumstances dictate such a move. Examples could be extreme illness resulting in hospitalization for several weeks thus resulting in a higher grade based on an extraordinary effort of a student to catch-up, or a lower grade for a student who creates a poor learning environment in the classroom, thus preventing other students from learning. Students will be notified in writing with the rationale if such a move is taken (especially if it is a decrease).

 Class participation is important to all of us, especially when material is not fully understood. Feel free to ask questions or to visit the TA or professor.

 Also it should be noted that the exams in this course contain questions that may come from the lectures, but are not contained in the reading materials. Thus, you will find it helpful to attend on a regular basis and take notes.

 In a recent quarter the final distribution of grades resulted in:

Missed assignments or tests: Only if approved in advance, and part of the make-up will be oral. If you are sick on the day of the test or assignment, it is your responsibility to make a phone call and arrange for proper documentation. Contact the Course Instructor in these matters.

 Bonus Points: Bonus points for use on Exams are available through attendance at and a written report based on specified university wide lectures interpreted from a geographical perspective. Lectures available for such credit will be periodically announced in class. Up to three bonus points out of 100 on an exam can be gained by attendance and providing a brief report on the lecture. The report should contain two separate sections: (1) a brief synopsis of the lecture and (2) your reaction, critique or thoughts on the subject, presentation, etc... These reports must be typewritten and turned in within two class periods after the lecture. The reports will be scored based upon your understanding of the lecture and the quality and content of your report.

Communication

To keep in contact with all students in this large class, periodically messages, chapter based study notes, syllabus updates, extra credit lectures ... will be sent out over Dr. Buckley's web page. Find this under the Geography and Envr. Soc. Sci. Home page. Or go directly to my home page:

Schedule and Readings

 (Note students are responsible for reading a chapter before the class period, lectures will deal with seminal points from a chapter but not everything. Lectures will contain materials from outside of the readings and students will be responsible for keeping their own notes. Also, expect some change in this schedule during the quarter.)