GEOG2621: THEORY AND CONCEPTS IN CONTEMPORARY HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

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• To provide an introduction to key schools of thought and theoretical developments in human geography
• To promote an appreciation of the theoretical aspects and diversity of contemporary human geography
• To highlight the role of theoretical issues in the development of human geographical knowledge as well as prevailing ideologies that influence social life

• The module will cover significant schools of thought in contemporary Human Geography, likely including the following:
• Marxism
• Feminist & Queer Theory
• Postcolonial Theory
• Post-Structuralism, Actor Network Theory, and New Materialism

Subject-specific Knowledge:

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• identify key theoretical schools of thought and associated issues in human geographical thought
• show both a broad knowledge of a range theoretical schools of thought employed in human geography and a more specialist knowledge of one of these
• demonstrate a critical awareness of Human Geographys conceptual diversity and an awareness of the issues involved in abstract and theoretical debate within the discipline

Subject-specific Skills:

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• read subject-specific theoretical arguments critically
• to select relevant subject-specific theoretical arguments for use in later research
• to weigh the relative merits of various subject-specific theoretical schools of thought
• to locate subject-specific theoretical literature in electronic databases and other sources

Key Skills:

• On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
• communicate the results of research on a theoretical argument by means of a written essay
• formulation of argument and analysis
• discuss critically theoretical models pertinent to contemporary social science debate

• Lectures will provide the necessary breadth of coverage, overview and study guide required by the aims and objectives. These will be supported by additional reading lists, which will enable the student to build on information provided in the lectures. Online lectures will be broken into chunks to be viewed asynchronously
• Seminars will provide students with the opportunity to discuss and develop ideas covered in the lectures
• Dropin Sessions will provide students with the opportunity to seek guidance on summative assignment
• The essay will enable candidates to demonstrate their understanding of the issues in one specified area of contemporary human geographical theory
• An online 24 hour unseen examination will enable students to demonstrate their ability to demonstrate their knowledge of and critically evaluate a number of theoretical developments and associated approaches in contemporary human geography

Formative assessment will be aimed toward preparation for the summative assessments and will be provided during seminars in Term 2. There are no written formative submissions.

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