Kwantlen Polytechnic University Spring 2024 Course Syllabus

Geography 2250: The City Section S10, CRN 12045

Instructor Information

John Rose
E-mail: john.rose@kpu.ca
Office Hours: 4:00pm – 5:00pm Wednesdays, Surrey Campus, Fir 236

Course Delivery

This is an in-person course, with lecture sessions scheduled for Wednesdays, 1:00pm – 3:50pm, Surrey
Campus, Fir Building, Room 234. You are expected, barring illness or other legitimate reasons for
missing class, to attend all of the lecture sessions scheduled during the term. The Midterm
Examination and Final Examination for this course are also in person.

Course Description/Learning Outcomes

In this course, students will study cities from a geographic, or spatial, perspective. They will investigate
a number of questions about city space, including, among others: how, and to what extent, are cities
unique kinds of places? How did cities come into being? How is the material landscape of cities
organized? What is the internal, social structure of cities? How have the features of cities changed
over time?

Fundamentally, this is a course about the historical geography of urbanization, in which students will
examine the early origins and diffusion of urbanization, and city development during the pre-industrial,
industrial, modern, and post-industrial/post-modern epochs. The course is also structured around a
dual consideration of the historical geography of urbanization in general terms (though with an
emphasis on the North American city), and of the development of metropolitan Vancouver in
particular. Finally, with regard to how such material is presented, this course seeks to combine
traditional, lecture-style presentations with various ‘hands-on’ assignments, in the belief that a
combination of methods will prove most effective in developing students’ understanding and
appreciation of the subject material.

Ideally, by the end of the term, students will have a firm grasp of the significance and characteristics of
cities, and a thorough understanding of the metropolitan Vancouver region. Students should also gain
an understanding of urban geography as a sub-field of human geography, a working knowledge of the
vocabulary and theoretical perspectives associated with the study of cities, and be well-prepared for
more advanced, undergraduate study of city spaces.
Required Text/Materials

There is no required textbook for the course. Students will be assigned supplementary readings that
are freely accessible on the internet.

Course Assessment

Test/Assignment Value Date

‘Representations of Urbanism’
Assignment 15% Jan. 31
Midterm Exam 25% Feb. 28
City Origin Story Essay 30% Mar. 27
Final Examination 30% Apr. 17

Grading System

A+: 90-100% B+: 76-79% C+: 64-67% D: 50-55%

A: 85-89% B: 72-75% C: 60-63% F: 0-49%
A-: 80-84% B-: 68-71% C-: 56-59%

Note:

C = Satisfactory Achievement. This is the minimum grade needed for all required courses in the
Associate of Arts in Geography, the Bachelor of Arts Minor in Geography, and
Bachelor of Arts Major in Applied Geography.

C- = Marginal Achievement. This grade does not permit a student to pursue another course for which
the graded course was a prerequisite.

D = Minimal achievement. This grade does not permit a student to pursue another course for which
the graded course was a prerequisite. This is the minimum passing grade for this course.

Weekly Schedule of Topics (Subject to Adjustment)

Date Topic

Jan. 10 Introduction to ‘The City’ and Metropolitan Vancouver

Jan. 17 The Nature of the City; Metropolitan Vancouver’s Natural

Environment
Jan. 24 Early Urban Origins and Diffusion

Jan. 31 The Diffusion of Urbanization to SW British Columbia

Feb. 7 The Pre-Industrial Urbanization of SW British Columbia

Feb. 14 The Pre-Industrial City

Feb. 21 **Reading Break—No Class**

Feb. 28 **Midterm Examination**

Mar. 6 Industrialization and Urbanization

Mar. 13 The Modern City

Mar. 20 The Making of Modern Metropolitan Vancouver

Mar. 27 The Post-Industrial/Post-Modern City

Apr. 3 Post-Industrial/Post-Modern Metropolitan Vancouver

April 10 Term Wrap-Up/Future Directions in Urbanization

Instructor Expectations

For Geography 2250 I expect you to:

 Remain engaged in the course (e.g. regularly checking the course Moodle site and keeping up
with the weekly schedule of assigned work) as per the university’s Attendance and Participation
in Courses Policy ST11.
 Study hard and complete all tests and assignments on time, honestly, and to the best of your
abilities. The university’s Student Academic Integrity Policy, ST2, applies to student
performance on all tests and assignments in this course.
 Treat me and your classmates in a respectful manner. A ‘respectful manner’ does not preclude
disagreement with another person’s statements, but it does not include rude and insulting
behaviour. Your behaviour towards others in our class should be in accordance with the
university’s Diversity and Inclusiveness Policy, HR15, its Student Conduct (Non-Academic) Policy
ST7, and its Sexual Violence and Misconduct Policy SR14.
 Compose any e-mail messages sent to me in clear, standard language and provide each
message with a simple, topical title (e.g. ‘GEOG 2250 Question About the Sector Model’)
 Let me know—as soon as possible—if you are experiencing difficulty with any part of the
course, so that I can provide you with assistance.
  Recognize that your final grade is determined solely from your performance on the various
course assessments and understand that this grade will not be arbitrarily changed on the
basis of any other considerations.

In return you can expect me to:

 Regularly update the course Moodle site with materials (e.g. activities, readings and question
sheets) in a timely manner so that you can maintain your weekly work schedule for the course
 Help prepare you for (fair, but challenging) tests and assignments, and mark these and return
them to you as soon as possible.
 Be available to help with questions during weekly office hours or via e-mail, and treat you in a
respectful manner. A ‘respectful manner’ includes the expectations I have of you, as noted
above, though I do reserve the right to gently ‘interrupt’ your questions to maintain a
reasonable time limit during office hours and with e-mail communications.
 Adhere to the university policies, noted above, applicable to instructors.
 Reply to your course-related e-mail within one working day, from Monday through Friday, of
the time I receive your message in my inbox.

Policy on Late/Missed Examinations and Assignments

Missed examinations may be completed at a later time/date—at my discretion as instructor, provided

that you can provide a verifiable, legitimate reason for not being present to take an exam at the
assigned time. Failure to provide such a reason for a missed exam will result in a grade of 0 for the
affected test.

Similarly, accommodations to accept late assignments without penalty will only be made if you can
provide a verifiable, legitimate reason for submitting an assignment after the due date. Otherwise, a
late penalty of 5% per day (including weekends) will be assessed. The last date on which I will accept
any late assignment is Apr. 11, the final day of classes for the Spring 2024 term. This deadline is to
allow sufficient time for marking late assignments before final grades are due for submission to the
university.

Selected Important Dates in the Spring 2024 Term:

January 8 First day of Spring 2024 classes

18 Add/drop deadline (with 30% tuition adjustment penalty)
19 Course withdrawal period (with no refund) begins

February 19 Family Day Holiday—Campus Closed

20 - 24 Reading Break—No In-Person Classes

March 29 Good Friday Holiday—Campus Closed

April 1 Easter Monday Holiday—Campus Closed
11 Last day of classes, Spring 2024 term; last day to withdraw from courses
17 Final Examination GEOG 2250 S10

Full semester dates and deadlines for the Spring 2024 term can be found here at the KPU website.

Resources to Support Student Success:

Student Rights and Responsibilities: https://www.kpu.ca/student-rights-responsibilities

Accessibility Services: http://www.kpu.ca/ssd

Academic Advising: https://www.kpu.ca/advising

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism: https://libguides.kpu.ca/c.php?g=718390&p=5129346

Learning Centre: http://www.kpu.ca/learningcentres

Early Alert: http://www.kpu.ca/earlyalert

Counselling: http://www.kpu.ca/counselling

Crisis Centre of BC: https://crisiscentre.bc.ca/get-help/ or 1.800.784.2433 or online chat:

http://crisiscentrechat.ca/