Cities of the World

Course Description

Urbanization processes and the development of mega-cities and urban hierarchies emphasizing the differences between cities from across the world.

Syllabus

Student Learning Outcomes, Goals, Objectives:

Students successfully completing this course will be able to:

  • Describe the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of urban systems, especially in the Global North and the Global South.
  • Recognize the prevalent contemporary urban theories and techniques, their applications, and their shortcomings.
  • Analyze empirical information to explain multidimensional links between the global urban system and city-specific growth and change in different parts of the world.
  • Articulate trends impacting urbanization processes and the impact of urban systems on society and the environment by using empirical information and urban geography theory.

Course Grading Information:

Activity/Performance Measure Percentage/Points
Five Unit Tests 10 points each
Five Unit Activities 7 points each
Final Capstone Project 15 points

Grading scale: The overall final letter grade will be determined based on the traditional cut-offs, where 98-100 (A+), 93-97 (A), 90-92 (A-); 88-89 (B+), 83-87 (B), 80-82 (B-), etc. No-pass is 59% and below.

Attendance/Participation:

Attendance/participation is not a graded component included in the student's final grade for this course.

Course Materials Purchased by the Students:

Kaplan, D. H. and Holloway, S. (2024). Urban Geography (4th ed.). Wiley. SBN: 978-1-119-93028-0.

Scholarly Perspectives

This course engages diverse scholarly perspectives to develop critical thinking, analysis, and debate and inclusion of a reading does not imply endorsement.