GEOG 1104 - Intro to Geography, Environment & Population

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2019

The study of geography, population and environment tend to be treated quite separately, but there are strong and important relationships between them. This course focuses on these interactions and explores their implications for Australia's and the planet's future. Key geographical concepts such as space, place and the relationship between people and place are introduced. The contemporary dynamics of population growth, composition and spatial distribution are examined and analysed and the role environmental factors have had in shaping them is explored. Equally too, the impact of population on geographical environments is examined. The constraints that environmental factors, especially water, have placed on the development of the Australian population are investigated, along with the likely influence of future climate change. A particular focus is the changing spatial distribution of the population with issues like urbanisation, 'sea change' and rural depopulation and their inter-relationship with the environment being explored. An important focus is on internal and international migration's influence in changing the population size, structure and distribution and how it affects, and is affected by, the environment. Indigenous Australians and their special relationship with the environment is discussed separately. The course will give students a solid introductory grounding in the key concepts in and relationships between geography, environment and population.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code GEOG 1104
    Course Intro to Geography, Environment & Population
    Coordinating Unit Geography, Environment and Population
    Term Semester 1
    Level Undergraduate
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 3
    Contact Up to 3 hours per week
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Incompatible GEST 1004
    Course Description The study of geography, population and environment tend to be treated quite separately, but there are strong and important relationships between them. This course focuses on these interactions and explores their implications for Australia's and the planet's future. Key geographical concepts such as space, place and the relationship between people and place are introduced. The contemporary dynamics of population growth, composition and spatial distribution are examined and analysed and the role environmental factors have had in shaping them is explored. Equally too, the impact of population on geographical environments is examined. The constraints that environmental factors, especially water, have placed on the development of the Australian population are investigated, along with the likely influence of future climate change. A particular focus is the changing spatial distribution of the population with issues like urbanisation, 'sea change' and rural depopulation and their inter-relationship with the environment being explored. An important focus is on internal and international migration's influence in changing the population size, structure and distribution and how it affects, and is affected by, the environment. Indigenous Australians and their special relationship with the environment is discussed separately. The course will give students a solid introductory grounding in the key concepts in and relationships between geography, environment and population.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Professor Melissa Nursey-Bray

    Associate Professor Melissa Nursey-Bray

    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

    Two 1 hour lectures per week
    1 hour tutorial
  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    1. Describe the scale, issues and nature of the relationship between population and environment.

    2.  Apply key geographical concepts and their relevance to the relationships between society and environment

    3. Demonstrate how the spatial distribution of Australia’s population (urban, regional, rural)  impacts on the environment and environment on population.

    4. Ability to present and justify arguments using high quality written and verbal skills relevant to the workplace.

    5. Employ interdisciplinary problem solving skills in the content of geography, environment and population.

    6. Locate, read and summarise peer reviewed literature and apply to key geographical concepts.
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)
    Deep discipline knowledge
    • informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies
    • acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1
    • accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)
    1-4
    Critical thinking and problem solving
    • steeped in research methods and rigor
    • based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development
    • demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment
    5-7
    Teamwork and communication skills
    • developed from, with, and via the SGDE
    • honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies
    • encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning
    6,7
    Career and leadership readiness
    • technology savvy
    • professional and, where relevant, fully accredited
    • forward thinking and well informed
    • tested and validated by work based experiences
    1-7
    Intercultural and ethical competency
    • adept at operating in other cultures
    • comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts
    • able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes
    • demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges
    6,7
    Self-awareness and emotional intelligence
    • a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal
    • open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers
    • able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate
    5-7
  • Learning Resources
    Required Resources
    There is no prescribed text for this course. However data sources and literature have been compiled and are available on MyUni for easy student access.
    Recommended Resources
    Prescribed reading and access to computer so can link to websites
    Online Learning
    MYUNI will be used for course-related announcements, emails, information about weekly tutorial assignments and readings. Major essay topics set readings and essay writing guide.
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    Lectures followed up by tutorials on related topics providing readings as specified. Topics coincide with GEP Lecturers who teach specific modules in the course to showcase their specialities and the davanced courses they teach.
    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    2 x 1-hour lectures (or equivalent) per week 24 hours per semester
    1 x 1-hour tutorial (or equivalent) per week 12 hours per semester
    6 hours exam and assignment preparation per week 72 hours per semester
    4 hours reading/research per week 48 hours per semester
    TOTAL WORKLOAD 156 hours per semester
    Learning Activities Summary
    Lecture Topics
     

    What is geography and course introduction 

    Key issues - sustainable populations and biodiversity

    Global Population Transition: Key Concepts and Trends 

    Key concepts – Scale, Place, Space

    Skills lecture: how to write an essay

    Culture, population and environment 

    Environment and Physical Geography
     
    The Built environment – Jennifer

    Climate Change and Population Mobility in the Asia-Pacific Region

    Australia’s Demographic Trends and environmental challenges

    Migration and Urbanisation in China

    Skills lectures – what constitutes a good exam answer and content revision

    Change and scale

    Change and sustainability

    Interconnection bringing it all together

    How to develop a poster

    Posters- bringing it all together
    Specific Course Requirements
    Students are advised to attend lectures and the tutorials each week that follow each of the modules.
    Set work for assessment plus exam
    Small Group Discovery Experience


    This course is designed to encourage discussion around issues pertaining to population and the environment in the context of Australia and small group discovery around interpretation of the data and literature. Tutorials are broken up into groups of 4-5 to discuss the set tutorial questions and then report to group at the end.
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    The assessments for this course are designed to ensure students can demonstrate their learning of the key issues and concepts, but also that they build their skills in certain modes of assessment. These skills include: (i) written skills (assessment 1), (ii) content learning and research (assessment 2), verbal, oral and aural skills (ongoing tute and SGDE assessment) and digital media and synthesis skills (Assessment 3 - Poster).

    Students will be offered the opportunity to have formative feedback on their assessments followed by the chance to amend/revise prior to final submission,  and a skills lecture/session will be conducted for every piece of assessment so students know/are clear on what is expected by the Coordinator, and also what is considered high quality work and what would be considered poor quality. This will help students do their best work.

    Assessment 1: Annotated Bibliography of a particular concept: 25%,

    Assessment 2: Issues Journal: 45 %

    Assessment 3: Poster Presentation: 20 %

    Assessment 4: Tutorial Attendance and participation: 10%
    Assessment Related Requirements
    Attendance and participation in tutorials is compulsory.
    Assessment Detail
    This information is to be provided with the course profile provided in the MYUNI site
    Submission
    Online submission on MyUni -Information available upon enrolment.
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

  • Student Feedback

    The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

  • Student Support
  • Policies & Guidelines
  • Fraud Awareness

    Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.