GEOG 263
GEOGRAPHY OF DEVELOPMENT AND
UNDERDEVELOPMENT
MACALESTER COLLEGE
FALL 2015
MWF 10:50-11:50
Carnegie 107
GEOG 263
GEOGRAPHY OF DEVELOPMENT AND
UNDERDEVELOPMENT
Prof. Claude Peloquin
Office: Carnegie 103A
[email protected]
Office hours:
MW 1:00- 3:00
and by appointment
Right: Uneven development in
action – shipbreakers in
Bangladesh Photo: Mike Hettwer,
National Geographic
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course introduces students to the geographic study of development and underdevelopment, with a
particular emphasis on the dynamics in the poorer parts of the world—what is sometimes called the Global
South, or the Third World. The course is organized around three themes. First, it will engage key elements
of the vast field of development studies—the interdisciplinary field broadly concerned with understanding
and fostering economic, social, political, cultural development. This section examines how scholars, policymakers, and practitioners have defined development and explained development—or lack thereof—and
how they seek to achieve development as a normative goal. Second, the course will examine the
contribution of geographers to theories and debates on the nature and intricacies of development and
underdevelopment. Specifically, it will present methods and concepts to help you trace and explain the
global and regional processes that drive development changes around the world today, as well as the
economic, political, cultural, and environmental outcomes of these processes. Third, we will familiarize
ourselves with key trends, events, and issues that affect particular places and peoples in the developing
world, and develop an informed position on on-going debates and controversies on development issues.
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS ADDRESSED BY THE COURSE
 Why are there such vast disparities in wealth, safety, and capability across and within regions? How can
these be diminished? What is being done to this end? By whom? How?
 Can development provide or capture an objective, universal, normative set of goals for improving the
human condition? How? Or why not? What would those look like?
 What is the nature and effect of the various programs and interventions carried out worldwide under the
name of development?
COURSE FORMAT
The class meets three times a
week. During these meetings
we will alternate between
lectures, in-class, problemsolving assignments, and
group discussion. The course is
designed with a somewhat
flexible schedule of topics and
activities to ensure that it best
meets the interests of the
students. Key themes and
assignments due dates are
fixed, however.
TEACHING ASSISTANTS
Two teaching assistants (TAs)
will provide valuable
pedagogical support in this
course: Jesse Meisenhelter and
Hannah Currens. In addition to
helping facilitate group
discussion in class, they will
provide additional office hours,
tutorials and review sessions
throughout the semester.
Details on these opportunities
will be provided in class and
on Moodle. The TAs can be
contacted by email at the
addresses below:
 Jesse Meisenhelter:
[email protected]
 Hannah Currens
[email protected]
MOODLE
Our moodle site is a crucial
resource for this class. It
provides the information on
this syllabus; it houses our upto-date daily reading schedule,
with links to PDFs of all
readings that are not from the
textbook. It is also where you
will submit your papers. Link:
http://moodle.macalester.edu
Cartogram illustrating Gross Domestic Product per country, M. E. J. Newman, 2009
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mejn/cartograms/
ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT
Your grade for this course will be calculated based on your score
in the following components.
Participation (20%): To succeed in this course students are
expected to participate actively in all its components. Active
participation includes coming to class prepared by having
completed the assigned readings, taking reading and lecture
notes, actively listening and constructively contributing to class
discussion, asking questions in class, meeting with the instructor
or teaching assistants during office hours and so on.
Quizzes and short assignments (30%): Throughout the semester,
short quizzes and assignments will be used to provide a formative
assessment of your understanding of the materials.
Essays (30%): You will have to write two essays for this course. In
the first essay you will describe and respond to a combination of
media pieces on the development issue of your choice by drawing
on a specific case study in the relevant scholarly literature. The
second essay will consist in a review of a recent or classic book on
a development issue, which you will critically examine from the
standpoint of development geography concepts covered in the
course and additional development studies literature. Note: you
will have an opportunity to rewrite one of these two essays in
light of the feedback received.
Take-home Exam (20%): The class will end with a summative
examination consisting of open-ended questions designed to
assess both your understanding and ownership of the material
covered in class and your ability to connect those concepts to your
own outlook and goas vis-à-vis development issues.
GEOG 263: SCHEDULE OF TOPICS AND KEY DATES
The table below provides an overview of the key topics to be covered each week and key assignments due
dates. The list of required reading for each day will be periodically updated on Moodle. Short quizzes and
in-class assignments will for the most part not announced in advance.
Topic
Course Introduction + What Is Development?
Dates
Week 1: Sept 2 – Sept 4
Notes
Measuring and mapping development
Theories of autonomous development trajectories
Theories of interdependency and (path) dependency
Post-structuralist and post-colonial perspectives
Discourses of development (as) industry
Lived experience and expert knowledge
Participation, community, and poverty as
commodity
Aid and debts
Environment and development I: Physical geography
and the many faces of environmental determinism
Development or containment: people, diseases,
wars
Environment and development II: development and
ecological sustainability
Infrastructure, energy, and industrialization
Week 2:
Week 3:
Week 4:
Week 5:
Week 6:
Week 7:
Week 8:
9/7 Labor day, no class
Topic to be determined
Week 14: Nov 30 – Dec 4
Conclusions and path forwards
Week 15: Dec 7 – Dec 9
Sept 7 – Sept 11
Sept 14 – Sept 18
Sept 21 – Sept 25
Sept 28 – Oct 2
Oct 5 – Oct 9
Oct 12— Oct 16
Oct 19 – Oct 23
10/9 Essay I due
10/23 Fall break, no class
Week 9: Oct 26 – Oct 30
Week 10: Nov 2 – Nov 6
Week 11: Nov 9 – Nov 13
11/13 Essay II due
Week 12: Nov 16 – Nov 20
Week 13: Nov 23 – Nov 27
11/27 Thanksgiving break, no
class
12/4 Due date for take-home
exam
12/09 Last day of class; due
date for rewrite of assignment
1 or 2
REQUIRED TEXTS
A combination of scholarly articles and book chapters
and news items will be assigned weekly as required
reading, via Moodle. Make sure to visit the page
often to keep abreast of changes and updates in this
dynamic reading list. This reading list will be
supplemented by the required textbook: Making
Development Geography, by Victoria Lawson (2007).
Moreover, your second essay assignment will require
you to critically review the arguments made by the
author of a book of your choice in a list provided
later in the semester.
SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENT DUE DATES
Essay I (10%): Due Friday, Oct 9
Essay II (10%): Due Friday, Nov 13
Take-home exam 20%: Due Friday, Dec 4
Re-write of essay I or II (10%): Due Wed Dec 9
NB: Short assignments and quizzes, adding up to
30% of the overall will be completed in class and
as homework throughout the semester. These
will be typically one page long.
This course will require you to summarize, compare, contrast, and critique the arguments made by the
authors of several texts. Many, although not all of them, are quite dense and will require you to revisit them
more than once. Unless specified otherwise, you will be expected to come to class having completed all the
reading assigned for that day and having taken notes summarizing their key points.
TEACHING GOALS
This course is designed to prioritize the following teaching goals: (1) develop analytic skills; (2) develop
ability to synthesize and integrate information and ideas; (3) improve reading and writing skills; (4) learn
terms, facts, concepts, and theories of development geography and human geography in general; (5)
develop an informed concern about contemporary social issues as they pertain to the geography of
development and underdevelopment. Assessment criteria and rubrics will be designed to reflect these
teaching goals.
COURSE POLICIES AND EXPECTATIONS
This class aims to be a fun, positive, enriching, and inclusive environment where hard work by all is
expected and rewarded. To ensure that this succeeds, I draw your attention to the following policy items
and expectations.
Attendance and participation
Students are expected to attend all class meetings, to take notes, ask questions, and actively contribute to
discussions during these meetings. Much of the exam material and essay prompts will be based on lecture
and ideas raised in discussion. Class notes, the readings, and additional attention provided by active
participation will give you an excellent opportunity to do well in the course. Bringing your notes and texts
to class is highly encouraged. Attendance will be taken and it will count toward your participation grade. If
you must miss class, please let me know the reason (in broad terms) before or after. Absence may be
excused if the student provides documentation from their healthcare provider or other relevant,
professional third parties. Students are entitled to excused absence for the purpose of observing their
major religious holidays. Should that be the case, please notify your instructor by the end of the first full
week of classes.
Score
94-100
Letter
A
90-93
87-89
AB+
83-86
80-82
B
B-
77-79
C+
Assignments due dates
74-76
C
The essays, the essay rewrite, the take-home exam,
and the short assignments are due on Moodle
by the end of the day on their due date (11:59pm),
or in class at the beginning of the class meetings.
Late assignments will be accepted, preferably in person,
as soon as possible. Late assignments will be deducted a
penalty of 10%, or one-letter grade, per late day.
70-73
C-
67-69
D+
64-66
60-64
D
D-
Grades
Numeric grades for each of the assessment items will be
compiled as follow: Participation (20) + Short quizzes and
assignment (30) + Essays and rewrite 3x10= (30) + Takehome exam (20) = 100 points total.
The resulting numerical grade will be converted to letter
grade in accordance with the table at the right.
Comment
Outstanding, clearly exceeds
course objectives
Excellent, exceed objectives
Very good, fulfills objectives
with remarkable skill
Good, fulfills objectives
Good, shows clear potential to
meet all course objectives
Satisfactory, meets the great
majority of course objectives
Satisfactory, meets the majority
of course objectives
Satisfactory, meets many of
course objectives with clearly
identified improvable elements
Evidence of progress and/or
efforts, but somewhat
unsatisfactory outcomes
Fails to meet course objectivs
Clearly fails to meet course
objectives
Communication: email and office hours
Do not hesitate to meet with the course instructor or teaching assistants to review, discuss, clarify any of
the course materials and related issues of development, geography, or anything related to it. Office hours
are purposefully set aside to this end: please feel welcome to drop by anytime. Quick chats before or after
lectures are also encouraged. Emails are often the least useful mean of communication for course related
matters. If you must write an email, make sure that your message subject contains the course number
(Geog 263) as well as a brief but descriptive summary of your request. I will try to answer course-related
emails during normal business hours (Monday through Friday, between 9:00 am and 5:00 pm).
Accessibility and accommodations
I am committed to supporting the learning of all students in this class. If you are encountering barriers to
your learning that I can mitigate, please bring them to my attention. If you need disability related
accommodations please contact the Office of Student Affairs at your earliest convenience. More information
on accommodation resources and procedures is available at
http://www.macalester.edu/studentaffairs/disabilityservices/
Classroom etiquette
To ensure that this class provides a great learning environment inclusive to all:
 Please be in the classroom at start time and do not pack up before I have dismissed class. The course
ends at 11:50, and the class meeting will usually finish early if not exactly on time.
 All cell phones are to be turned off before the beginning of class.
 To foster a positive learning environment, students may not text, chat, make phone calls, play games,
read the newspaper, or browse the web during lecture.
 Some learning styles are best served by using personal electronics, such as laptop and tablet
computers. These devices can be distracting to some learners. Therefore, people who prefer to use
electronic devices for note-taking during lecture are required to do so discretely, without involving
their classmates, and sit in the area designated to this end.
 Thorough note-taking is encouraged. You are also strongly encouraged to ask questions and speak on
issues that concern you.
 A basic professionalism and respect for the classroom and your peers should be shown at all times.
Plagiarism and academic dishonesty
Students are required to adhere to the College’s standards of academic integrity.
http://www.macalester.edu/academicprograms/academicpolicies/academicintegrity/ This includes being
careful to avoid forgery, cheating, and plagiarism. Make sure to review these policies and the procedures
that will be followed for alleged breeches of academic integrity. If you are unsure as to what constitutes
plagiarism, do not hesitate to ask me, one of the teaching assistant, staff at the library and the Macalester
Academic Excellence Center www.macalester.edu/max.
Finally
If you are having any problems with the material, assignments, or anything else that might be distracting
you from your work, please contact me and I will try to help you to the degree that I can.