Programme Specifications

Geography

Geography at Aberystwyth explores the nature and impact of cultural, social, economic, political and physical processes from the global to the local scale. The BA Human Geography degree scheme places an emphasis on examining the ways in which individuals, institutions, governments and structural processes make, shape and represent places. Through their selection of modules, students are able to develop pathways which focus exclusively on Human Geography or interdisciplinary themes that combine elements of Human and Physical Geography.

The Aims of the BA Human Geography degree scheme are:

• To develop a broad and deep understanding of geography, its content, methods and philosophy

• To provide a structured programme of delivery that is academically rigorous and meets current and future benchmarking requirements

• To encourage selected specialist knowledge and understanding through research-led Level 3 optional modules in those areas where the department has expertise

• To produce graduates with a wide range of analytical, critical and technical abilities within geography.

• To develop powers of critical, analytic thinking and logical argument

• To develop competence in a range of subject-specific and transferable skills including literacy, numeracy, computer literacy, graphicacy, problem setting and problem solving, report writing, and fieldwork skills

• To encourage independent study and thought, enquiring minds, and a commitment to personal scholarship of the highest standard

On completion of the programme students should:

• Be able to evaluate critically geographical ideas, concepts and approaches across the whole of the subject and within particular branches of Geography
• Be able to carry out independent research, applying a range of cartographic, computational, literary and technical skills
• Have developed a range of geographical skills and be able to apply them to a variety of geographical issues
• Be able to recognize that their learning experience has been positively reinforced by exposure to research
• Be able to evaluate their own performance in a range of learning contexts and under different modes of assessment
• Be able to work independently, in a team and with a social awareness of the contribution made by scholarship and applied research in their discipline to social and environmental policy
• Have the necessary skills and awareness to seek employment in a variety of professional careers or to begin postgraduate research and study.

On completion of the degree scheme, students will be able to:

• A1   Demonstrate appreciation of the reciprocal relationships between human activity and the physical environment, including the impact of human activity on landscape form and environmental quality

• A2   Describe and account for spatial variations in the distributions of human phenomena at a variety of scales and temporal contexts

• A3   Account for the varied ways in which spaces, places, landscapes and environments are constituted and continually remade through a variety of social, economic, political and cultural processes, in a range of contexts from the local to the global

• A4   Demonstrate and account for variation in the outcome of processes and be familiar with a range of interpretations of the processes which create geographies of difference and inequality

• A5   Demonstrate understanding of how particular geographical ‘ways of seeing’ are produced, theorised and interpreted, including the representation of places through academic, policy and lay discourses

• A6   Develop insight and understanding into the contribution that geographical study makes to an informed concern about the Earth and its people, in academic, practical and policy terms

• A7    Account for and evaluate the development of Geography as a dynamic, plural and contested discipline, and discuss the relationship of Geography with other disciplines in the arts, humanities and social sciences

• A8   Critically evaluate the range of philosophical and methodological approaches employed by geographers in their analysis and interpretation of human society

• A9  Demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the different forms of representation of the human world – from maps, through texts and visual images to digital technologies

• A10    Demonstrate an awareness of the range and nature of data sources available to the human geographer and employ and evaluate a substantial range of observational, recording and analytic strategies used in geographical field enquiry and data analysis

• By selecting a pathway of modules which involves elements of BSc Geography, students may also develop the capacity to:

• A11    Describe and account for spatial and temporal variations in the distributions of physical phenomena at a variety of scales.

• A12    Account for the varied ways in which places, landscapes and environments are constituted and continually remade through a variety of physical, environmental and biotic processes in a range of contexts from the local to the global.

• A13    Conceptualise patterns, processes, interactions and changes in the physical world as systems operating at a range of scales.

• A14    Critically evaluate the range of philosophical and methodological approaches employed by geographers in their analysis of the natural environment.

• A15    Demonstrate a knowledge of the different forms of representation of the physical world, including maps, scientific texts and digital technologies (GIS and Remote Sensing).

• A16    Synthesise contributions from Human and Physical Geography to address issues of environmental management.

At Level 1, student development towards learning outcomes A1 – A6 is promoted via the core BA Human Geography module programme, delivered through lectures and seminars, supported by independent study and reading by students. Issues relating to learning outcomes A7 and A8 are addressed through lectures on core modules and supported by directed student exercises and reading. Student development towards learning outcomes A9, A10 and A15 is promoted through a combination of lectures, practical classes and field classes and related exercise-based assignments. It is possible for students to develop capacities related to outcomes A11 to A16 by selecting modules from the BSc Geography and BSc Physical Geography programme, which are delivered through lectures supported by independent study and reading.

At Levels 2 and 3, the teaching programme consists of four elements. (i) Core Knowledge and Understanding Modules in Level 2 develop student capacities relating to outcomes A1 to A6 through lectures supported by independent study and reading by students. (ii) Core Skills Modules at Level 2 promote learning outcomes A5 to A10 through a combination of lectures, practical classes and field classes, variously supported by fieldwork exercises, group or individual exercise-based assignments and independent reading as appropriate. Field classes also address issues related to A2 and A3 and may address issues related to A1 and A5. (iii) Optional modules taken at Level 2 and Level 3 and delivered through lectures and seminars supported by independent study and reading, contribute to student development towards some or all of outcomes A1 to A10. (iv) Small group teaching in both Level 2 and Level 3 cover themes relating to outcomes A1 to A10. Independent research undertaken by students towards their Dissertation may also contribute towards the development of knowledge relating to some or all of outcomes A1 to A10.

Additionally, students may develop capacities relating to outcomes A11 to A16 through the selection of Core Knowledge and Understanding Modules and Optional Modules from the BSc Geography and BSc Physical Geography programmes, variously delivered through lectures, practical classes and field classes, supported by independent study and reading.

Assessment

At Level 1, student capacities relating to learning outcomes A1 to A8 (and, where appropriate, A11 to A14) are assessed through unseen examination essays, unseen short-answer examinations, exercise-based coursework assignments and project work. Student capacities relating to outcomes A9, A10 and A15 are assessed through practical and field exercises.

At Levels 2 and 3, student capacities relating to learning outcomes A1 to A16 may be variously assessed as appropriate through coursework assignments, the Dissertation project, fieldwork assignments, oral presentations, coursework essays, project essays, seminar presentations, and seen, unseen and freetime examination essays.

10.2.1 Intellectual skills

On completion of the degree scheme, students will be able to:

• B1 Abstract and synthesise information

• B2 Critically judge and evaluate evidence

• B3 Critically interpret data and text

• B4 Make justified decisions

• B5 Assess the merits of contrasting theories, explanations and policies

• B6 Develop a reasoned argument

• B7 Find ways to overcome problems

• B8 Write in an appropriate academic style in reporting, reviewing and discussing geographical themes

• B9 Appropriately and critically employ material from academic literature and correctly cite and reference sources

• B10 Take responsibility for their own learning and review and reflect upon that learning

Teaching and Learning

Student development towards outcomes B1 to B10 is primarily promoted through small group tutorials sessions (Levels 1-3), practical classes and field classes (Levels 1-2), and one-to-one tutoring for the Dissertation project (Level 3). Learning is supported through personal tutorials, practical and field exercises. The application of these skills in the context of specific areas of geographical enquiry is demonstrated through lectures for core and optional modules at Levels 1, 2 and 3.

For example, skills of abstracting and sythesising information, critically judging and evaluating evidence, critically interpreting data, making justified decisions, assessing the merits of contrasting theories and explanations, developing a reasoned argument and finding ways of overcoming problems may all be developed as part of projects undertaken during the Level 2 field course.

Assessment

Assessment of student capacities in relation to outcomes B1 to B10 are central to criteria employed in the evaluation of a range of assessment forms employed at all three levels of the degree scheme. These include tutorial assignments, coursework essays, practical exercises, fieldwork projects, project essays, seminar and oral presentations, the Dissertation independent research project and seen, unseen and free-time examination essays.

10.2.2 Professional practical skills / Discipline-specific skills

On completion of the degree scheme students will be able to demonstrate competence in the following professional geographical skills:

• C1 Planning, designing and executing a piece of rigorous geographical research or enquiry, including the production of a final report

• C2 Undertaking effective fieldwork (with due regard for safety and risk assessment, research ethics and equality, diversity and inclusion)

• C3 Presenting geographical data effectively through the use of appropriate media including maps, diagrams, statistical tables and academic prose.

• C4 Employing a variety of social survey and interpretative methods for the collection, analysis and understanding of information from the human world, including questionnaire surveys and interviews.

• C5 Combining and interpreting different types of geographical evidence.

• C6 Analysing the geographical implications of current events, policy decisions and social, economic, political and cultural processes.

• C7 Interrogating and interpreting the production and presentation of policy documents, print and broadcast media, landscape and textual material.

• C8 Recognising the moral and ethical issues involved in geographical and social scientific debates and enquiries.

Teaching and Learning

The teaching of discipline-specific professional and practical skills is delivered in a number of contexts. Field classes at Levels 1 and 2 contribute to the development of skills C1-C8 inclusive, with learning supported by the practical experience of group and individual field exercises and projects. Practical classes at Levels 1 and 2 contribute to the development of skills C3, C4, C5 and C7, supported by practical group and individual exercises. Small group sessions at Levels 1, 2 and 3 address issues relating to outcomes C5-C8 inclusive; whilst outcomes C6 to C8 are also addressed at Level 1 through lectures on a core module and related exercise-based assignments. Finally, independent student research for the Dissertation, and associated one-to-one tutoring, may contribute to student development towards any or all of C1 to C8 inclusive.

Additionally, the application of these skills in the context of specific areas of geographical enquiry is demonstrated through lectures for core and optional modules at Levels 1, 2 and 3.

Assessment

The above skills are assessed through a variety of methods at all three levels of the degree scheme. Assignments reporting on fieldwork exercises and activities – which may include written reports, field notebooks and diaries, and oral presentations – assess student capacities against outcomes C1 to C8 inclusive. Similarly, the Dissertation project may, depending on the topic, assess any or all of outcomes C1 to C8 inclusive. Group and individual exercises related to practical classes assess skills C3, C4, C5 and C7. Coursework essays, project essays and examination essays may all assess C3, C4, C5, C6, C7 and C8 as appropriate to the context of the assessment.

On completion of the programme the student will be able to take responsibility for themselves and their work. The student will be able to demonstrate ability in the following key skills which are transferable to a non-academic context:

D1  Working independently

D2  Working as part of a team

D3   Respecting the views, beliefs, opinions and values of others

D4   Listening to and engaging with other speakers

D5   Effective verbal communication in a range of settings, including group discussions and debates and formal presentations.

D6   Effective written communication in a variety of forms

D7 Use of information technologies to process, store, present and communicate information, including spreadsheets, databases, word processing, e-mail and the internet.

D8 Identifying, retrieving, sorting and handling information from conventional and digital sources.

D9   Time management and self-regulation of work regimes.

D10  Research issues and solve problems

D11  Adapting to change

D12  Reading comprehension and interpretation of a range of written material

D13  Observational skills.

D14  Collating, processing, interpreting and presenting numerical data.

D15  Identifying appropriate career pathways and developing the capacity to compete effectively for employment opportunities.

The programme aims to promote, develop and nurture students’ awareness of and competence in these key transferable skills, many of which students will already possess in a greater or lesser degree of competence. Some of these skills are integral to teaching and learning activities across the programme (D1, D4, D7, D8, D9, D10, D11, D12). Others are developed through specific modules and learning activities, including fieldwork (D2, D13), practical classes and exercises (D14), oral presentations (D5). Most significantly, skills-based modules have a progressive syllabus from Level 1 to Level 3 (culminating in the Dissertation) which specifically addresses a number of these skills, including D1, D2, D3, D4, D5, D6, D7, D8, D9, D10, D11, D12 and D15.

Assessment of student capacities in relation to many of the above outcomes (D6, D7, D8, D9, D10, D12) is central to criteria employed in the evaluation of a range of assessment forms employed at all three levels of the degree scheme. These include coursework essays, practical exercises, fieldwork projects, project essays, the Dissertation independent research project and seen, unseen and free-time examination essays. In addition, a number of the above skills are explicitly assessed at various points during the programme through a range of methods, including the Dissertation project (D1), reports on fieldwork group project (D2), oral presentation on fieldwork project (D5), study skills assignments (D7, D8), fieldwork exercises (D13), and practical exercises (D14).