Local Sites, Global Connections (GEOG30027)
Undergraduate level 3Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
Overview
| Availability | Semester 1 |
|---|---|
| Fees | Look up fees |
This field class subject, combining on-campus classes with periodic off-campus field work in the Melbourne area, asks the question: in what ways are local sites globally connected? Sites selected for field study around Melbourne will vary year by year, as will the specific processes studied geographically at those sites. For example, study might be made of a selection of places and communities damaged by recent bushfire or flood, investigating how globally-sourced advice, personnel and equipment played a part in responding to those events, forging lasting links between those local places and the sources of their global assistance. Or, the global sources of contamination of local ocean sites might be studied. Or, the global worlds of social media might be mapped, by looking at a set of local social media users within particular urban populations. Or, the manner in which local environmental or urban policies may be drawn from overseas situations might be examined and critiqued, involving investigation of governance sites/settings in our local area and the ways they connect globally.
This is a field class subject, for which the field work will be conducted in Melbourne or its immediate environs. It is not an intensive subject.
Note this subject may be taken as the Capstone subject in the Geography major of the BA and BSc. All students, whether they are capstone students or not, will be required to complete online introductory materials that are common across all field classes, and will be invited to a discussion session together at the end of their Capstone study and experience.
Intended learning outcomes
At the successful completion of this subject, students will have:
- Knowledge of the varied and complex ways that local sites are connected globally, and how geography conceptualises and researches these relationships of scale
- Field-work and research skills to enable investigation of relationships between the global and the local that occur in the context of specific issues and places, and how these are experienced and understood
- Understanding of some site-specific examples of global connectedness
Generic skills
Upon successful completion of this subject, students will have skills in:
- articulating research problems that can be researched through local field work
- conducting library searches for relevant, international literature that can be related to local, site-based research problems
- using a case study approach to explore processes and problems situated in particular contexts, relating data and field-based information to conceptual arguments
Last updated: 4 April 2025
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
Completion of 50 points at Level 2, including at least 25 points from subjects in geography, or permission from subject coordinator. This subject may be taken as a Capstone for the Geography major in the BA and BSc.
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 4 April 2025
Assessment
Additional details
- 1000 word essay due week 5 (25%);
- a field work proposal, 600 words due in week 7 (15%);
- a group (up to 3 people) presentation, 5-10 minutes in week 11 or 12 (10%)*;
- a 2,000 word major field work report due in the examination period (50%).
*Note that if the subject is taken as a Geography Capstone, students may choose to present their work at an end-of-semester Geography Capstone event, rather than in class during week 11 or 12.
Hurdle Requirement: Students must complete, or have previously completed, the online Geography learning module, in order to successfully complete this subject.
Last updated: 4 April 2025
Dates & times
- Semester 1
Principal coordinator Lesley Head Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 35 hours - one 3-hour class in weeks 1-7; then one 1-day field exercise on a weekend during the first half of semester; one 3-hour class in weeks 11 and 12 Total time commitment 170 hours Teaching period 26 February 2018 to 27 May 2018 Last self-enrol date 9 March 2018 Census date 31 March 2018 Last date to withdraw without fail 4 May 2018 Assessment period ends 22 June 2018 Semester 1 contact information
Time commitment details
170 hours
Additional delivery details
This subject requires all students to actively and safely participate in field activities. Students must complete, or have previously completed, the online Geography learning module.
Last updated: 4 April 2025
Further information
- Texts
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Master of Geography Major Geography Major Environmental Geography Informal specialisation Selective subjects for B-BMED Informal specialisation Science-credited subjects - new generation B-SCI and B-ENG. Major Geography - Breadth options
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Please note Single Subject Studies via Community Access Program is not available to student visa holders or applicants
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
Last updated: 4 April 2025