ZX3090 Fundamentals of Human Geography

Faculty of Science
Autumn 2020
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Ondřej Mulíček, Ph.D. (lecturer)
RNDr. Petr Daněk, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. RNDr. Milan Jeřábek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
RNDr. Robert Osman, Ph.D. (lecturer)
RNDr. Ondřej Šerý, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
RNDr. Petr Daněk, Ph.D.
Department of Geography – Earth Sciences Section – Faculty of Science
Contact Person: RNDr. Petr Daněk, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Geography – Earth Sciences Section – Faculty of Science
Timetable
Tue 14:00–15:50 Z4,02028
Prerequisites (in Czech)
(! NOWANY ( Z3090p Human Geography , Z3090c Human Geography )) && (! Z3090p Human Geography ) && (! Z3090 Human Geography ) && ! OBOR ( UCZ )
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 40 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/40, only registered: 0/40, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/40
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The aim of the course is to introduce the basic concepts, questions and procedures of contemporary human geography to the students of social sciences and humanities.
Learning outcomes
Student completing the course will be able to:
- describe what is human geography;
- introduce basic concepts, questions and practices of contemporary human geography.
Syllabus
  • 1. What is human geography? Introduction of the discipline, introduction of the course.
  • 2. Population geography - population distribution, process of territorial concentration of the population and its conditionality by natural and social factors, territorial and social movement, structure of the population.
  • 3. Basics of demography - methods of evaluation of basic demographic processes (birth, dying), geographic variability of birth and mortality rates in contemporary world, demographic transition theory.
  • 4. Settlement geography - the process of urbanization (pre-modern and modern), the rank-size rule, central place theory, the concept of "settlement system", the emergence of over nodal forms (agglomeration, conurbation ...), problematics of city definition and the definition of "urban" and "rural".
  • 5. Urban geography - internal structures and processes of the pre-industrial, industrial and post-industrial city; human-ecological approaches.
  • 6. Regions and geographical regionalization - the concept of the nodal region, regional processes and their importance for the formation of functional regions, the concept of A. Paasi region.
  • 7. Economic geography - industrialization, globalization, spatial division of labor, global commodity chains, global production networks, foreign direct investment, spatiality of economic crisis.
  • 8. Cross-border relations and cross-border cooperation - border functions, definition and character of borderland, cross-border cooperation, euroregions, twin / partner cities, regional policy support - EU operational programs, situation in Europe and the Czech Republic.
  • 9. Development and development policy - the emergence of the idea of progress, the development discourse (colonialism, modernization, dependency theory, human development, neoliberal modernization), criticism of development discourse (post-development).
  • 10. Regional development - theories of regional development, main concepts, classification and characteristic of approaches to regional development, examples of application in practice.
  • 11. Regional policy - basic principles, regional policy in the EU and in the Czech Republic, territorial dimensions, integrated tools, strategic and development documents (overview, process of creation).
  • 12. Basic geographic concepts of space: topology, topography, topos, chora, heterotopia, place, scene, mizanscene etc.
  • 13. Basic geographic concepts of time: A series, B series, cyclic, rhythmic, labeled, chronos, kairos etc.
Literature
  • Handbook of local and regional development. Edited by Andrés Rodríguez-Pose - Andy Pike - John Tomaney. 1st ed. London: Routledge, 2011, xxii, 642. ISBN 9780203842393. info
  • Key thinkers on space and place. Edited by Phil Hubbard - Rob Kitchin. Second edition. Los Angeles: Sage, 2011, xv, 510. ISBN 9781849201018. info
  • BLAŽEK, Jiří and David UHLÍŘ. Teorie regionálního rozvoje : nástin, kritika, implikace. Vyd. 2., přeprac. a rozš. V Praze: Karolinum, 2011, 342 s. ISBN 9788024619743. info
  • International encyclopedia of human geography. Edited by Rob Kitchin - N. J. Thrift. 1st ed. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 2009, lxxx, 462. ISBN 9780080449128. info
  • KUNC, Josef, Václav TOUŠEK, Jiří VYSTOUPIL, Petr DANĚK, Pavel KLAPKA, Ondřej MULÍČEK, Daniel SEIDENGLANZ, Zdeněk SZCZYRBA, Michal VANČURA, Antonín VĚŽNÍK, Milan VITURKA and Petr TONEV. Ekonomická a sociální geografie (Economic and social geography). 1. vydání. Plzeň: Vydavatelství a nakladatelství Aleš Čeněk, s.r.o., 2008, 411 pp. učebnice vysokých škol. ISBN 978-80-7380-114-4. info
  • HAMPL, Martin. Geografická organizace společnosti v České republice : transformační procesy a jejich obecný kontext. Praha: Univerzita Karlova, 2005, 147 s. ISBN 808674602X. info
  • HAMPL, Martin, Václav GARDAVSKÝ and Karel KÜHNL. Regionální struktura a vývoj systému osídlení ČSR. Vyd. 1. Praha: Univerzita Karlova, 1987, 255 s. URL info
Teaching methods
Lectures and discussion.
Assessment methods
The final assessment takes the form of a written test containing both closed and open questions. The successful graduation is required to get at least 60 percent of points.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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