GEOG 105-02: California Cultural Landscapes
Syllabus – Spring 2015
Instructor: Owen Bettis
Tuesday and Thursday 12:30 p.m.-1:45 p.m. Butte 103
Office: Butte Hall 525
Office Hours: Tues/Thurs 11-12:30 and Friday 10-12
Contact: obettis@csuchico.edu
Course Description:
This course introduces students to the physical setting and historical cultural
geography of California’s changing cultural landscapes. It uses a broad overview approach to
examine the spatial and temporal changes in the California landscape resulting from the
interaction of various cultural groups with their environment. This is an approved General
Education course under Area D, Sub-area D3: Cultural and Social Institutions.
GE OBJECTIVES: GEOG 105 is a General Education (GE) course in Area D: Behavioral and Social
Sciences, Sub-Area D3: Cultural and Social Institutions. It is intended for those students with no
previous college-level social science coursework. The GE Program at CSU, Chico has five goals:
 to improve reading, writing, critical thinking, discussion and speaking skills, mathematical
reasoning, analysis and problem solving, and the ability to access, evaluate, and apply
information;
 to instill efficient, effective learning skills that will keep the student on a path of perpetual
intellectual curiosity;
 to enhance general knowledge and attitudes so that students have a well informed, integrated, and
coherent picture of the universe and humanity, including the living and non-living physical
universe; human cultures, societies and values; and the artistic and intellectual legacy of
humanity;
 to broaden knowledge about the impact, perspectives, and contributions provided by cultural,
racial, ethnic, gender, cognitive, and global diversity; and
 to provide, for each student, coherence, connectedness, and commonalty within broad areas of
undergraduate education.
The principal charge to GE Area D is to provide students opportunities to develop understanding of
human behavior and the use of social theory, concepts, and analysis in application to human interaction.
Class, race, ethnic, and gender issues should be integrated into courses in this area whenever possible. A
course must, in a significant way, deal with human behavior. In each course, students must demonstrate
learning:
 in social science methods and perspectives,
 in historic as well as contemporary perspectives and influences, and
 in several relevant theoretical and methodological approaches.
Under Sub-Area D3: Cultural and Social Institutions students must demonstrate learning in:
 the development and variation of cultural and social institutions; and
 how cultural and social development and variations affect groups, institutions, and behavior.
Course Student Learning Objectives:
1. Written communication: Students will enhance their skills in written communication through
writing assignments linked to course content.
2. Critical thinking: Students will exercise critical thinking in analyzing human-environment
interactions, the events, explanations for, and effects of the Spanish Conquest, Mexican Rancho
era, and U.S. take over and development of California. This will include subsequent collective
responses of indigenous peoples and the changing ethnic character of immigrants in various
geographical regions of California and the cultural landscapes that are developed.
3. Students will demonstrate enhanced factual knowledge of the development over time and space
of the physical geographic landscape and subsequent interactions with socio-cultural
characteristics of pre-Colombian, Spanish conquest, Mexican Rancho era, U.S. colonialism and
contemporary California.
4. Students will be able to describe the predominant cultural patterns over time and space, and interethnic relations between cultures and the regional/local societies in which they exist.
Required Materials:
1.) California Cultural Landscapes: An Exploration of Spatial Patterns Over Time (2nd Edition)
Author: Dean H.K. Fairbanks
2.) ONE of the following:
The Tortilla Curtain by T.C. Boyle OR Unquenchable: America’s Water Crisis and What to do
About it by Robert Glennon OR Assembling California by John McPhee
Grading/Assignments: (subject to minor revisions)
Orientation Writing Exercise
10 quizzes (10 points each)
Book Review
Midterm
Final
8 one-page journals (10 points each)
Total points possible:
20 points
100 points
50 points
50 points
50 points
80 points
350 points
Journals:
Writing about something you have read is an essential skill. For all dates on the schedule stating
“Journal due” you are to write a one-page journal (12 pt. font, Times New Roman, doublespaced) reflecting on the assigned reading. If it appears to me that you have read the material
and spent some time thinking about it, you receive full credit. We will be sharing these in small
groups in class. My goal in assigning the exercise is to get you into the habit of writing about
what you have just read. Try to avoid rehashing what you read and really focus on reflecting
upon the material.
Late Work:
Late work is not accepted without a verifiable excuse such as a doctor’s note. Feel free to
attempt to ask me if you have extenuating circumstances and need to check. This absolutely
applies to quizzes and exams as well.
Attendance:
Obviously, your regular attendance will greatly help you succeed in this course. Do not expect
to do well if you do not attend class. Though I will be taking attendance, I will not reduce your
score for missed classes. Your grade will drop all by itself if you miss too much class as you
will miss quizzes and important information. Also, if you do not miss a single class you will be
awarded 10 extra credit points for your admirable efforts. If you miss one class, you get 7.5
points, if you miss 2 classes you get 5 points, and so on.
Course Etiquette:
 Please, turn off cell phones in lecture to avoid disruption. I can and will ask you to leave
the class if you are overly disruptive.
 Please try to limit eating food during lecture, and clean up after yourself.
 Coffee is considered to be an absolute necessity to life so is always ok, but don’t make a
mess.
 Student assignments will be handed back promptly. Any material not picked up in
lecture will be retained for one semester, and then discarded.
Disability Support Services: If you have a documented disability that may require reasonable
accommodations, please contact Disability Support Services (DSS) for coordination of your
academic accommodations. DSS is located in the Student Services building across from
Merriam Library. The DSS phone number is 898-5959 or FAX 898-4411. Visit the DSS
website at <http://www.csuchico.edu/dss/>.
Statement on Academic Honesty: Academic misconduct (as defined in the current California
State University, Chico catalogue) will not be tolerated. Students are encouraged to discuss
course materials inside and outside the classroom. However, all written material submitted by
students must be their own work exclusively. No answers to questions cribbed from other
students, other classes or the Internet. The highest standards of honesty are expected when
taking exams: no sneaking, peeking or cheat sheeting. If you have any questions about what
constitutes academic dishonesty, or the consequences of academic misconduct, consult the
current university catalogue, the Office of Student Judicial Affairs (Kendall 112), or ask me.
***TO BE VERY CLEAR: ***
***Cheating can result in failure of the assignment and also the entire course. ***
SCHEDULE
Date
Assignments/Quizzes
20-Jan
22-Jan
Introduction, Syllabus
27-Jan
29-Jan
Orientation writing exercise due
Quiz #1 -Chp. 2
Chp. 1 - Understanding the California
Landscape
3-Feb
5-Feb
Chp. 2 - Geological History and Landforms
Chp. 3 - California Climate: Scales and
General Controls
Quiz #2 - Chp. 3
10-Feb
12-Feb
Chapters/Reading
*Have chapter read by date listed*
Chp. 4 - California Flora and Fauna:
Diversity, Hazards and Conservation
Quiz #3 - Chp. 4
17-Feb
19-Feb
MIDTERM DAY
TBA
24-Feb
Journal #1 Due
26-Feb
Quiz #4 - Chp. 5
3-Mar
Journal #2 Due
5-Mar
Quiz #5 - Chp. 6
Chp. 5 - California Native American
Landscapes
Chp. 6 - Spanish Exploration and Settlement
Pattern in Alta California
10-Mar
Journal #3 Due
12-Mar
Quiz #6 - Chp. 7
17-Mar
19-Mar
Chp. 7 - Mexican Rancho Era: Settlement
and Development by "Los Californios"
!!!!Spring Break!!!!
24-Mar
Journal #4 Due
26-Mar
Quiz #7 - Chp. 8
31-Mar
2-Apr
Cesar Chavez Day, No Class
Journal 5 Due, Quiz #8 - Chp. 9
7-Apr
9-Apr
Book Review (IN CLASS)
BRING PAPER TO WRITE ON
TBA
14-Apr
Journal #6 Due
Chp. 10 - California Agriculture and
Irrigation Agri - "Cultures"
16-Apr
Quiz #9 - Chp. 10
21-Apr
Journal #7 Due
23-Apr
Quiz #10 - Chp. 11
28-Apr
Journal #8 Due
30-Apr
No quiz this week
5-May
7-May
Chp. 8 - Gold Rush: The U.S. Takes Over The World's Cultures Move into Northern
California
Chp. 9 - The Beginnings of Modern
California and the Rise of Southern
California
Chp. 11 - Urban-Rural California: Water,
Land and Design
Chp. 12 The Rise of the Modern California
Landscape
Dead Week/TBA
Final date and time TBA
Schedule is subject to change. Reasonable efforts to notify students will be made.
WRITING A BOOK REVIEW
READ THIS PAGE CAREFULLY BEFORE READING THE BOOK!
As you read, write down your thoughts and reactions; these will be invaluable later. Note that this is a
writing exercise (to practice and demonstrate writing skills) as much as a "test" on the book's contents.
*****The review will be written IN CLASS. Bring paper, a pen, optionally the book, and a
dictionary/thesaurus. Notes are not allowed. It is expected that you will write a practice review ahead of
time, especially to check your writing speed: time will pass quickly, please be prepared.
FORMAT: Label each section of the book review as follows (minus 5 pts for not doing so).
Introduction—The purpose of this introduction is to interest your reader into reading the rest of
the review, to capture their attention (sometimes called a “hook”). Be concise (one short paragraph),
original, and even creative (avoid "This book was written by . . ."). Save the details and the descriptive
material about the book for the overview section. However, make sure to mention the book by name in
the intro.
Overview--A brief overview of the book's contents MUST be included, along with necessary
details about the book, author, setting, time frame, purpose and so on, whatever is essential information
to the reader of your review. This will likely require two, at most three paragraphs.
(The intro and overview are largely descriptive and objective and will comprise, at most, 40% of the total
review. Make sure that you follow this direction. )
Commentary—[This section generally includes your reactions, comments, criticisms, and
praises of the book.] For this review, I want you to focus in the commentary on how this book fits into
the context of this course (lectures, videos, textbook). Show me how well you recognized in this book
the cultural geography you have been learning. Remember: this part is your analysis of the book and
the author, not your essay on the topic of the book. In other words, be sure to address the book and the
author; make frequent references to both (at least once every paragraph). The commentary should include
at least four distinct points you are making about the book, each point developed into its own paragraph.
***This section is analytical (more challenging than the first two sections) and should comprise the
MAJORITY of your review.
Conclusion—You must include a definitive conclusion, perhaps summary comments. The
conclusion to a book review must contain a specific mention of the book.
REMINDERS:
 Expect penalties in points if you fail to follow these directions.
 Avoid the trap of too much `retelling' of the story.
 Do not assume the instructor/grader has read the book; provide the essential explanations.
 The analytical portion should emphasize your own viewpoint; special attention should be devoted to
your insights and reactions, especially as they pertain to course contents. You are welcome to write
in first person.
 Strive for originality in your comments (without going to extremes).
 Maintain a proper balance between generalizations and details/examples; include both!
Paragraphs likely begin with a generalization, followed by supporting details/examples.
 While your sentiments can provide valuable ideas, avoid strictly and overly emotional responses.