Introduction to Geography
GEO 2000 -- RVC
Fall 2011
Instructor
Prof. Vanessa Hudson
Email
Please use Blackboard email. I will respond within 48 hours.
Office Hours
By appointment via live chat.
Course Description
The purpose of this course is to introduce students to basic geographic concepts as well as topics in
both human and physical geography. After this course, students will understand basic spatial
concepts including why landscapes look the way they do, how people influence the landscape and
are influenced by it, assessment of the idea behind various cultures, spatial concepts in politics, and
other geographic theories.
Required Text
Getis, Getis, and Fellmann. 2010. Introduction to Geography, 13th Edition. McGraw-Hill. (ISBN:
9780073522876)
Expectations of this Course
This is a fully online course, meaning that all course work (100%) will be conducted online.
Expectations for performance in fully online courses are the same as for traditional courses; in fact,
fully online courses require a degree of self-motivation, self-discipline, and technology skills that can
make them more demanding for some students.
Fully online courses are not independent study courses. You will be expected to interact online with
the professor and your fellow students; to do assignments; and to meet deadlines.
Students are expected to:
Review the Start Here folder located in the course content.
Review the Policies Page as is important to the quality of your education.
Introduce yourself to the class during the first week by posting a self-introduction in the
appropriate discussion forum under the “Discussion Board” tab.
Take the practice quiz under the Start Here folder to ensure that your computer is compatible
with Blackboard.
Interact online with instructor/s and peers and keep up with all assignments.
Review and follow the course calendar.
Course Requirements
Blackboard-Syllabus Quiz
To make sure you read the syllabus and know how to use Blackboard, there is a quiz on the
Assessments page worth 10 points. You can retake it as many times as you want before Tuesday,
September 6 at 11:55pm, until you get all 10 points.
Class Participation
So those in the class are not complete strangers to one another, every student must post a short
biographical sketch of themselves and attach a photo in the designated forum on the Discussion
Board page. Full instructions can be found on the Discussion Board page. Post you biography by
Tuesday, September 6 at 11:55pm.
Other Participation Points will be given for logging on regularly and checking the discussion threads.
This does not mean you have to post constantly (or much at all), but at least make the effort to see if
you can be of assistance. These points can be taken away for poor behavior. A total of 10 points
are possible for both the biography and other participation.
NOTE: These points will not be assigned until the end of the semester (since I cannot evaluate your
full semester’s participation until the semester is completed).
Graded Discussion
There will be one graded discussion topic, which requires you to apply concepts learned in the class.
Full instructions will be posted on the Assignment Dropbox page. Students must post well thoughtout comments based on the assigned topic as well as response posts for two classmates’ initial
postings. Participation is required and the discussion topic will be worth 30 points. All students are
required to participate in the discussion – those that do not participate will lose their 10 class
participation points in addition to the 30 points for this assignment. Due dates for this assignment are
listed on the Course Calendar below.
NOTE: These are to be your own, original thoughts. If you plagiarize you will – at a minimum –
lose all of your discussion points and class participation points.
Exams
There will be three, non-cumulative exams in this course based on the readings, outlines and other
materials covered in this course. Each exam will have 50 multiple choice questions and each
question will be worth 2 points. Exams will be available for 48 hours, from 12:01 am to 11:55 pm.
Once you open an exam, you will have 60 minutes to complete and submit it. You can only take each
exam once. Exams will be available on the Assessments page. Combined, these assessments are
worth 300 points. Dates for the exams are listed on the Course Calendar below.
Technological Issues
It is your responsibility to make sure your computer is compatible with Blackboard and that it meets
the minimum hardware requirements (http://online.fiu.edu/future_whats_required.html). You need a
reliable internet connection and a good computer. If you experience crashes on more than one
assessment, try changing computers or connections (for example, try going to a library).
Sometimes there are software failures with Blackboard. Unfortunately, through no fault of your own
(or mine), some of you may experience a problem during quizzes and/or exams. IF YOU
EXPERIENCE A CRASH (or other problem), CONTACT ME (Professor Hudson) THROUGH THE
MAIL FUNCTION IMMEDIATELY! Do not post in the discussion forum – your classmates cannot help
you, only I can. If you have a problem and do not contact me while the exam is active, you will not
get a reset and your grade on the assessment will not be changed.
Note: Don’t try to trick me – I can see on the Blackboard system who had a real crash and who is
faking to get a do-over. Faking gets you a zero on that exam/quiz.
Make-Up Policy
A 20% penalty will be applied to any late work (exam, quiz, paper, etc.) unless it is missed due to a
documented, verified medical emergency suffered by the student.
Grading & Evaluation
There will be 350 total points available in this class, broken down as follows:
Assessment
Exam One
Exam Two
Exam Three
Graded Discussion
Blackboard-Syllabus Quiz
Class Participation
Total
Points
100
100
100
30
10
10
350
The grading scale is A = 100-93%, A- = 92.9-90%, B+ = 89.9-87%, B = 86.9-83%, B- =82.9%-80%,
C+ = 79.9-77%, C = 76.9-73%, C- = 72.9-70%, D+ = 69.9-67%, D = 66.9-63%, D- = 62-60% F = 590%, which translates to, in points:
A = 350-325
A- = 324-315
B+ = 314-304
B = 303-290
B- = 289-280
C+ = 279-269
C = 268-255
C- = 254-245
D+ = 244-234
D = 233-220
D- = 219-210
F = 209-0
Communicating with the Instructor
E-mail: Contact me via my Messages function of Blackboard. I will respond to inquiries within
24-48 hours.
Announcements: Anything of vital importance to the running of the course will be posted
here.
NOTE: Please check your Messages, the Announcements and the Discussion Board for
the course at least 3 times a week, or more often, if possible. Important information about
course requirements, exams, quizzes, discussion topics, etc. will be disseminated via any or all
of these.
Communicating with the Class
What will make this class interactive is everyone’s active participation in group discussion. Therefore,
a number of forums have been established on the Discussion Board. There are spaces for you to
ask your classmates for help with studying for map quizzes and exams, for discussing and posting
current events, and navigating the logistics of an online course. While the instructor will monitor the
discussion forums and post replies, the answers will be given more quickly and thoroughly if the
entire class agrees to communicate with each other.
The chat feature is also enabled if anyone wants to communicate with each other in real time.
Of course, be courteous and respectful to your peers. Failing that, the instructor reserves the right to
remove posts that are aggressive or offensive, and dock participation points from the offender.
Disability Notice
If you have a disability and need assistance, please contact the Disability Resource Center
(University Park : GC190; 305-348-3532) (North Campus: WUC139, 305-919-5345). Upon contact,
the Disability Resource Center will review your request and contact your professors or other
personnel to make arrangements for appropriate modification and/or assistance.
Religious Holidays
The University's policy on religious holy days as stated in the University Catalog and Student
Handbook will be followed in this class. Any student may request to be excused from (on-line) class
to observe a religious holy day of his or her faith.
Rules, Policies, and Academic Misconduct
Assignments from the text and other resources are listed below for each class session. Students are
expected to pace their learning according to the posted course assignments.
It is expected that interactive learning and teaching will enrich the learning experience of all students,
and that each student will work in partnership with the professor to create a positive learning
experience for all. Student engagement is a necessary condition for an effective learning experience,
and includes contributions to debate and discussion (if any), positive interactive learning with others,
and an enthusiastic attitude towards inquiry. Everyone is expected to be a positive and respectful
contributor to the class learning community, and students are expected to share the responsibility
of teaching each other.
Statement of Understanding between Professor and Student
Every student must respect the right of everyone to have an equitable opportunity to learn and
honestly demonstrate the quality of their learning. Therefore, all students must adhere to a standard
of academic conduct, demonstrating respect for themselves, their fellow classmates, and the
educational mission of the University. As a student at FIU taking this class:
I will not represent someone else’s work as my own.
I will not cheat, nor will I aid in another’s cheating.
I will be honest in my academic endeavors.
I understand that if I am found responsible for academic misconduct, I will be subject to the
academic misconduct procedures and sanctions as outlined in the Student Handbook.
Failure to adhere to the guidelines stated above may result in one of the following:
Expulsion: Permanent separation of the student from the University, preventing readmission to the
institution. This sanction shall be recorded on the student's transcript.
Suspension: Temporary separation of the student from the University for a specific period of time.
By taking this online course, I promise to adhere to FIU’s Student Code of Academic Integrity. For
details on the policy and procedures go to ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT (Section 2.44)
Important Dates
SEPT 6: Blackboard-Syllabus Quiz & Biography Due
SEPT 26-27: Exam One (Chapters 1-5)
NOV 3-4: Exam Two (Chapters 6-9)
NOV 23: Initial Discussion Post Due
NOV 30: Discussion Response Posts Due
DEC 8-9: Exam Three (Chapters 10-13)
Course Calendar
Assignments from the text and other resources are listed below for each class session. Students are
expected to pace their learning according to the posted course assignments.
Content is subject to change. Please make sure to check the syllabus and course content on a
weekly basis.
Date
Week 1: AUG 22-28
Week 2: AUG 29-SEPT 4
Week 3: SEPT 5-11
Topic
Introduction
Maps
Physical Geography: Landforms
Week 4: SEPT 12-18
Physical Geography: Weather &
Climate
The Geography of Natural
Resources
Exam One (Chapters 1-5)
Population Geography
Cultural Geography
Spatial Interaction
Political Geography
Exam Two (Chapters 6-9)
Economic Geography
An Urban World
Human Impact on the
Environment
Week 5: SEPT 19-25
Week 6: SEPT 26-OCT 2
Week 7: OCT 3-9
Week 8: OCT 10-16
Week 9: OCT 17-23
Week 10: OCT 24-30
Week 11: OCT 31-NOV 6
Week 12: NOV 7-13
Week 13: NOV 14-20
Week 14: NOV 21-27
Week 15: NOV 28-DEC 4
The Regional Concept
Week 16: DEC 5-11
Exam Three (Chapters 10-13)
Assignments/Due Dates
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Blackboard-Syllabus Quiz &
Biography Due (SEPT 6)
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Exam Available: SEPT 26-27
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Exam Available: NOV 3-4
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Initial Discussion Post Due
(NOV 23)
Chapter 13
Discussion Response Posts
Due (NOV 30)
Exam Available: DEC 8-9