AAAS.045-GEOG.040 – Africa: Ecology and Development

Course: Africa: Ecology and Development
Instructor: Caroline Faria

From week 4 on, groups of 3-4 students will present short video ‘mash-ups’ to the class covering a key concept and case study of ecology and development in Africa. You may choose to cover a topic you have learned about through the class or a related topic of interest. These mash-ups can include visual and audio material produced originally by students and/or collected from a range of sources and edited together into 5-minute short films. The concepts and ideas presented in the videos should tie to key themes discussed and presented during the week in which the material is shown (with the exception of students presenting in week 4 and 5 who may choose to focus on topics covered in weeks 1-3 also). Students should begin their video with a brief (1-2 minute) discussion of how they chose their theme and what they would like students to think about as they view the film. The presentation will close with a Q and A session and a discussion of the key themes raised. We will review these as a class on Thursdays as a way to stimulate discussion, to learn about new case studies researched and to review key concepts of the class so far. You can find a grade guide used to assess these essays at the course blackboard site.

Example of a Final Project

GEOG 43 – Geographies of Latin America: Culture, Race, Nature and Power

Course: GEOG 43 – Geographies of Latin America: Culture, Race, Nature and Power
Instructor: Sharlene Mollett
Assignment: Media Project

Groups of 4-5 students will present short video documentaries to the class covering a key concept and case study related to International Development in Latin America (see syllabus too). You may choose to cover a topic you have learned about through the class or a related topic of interest. These documentaries can include visual and audio material produced originally by students and/or collected from a range of sources. These must be edited together into 5-7 minute short films. The concepts and ideas presented in the videos should link to key themes discussed and presented during the term. Students should introduce their video with a brief (1-2 minute) discussion with a guide to viewing your film (what are you aiming for with this film?). These short documentaries will consist of a series of video narrated by students. We will end the presentation with a Q and A session and a discussion of the key themes discussed.