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In/visible Spaces of Modern Life

Module title	In/visible Spaces of Modern Life
Module code	GEO2135
Academic year	2024/5
Credits	15
Module staff	Dr Helena Hastie (Lecturer) Dr Helena Hastie (Lecturer)

Duration: Term	1	2	3
Duration: Weeks	11

Number students taking module (anticipated)	150

Module description

This module examinestaken-for-granted spaces that are fundamental to makingmodern life work.They structure our lives and practices but often go unacknowledged – that is, until something breaks, shuts down, or falls apart.From supermarkets to pipelines, these sites, systems of provision, and infrastructures are central to the functioning (and dysfunctioning) of societies, but what do we know about the way they work or fail? This module considers the processes involved in managing and governing these spaces, the lives of those entangled in them and through this important questions of justice and ethics. 

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module aims to introduce you to a series of spaces, and through them, to consider the connections between people, places and environments. We’ll use ideas from economic geography, more-than-human geographies, and science and technology studies to think about the infrastructural geographies at work in and through these places, and the differential visibilities of such situations to different actors and through the functioning and dysfunctions of these spaces. 

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Give an account of the functioning, dysfuntioning, and significance, of the module’s spaces and their associated infrastructures
• 2. Consider topological, networked and relational accounts of space through understanding the sites considered

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Outline the ways in which spaces become more or less visible to different actors, and the implications of this differential visibility
• 4. Apply social theory, and geographical concepts, to the understanding of diverse sites to explain their role in contemporary societies

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Construct arguments that explain and apply geographical ideas, theories and principles
• 6. Develop independent/self-directed study/learning skills, including time management, working to deadlines, and searching for literature relevant to the module themes

Syllabus plan

A module introduction sets out the shape of the module and the key ideas you’ll be exploring. Through the rest of the module, with opportunities for review, you will look at a series of spaces which will vary from year to year but could include examples such as:the home, the street, natural infrastructure, energy infrastructure, or waste infrastructures.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities	Guided independent study	Placement / study abroad
27	123	0

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Category	Hours of study time	Description
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	22	Lectures
Scheduled Learning and Teaching	5	Workshops/fieldtrips
Guided independent study	50	Reading
Guided independent study	73	Assessment Preparation

Formative assessment

Form of assessment	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Online written responses to prompts	Ongoing throughout module	All	Informal oral feedback

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Coursework	Written exams	Practical exams
0	100	0

Details of summative assessment

Form of assessment	% of credit	Size of the assessment (eg length / duration)	ILOs assessed	Feedback method
Examination	100	2 hours	All	Written
	0

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Original form of assessment	Form of re-assessment	ILOs re-assessed	Timescale for re-assessment
Examination	2 hours	All	Written

Re-assessment notes

Deferral—if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped, and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral—if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to re-submit the relevant assessment. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Basic reading: 

Key words search

(In)visible spaces, infrastructure, economic, production

Credit value	15
Module ECTS	7.5
Module pre-requisites	None
Module co-requisites	None
NQF level (module)	5
Available as distance learning?	No
Origin date	19/02/2021
Last revision date	14/03/2024