Syllabus

Geog468 World Cities / Cities of the World S'11 TuTh 3:30-4:45PM LA4-104
Instructor: Dr. Dmitrii Sidorov dimitriii[AT]gmail.com
Office: LA4-206c T 4:45-7:00; Th 13:15-14:00, or by app.
Web: www.csulb.edu/~dsidorov/geog468_S11.html
Description of the course: Prerequisites: GEOG 100, 120 or 160.
GEOG 360 and 366 highly recommended. Comparative examination
of major world cities within the context of their regional and national
urban systems. Compares and contrasts cities of developed and
developing worlds. Explores divergent urbanization patterns and world
city development in major cultural realms. Letter grade only (A-F).
Effective Fall 2006.
Texts: [WB] Marcuse, P., & R. van Kempen (eds.). Globalizing Cities: A New Spatial Order? Malden: Blackwell, 2000.
[RB] S. Brunn, J. Williams, D. Zeigler. 2008. Cities of the World: World Regional Urban Development. Rowman & Littlefield
Date Topic/Test Films Readings
Jan 25, T Introduction to the course
Jan 27, Th World Urban Development Understanding Cities RB Ch 1, 1-46
Feb 1, T Global Urban Transformations America's Immigration Debate WB Ch 1-3, 1-55
Feb 3, Th US & Canada Chicago; Portland RB Ch 2, 47-93
Feb 8, T Map Quiz New York New York: The World’s City WB Ch 8, 158-185
Feb 10, Th Europe RB Ch 5, 169-222
Feb 15, T Brussels London: The Post-Imperial City WB Ch 9, 186-210
Feb 17, Th Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt: The Euro-City WB Ch 11, 228-248
Feb 22, T Examination 1
Feb 24, Th Russia RB Ch 6, 223-254
Mar 1, T Moscow St. Petersburg/Bratsk TBA: Moscow
Mar 3, Th S America Sao Paulo RB Ch 4, 123-138
Mar 8, T Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro WB Ch 5, 78-94
Mar 10, Th Mid-America & the Caribbean RB Ch 3, 93-122
Mar 15, T Mexico City Mexico City: The Largest City TBA: Mexico City
Mar 17, Th Middle East Marrakesh / Istanbul RB Ch 7, 255-292
Mar 22, T Dubai Dubai TBA: Dubai
Mar 24, Th Examination 2
Mar 29, 31
Spring Recess (Classes Not In Session) Mar 31: Cesar Chavez Holiday (Campus Closed)
Apr 5, T East Asia Shanghai RB Ch 11, 413-456
Apr 7, Th Tokyo Tokyo: The Neon City WB Ch 7, 127-157
Apr 12, T Australia Australia RB Ch 12, 457-488
Apr 14, Th no class (conference) WB Ch 10, 211-227
Apr 19, T South Asia Delhi RB Ch 9, 331-372
Apr 21, Th Calcutta Mumbai WB Ch 4, 56-77
Apr 26, T Southeast Asia Angkor RB Ch 10, 373-412
Apr 28, Th Singapore Singapore WB Ch 6, 95-126
May 3, T Sub-Saharan Africa Lagos / Johannesburg RB Ch 8, 293-330
May 5, Th Cities of the Future RB Ch 13, 489-520/WB Ch 12, 249-275
May 10, T Examination 3
May 12, Th Presentations
May 17, T Presentations Project paper due 2:45 - 4:45PM
Course Requirements To receive a grade for this course you are required to complete three examinations
and a project. In addition, you will receive some credit for your other activities (attendance, take-home
assignment, map quiz).

Examinations consist of True-False/Multiple Choice (70%) and short answer (30%) types of questions on
lecture/textbook material. We don’t have a comprehensive final test: Test 3 covers only the material of the last
segment of the course (after Test 2).
Map quiz (30 points) checks knowledge of place locations (relevant materials for the map quiz will be provided
in advance).
Take-Home Assignment (10 points) and deadline will be discussed in class.
Project (50 points) includes an in-class presentation (20 points) and a final paper (30 points) on contemporary
transformations in a selected city from a region underrepresented in our readings.
Attendance This is a video-intensive course; we will watch a number of films. At least for that reason
attendance of all classes is required. Furthermore, the course will be much more interesting if you actively
participate in class. For each attended class 2 points will be added.
Grading The max number of points possible in the course is ~450. They will be distributed in the following way:
Attendance 30x2=60 Assignment 10 Map Quiz 30 Project 50 Exams 97x3=291
Final grade: A – above 90% of the best final score in class, B – 80-89.9%, C – 70-79.9%; D – 60-69.9%; F – < 60%.
Grades will be posted on the course web-site using as identifiers the last four digits of students’ ID numbers. If
you object to using portion of your ID for that purpose, provide the instructor with an alternative number ASAP.
Makeup Policy Makeups for the tests/map quiz/project deadlines are possible ONLY in the event of a
documented unexpected emergency (such as health problem) or through prior arrangement with the instructor
when the student has advance knowledge of a compelling conflict in schedule. Makeups under these two
circumstances will not be penalized. All other makeup requests are subject to denial or serious penalty (at least
10 points for each postponed day).
Email Correspondence The instructor will contact by email the class as a whole using the list of email
addresses of students registered for the course. It is the student’s responsibility to keep email address in the
system updated: just visit my.csulb.edu to make changes. Be professional in your email correspondence,
address the instructor either formally as Dr. Sidorov or informally as Dmitrii, and always sign your emails
providing your full name and the course number you are referring to.
Withdrawal Policy It is the student's responsibility to withdraw from classes. Instructors have no obligation to
withdraw students who do not attend classes and may choose not to do so. Follow the university’s policy.
SCHOLASTIC CONDUCT As a student at Cal State University, you are part of an academic community and
expected to behave in a manner that is respectful of that community, by not engaging in academic misconduct.
Academic misconduct is an act in which a student:
a) seeks to claim credit for the work or efforts of another without authorization or citation; b) uses
unauthorized materials or fabricated data in any academic exercise; c) forges or falsifies academic documents
or records; d) intentionally impedes or damages the academic work of others; e) engages in conduct aimed at
making false representation of a student's academic performance; f) assists other students in any of these acts.
Examples of academic misconduct include, but are not limited to:
• cheating on an examination;
• collaborating with others in work to be presented, contrary to the stated rules of the course;
• submitting a paper or assignment as one's own work when a part or all of the paper or assignment is the
work of another;
• submitting a paper or assignment that contains ideas or research of others without appropriately identifying
the sources of those ideas;
• stealing examination or course materials;
• submitting, if contrary to the rules of a course, work previously presented in another course;
• tampering with the laboratory experiment or computer program of another student;
• knowingly and intentionally assisting another student in any of the above, including assistance in an
arrangement whereby any work, classroom performance, examination or other activity is submitted or performed
by a person other than the student under whose name the work is submitted or performed.