GEOG 1102(3)-001 INTRODUCTION TO HUMAN GEOGRAPHY I: PEOPLE, CULTURE AND ENVIRONMENT
Assignment I (15% of Final Grade)
Due: October 9, 2020 (Submitted in class via Nexus)
The History of Human Geography: People, Places and Natural Phenomena
Background
The primary aim of Human Geography is to describe and explain why the distribution of people and natural phenomena varies from place to place (Boyle, 2014). As Mercier and Norton (2019) emphasize, the discipline’s key contribution to the development of knowledge is its focal point on identifying the underlying causes of these variable spatial patterns. There is a wide range of geographical approaches used to investigate humans’ settlement and activity on the Earth’s surface. The present assignment focuses on these approaches from the lens of Human Geography’s historical development.
In the chapter,Human Geography: A Brief History, Boyle (2014) presents three time periods to frame the evolutionary perspectives within Human Geography. This assignment consists of writing a three-to-four (3-4) page essay that considers three individual geographers who contributed to the tradition of Human Geography. The main goal in discussing each individual will be to:
1) Describe the geographical method or concept developed by the geographer,
2) Examine the significance of this approach to understand why, as Boyle (2014) specifies, the natural environment varies so much and why human cultures and societies developed in such different ways, and
3) Explain the significance of this individual ‘s contribution to Human Geography’s encompassing goal of understanding the relationship of humans with their environment.
Essay Structure
The essay should be structured to address specific goals of the assignment. The following is a guide to develop your essay:
1.0 Introduction
aProvide an introduction to the essay that outlines the overall goals of Human
Geography and the objective of your paper. Indicate the three geographers that will be considered, and outline what key elements will be highlighted about each individual. Conclude the paragraph with a universal statement about the significance of this analysis.
2.0 Human Geographers 1, 2 & 3
aThe evaluation of each geographer should consist of two-to-three (2-3)
paragraphs. Formulate these paragraphs based on the three assignment goals defined above to describe the approach developed by the individual and explain the significance of his contributions to the overall discipline of Human Geography.
3.0 Conclusion
aThe final paragraph should reflect upon the main goals of your essay and your
findings from your examination of three geographers. The key significance of each individual should be highlighted, followed by a concluding sentence examining how the essay illustrates Human Geography’s focus on the relationship between humans and the environment.
Format
The following instructions will assist you in preparing and formatting your essay on the history of Human Geography. Further instructions will be provided in class.
The paper should be:
a The submission should also include atitle pagethat contains:
1) A meaningful title that highlights the goals of your evaluation;
2) The course number and name of the professor;
3) Your name and student number
4) Due date
a All sources used for this report should be referenced within your paper, and also indicated at the end of the paper under “References”.
*Please refer to Purdue’sAPAStyle Guide.Format Notes
Some general observations about writing an academic essay:
a Only use ‘I’ to emphasize the content in the essay that is your own analysis.
a Only use direct quotations for important points, otherwise paraphrase the author’s writing and
include an in-text reference.