This course provides an orientation to urban and regional planning with special emphasis on the United States and Europe. The course includes land use planning, the comprehensive planning process, transportation, community development, and urban design. Planning as a governmental activity at local, regional, state, and federal level is also a component of the course.
 

Students will:

1. Obtain a basic knowledge of the history and context of public planning in the United States.
2. Understand the nature and scope of various substantive areas of planning.
3. Learn the components of the comprehensive planning process.
4. Develop a basic understanding of data collection and data base assembly.
5. Develop a basic understanding of data analysis and plan formulation.
6. Understand the role of government in planning.
7. Understand the nature of the educational and job requirements of a planner.
 

• Levy, J.M. 2000. Contemporary Urban Planning, 5th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J:  Prentiss-Hall, Inc.

• Please check the Department of Political Science and Planning website frequently.  The instructor may post additional support materials for this course as the semester develops.

Format

The class will be conducted using a lecture and discussion format. Each student will be responsible for the prompt completion of all required reading assignments. These assignments are listed in the “Agenda” section of this document. Each student is expected to participate in class discussions and exercises. If a student is experiencing difficulty in participating, s/he should arrange a meeting with the instructor to discuss the difficulty.

Attendance

Attendance in class and participation in class discussions and activities are integral elements of this course. As such, each time a student misses two (2) classes without permission of the instructor, her or his final course grade will be reduced one (1) letter grade.

Classroom Conduct

Students engaging in disruptive classroom behavior (e.g., talking about non-class related matters or passing notes to another student during a lecture or class discussion) will receive one warning. The next time a student engages in disruptive classroom behavior, s/he will be dropped from the class roll.

Academic Misconduct

All acts of dishonesty in any work constitute academic misconduct. The University Academic Dishonesty Policy outlined in the Undergraduate Catalog will be followed in the event of academic misconduct.
 

Newspaper Journal

Every class period each student will read at least one article pertaining to planning or urban affairs. These articles must come from a recent (i.e., no more than two weeks old) addition of on of the following newspapers: Christian Science Monitor, Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, or Atlanta Journal Constitution.
 
The student will turn in a journal entry each day based on the article(s). The journal entry at a minimum must include the following: The source of the article, the dateline if applicable, type of article (e.g., editorial, analysis, front page story, etc.), the author if applicable, a one paragraph summary of the article, and a one paragraph summary of your reaction to the article. The journals will be graded on a pass/ fail basis with four points given for a pass and zero points for a fail. Newspaper Journal entries may not be made-up or turned in late; however, the four lowest journal grades will be dropped when calculating your final grade.

Reports

Each student will be required to complete five reports on articles from a planning journal. Students should consult with the instructor before selecting an article for a report. The dates of the reports are listed in the “Agenda” section of this document.

The reports should be two double-spaced type written pages and conform to a standard style manual (i.e., APA, Chicago Manual of Style, etc.). The reports at a minimum must include the following: bibliographic information, a one-page summary of the article, and a one-page reaction to the article. Reports may not be made-up or turned in late; however, the lowest report grade will be dropped when calculating your final grade.

Oral Presentations

Students will be required to present an oral presentation on each written report. Each oral presentation will be followed by a short question and discussion session. The details of the oral presentation will be discussed during the first two weeks of the semester. The dates for the oral presentations are listed in the “Agenda” section of this document. Oral Presentations may not be made-up or turned in late; however, the lowest oral presentation grade will be dropped when calculating your final grade.

Regular Examinations

There will be five regular examinations during the semester. The dates of the examinations are listed in the “Agenda” section of this document. Regular examinations may not be made-up or taken late; however, the lowest examination grade will be dropped when calculating your final grade.

Final Examination

There will be a comprehensive final examination. The date and time of the examination are listed in the “Agenda” section of this document.

Relative importance of Course Requirements: