Geographies of Taiwan (Summer 23)

Geographies of Taiwan / East Asia

Summer II 2023

Instructor:  Dr. T. Edwin Chow

Office: Room 326 / 245-3200

Email: chow@txstate.edu 

 

Catalog description: Study abroad program under direct supervision of a professor. This course will require foreign travel and intensive field work. This course will explore and examine different geographic phenomena in both physical and human systems in Taiwan.   

___________________________________________________________________________

Pre-travel programs

February 24 (Friday), March 7 (Tuesday) & May 10 (Thursday) – 3 orientations (3 contact hours)

July 2 (Sunday) @ 10 am – program preview (3 contact hours)

July 5 (Wednesday) – pack and prepare

July 6 (Thursday) – travel from Austin to Taipei

July 7 (Friday) – arrive in Taipei and settle down

 

Travel

July 8 (Saturday): Orientation – Orientation program, visit Taipei 101 and welcome dinner

July 9 (Sunday): Getting around – Explore transportation modes, know the neighborhoods and visit the Shilin night market

July 10 (Monday): Political Geography –and attend a guided excursion to the National Memorial Halls and  of Sun Yat-Sen and Chiang Kai-Shek

July 11 (Tuesday): – Physiography and Historical Geography – Explore Shuidui Park to gain a synoptic overview and physiography of the Taipei, and attend a guided excursion to the Palace Museum

July 12 (Wednesday): Historical & GIScience – Visit National Taiwan Museum, Paleontology Exhibit at Taiwan Land Bank Exhibition Hall, visit a drone company GEOSAT

July 13 (Thursday): Geohumanities – Experience Songshan Cultural & Creative Park and visit National Human Rights Museum

July 14 (Friday): Ecology & Transportation Geography – Ride a bike into the wetland at Shuhong Ecological Park, and explore various transportation modes, including high speed rail, Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), bus, taxi, motor vehicle and bike, etc. in light of the urban planning of Taipei

July 15 (Saturday): Cultural Geography – Visit Jiufen (Old Street and Goldore Museum) and Shifen (Waterfall and Sky Lantern)

July 16 (Sunday): Physical Geography – Visit the Yangmingshan National Park & Yehliu Geopark 

July 17 (Monday): Contemporary Geography – Visit Nowhere bookstore, attend guest lecture on contemporary issues in geography and visit Ximen Market

July 18 (Tuesday):  Ecology – Ride a bike along the mangrove forest from and learn the history and ecology of Tamsui

July 19 (Wednesday): Food & Environmental Geography – Visit UMKT and a local brewery @ Wenhua, attend TEIA talk

July 20 (Thursday): Population Geography – Guided excursion to Wulai District and learn about Atayal people, including Wulai Tayal Culture museum, attend weaver workshop (NTD 450) and take trolley train (NTD 50 to the old street)

July 21 (Friday): Academic Visit – Tour the NTU campus, museums and Geography department

July 22 (Saturday): Cultural Geography – Full day service learning with Indigenous Bridges/Atayal Org

July 23 (Sunday): Unstructured free time – optional trip to Maokong

July 24 (Monday): Research projects – project formulation 

July 25 (Tuesday): Research projects – research design

July 26 (Wednesday): Research projects – data collection and analysis

July 27 (Thursday): Research projects – data analysis and interpretation

July 28 (Friday): Wrap up – Project presentation; farewell lunch and program conclusion

July 29 (Saturday) – Depart Taipei to Austin

* each tour day = 1 hour of pre- and post-field discussion + 6 hours of shared co-curricular educational tours (17 x 3 = 51 contact hours)

Total contact hours = 57 contact hours

 

August 4 (Friday) – Paper and Journal due

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

Learning Outcomes: Students are expected to demonstrate a theoretical and applied knowledge of advanced Geography concepts and applied skills as outlined below.        

Knowledge

1. Understand the physical and human geographies of Taiwan in the context of China, Japan and E. Asia
2. Can identify a geographic problem in relevant context

Skills

3. Apply field and geospatial technologies to evaluate geographic phenomenon
4. Articulate, develop and complete a research project rooted in the geography of Taiwan

 

Course Material:

• Readings:
• Weightman, B. A., 2011. Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East, and Southeast Asia, Third Edition. Wiley Press, pp. 540. (library use)
• Rigger, S., 2013. Why Taiwan Matters: Small Island, Global Powerhouse. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, pp. 228. (ebook available in library)
• Knapp, R., 1980. China's Island Frontier : Studies in the Historical Geography of Taiwan. University Press of Hawaii, pp. 296. (ebook available in library) 
• Multimedia:
• Exploring History, 2021. Mapping Taiwan’s History. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0UGuv15Nmg
• Wondrium, 2020. History of China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, Pre-2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aC7SZoKaZog                 
• Netflix, 2019. Street Food in Asia – Chiayi, Taiwan: Season 1, Episode 5.
• Websites:

• • National Taiwan Normal University, 2001. Geography of Taiwan: A Summary, http://twgeog.ntnugeog.org/en/general

• Wikipedia, 2022. Geography of Taiwan, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geography_of_Taiwan

 

ASSIGNING FINAL GRADES

Deliverables                            Course Participation                                 50% Paper                                                         30% Journal                                                      20%

Grade Score A 90% ≤ A ≤ 100 % B 80% ≤ B < 90 % C 70% ≤ C < 80 % D 60% ≤ D < 70 % F   0% ≤ F < 60 %

 

Course Participation: The subject matter and course work expect/require a regular meeting with the student. It is expected that the student will attend every meeting and be involved in active learning, intellectual discussion, and complete compliance throughout the study abroad program.

 

Paper: The students are expected to write a paper that investigate a geographic phenomenon in the context of the geographies of Hong Kong. The project should explore a social-biophysical phenomenon by examining its spatial distribution and/or relationship with other phenomenon through appropriate analysis. A final paper of at least 10+ pages should consist of an abstract, introduction, relevant work or literature review, methodology, results, findings and conclusions. The paper must refer to specific sections in the readings of this course to introduce the fundamental concepts relevant to the phenomenon, discuss it in the relevant context, and interpret your findings with reference to the assigned readings (please note that the reading assignment for each course cross-listed on this study abroad program is different). For graduate students: The paper should be a high quality research paper of at least 20+ pages with a literature review section and be conformed to follow the style of a major geography journal. Examples include International Journal of Geographic Information Science, Transactions in GIS or Annals of the Association of American Geographers. Please make sure that one journal style is chosen and is strictly followed.

 

Journal: Each student is required to maintain a journal of daily activities and impressions while in Hong Kong. After completion of the study abroad journey, the entries need to be typed. The first entry is written by Thursday and turned in to me, one page of what your expectations are on this trip. While all entries should include descriptive information, the following is also expected: analysis, comparisons, and synthesis of information. Students will need to write a minimum of one page (single spaced) per day with references to assigned reading material and sources obtained on their own. You may be creative with your journal (include pictures, ticket stubs, etc.)

 

COURSE POLICIES

Attendance/Absence: Except medical or family emergency, it is expected that the student will attend every meeting and all activities during the educational tour. All excused absence should be provided with proper documentation and prior notification if applicable.

 

Behavior: Students should act professionally towards each other and to the people they meet while in Hong Kong. Students should also seek the instructor’s approval to act or travel solo.

 

Communication: Students will not have regular access to phones or the Internet. Students should make plans ahead of time to not be in regular contact with those back home.

 

Risk Assessment: As of September 14, 2019, Hong Kong has a travel advisory of Level 3 – reconsider travel due to “COVID-19 and arbitrary enforcement of local laws”. However, it is anticipated COVID-19 and the social unrest will settle down by summer 2021. Moreover, Hong Kong has the lowest crime rate among many developed countries. To get the latest update about travel risk, you may visit: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/hong-kong-travel-advisory.html. Please note that the study abroad program has an emergency action plan that will be disclosed during the orientation.

 

Academic Integrity: Plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty undermine the values of university purpose and education. Please be referenced to the Texas State Student Handbook for specific sanctions. (http://www.txstate.edu/effective/upps/upps-07-10-01.html)

 

ADA Statement: Students with special needs (as documented by the Office of Disability Services) that will require compensatory arrangements must contact the instructor no later than the 4^th class period to discuss specific arrangements and logistics. Students who have not already done so will be required to contact the Office of Student Disability Services located at LBJ 5-5.1 (512.245.3451). Texas State is dedicated to providing these students with necessary academic adjustments and auxiliary aids to facilitate their participation and performance in the classroom. Please see the ADA statement (http://www.swt.edu/effective/upps/upps-07-11-01.html) for full explanation.