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This was the last upper division geography I had to take at WKU and geography is not my favorite field but I enjoyed this class. Dr. Algeo is very nice and very helpful and she talks about interesting subjects in her class so you never have to worry about being bored.
The major focus of the class is four projects that consist of 40% of your grade. She loves to do group work (and you don't get to pick your groups) so if you don't like that then this may not be the class for you. Our projects saw us go to Fountain Square for a landscape analysis, watch the movie Bend it Like Beckham for a film analysis, look through National Geographic for a picture analysis and practice different math models, and then administer a mental map survey which I thought was my favorite project.
You also have two tests, a midterm and final, each worth 15% of your grade. These tests have about six definitions where you have to define a term and provide an example, five short answers of about 4-6 sentences, and then a long essay at the end of the exam. To do well on the tests you need to study your notes (she uses PowerPoints and you can print them off ecourses but TAKE YOUR OWN NOTES, they help!) and read the chapters of the textbook. Personally, I thought the textbook was terrible and not very interesting but she will pull questions for the exam out of it so you need to read it. However, she provides study guides on ecourses for you to print off to help your studies and they are helpful (even if some of the questions really aren't in the book).
The rest of the grades just concern small quizzes, a few homework/in-class assignments, and your attendance/participation. If you have perfect attendance during the entire semester you get 2% added to your final grade SO GO TO CLASS EVEN IF YOU DON'T WANT TO! Besides that, your allowed to miss up to four classes before it starts to affect your grade.
Although I was intimidated by this class and was skeptical about whether I'd enjoy it, I found this class to one of the most interesting of the semester. Recommended for those trying to get geography credit for a social studies major or other studies.
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Multiple Choice
Essay