11248 Architectural History and Theory: Urbanism and the City

Warning: The information on this page is indicative. The subject outline for a particular session, location and mode of offering is the authoritative source of all information about the subject for that offering. Required texts, recommended texts and references in particular are likely to change. Students will be provided with a subject outline once they enrol in the subject.

Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.

UTS: Design, Architecture and Building: Architecture
Credit points: 6 cp

Subject level:

Undergraduate

Result type: Grade and marks

Requisite(s): 11212 Architectural History and Theory: Orientations AND 11216 Architectural History and Theory: Modernity and Modernism
These requisites may not apply to students in certain courses. See access conditions.
Anti-requisite(s): 11223 Professional Practice: Architectural Office Practice and Law

Description

This subject introduces:

the realities of cities; their regional context; and urban development across time and in different geographical locations and cultural settings
ideas about cities, especially within the fields of architecture, landscape architecture, urban planning and design
how new technologies of vision reflect, influence and enable new modes of urban emergence and inhabitation
the challenges and responses for urban development and inhabitation posed by climate change.

The objectives of the subject include providing students with the skills to research, discuss, debate and design cities and urban environments, drawing on the specific strengths of their architectural or landscape architectural background.

In keeping with this cross-disciplinary approach, the subject explores the interdependency of cities, regions and territories, and the biophysical, infrastructural and logistical systems that bind them. It also introduces key issues facing cities and regions into the future.

The particular disciplinary perspectives that architecture and landscape architecture bring to the understanding of cities are emphasised. The culture of urbanism that these two disciplines have evolved is explored through built and unbuilt projects, writings, visual representations, exhibitions and other forms of research, analysis, speculation and debate.

The subject builds on knowledge gained from previous history and theory subjects, and extends and develops an understanding of the forces and processes that have shaped cities and their urbanisms. Students should be able to contextualise their studio work within different debates about what a city is and how architecture and landscape architecture contribute to it.

Subject learning objectives (SLOs)

On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:

1.	Demonstrate a critical understanding of the range of forces and processes that have shaped a range of cities, and the development of different forms of urbanism.
2.	Demonstrate an understanding of key architectural, landscape architectural and other thinkers on the city, and of influential design projects, both built and unbuilt.
3.	Synthesise complex ideas and evidence about the array of social, technical and environmental practices that constitute cities and urbanism.
4.	Carry out research and analysis that meets the subject’s objectives.
5.	Work individually, and as part of a team, to produce high-quality architectural research, analysis and communication.

Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)

This subject also contributes to the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes:

Work cooperatively and professionally as part of a team (C.1)
Communicate ideas professionally and effectively through a variety of mediums: oral, written, visual, physical and digital (C.2)
Creatively use architectural media, technologies and materials (I.2)
Position work within an extended and critically reasoned context through the identification, evaluation and application of relevant academic references and architectural case studies (R.1)
Independently analyse, synthesise and formulate complex ideas, arguments and rationales and use initiative to explore alternatives (R.3)

Contribution to the development of graduate attributes

The term CAPRI is used for the five Design, Architecture and Building faculty graduate attribute categories where:

C = communication and groupwork

A = attitudes and values

P = practical and professional

R = research and critique

I = innovation and creativity.

Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs) are linked to these categories using codes (e.g. C-1, A-3, P-4, etc.).

Teaching and learning strategies

Weekly on campus: 2-hour lecture and 90-minute tutorial

The subject will be delivered through a combination of illustrated lectures and tutorials. The learning is designed to be practice-oriented and research-inspired, and directed towards operating in a globalised environment. In general, the subject is based around pre-lecture preparatory reading and other preparatory activities, lectures, and discussion and research and collaborative work and feedback for the development of assignments in tutorials.

The tutorials are offered to assist with integrating the materials covered in the pre-lecture preparation and lectures, and to facilitate discussion, feedback (from both peers and the tutor), and guided research and production for each of the assignments. Student participation and understanding in tutorials and lectures will rely on a degree of individual reading and research, as well as group work. The contact hours will usually comprise a 2-hour lecture and a 90-minute tutorial each week.

Online Content
There are a range of of online resources used to support the learning objectives of this subject. Assignment briefs and related research material are available on the subject’s Canvas site and from the UTS Library.

There are a number of strands to your learning in this course:

required readings and reading analysis
active engagement in lectures
tutorial attendance and participation
assessment item research, documentation and communication
peer- and group-learning and feedback

Feedback

The subject provides several opportunities for feedback:

All assignments are graded in Canvas where tutors will give formal feedback and indicative grades against the subject criteria.
Verbal feedback is provided by tutors and peer-to-peer in the tutorial sessions and after assessment presentations.

An additional aim of this subject is to help you develop academic and professional language and communication skills to succeed at university and in the workplace. During the course of this subject, you will complete a milestone assessment task that will, in addition to assessing your subject-specific learning objectives, assess your English language proficiency.

Content (topics)

Key themes that will be discussed in relation to particular examples of cities and forms of urbanism may include:

industrialization and urbanization;
colonization;
production, consumption, labour and economic forces;
gender, race, class and other social categories and their expression in urban contexts;
political processes and urban development;
theories of urban experience;
the city as the site of research and speculation for architecture;
the political and social effects of representational conventions on the notion of urban space;
climate change impacts on urban environments and potential contributions of architecture and landscape architecture to climate solutions and resilience.

Assessment

Assessment task 1: Draft publication and essay outline

Intent:

Architects and Landscape Architects have made important contributions to debates about cities through their writings and visual analyses in this area. This task requires you to develop an individual essay outline based on key texts and readings as well as your own research. It also requires you to develop (as a group) visual analyses of urban conditions (see separate Assessment Brief for details).

Objective(s):

This task addresses the following subject learning objectives:

1, 2, 4 and 5

This task also addresses the following course intended learning outcomes that are linked with a code to indicate one of the five CAPRI graduate attribute categories (e.g. C.1, A.3, P.4, etc.):

C.1, I.2, R.1 and R.3

Type:

Project

Groupwork:

Group, group and individually assessed

Weight:

40%

Criteria linkages:

Criteria	Weight (%)	SLOs	CILOs
Ability to use visual methods as a research and critical thinking tool for the understanding of urban conditions (group)	30	1	I.2
Undertake research and develop a potential critical analytical approach to an original topic related to the urban environment from an architectural perspective (individual).	40	2	R.3
Demonstrate evidence of sourcing and evaluation of relevant research materials and provide accurate documentation of those sources using the prescribed conventions (individual)	10	4	R.1
Prepare and present work in progress as part of a group (group)	20	5	C.1

SLOs: subject learning objectives
CILOs: course intended learning outcomes

Assessment task 2: Group publication and individual essay

Intent:

This assessment task requires you to author an individual critical essay developed from your essay outline in Assessment Task 1 and to develop, as a group, a drawn and visual analysis of a specified urban condition. See separate assessment brief for details.

This task includes a milestone assessment component that evaluates English language proficiency. You will be guided to further language support after the completion of this subject if your results in this milestone task indicate you need more help with your language skills.

Objective(s):

This task addresses the following subject learning objectives:

3, 4 and 5

This task also addresses the following course intended learning outcomes that are linked with a code to indicate one of the five CAPRI graduate attribute categories (e.g. C.1, A.3, P.4, etc.):

C.1, C.2 and R.3

Type:

Project

Groupwork:

Group, group and individually assessed

Weight:

60%

Criteria linkages:

Criteria	Weight (%)	SLOs	CILOs
Ability to use visual methods as a research and critical thinking tool for the understanding of urban conditions (group)	30	5	C.2
Demonstrate a critical engagement with disciplinary and other thinkers on urban issues, from the readings, lectures or independent research, and formulate an original critical position on a specified urban phenomenon expressed clearly and effectively in written form (individual)	40	3	R.3
Demonstrate evidence of sourcing and evaluation of relevant research materials and provide accurate documentation of those sources using the prescribed conventions (individual)	10	4	C.2
Prepare and present final work ias part of a group (group)	20	5	C.1

SLOs: subject learning objectives
CILOs: course intended learning outcomes

Minimum requirements

The DAB attendance policy requires students to attend no less than 80% of formal teaching sessions (lectures and tutorials) for each class they are enrolled in to remain eligible for assessment.

A roll will be taken during both the lecture and the tutorial sessions on account of this. Should students fail to attend 80% of the class, it is within the University's right to refuse to mark the student in question's work, as is outlined in the Student Rules. It is the student’s responsibility to make themselves aware of the University's student rules.