School of Architecture, Department of Urban and Environmental Planning
Prof. David L. Phillips, 128 Campbell Hall, dlp@virginia.edu  

Tuesday and Thursday 12:30-1:50 p.m.  Scholar’s Lab Classroom Alderman Library 4th Floor.

  Open Lab: Friday 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Campbell 105 (schedule some portion)

Prerequisites

Graduate Planning and upper level undergraduate Planning majors will receive priority enrollment, however students from other disciplines throughout the University are welcome. Students should have a basic working knowledge of MS Windows operating system, University network system and Internet skills.  A review of Excel or data base management software concepts (Access) would be helpful.

Course description and methods:

GIS is a data management tool, a mapping tool, a visualization tool and a spatial analysis engine.  While this is an introductory GIS course, it will focus on how urban and environmental planners and others in social sciences or related fields of study can use Geographic Information Systems to address current planning problems. Since planning issues are part of our everyday life in either urban or rural America, this focus should provide some grounding even for the non-planning major. A major focus of the course will be the conceptual and practical underpinnings of establishing and using a Geographic Information System.  The major focus will be on understanding the concepts by doing GIS. Readings will address policy issues of establishing GIS in various governmental or regional settings.  Some specific applications to planning and other public systems problems will be examined through lectures and readings. 

Practical technical training will be undertaken through the use of the ArcGIS software package on PC computers in the Scholar’s Lab, ITC labs and School of Architecture Labs. .  Raster and 3D analysis will also be introduced.
Students will develop a small GIS project of their own choosing after the fundamentals of GIS have been mastered. 

Maps are intended to communicate information some of which derives from analysis. The cartographic quality of course products will receive critical attention.

Requirements

This is a learn by doing course so exercises and projects will receive the following weight:
Fundamental  GIS Exercises: 50%
Practical GIS Development 40%
Consistent Preparation, Quizzes and Participation 10%

Fully completing the exercises well will qualify for a B grade.  Insightful reflections, analysis and outstanding cartographic quality will be necessary to demonstrate outstanding work reaching into the A grade range. Grading will be on the normal grading scale:  100-98 A+;  93-97 A; 90-92 A-; 88-90 B+; 83-87 B; 80-82 B-; etc 70’s for C  etc.  

Late submission of exercises or project will result in a half-grade (5 points out of 100) for each day the assignment is late.  Extenuating circumstances (illness, etc.) will need to be arranged with the instructor before the submission date.

No exercise work will be accepted after the last class session. No project will be received after the scheduled exam period.

Readings

Olmsby et.al., GETTING TO KNOW ARCGIS Desktop 2nd edition .ESRI PRESS: 
Reference: William Huxhold, Eric M. Fowler, and Brian Parr, ArcGIS and the Digital City, ESRI PRESS
Longley, Paul A., Michael F. Goodchild, David J. Maguire and David W. Rhind, GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND SCIENCE,2nd ed.,Wiley and Sons, 2005.

About the instructor

Professor Phillips is a full time planning faculty member who has taught computers, geographic information systems and quantitative methods for a number of years.  His website is: http://www.people.virginia.edu/~dlp/

Web Address URL (incl. Collab sites if public):
http://www.people.virginia.edu/~dlp/2003site/courses.html

Number of Students Authorized to Enroll: 12

Satisfies Requirement (Building Elective, Preservation Certificate, etc.): Professional Planning Elective