On-site classes will be held in a variety of neighbourhoods in the city in order to analyze the area’s role as a social entity and its relationship with the wider urban context. They will include teacher-guided group discussions and observational activities to refine students’ skills of sociological analysis. Lectures and readings before each on-site class will provide students with historical, topographical and sociological information about the area and will introduce relevant urban theories through which to interpret its particular issues. In-class debates will encourage them to question the applicability of theories to the realities observed on-site. We will watch sections of films, read various literary texts and talk to residents of the city (in on-site interviews or with guest speakers) in order to analyze the different discourses through which the city is narrated. Students are expected to do their assigned readings punctually and to follow developments in Roman and Italian society by reading newspapers throughout the semester.

Student Responsibilities:

Students will attend every class and arrive on time for all class sessions and on-site visits. They will keep up with assigned readings and with any out of class assignments. They will turn in assignments promptly.  

RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT:

Students should choose a neighbourhood or significant landmark area in Rome, research its history and current role in the city and carry out systematic observation in the site (detailed fieldwork observation guidelines will be provided in class). Students will then do a 10-15 minute presentation on their neighbourhoods to the class in the last lesson of the course and will provide a 2-page handout for the other students containing the main information and points presented. Students may work alone or in pairs but their presentation should be organized in such a way that each individual’s contribution to the work is clear. Please consult the scoring rubric provided. This gives indications of the quality expected and the grading criteria used.

By the end of the course students should be able to:

1)      Demonstrate knowledge of the city’s urban development since it became national capital.

2)      Demonstrate familiarity with the economic, political, social, religious, cultural and institutional diversity that characterizes the city of Rome today.

3)      Describe individual neighbourhoods and identify their key roles and relations with the broader urban context.

4)      Identify the main sociological features of each neighbourhood and, where problems and conflicts exist, propose solutions.

5)      Demonstrate familiarity with major theories of urban sociology and apply them to the case-study neighbourhoods in order to assess their validity and relevance for understanding the particular situation of Rome.

6)      Students will develop their research and oral presentation skills by carrying out a research project, based on high quality bibliographical research as well as some fieldwork techniques, and discussing their findings with the class.

 READINGS: Electronic journal articles will be uploaded on MyJCU and must be read in preparation for each class.

N.B. It is very possible that dates of on-site visits will change. It is your responsibility to be informed of any changes. These will be announced in class and on MyJCU.