3 ECTS credits
75 h study time

Offer 1 with catalog number 1022043ANR for all students in the 2nd semester at a (A) Bachelor - preliminary level.

Semester
2nd semester
Enrollment based on exam contract
Impossible
Grading method
Grading (scale from 0 to 20)
Can retake in second session
Yes
Taught in
Dutch
Faculty
Faculteit Ingenieurswetenschappen
Department
Architectural Engineering
Educational team
Stephanie Van de Voorde (course titular)
Activities and contact hours

18 contact hours Lecture
12 contact hours Seminar, Exercises or Practicals
10 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study
Course Content

This course aims to provide the student insights into the formation of the urban fabric in the Western world, from the Greek polis to the 20th century functional city, within a broader socio-cultural, economic and political context. The lectures focus on the complexity of architectural urban production and explore the relationship between architecture, urban patterns and social evolutions, in a historical comparative perspective.

 

The course provides the student with a chronological and thematic frame of reference to understand and interpret (recurring) urban forms and patterns of urbanisation. The student's critical reflection is sharpened by means of questions that are also relevant to the current urban planning debate. What is the impact of phenomena such as social polarisation and industrialisation on urban morphology and the relationship between city and countryside? How do urban societies react to increases in scale and new forms of mobility? How were cultural-anthropological models and new scientific insights translated into the urban fabric? Thematic lessons and seminars pay explicit attention to the evolution of the Belgian urban landscape in the 19th and 20th centuries.

 

The course ties in with the specific approach of the Department of Architectural Engineering, based on the interest in the relationship between building, urbanisation and technological developments. This translates into the reading and interpretation of urban models, plans and concepts, the contribution of different actors (architects and engineers, clients, executors and users), the practical realisation and materialisation of theoretical approaches, and the relationship with the wider social culture.

Additional info

The course consists of interactive lectures, supplemented by thematic lectures and guest lectures. During the seminars, the assignment of the group work is explained (an analysis of an urban neighbourhood or urban fragment in Belgium), feedback is given (in group), a city walk is organised and a visit is made to an exhibition and/or a library or archive institution. A combination of online and on-campus lectures and/or seminars is possible.

 

The study material consists of slides for the lectures, a reader with compulsory and recommended literature. The reader includes a selection of chapters from 'Het verleden van steden. 4000 jaar bouwen en verbouwen in Europa' (Honoré Rottier, 2004, Davidsfonds) and 'The history of the city'/'L'histoire de la ville' (Leonardo Benevolo, 1980/1983, MIT Press/Parenthèses). This literature is further supplemented with journal articles and chapters from books by various authors (e.g. Spiro Kostof, Lewis Mumford, Michiel Wagenaar, Marcel Smets, Jo Braeken, Ed Taverne etc.).

Learning Outcomes

Specific competencies

The following learning outcomes are envisaged in this course unit:

  1. The student can describe and recognise (the application of) historical urban forms, models, instruments and concepts and can outline urbanisation processes in time and space, from Antiquity to the present.
  2. The student develops insight into the spatial correlation between the architectural and urban planning scales throughout history.
  3. The student can read and relate historical urban maps to theoretical concepts and approaches, from the Greek polis to the 20th-century functional city.
  4. The student can analyse the evolution and development of the urban fabric in Western society within its social, socio-cultural, political and economic context.
  5. The student is able to critically approach and compare urban models and their application.
  6. The student develops communication skills, both verbal and written as well as graphic, with attention to the correct terminology and visual representation techniques.
  7. The student can independently and together with others collect, analyse, assess, process and synthesise information about urban developments in Belgium in the 19th and 20th centuries.

General competences

In addition, this course unit also addresses the following general learning outcomes of the Bachelor of Science in Engineering: Architecture

  1. The Bachelor has a broad fundamental knowledge and understanding of the theory and history of architecture and their relation to the current challenges of the built environment.
  2. The Bachelor can independently look up information from (inter)national technical literature and other sources, evaluate it scientifically and report on it.
  3. The Bachelor can analyse a problem statement within socio-cultural and ecological boundary conditions and can, based on that, develop a well-substantiated vision.
  4. The Bachelor can communicate through text, speech, graphics, visuals and scale models by making use of the appropriate vocabulary.
  5. The Bachelor can reflect in a rational, abstract and critical way on the own work and that of others.
  6. The Bachelor can work independently and in team.
  7. The Bachelor has comprehended the ecological, social and cultural impact of the discipline and consciously strives for sustainable, ethical design decisions.
  8. The Bachelor has awareness of the ever more rapidly changing needs of users and society.

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 66% of the final mark.
Written Exam determines 17% of the final mark.
Other Exam determines 17% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Mondeling examen with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 66% of the final mark.

Within the Written Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Schriftelijk examen with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 17% of the final mark.

Within the Other Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

  • Examen andere with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 17% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

The exam consists of an oral examination with written preparation and a writing assignment containing an urban-historical analysis (in small groups).

 

Part 1: Oral examination

Oral exam with written preparation, during which each student receives a selection of questions that are spread over the entire course.

 

Part 2: Urban history analysis (in small groups)

Analysis of a historic neighbourhood / city district in Belgium (focus on 19th-21st century) with attention to historical, architectural and urban development as well as socio-cultural and political factors. This analysis is incorporated into a written paper (with proper attention for scientific references, layout, structure, etc.), supplemented with visual material.

 

Score weight:

2/3 of the total final score is on the oral exam (part 1).

1/3 of the total final score is on the urban history analysis (part 2).

Allowed unsatisfactory mark
The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context

This offer is part of the following study plans:
Bachelor of Architectural Engineering: Standaard traject (only offered in Dutch)