Bachelor of Town and Regional Planning Honours
Physical Planning and Construction - Physical Planning Design and Management
Purpose and Rationale
Purpose:
The Bachelor of Town and Regional Planning Honours qualification aims to produce graduates with a strong understanding of the field of town and regional planning. The goal is to equip students with the necessary competencies for professional registration as planners with the South African Council for Planners (SACPLAN). Upon completion of the Master qualification, graduates will be eligible for such registration. The qualification is designed based on the competencies outlined by SACPLAN in 2014, focusing on core competencies such as planning theory, public policy, sustainable cities and regions, and functional competencies including survey and analysis, local area planning, and layout planning. Additionally, generic competencies like critical thinking, communication, and social responsibility are integrated throughout the modules.
Rationale:
The Honours and Masters qualifications collectively cover all competencies required for professional registration as planners with SACPLAN. Town and Regional Planning involve understanding how people utilize space, living conditions, livelihoods, transportation, and land use. Planners are responsible for managing change in built and natural environments to promote human development and environmental sustainability. The learning path emphasizes land use regulation, infrastructure organization, and integrating social, cultural, economic, and physical components for sustainable human settlements. Planners play a crucial role in addressing infrastructure deficits, economic growth, community participation, government capacity building, integration post-apartheid, and environmental sustainability.
Outcomes
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of the planning theories and social theories related to planning and the ability to use them to guide the development of planning practice.
- Demonstrate a sound understanding of the principles, methods and planning practices for developing sustainable cities and regions and the ability to effectively link economic, social and environmental aspects in the preparation of sustainability issues, practices and solutions.
- Demonstrate knowledge and skills in site analysis, layout planning and site planning and township development.
- Critically appraise the diversity of approaches to the generation of knowledge and understanding deriving from the experience of the epistemologies of the natural and social sciences and humanities, including IKS.
- Demonstrate basic knowledge of research approaches and methods relevant for planners.
- Conduct independent research using appropriate methodology and the ability to analyse findings and draw conclusions.
- Demonstrate critical thinking skills which include issue identification, problem-solving, research and analysis, innovation and creativity, societal and political awareness and strategic thinking.
- Demonstrate professionalism and ethical behaviour.
Assessment Criteria
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 1:
- Explain the concepts and theories of planning.
- Describe the relationship between planning theories and relevant social theories.
- Relate the knowledge of planning and social theories to the development of planning practice.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 2:
- Apply the principles, methods, and planning practices to plan the development of sustainable cities.
- Apply knowledge of the triple bottom line (economy, society, and environment) in dealing with development or providing sustainable solutions or practices in development.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 3:
- Execute layout and sub-division.
- Apply skills to effect township development.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 4:
- Identify a method to answer a basic research question relevant to planners.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 5:
- Conduct basic research using a particular method.
- Analyse data and conclude findings.
- Use data and illustrations to support the claims made in the work.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 6:
- Present findings in the appropriate academic language in various forms.
- Demonstrate the ability to communicate clearly, in a variety of forms.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 7:
- Critically evaluates planning issues.
- Solves problems related to planning in innovative and creative ways.
- Plans strategically within social and political contexts.
Associated Assessment Criteria for Exit Level Outcome 8:
- Behave ethically and professionally when engaged with planning legislation and regulation.
Integrated Assessment:
- The planning research project is summatively assessed using the examination of the research project.
- Knowledge and skills acquired in all other modules are applied in an integrated way to enable the student to complete the research project.
- All other modules are assessed using continuous assessment which involves the assessment of all the outcomes of a module by a variety of methods with timely and frequent feedback throughout the module. Continuous assessment collectively informs a final mark for that module, without a formal summative examination.
Assessment Methods:
- Essays
- Tests
- Seminar presentations
- Drawing of plans and designs
Assessment Feedback and Resubmission:
- Learners who fail an assessment task but who obtain at least 40% will be allowed to resubmit the task.
- In cases where the final mark for all the assessment is between 45% and 49%, the student will be offered an oral test to determine whether the student has achieved the learning outcomes.
Qualification Details
- Type
- Honours Degree
- NQF Level
- 08
- Min. Credits
- 120
- SAQA Source
- More Information
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This page includes information from the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) . Builtneat Pty Ltd trading as Study Start, has modified all or some of this information. SAQA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.