How does law shape the urban built environment? How do we experience these legal interventions in our everyday lives? And what happens when we transgress them? This course introduces students to the multiple intersections between law, urban life and the built environment in Singapore and other cities. Topics to be explored include the urban landscape of legalized “vices”, the architectural expression of “justice” and the enclaves of privilege/disadvantage where certain laws are suspended or magnified. The course encourages interdisciplinary inquiry and experimental expression, and students will explore specific sites in Singapore through mapping, photography and writing.
Student Reviews
Anonymous AY23/24 Sem 1
About the Instructor
The prof is really very knowledgeable, especially since one of his own research interest is in casinos in Singapore so the field trip portion of the class were all very meaningful and I learnt a lot! He is also very approachable if you have any questions and open for students to experiment and be creative with assignments
Content (Structure/Organization)
The course was rather well structured, with three major themes being Divisions, Aesthetics and Transgressions. We covered many aspects and nuances to how law is applied in our everyday, and there were many instances for class discussions.
My only qualm is that what we learnt during the weeks may not directly apply to your assignments, but I still enjoyed the content that we went through during the course.
Assignments
Assignment 1: Reading discussion (Individual) - 15%
Assignment 2: Photo Essay (Individual) - 25%
Assignment 3: Citizens’ Forum (Group) - 10%
Assignment 3: Op-ed (individual) - 35%
Participation - 15%
Accessibility
For those who do not have a background in law or urban planning fret not as the content covered were very beginner friendly, and most would be able to relate to since this course covered laws that are visible in our day to day. I picked up most of my knowledge during the duration of the course!
However, many of our assignments featured the use of photographs so if you have a good eye for pictures it helps a lot!
Manageability of Workload
Workload is really light, we only did one to two light readings each week and the prof gives plenty of time for you to ideate for your assignments, and there were also feedback sessions weaved into class time.
Ease/Difficulty of Attaining Grades
I think it is fairly manageable to get a good grade in class. However, as mentioned, since photos played a large part of the assignments (Photo essay and Op-ed), I guess his grading of these photos could be more subjective, so it is hard to say if the prof is liberal or harsh with his marking
Learning Value/Recommendation
I would say that the usefulness of the module lies in learning more things about Singapore that I never knew about before, also to better appreciate photographs. Quite eye opening I would say