Assignment title: Information
Description
In this assignment you will be learning about core and periphery relationships and applying
your knowledge to an Asian-Pacific Rim nation of your choice. Core-periphery is a concept
discussed by Friedmann (1966) and others which describes an uneven development process
whereby core areas hold economic, educational, political, and social power and source raw
materials from the periphery. Peripheral areas are dependent on the core and typically have
weaker economies and political influence, lower educational levels, and lower rates of
innovation.
Country Table
http://nationalatlas.ngii.go.kr/national?lang=eng&page_name=Index&page_no=eng-index
South
Korea
Report Contents
You will be writing a report which should include the following elements.
1) Introduction [5 marks] outlining the core-periphery model, briefly introducing your
country and listing the topics covered in your report.
2) Map Observation [20 marks] of 5 different maps which you will identify (names,
dates, and weblinks), and describe in writing (text only). You can source the maps
from the listed site for your country, but you may also employ maps from other
The National Atlas
of Korea, 2014
sources. The maps need to justify the core and periphery boundaries that you delimit
on the Country Map (see next). You do not need to include the 5 maps in the report. If
at all possible, please refer to maps that are based on percentages or
proportions, rather than straight numbers. Also, the date that each map was
created is important as it may influence your conclusions. Make sure the maps are
different from each other. For example, if you are including a map showing
percentage of children, avoid also using a map of percentage of elderly, as likely the
same conclusion could be drawn from both maps since they are both depicting age as
the variable.
3) Country Map(s) [5 marks] showing boundaries of your core and periphery area(s).
Please choose (a) map(s) that suit(s) your purposes. You can use a graphics package
to create your boundaries electronically, or you can mark up a hard-copy map (which
you should scan to include in your report – see the library for details on how to use the
photocopiers as scanners). The map should be clear and easy to read and should
include a legend and a title. Each student's map must be created/drawn
individually and must not be an exact copy of any other student's map.
4) Justification of Country Map(s) [20 marks] provides an argument for the
boundaries you selected including explicit references to any external sources
(including the course text) that aided in this decision. You should refer back to the
Map Observations (see #2) above to support your boundaries. Clearly define what
core and periphery mean in relation to your maps.
5) Discussion [20 marks] of reasons why the core areas have succeeded (for example,
government investment, historical inertia, etc.), and why the peripheral areas have
lagged in development. Also, what threats and opportunities do you observe for both
the core and periphery areas? Are there any existing or upcoming government
programs that invest in either the core or periphery regions? And, how do you expect
these core and periphery areas to evolve over the next 30 years?
6) Conclusion. [5 marks]