Dr Tian Xiaoli will be teaching a brand new undergraduate elective course entitled Social Spaces in the second semester of the 2020/21 academic year.

This advanced course for undergraduate students examines how space has long been active in the sociological thinking and analysis, but is rarely labeled as such. Only recently is there a growing recognition of space, location, and place in social science research. The course will explore the contingency of action on spatial structures, as well as the constitution of spaces through action. It focuses upon the dynamics between space and social life, both the micro-spaces of everyday life and the macro-spaces at the nation-state or global levels.

Taking advantage of the richness of sociology studies sensitive to space, the course seeks to go beyond the abstract philosophical debate to stimulate thinking about the substantial processes of the spatial reality in social life.

The new course contributes to the Department’s excellent and innovative undergraduate teaching.

**Photo by Herry Lawford (CC BY 2.0)