Population in the Pacific Islands (Pirie, 1997)

POPULATION IN THE PACIFIC ISLANDS

POPULATION STUDIES 302

University of Hawai‘i at Manoa

Spring 1997.

Dr Peter Pirie - pndp@aloha.net

1465 Waianuenue Ave

Hilo, HI. 96720

Fax (808) 933 1023 (Hilo)

Home phone (808) 969 3772 (Hilo).

TIME: 1:30-2:45pm Kuykendall 203 (Manoa)

Library Blg Studio 350 (Hilo)

This course introduces students to the variety of demographic situations in the 21 political entities which comprise the island Pacific:

• The dispersal of Pacific peoples into the islands, their differentiation, and their subsequent growth in numbers;

• The varying demographic impacts of later contact by foreigners and by colonizers;

• Public health, the recovery in population numbers, and subsequent fertility explosion;

• The tradition of mobility: ancient and modern forms, and Pacific Island communities overseas;

• Employment alternatives to traditional agriculture;

• Is "The Doomsday Scenario" inevitable? Clashing schools of thought.

Texts:

Krishnan, Vasantha, Penelope Schoeffel, and Julie Warren, 1994. The Challenge of Change: Pacific Island Communities in New Zealand 1986–1993, ISR&D: Wellington, New Zealand.

Pirie, Peter, 1994. Demographic Transition in the Pacific Islands: The Situation in the Early 1990s, East-West Center Working Papers, Pacific Islands Development Series, No. 5, Honolulu, HI. Pp 90 (supplied free)

South Pacific Commission, 1994. Pacific Island Populations, Report prepared for the International Conference on Population and Development, Cairo, Egypt, September, Noumea: New Caledonia. Pp 68 (supplied free)

Course Requirements:

Required readings

One research paper

Midterm

Comprehensive final exam

Knowledge of email or willingness to learn

Course Schedule:

Date Location Topic

Wed January 15th Hilo Introduction to the course

Fri Jan17th Manoa Regional background

Wed Jan 22nd Manoa E-mail demo

Fri Jan 24th Hilo Some Population fundamentals

Wed Jan 29th Hilo Population sizes, distributions and densities

Fri Jan 31st Manoa The origins of Pacific Island populations

Wed February 5th Hilo Pre-contact populations

Fri Feb 7th Hilo Mortality and morbidity pre-contact

Wed Feb 12th Manoa Introduced disease and population decline

Fri Feb 14th Hilo The beginnings of morbidity control

Wed Feb 19th Hilo Recent mortality levels

Fri Feb 21st Hilo Fertility control; ancient and modern

Wed Feb 26th Hilo The fertility explosion; recent fertility levels

Fri Feb 28th Hilo Age and sex structures

Wed March 5th Hilo Schooling and employment

Fri March 7th Hilo The employment transition

Wed March 12th Hilo Population mobility; traditional forms

Fri March 14th Manoa Population mobility; modern forms

Wed March 19th Hilo Pacific Islanders in towns

Fri March 21st Hilo Mid term test

Spring Recess

Wed April 2nd Manoa Mid-term test return and review

Fri April 4th Hilo Pacific islander colonies overseas

Wed April 9th Hilo The Samoan diaspora

Fri April 11th Manoa Projected populations

Wed April 16th Hilo The Doomsday Scenario

Fri April 18th Hilo Case studies - Papua New Guinea

Wed April 23rd Manoa Case studies - New Caledonia

Fri April 25th Hilo Case studies - Fiji

Wed April 30th Hilo Case studies - the Samoas

Fri May 2nd Manoa Case studies - how do you know you're in Guam and not in Pearl City?

Wed May 7th Hilo Last day of Instruction. Review.

Final Exam 12:00 - 2:00pm Thursday May 15th

Comments: This course is being taught on two campuses on two different islands and transmitted to the other campus through Hawai'i Interactive Television Systems (HITS). The instructor alternates between studios on each campus, teaching approximately two-thirds of the course at the Hilo studio, and one-third at the Manoa studio. Several cameras are used to focus on the instructor, the class, and visual materials, and students from either studio may get the instructor's attention for questions. Extensive use is also being made of email, for communication between the instructor and students, and occasional use is being made of the fax machine to transmit materials between campuses.

[Subject: Contemporary Issues, Pacific/Comparative]

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