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Description

An introduction to cultural anthropology, which is the study of human cultures, both historical and contemporary. Students analyze the ways in which social categories are imagined, reproduced, and grounded within particular historical and geographical contexts around the world, in order to understand how humans create meaning through everyday practices. (3B) Offered each semester. (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies 141). Prerequisite: preference given to first-year and sophomore students.

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All human societies face challenges, including those relating to power, identity, conflict, health, sustainability, and climate change. Yet our understandings of these challenges are not neutral, and archaeology often has been complicit in constructing and perpetuating misrepresentations. In this course, we begin with an introduction to basic archaeological methods, as well as the major trends of the past. We then consider how different theoretical approaches are produced within particular historical and social contexts that affect the ways we understand the past, often to the detriment of descendant communities. Throughout the remainder of the class, we examine case studies to better understand how societies responded to specific challenges, but also how a more inclusive archaeology can provide unique lessons for addressing such issues in the present and future. (3B) (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies 141.) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: preference given to first-year and sophomore students.

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An introduction to physical anthropology, which surveys the major components of the field: primatology, fossil evidence and evolution, osteology, and contemporary human diversity and genetics. Lectures and laboratory. (4U) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: preference given to first-year and sophomore students.

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This studio course introduces the fundamentals of three-dimensional design. It stresses line, plane, and volume and the ways these elements occupy and activate space. Additionally, principles that transform viewers’ interpretations and realize artistic intent are addressed through the use of unifiers, modifiers, symbols, metaphors, and embellishments. This course combines studio projects, class discussions, readings, and slide lectures with group critiques. Art appreciation is also a component of this course. (2A) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: first-year standing or declared Studio Art or Art History major or minor. Course fee is $50.00.

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Description

This studio course introduces the basic concepts, techniques, and processes of design and drawing. Pencil, ink, collage, charcoal, and other media are used to foster a comprehensive understanding of the descriptive, formal, and expressive possibilities of drawing and design. Group and individual critiques. (2A) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: first-year standing or declared studio art or art history major or minor, or consent of instructor. Course fee is $150.00.

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This studio course introduces the basic techniques, processes, and creative possibilities of digital photography. Students will learn the expressive potential of light, composition, contrast, focus, and perspective. We will examine both the historical and aesthetic issues associated with the practice. Includes studio projects, lectures, assigned readings, class discussions, field trips, and individual and group critiques. (2A) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: continuous access to a digital camera with exposure controls and 5 megapixels. Course fee is $150.00.

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This course focuses on observational drawing, particularly of the human figure. Working from live models, a diverse range of drawing processes and media are utilized in the development of a figurative vocabulary. Slides, critiques, and discussions center on figurative themes in art. (2A) Offered occasionally. Course fee is $150.00.

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A studio course covering the techniques and concepts of media not included in the regular offerings of the art department, such as collage, installation, and performance art. (2A) Topics course. Offered occasionally. Course fee is $100.00.

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ARTH 250. Topics in the History of Art: Art of Curating (1). This seminar style course will use the Wright Museum of Art’s collection and gallery spaces as a laboratory to further develop competency in art historical methods. Students will hone their skills by researching, analyzing, and writing about objects and images in the Wright’s collection. The course will emphasize the use of primary resources leading to original research projects. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Offered each year. Prerequisites: none.

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The anatomy and basic normal functions of the human body with consideration of development, genetics, immunology, endocrinology, and related molecular, cellular, and ecological concepts, and an emphasis on scientific principles and experimental methods. Students design, perform, analyze, and report on small research projects. Laboratory work requires dissection. Three two-hour lecture-laboratory periods per week. (4U) Offered yearly.

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The structure and function of plants emphasizing adaptations to the environment. The course focuses on the ecology, evolution, reproduction, physiology, cellular and molecular biology, and genetics of flowering plants. The course stresses scientific principles and experimental methods. Students design, perform, analyze, and report on small research projects. Three two-hour lecture-laboratory periods per week. (4U) Offered yearly.

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An exploration and application of biological concepts through examination of the structure, genetics, physiology, and culture of microorganisms with emphasis on bacteria and viruses. The course stresses scientific principles and experimental methods in the context of disease and the environment. Students design, perform, analyze, and report on small research projects. Three two-hour lecture-laboratory periods per week. (4U) Offered yearly.

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CHEM 225. Topics in Instrumental Analysis: Scientific Imaging (.5). An introduction to scientific imaging. Lecture and lab work. Techniques of visual information acquisition with optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Methods of obtaining and interpreting microscope data. Concept of digital image processing. Techniques of digital image measurement and quantitative analysis. Hands-on experience in scientific imaging. May be taken more than once under different topics. Prerequisite: none

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CRIS 265. Topics in Critical Identity Studies: Bodies and Care: Health Inequities in the U.S. (.5). This course will examine case studies of conventional medicine and how different types of bodies are offered or not offered adequate or effective medical care. How have communities at the social margins been treated within the 20th or 21st medical system? What factors account for care differentials? Where might restorative interventions occur within the current care system? Together we will examine ways to understand the legacies of conventual medicine as well as transformative interventions that seek to change the future of medicine. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. The 2A, 3B, and 5T domained versions of this course are, respectively, Critical Identity Studies 266, 267, and 268. ( Also listed as Health and Society 280.)

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This course is a structured approach to algorithm development and problem solving using computer programming in an object-oriented programming language such as Java or Python. The course develops the concepts of procedural abstraction, program design, debugging, and testing in addition to teaching the standard features of a high-level computer programming language. Students will be introduced to the key concepts of object-oriented programming, including classes, inheritance, polymorphism, and interfaces. Societal issues related to computers (e.g. ethics, privacy, liability, and security) will also be discussed. (1S) Offered each semester.

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In this course students learn what data work involves, including a discussion of data ethics, and get introduced to popular data tools such as R, Tableau, SQL. Students also learn what a career in data work looks like, and they get to connect with an alumnus/a in data science/analytics to learn more about the field from a practitioner.

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This course takes an analytical approach to economic reasoning and contemporary economic issues. It introduces microeconomic and macroeconomic theories with applications to relevant issues such as employment, growth, international trade and finance, monetary and fiscal policy, and environmental issues. (3B) Offered each semester.

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An exploration of a variety of philosophical and historical approaches to the study of education and youth are integrated throughout this class. Students’ own educational experiences are taken into consideration through digital stories. These student experiences, in school and out of school, as well as the students’ developmental histories and personal philosophies, are considered in their relation to each other, as sources of knowledge and understanding. Students read and write about philosophers and theorists from a broad range of traditions, periods, and places. Integrated with philosophical explorations, students undertake historical investigations of schooling youth; this course focuses on the history of the U.S. and the development of ideas of democratic schooling in contexts of inequality. These explorations also include investigating how media and propaganda impact societal norms and influence education and youth. Additionally, a strong emphasis is placed on anti-racism, anti-sexism, anti-heterosexism, and (dis)able bodies. In their writing and face-to-face interactions, students are strongly encouraged to employ philosophical and historical methodologies for their own self-expression. (5T) Offered each fall and alternate spring semesters.

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In this course, students explore psychological frameworks related to the process of learning, with a focus on teaching methods, instructional processes, and individual differences in learning. Additionally, this course explores the impact of trauma on learning and the journey towards radical healing. The following psychological frameworks serve as the lenses through which students seek to explore, understand, assess, and create alternative learning environments: cognitive psychology, trauma psychology, and the psychology of radical healing. This course is designed as a seminar. Thus, students are expected to participate actively in discussions while holding themselves accountable for their realizations of and connections to the processes of learning, the impact of trauma on these processes, and the importance of radical healing in addressing trauma. Students are encouraged to apply their understanding of these processes to their own analyses. Alternative learning practices including healing circles, group assessments, and evaluative exploration of curriculum are employed. (3B) Offered each fall and alternate spring terms.

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An exploration of major theories and significant research on the development and explanation of social and cultural differences and how they affect the lives and education of youth. The course will investigate student diversity, with special attention to race, class, gender, language, and the inclusion of students with special needs in general education. Issues are examined mainly through the lenses of sociology, anthropology, and education and youth policy. Using the theories and methodologies of these disciplines, students will critically examine how and why race, class, language, ability and disability, and gender have influenced education. (3B) (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies.) Offered each spring and alternate fall semesters.

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In this seminar, we explore comparative and international perspectives on education and youth studies by focusing on readings that primarily address comparative methodology, including the questions, what is comparative education, and why and how we compare. A prominent theme in our reading is globalization and localization, what it means and how it influences our intellectual and social landscapes, our teaching and research approaches, how we borrow and lend educational ideas, and the way we are connected to each other. We explore how particular kinds of comparative literature might shape public policy as well as our teaching and learning. Through a close examination of comparative methodologies and reading of case studies from different cultures and societies, students learn to position domestic issues on youth and education such as language, inclusion, choice, race/ethnicity, class, gender and beyond, in the global context. We also aim to draw implications for the improvement of policies related to teacher education and curriculum and pedagogy from international comparisons. Our class is largely discussion based with class participants responsible for guiding our analyses of case studies and comparative methodology in part by sharing weekly reading response and through group presentation projects. The class also incorporates other multi-media sources such as podcasts and videos to help enrich our understandings of the issues we study. (3B) (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies 267 and Political Science 205.) Offered each fall.

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ENGL 190. Introduction to Literary Study: Med Lit: Health, Illness, and Literature (1). This introduction to literary study explores how literary works–fiction, nonfiction, and poetry–represents topics such as health and wellness, illness and disability, and the relationship between medical providers and patients. Conversely, we also consider how literary elements such as narrative storytelling, creative imagination, and the use of language itself can be healing / helping formations and encounters. We work on developing critical reading strategies generally and literary analysis specifically, as well as practicing critical and creative writing skills. (5T) May be taken for credit only once. (Also listed as Comparative Literature 190. English majors should register for English 190.) Offered each semester.

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ENGL 190. Introduction to Literary Study: Crumbs and Mirrors (1). In this course, we’ll read literary adaptations of fairy tales and folk tales which focus on identity and agency. As one of our authors, Angela Carter, writes: “I really do believe that a fiction absolutely self-conscious of itself as a different form of human experience than reality (that is, not a logbook of events) can help to transform reality itself.” Throughout the semester, we’ll develop and put into practice the critical skills of close reading, interpretation, and analysis in order to consider how writers recast these well-known tales—and to what ends. (5T) May be taken for credit only once. (Also listed as Comparative Literature 190. English majors should register for English 190.) Offered each semester.

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Experimentation and practice in writing poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. Readings to suggest and illustrate forms and techniques. (2A) May be taken for credit only once. Offered each semester.

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Analysis of representative poems to increase understanding and appreciation of the nature, styles, and methods of poetry. Composition and discussion of original poems in various forms. Offered each spring. Prerequisite: English 205 and junior standing.

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FREN 290. Filmic Expressions of the Francophone World in Translation: French New Wave (1). In this course, students explore the French New Wave, an art film movement that challenged traditional cinema and ushered in new ideas and experiments in film. Students explore the social and cinematic contexts of these filmmakers through their films, interviews, reviews and news articles. Students learn how to talk about film, how to analyze narrative and form, and how to think about cinema as art that reflects, reacts to, interrogates and critiques social, cultural, and political contexts. (5T) Prerequisite: none.

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This .75-unit course focuses on the physiology and health of musculature and fascia using the Roll Model Method. Students engage with theoretical and applied approaches to self-myofascial release through massage, alignment, anatomy instruction and mental awareness. Utilizing the full set of required Tune Up Balls, articles and current research, and activities, each student develops and puts into practice their own conditioning and wellness plan specially designed for their sport(s), movement, and/or personal training goals. While there is no textbook for the course, materials cost around $60 and will need to be purchased before the semester begins. A link will be sent out in December.

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This course covers functional human anatomy and kinesiology, specifically as applied to the body in motion from basic (i.e. locomotion) to complex (i.e. dance) movement. Students learn the bones, the names, locations and actions of muscles, all types of connective tissues and the types and actions of the joints of the body. Students also explore vital connections between the body, mind and movement through the study and practice of various somatics techniques with a focus on Bartenieff Fundamentals: a corrective approach for repatterning movement. Students discover how to approach movement for the most efficient functioning, to increase physical potential, prevent injuries and recover from them more quickly. The course includes factual, theoretical, and practical applications through lectures, discussion, and labs. Labs are conducted in the dance studio where students learn through movement. Prerequisites: sophomore standing or instructor consent.

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HIST 150. Introduction to Historical Thinking: Nazi Germany: History and Film (1). This class will examine the history of Nazi Germany through three interconnected approaches. First, we will read some of the important academic scholarship on the darkest period in German history, in order to explain the Nazis’ coming to power, the Holocaust, and the eventual defeat of the Nazi regime. Second, we will study a broad range of documents from the Nazi period itself, including political texts written by members of the regime, propaganda posters, and diaries by victims of Nazi persecution. Third, we will watch a number of classic movies about the Nazi period. Throughout the semester, we will discuss the relative strengths and weaknesses of these three kinds of sources, and we will work towards a complex understanding of Nazi rule. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

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HIST 150. Introduction to Historical Thinking: The Art of Warning (1). Imagine a management text with advice that has been tested through the ages—one that can make readers better students, employees, and employers. Imagine a book that will guide financial thinking, relationships, and even teach how to manage your boss. Jam-packed with management advice from China, every emperor read it, right up until the end of the imperial era. Moreover, influential people from all political persuasions kept on reading it. Mao Zedong read it on the back of a donkey during the Communist Party’s Long March in the mid-1930s. It was rated the most influential work of history in all of Chinese history by a recent poll of Chinese historians, and almost no one outside of East Asia has ever even heard of it. This course will introduce Sima Guang’s Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Ruling, arguably the most important management textbook in history. It takes the lessons of Sunzi’s Art of War and brings them to a new level, one that would teach readers to run the most complex enterprise in the premodern world, the Chinese empire. The Art of War deals with a small world of contending kingdoms. What we will call The Art of Warning integrates those lessons and extends them to the complexity of a multi-faceted bureaucracy and enormous expenditures that parallel the challenges of today’s corporations. Everyone in China knows this book; almost no one in the West does. This course will introduce it, along with lessons that will bring advantages in the global marketplace that almost no peers can match. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

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HIST 150. Introduction to Historical Thinking: Worlds of Stone: The City in Modern European History (1). Taking a broad, thematic approach, this class introduces students to the field of modern European urban history. Throughout the semester, we will ask about how the city developed into a symbol of modernity, an environment where both the positive and the negative aspects of an imagined future could be observed in the present. First, the class will examine the material changes that the city underwent in the modern age. In that context, we will discuss urban growth, and how it was connected to industrialization; and we will study the transformation of European cities through city planning, including the economic, military, and aesthetic ideas underlying transformative projects such as Baron Haussmann’s re-building of Paris in the nineteenth century. Second, the class will look at the city as a space of conflict. We are going to analyze revolutionary movements, tensions between classes and different ethnic groups, as well as the creation of police forces as a government attempt to control urban space. Third, the connections of European cities to a wider geographic environment will be analyzed. Here we will talk about cities as nodes in networks of communication and trade, and about cities as centers of colonial empires. A final, fourth question to be asked is how the city was used to produce collective meanings and cultural interpretations. We will study maps to find out about changing notions of urban geography, and we will talk about monumental sites of memory in cities. We are also going to analyze paintings of cities, watch videos, and look at literary and theoretical writings about the European metropolis. At the end of the semester, students will produce research papers providing their own interpretations of the city in the modern age. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

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HIST 212. Topics in History: Japan, East Asia and the Pacific World (1). This course will examine Japanese history and culture in the context of the wider East Asian and Pacific Ocean worlds. We will begin with early Japanese history and the influence of both Korea and China on early Japanese institutions. We will then examine the development of Japan’s indigenous traditions during the Heian (794-1185), Kamakura (1185-1333), and Ashikaga (1336-1568) periods. The second half of the course will deal with modern Japanese history and culture, paying equal attention to historical and ethnographic materials, and taking a careful look at the development of the Kanto and Kansai regions in modern Japanese history and culture. Throughout the course, we will use examples from the Japanese language—spoken phrases, the two major syllabaries (hiragana and katakana), and kanji, or Chinese characters—to analyze Japanese history and culture in linguistic context.

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This course explores the multicultural environment of the Mediterranean Sea in the Middle Ages (ca. 600-1500) and the conflicts and coexistence that characterized interactions among Christians, Muslims, and Jews around the shores of that sea. Trade, travel, and armed conflict all defined those interactions in addition to religious rivalries and differences. This course explores how such contacts led both to alienation of these cultures from one another but also to periods of uneasy tolerance. Whether at war or in peace, Christians, Muslims, and Jews exchanged ideas and artifacts throughout this period, and the class examines the creative interplay of those exchanges. The geographical scope of this course ranges from Spain and Morocco in the west to Egypt and the Byzantine Empire in the East, as well as adjacent territories. (3B) Open to first-year students.

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This class explores the “History of History,” that is, the evolution of ideas and perspectives about the study of the past. Usually, this class will focus on the development of historiography about a particular topic, region, or period and enable students to achieve a deeper understanding of how and why we understand the past in the ways we do today. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. (3B) Offered occasionally. Prerequisite: consent of instructor; one previous history class at Beloit College.

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This course offers a hands-on exploration of the ways that new technologies are transforming historical research and teaching, as well as creating new online spaces for educating the general public. Students consider questions about the nature and value of existing digital history projects, the rise of open-source projects, and the relationship between digital history and public history. Students have the opportunity to contribute to a class blog, to participate in a crowdsourced transcription project, and to create their own websites and GIS-based maps. Students becomefamiliar with many of the principles and challenges that inform scholars and programmers as they collaborate to enrich the field of historical research. (Also listed as Museum Studies 296.) Prerequisites: One previous history course or permission of the instructor.

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Covers the second half of first-year Japanese. Students learn most of the basic Japanese grammar patterns and vocabulary, as well as Kanji (Chinese) characters. Instruction and training in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. (1S) Offered each year. Prerequisite: Japanese 100 or consent of instructor. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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A thorough review of the basic patterns of Japanese. Continue work with Kanji. Classes taught in Japanese to stress training in listening comprehension, speaking, and composition. (1S) Offered each year. Prerequisite: Japanese 110 or consent of instructor. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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JAPN 225. Topics in Business Japanese (1). A seminar course involving an examination of significant aspects of higher level Japanese communication skills necessary for success in the business world. This course covers formal Japanese language and manners for business, speaking techniques for job interviews, rapid reading skills, and preparation for the Japanese language proficiency test. Students read authentic Japanese language materials, study relevant Japanese language websites and videos; and write papers and give presentations in Japanese. (1S) Prerequisite: Japanese 200. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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Dealing with popular Japanese media—manga (comics), popular novels, film, and animation—this course offers a critical examination of how they are reflected in Japanese culture through time. To approach these popular forms of expression, various theoretical readings will be assigned for discussion. Since manga and animation are very popular not only in Japan but also in the United States and elsewhere, studying these media is important to understanding an increasingly global youth culture. Taught in English. (5T)

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The mathematics necessary for calculus: algebraic manipulations; radicals and exponents; logarithmic, exponential and trigonometric functions; graphing and analytical geometry; theory of polynomials; complex numbers, and how such mathematics is developed. This course is designed for students who wish to take calculus but are not adequately prepared by their high school background. Prerequisite: First- or second-year standing. Not open to juniors and seniors without departmental permission. Not open to students who have received credit for calculus.

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An introduction to differential and integral calculus. Limits and continuity, derivatives and integrals of polynomial, trigonometric, exponential, and logarithmic functions, applications of derivatives to optimization and approximation, the Mean Value Theorem, and the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus. (1S) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: four years of high school mathematics, including trigonometry and either college algebra or precalculus.

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Techniques of integration, L’Hôpital’s Rule, infinite sequences and series, Taylor series and applications, first-order differential equations, and introduction to the calculus of multivariable functions, including partial derivatives and multiple integrals. (1S) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: Mathematics 110.

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Introduction to visual studies explores how images structure the world we inhabit by shaping how we perceive and consume various identities, as well as how we come to understand and occupy our built and natural environment. This course builds visual literacy skills through an examination of traditional forms such as paintings, sculpture, and architecture, and more popular and contemporary forms such as film and video. (5T)

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MDST 166. Introduction to Computational Literary Analysis (1). Is it possible to count, or quantify, the qualitative features of writing, whether a poem, a newspaper article, or a novel? In this course students are introduced to the field of computational literary analysis as a subfield of the digital humanities. They learn how humanists use quantifiable data and metadata; and, they learn to formulate research problems and questions that lead to a computational approach to literary/textual analysis. Topics covered: the Google Ngram Viewer and Ngram Dataset, basic Python programming; and the functionality of the NLTK (Natural Language Toolkit) and SpaCy Python libraries. Prerequisites: none.

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MDST 170. Introductory Topics in Media Studies: Television Industries (1). This course will introduce students to the study of the industries that produce, distribute, and exhibit television in a “post-network” era, considering television programs as meaningful cultural objects produced by specific institutional conditions. Focusing on commercial television industries in the United States, but offering comparisons to global and non-commercial alternatives, we will explore television in terms of the market logics, programming traditions, and cultures of production all under transformation by emerging digital platforms and patterns of media use. Prerequisites: none.

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The music, theatre, and dance departments have been combined into Performing & Applied Arts. To find relevant courses, please look for courses in the Performing & Applied Arts department (PART).

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Lessons are available in music conducting, voice, and instruments for 0.25 credits. Lessons are domain 2A, require the consent of the instructor, and require an additional course fee. Please refer to the Performing & Performing Arts Courses page or the Portal for further details.

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Ensembles include choirs and ensembles involving various instruments and styles for 0.25 credits. Ensembles are open to all students, but some may require an audition or previous experience to participate. Please refer to the Performing & Performing Arts Courses page or the Portal for further details.

• [PART 051] Beloit College/Community Choir (0.25)
• [PART 055] Chamber Music (0.25)

• [PART 057] Creative Strings Collective (0.25)
• [PART 058] Jazz Ensemble (0.25)

• [PART 062] Chamber Singers (0.25)
• [PART 065] Woodwind Quintet (0.25)

• [PART 066] Wind Ensemble (0.25)
• [PART 068] Percussion Ensemble (0.25)

• [PART 069] Guitar Ensemble (0.25)

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This course offers individualized piano instruction in a group setting. Students of all skill levels are welcome, but it is particularly targeted to those with little or no piano background. Reading skills are developed, while also increasing the student’s familiarity with basic musical terms and directions. For those students with more extensive background, there is flexibility regarding choice of repertoire to achieve these goals. This is an excellent way to prepare for higher level courses and/or participation in ensembles offered by the music department. This course may be taken twice for credit. (2A)

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PART 200. Topics in Performing and Applied Arts: Collab-o-thon (.25). Calling all Artists (and arts researchers) interested in multi-media collaboration! We are sponsoring an experimental artistic creation event which will engage musicians, fine artists, writers, dancers, theatre artists, and arts researchers. In 48 lively hours over an intense weekend February 14-16, teams will conceive, produce, and rehearse or film a creative response to a “Collaboratory Prompt” (which will be handed out on the evening of Feb 14). In the 48th hour (the evening of Feb 16), all work will be showcased at a celebratory Collaboratory. An organizational meeting will be held the week before the event and a final reflection will be required. If you’re looking for a wild, wacky, and possibly transcendent artistic experience – this is the class for you! Prerequisites: none.

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A continuation of Modern Dance I with further emphasis on movement proficiency and combinations. Peer mentorship promotes a supportive community. May be taken up to two times for credit. (2A) Prerequisite: Performing and Applied Arts 113 or dance experience. Offered occasionally.

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This topics course leads students through exploratory performance and installation projects. Students who identify with any creative practice (such as vocalists, instrumentalists, sound artists, poets, visual artists, multimedia artists, choreographers, programmers, etc.) share a collaborative environment in which they perform installations and pieces created together. The course may include weekly readings on devised performance, community development, and collaboration and/or work through structured exercises and improvisations to develop a group-specific creative language. The course culminates in a final public presentation of the collaborative creative work. All media styles and levels of experience are welcome. Students may repeat this course up to a total of 2 units of credit. (2A) (Also listed as Media Studies 276 and Art 176.)

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This course puts the fields connected to the performing arts and psychology in conversation. As students survey a range of approaches, perspectives, methods, histories, and applications through the exploration of topics including perception, embodiment, cognition, human development, neuroscience, music theory, music history, acoustics, and music/arts/dance/theatre therapy, they focus on why certain research questions are asked in the first place (and not others), what motivates certain types of exploration (and to what end), what various results actually signify or mean, and how people or society use these results. By studying both the overlap and tensions between the two general areas (performing arts and psychology), students gain an increased understanding of each disciplines’ unique positions, histories, scope, and its limits. (Also listed as Psychology 285.)

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Students learn the skills needed to become art researchers, writers, and presenters. They are asked to engage with a wide variety of source material; visual, audio, and written research. They learn how to analyze images using research gathered about subject material. Students then focus on how to present their research to various audiences. (2A) Offered every other Spring.

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A continuation of Modern Dance II with further emphasis on movement proficiency and combinations. Peer mentorship promotes a supportive community. May be taken up to two times for credit. (2A) Prerequisite: Performing and Applied Arts 213. Offered occasionally.

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This course is designed to help students learn the basics of weight training, including proper techniques and the safe way to use weights in their overall training. Using free weights, machines, weighted balls, and body weight, students learn the areas of the body that each exercise targets. They learn about different types of weight for power and strength, training to lose weight, and training for tone. Students learn how to set up their own training programs based on the goals that they set at the beginning of the class. NOTE: No more than a total of 1.0 unit of PERC courses may apply to a Beloit degree. Any one PERC course may be taken only once for credit.

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An investigation of the formal structure of reasoning and the logical relationships that underlie good arguments. Many college courses explore and investigate the reasons to take something to be so; logic explores the correctness or strength of reasoning itself. This course will have a particular emphasis on the major historical methods for symbolically representing and analyzing deductive arguments: Aristotelian logic, propositional logic, and predicate logic. Some attention may also be paid to informal logical fallacies. (1S) Offered each semester.

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An exploration of some of the central questions and problems addressed by philosophers, such as: What is it to be a person? How can we live well and act responsibly? What is the nature of justice? Is it possible to act freely? What can we know about the world around us? What is the relationship between the mind and body? These questions, and others like them, are at the heart of philosophy. In this course, we will engage them through the writings of philosophers who have taken on these questions themselves. Expect to think carefully and write critically, skills meant to serve you in and beyond college. (5T) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: not open to students who have taken Philosophy 115.

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A continuation of Physics 101. Introduction to geometric optics, electric circuits, and electric and magnetic fields. Four hours of classroom work and two hours of laboratory work are required each week. (4U) Offered each spring. Prerequisite: Physics 101 and Mathematics 110 or 115.

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Introduction to U.S. government and politics at the national and state levels. Provides background on guiding principles, constitutional guarantees, the federal system, major institutions, and mechanisms that link citizens to officials. Covers both federal and state levels and their interaction in topics such as elections and political executives, which include the president and governors. Illustrative use of public policy materials, especially health policy, as well as current events and issues. Serves as a basic course for any student wishing to gain a foundation in U.S. politics and as the prerequisite for many courses in the American politics subfield. (3B) Offered each semester.

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Introduction to the workings of the international political and economic systems from both a practical and theoretical perspective. Offers a brief history of the key events which have shaped international politics, introduces the major theoretical approaches of the discipline, and explores mechanisms for conflict and cooperation. (3B) Offered each semester.

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Introduction to political philosophy through consideration of the enduring question: What is justice? Investigates responses offered by ancient thinkers and those of the early modern period in order to examine the historical development of political theory in the Western tradition. Additional topics of inquiry include: the possibilities and limits of power, freedom, property, and the good society; the relationship between religion and politics; as well as the philosophic presuppositions about human nature and social responsibility that underlie the ancient and modern perspectives. Emphasis on close readings of philosophical texts, critical analysis, and class discussion. (5T) Usually offered every year. Open to first-year and second-year students only.

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This course offers an overview of research methods used in health and political science research. Course objectives will include an introduction to basic statistical concepts and research design; the course will also emphasize the use of STATA statistical software for production of various statistical output (ANOVA, odds ratios, bivariate and multivariate regression analyses). (3B) (Also listed as Health and Society 201.) Prerequisite: none, but Political Science 110 or higher recommended.

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This course focuses on the entrepreneurial process and its component parts. Through case studies, students will explore the elements and skills required for successful venturing such as financing, planning, marketing, and negotiating. Course will focus on pragmatism and developing sound judgment within the context of ambiguous scenarios.

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PRAX 280. Topics in Career-Readiness: Personal Finance for Life (1). This course is an introduction to personal finance and consumer education. It includes such topics as: personal and household resources; utilizing sources of consumer information and protection; handling the continuous decisions encountered with personal finance relative to goals; financial analysis; understanding insurance, income taxes, banking & borrowing (credit management); housing operation; and saving & investing. Practical examples relating to investing, debt management, home ownership and more will be discussed and analyzed. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Prerequisites: none.

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This course introduces students to psychological issues and phenomena. A wide range of representative topics acquaints students with the methods and content of the field. (3B) Offered each semester.

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Why is it that the ways of thinking and living that people call “religious” are often judged by outsiders to be potentially harmful forms of delusion, while those who adhere to those lifeways understand them instead as providing access to what scholar Robert Orsi calls “the really real”? The story of the ideas and events that led to this stark difference of opinion is deeply tied up with European notions of racial and civilizational superiority. This course explores that story and counter-narratives to it in order to assess the consequences both for the lives of people who identify as “religious” and for the ongoing power struggle over who gets to define reality and what forms of knowledge are granted legitimacy. (Also listed as CRIS 142.) (5T) Offered every year. Prerequisite: first-year or sophomore standing or consent of instructor.

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Examination of the major sociological paradigms, theories, and processes shaping the relationship between society and individuals. Elements emphasized include the following: social structure, institutions and roles, culture, sex and gender, social class and stratification, social change, methodology, race and ethnicity, socialization. The goal is to develop the sociological imagination, which is an analytical perspective examining the interplay between structure and agency. (Content varies by instructor for each section. Consult instructor for further information.) (3B) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: first or second year standing or consent of instructor.

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A continuation of Spanish 100, this course provides a solid foundation of listening comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing skills. Students have daily assignments intended to help them communicate orally and in written form about themselves, friends, and family as well as customs and practices in the Spanish-speaking world in the present, past, and future tenses. Participation in Spanish-language activities outside of the classroom and/or in the local Latino community is expected. (1S) Prerequisite: Spanish 100. Offered each spring. Students with previous knowledge of Spanish are required to take the placement test.

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Using a content-based approach, this course is organized around a theme or themes determined by the instructor. It offers an intensive review of the fundamentals of Spanish grammar with the goal of increasing vocabulary, grammatical precision and the four linguistic skills: listening comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing Spanish. Readings reflect the many cultures of Spanish-speaking world. Participation in Spanish-language activities outside the classroom and/or in the local Latino community is expected. (1S) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: Spanish 105 or equivalent. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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While developing their speaking skills, students undergo an intensive review of the fundamentals of grammar with the goal of increasing their vocabulary and grammatical precision in Spanish. Students engage in active dialogue to explore, reflect on, and communicate about present-day issues related to such topics as climate change, global warming, and endangered species in Spain and Latin America. Participation in Spanish-language activities outside the classroom and/or in the local Latino community is expected. (1S) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: Spanish 110 or equivalent. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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Students study advanced grammatical structures and vocabulary to expand and strengthen their lexical and grammatical understanding of the language while completing writing assignments that explore health topics in the Spanish-speaking world and how culture impacts health. While engaging with the writing process, students also have the opportunity to build their confidence in listening, reading, speaking, and conducting research. Participation in Spanish-language activities outside the classroom and/or in the local Latino community is expected. (1S) (Also listed as Health and Society 218.) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: Spanish 210, 214, or equivalent. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERN LANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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In this course, students investigate a variety of contemporary issues experienced around the Spanish-speaking world through non-fiction storytelling and reporting. Using a journalistic framework, students deepen their understanding of present-day concerns,occurrences, and realities of the peoples who inhabit Spanish-speaking places. Through various media sources, including podcasts, investigative pieces, websites, and documentaries, students discuss and analyze stories with authentic voices and lived experiences. Students also have an opportunity to conceptualize and produce their own authentic story. Participation in Spanish-language activities outside the classroom and/or in the local Latino community is expected. (5T). Offered occasionally. Prerequisite: Spanish 214 or 215. AFTER ON-LINE REGISTRATION CLOSES, MODERNLANGUAGES FACULTY REVIEW ALL LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLLMENTS TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT A STUDENT HAS ENROLLED IN THE RECOMMENDED PLACEMENT LEVEL. IF NOT, THE STUDENT WILL BE CONTACTED BY THE DEPARTMENT TO DETERMINE WHETHER A DROP OR REGISTRATION IN ANOTHER LANGUAGE COURSE IS APPROPRIATE.

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The music, theatre, and dance departments have been combined into Performing & Applied Arts. To find relevant courses, please look for courses in the Performing & Applied Arts department (PART).

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WRIT 100. Writing Seminar: Garbage and Good Places (1). What does it mean to be dirty or clean? In the words of one anthropologist, waste is “matter out of place”: by definition, it challenges cultural, psychological, and conceptual boundaries. This writing-intensive class will explore ideas of place and self-associated both with garbage and its antithesis: purity, beauty, value, and virtue. We will examine the recent TV series “The Good Place,” while also writing and researching our own “garbage stories”. Throughout the term, students will gain experience constructing verbal and written arguments, revising work, working with sources, and presenting oral material. Expect to write over twenty pages, including short essays, TV reviews, a podcast script, and many other informal writing exercises. **IMPORTANT: This course requires extensive collaboration with peers, individual conferences with the instructor, and regular writing and revision throughout the semester. No prerequisite. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.