Offerings

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

Why is chemistry important to other sciences, technology, and society? What processes do chemists use when dealing with real problems? What conceptual models do chemists use to understand and explain their observations? The focus of this course is on the reasons for doing science, the intellectual and instrumental tools used, the models developed to solve new problems, and the assertion that chemistry has a tremendous effect on your personal life and on the decisions made by society. Along the way, we cover atoms, molecules, ions, and periodic properties; chemical equations, stoichiometry and moles; Lewis structures and VSEPR model of bonding; reactivity and functional groups; states of matter and intermolecular forces; relationships between structure and properties. Topical applications and issues vary with the instructor and may include climate change, food and fuel, and energy use for lighting. Three two-hour class periods per week of combined lecture, laboratory, and discussion. (4U) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: facility with algebra. Note: Students with a strong prior background in chemistry are encouraged to consult with the department about placement in a more advanced chemistry course.

Offerings

Description

Chemistry plays a significant role in the emerging interdisciplinary fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology. The nanoscale refers to materials with dimensions on the scale of nanometers (a thousandth of a thousandth of a thousandth of a meter). Control of the material world at the scale of atoms and molecules can produce materials with fundamentally different properties and behavior and has been touted as the next technological revolution. Some questions we will consider include: What nanotechnology already exists? What makes nanomaterials special? How can they be prepared? What tools can be used to study such materials? Three class periods and one laboratory period per week. (4U) Prerequisite: high school chemistry or physics.

Offerings

Description

This beginning course offers an introduction to Mandarin. Class sessions stress the acquisition of basic skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Approximately 600 traditional characters are introduced, more than 1,000 combined words and phrases, and basic grammatical structures in Mandarin. (1S) Offered each year.

Offerings

Description

Through aural, oral, and compositional exercises and reading selections, these courses build upon prior competencies. After a review of basic grammatical structures and characters, students add more traditional and simplified characters to sharpen reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. This course aims to transfer the knowledge students gained from the character-pattern approach at the beginning level to work with original Chinese texts at the advanced level. (1S) Offered each year. Prerequisite: Chinese 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.

Offerings

Description

Continuing the combined written, aural, oral, and culture components, these third-year courses guide students through selected readings in contemporary literature and newspapers, in both traditional and simplified characters. Conducted mainly in Chinese, these courses stress vocabulary expansion in both speaking and writing. (1S) Prerequisite: Chinese 115 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.

Offerings

Description

In this course we harness data—and the technologies used to generate them—to become more perceptive readers and better writers. Is it possible to count, or quantify, the qualitative features of writing, whether a poem, a newspaper article, or a tweet? How do we see texts and the relationships between them differently when we use visual forms and graphs, such as word clouds, n-grams, or dendrograms? In order to answer these questions, students experiment with some basic tools in the field of the Digital Humanities—e.g. digital Text Encoding Initiative (TEI) conventions—which they use to analyze their own writing as well as the writing of others. (5T) (Also listed as Writing 215.)

Offerings

Description

The motley assemblage of genres not associated with ‘high culture’ (i.e., epic, lyric, and tragedy) embraces such writings as the first science fiction/fantasy story, animal fables (Aesop et al.), handbooks devoted to riddles and jokes, popular religious tales (and anti-tales), and that oft-maligned step-sister of epic—and second cousin (once-removed) of comedy—novels, the last literary genre invented by the ancients. And while we will explore all these different types of writings in this class, we will focus our energies on the novel, whose surviving examples have been described as ingenious, subtle, stylish, moving, funny, brash, silly, tasteless, and obscene (often all at the same time). Indeed, one could argue that these very peculiar literary works, in which cunningly crafted plots are built around such themes as romantic love, mistaken identity, magical transformation, divine visitation, kidnapping, pirates, kidnapping by pirates, adultery, violence, disembowelment, pederasty, bestiality, virginity-testing, and happy endings, are the great levelers of high and low culture, for they subsume all other genres, reshaping their external forms and internal ideologies into something entirely new. Taught in English. (5T) (Also listed as ENGL 250 and GLAM 200.) Offered occasionally.

Offerings

Description

This course introduces students to concepts for navigating the multiplicity of experiences and knowledges at the intersections of identity categories (gender, race, sexuality, class, dis/ability, non/religiosity, nation, etc.) and structures of power. Our objects of analysis include both “the everyday”—located in our home communities, on our campus, in our virtual and mediated lives—and foundational texts and theories drawn primarily from women of color, queer, trans, and indigenous feminisms, and postcolonial thinkers. The course also engages with conceptions and practices of building communities across differences in identity and experience, using Beloit College as a lab of learning—its mission, location, histories, and asymmetries of belonging—as a way to help students develop the intellectual habits, reflective capacities, and collaborative communication skills required for equity-based interventions into their current and future social worlds. (3B) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: first-year or sophomore standing, juniors and seniors may register with instructor permission.

Offerings

Description

This course examines topics related to the Latinx experience in the United States. Using films, documentaries, multidisciplinary writings and/or literary pieces, this course also focuses on particular Latinx sub-populations in the United States, on identity and ethnicity, immigration, as well as issues relating to language, gender and sexuality, social movements, and/or politics. Students are required to spend time at an assigned field site to engage directly with local Latinx members. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Taught in English or Spanish. Prerequisite: Spanish 240 or consent of instructor.

Offerings

Description

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 Anthropology 110.) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: preference given to first-year and sophomore students.

Offerings

Description

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) (Also listed as EDYS 164.) Offered each fall and alternate spring semesters.

Offerings

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 Anthropology 100). Prerequisite: preference given to first-year and sophomore students.

Offerings

Description

This course explores how and why it is that we, as individuals and communities, read, write, and interpret histories to justify our love of or identification with musics and sounds. The purpose of this class is to learn how we can use music history (including the methods and tools of musicology, ethnomusicology, sound studies, and music historiography) to empower and liberate our sense of self, our identities, our communities, and our values. (5T) (Also listed as Music 150 and History 211.) Offered each fall semester.

Offerings

Description

This course invites critical reflection upon colonial systems of valuation and collection that have drawn objects of devotion into the cultural and aesthetic realms of our museums. It takes as its focus objects to which and with which devotion is offered—specifically, those artifacts found in the Wright and Logan Museum collections. The course juxtaposes museological modes of seeing and interacting with physical objects with those modes that are opened up when we consider the living presence and complex life stories with which these “objects” are endowed. We will consider theoretical and methodological insights from a range of disciplines, and engage with current ethical and aesthetic debates in museum studies about the status, treatment, and display of “religious” objects in fine art and anthropological collections. Students will design an exhibit intended to draw the attention of the viewer to the multiple and fraught ways of seeing, interacting with, and valuing these objects that are so often also accorded subjectivity and agency. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. (Also listed as MUST 295.)

Offerings

Description

August 15, 1973 is considered the birthdate of Hip Hop. Today, after 50 years since DJ Kool Herc (nee Clive Campbell) threw that famed back-to-school party in the Bronx, New York, Hip Hop has impacted American society, cultures, and history. Performance is inherent in Hip Hop’s influence on American expressions of entertainment, storytelling, social movement, consciousness, and historiography. Hip Hop has even transformed American Theatre through historical remixes, such as Hamilton: The Musical based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton. This course will explore the history of Hip Hop from its inception in 1973 as an urban subculture and its effects on American history and theatre through its reflection and imitation of American society and language, literature, and performance. By centering the course in 1973, we will be able to trace—go back … way back—historical phenomena that led to the creation of Hip Hop while marking a timeline that traverses modern to contemporary theatre history. This course will fulfill the history credit offered every semester. The 2A, 3B, and 5T domained versions of this course are, respectively, Critical Identity Studies 266, 267, and 268. (Also listed as THDA 251.)

Offerings

Description

This course explores the ways Hip Hop is performed in everyday life. Though emphasis is on Hip Hop as arguably the most significant cultural and aesthetic movement of post-civil rights America, this course encourages each student to explore their individually evolving self, using Hip Hop as a source of reference and performance. This course will construct a space for critical thinking and writing, experimentation, collaboration, and devising self-reflexivity towards Hip Hop Theatre. Coursework includes reading/viewing Hip Hop plays, discussion, and performance exercises towards devised writing and performance of the self. Surveying iconic identities in Hip Hop music and culture and studying visual and performance aesthetics will influence the process as each student will participate in determining a final performance for the class. (2A) (Also listed as THDA 250.) Offered occasionally. Prerequisite: varies with topic. The un-domained version of this course is listed as Theatre and Dance 251; 5T-domained version is Theatre and Dance 253.

Offerings

Description

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 EDYS 201 and Political Science 205.) Offered each fall.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

This course is designed to teach you how to use SQL (structured query language) for data analytics. We will start by learning the basics of relational database management systems (RDBMS) and database schema. Then we will move on to learning the basics of SQL and its various utilities such as creating reports for business as per the business requirements, creating tables in a database, modifying information in those tables, etc. If time permits, we will also look at advanced SQL topics such as stored procedures, views, and triggers. By the end of the course, students would be familiar with the different features of SQL and their use cases in businesses. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Offered occasionally. No prerequisite. (Also listed as IDST 101.)

Offerings

Description

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) (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies 141.) Offered each fall and alternate spring terms.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

Introduction to Literary Study (1). Designed for the potential major in English and other interested students. Prerequisite to advanced courses in English. These courses introduce students to the close reading of selected poetry, drama, and prose, with training in analysis and critical writing. (5T) May be taken for credit only once. (Also listed as Comparative Literature 190. English majors should register for English 190.) Offered each semester.

Offerings

Description

Introduction to Literary Study: (Un)canonical (1). How do contemporary writers challenge, revise, and reconstruct the literary canon? In this course, we’ll examine a range of work by contemporary writers like Aimé Césaire, Harryette Mullen, and Chase Berggrun that transforms a canonical text or literary tradition. These writers critique their sources: exposing their complicity with racism, misogyny, and colonialism. And they also open up liberatory possibilities within their sources, using literature as an engine of the political imagination. As we study the interaction between canonical and contemporary texts, we’ll come to see literature is not the product of isolated geniuses. Instead, it’s a conversation—a fractious, contentious, and vibrant conversation that stretches across history. You’ll be invited to join that conversation: reworking some of the texts we read together, trying out the techniques we study, responding to and critiquing the canon on your own terms. (5T) May be taken for credit only once. (Also listed as Comparative Literature 190. English majors should register for English 190.) Offered each semester.

Offerings

Description

Introduction to Creative Writing (1). 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. Prerequisite: English 190 or Comparative Literature 190. NOTE: This course may be taken without the prerequisite with the permission of the instructor.

Offerings

Description

The motley assemblage of genres not associated with ‘high culture’ (i.e., epic, lyric, and tragedy) embraces such writings as the first science fiction/fantasy story, animal fables (Aesop et al.), handbooks devoted to riddles and jokes, popular religious tales (and anti-tales), and that oft-maligned step-sister of epic—and second cousin (once-removed) of comedy—novels, the last literary genre invented by the ancients. And while we will explore all these different types of writings in this class, we will focus our energies on the novel, whose surviving examples have been described as ingenious, subtle, stylish, moving, funny, brash, silly, tasteless, and obscene (often all at the same time). Indeed, one could argue that these very peculiar literary works, in which cunningly crafted plots are built around such themes as romantic love, mistaken identity, magical transformation, divine visitation, kidnapping, pirates, kidnapping by pirates, adultery, violence, disembowelment, pederasty, bestiality, virginity-testing, and happy endings, are the great levelers of high and low culture, for they subsume all other genres, reshaping their external forms and internal ideologies into something entirely new. Taught in English. (5T) (Also listed as GLAM 200 and CPLT 230.) Offered occasionally.

Offerings

Description

Essentials of French grammar. Composition, conversation, and oral practice. Reading of French prose. Four hours of classroom instruction and recitation and two hours of independent preparation for each classroom hour, including laboratory-type exercises, are required. Students are graded, in part, on their command of oral use of French. (1S) Offered each year. 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.

Offerings

Description

This course continues to develop oral comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing skills in French through readings and discussions of cultural materials from France and other Francophone countries. These include literary texts and texts on contemporary issues. The course also includes a thorough review of French grammar and extensive oral work using computer support. (1S) Prerequisite: French 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.

Offerings

Description

This is an advanced language and composition course with a twist: the course focuses on environmental writing, activism, and culture in French and Francophone literature, culture, media, and film. Students revise and perfect grammar and composition through exploring the zero waste movement spearheaded by Zero Waste France and the governmental projects to reduce waste. As students work through media, literature, film, government documents, and public-facing educational projects, they move toward final projects to draft a proposal and create presentations to make Beloit “plus vert” (“more green”). This course covers complex grammar points, oral expression, vocabulary building, and writing for diverse audiences. It particularly emphasizes written expression through structured writing assignments, in order to build confidence in communication skills, productive collaboration, and the ability to address, respond to, and solve local problems. Required of all majors. (1S) (Also listed as ENVS 215.) Prerequisite: French 210 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.

Offerings

Description

Examination of a wide variety of scientific tools and datasets allows us to reconstruct the history of the Earth. Information from rock associations, fossils, stratigraphic correlations, geochemistry, and radioactive-age determinations forms a logical picture of the co-evolution of the Earth’s lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere. The human dimension of historical geology is revealed in tracing the development of the concept of time, and through discussions of the rate and magnitude of human-induced environmental change. Lecture, discussion, laboratory, field study. One Saturday or Sunday field trip. (4U) Offered yearly.

Offerings

Description

Application of geologic principles to help in understanding the response of our environment to natural and anthropogenic forces of change, and proper constraints we should exercise in being good stewards of the Earth. Natural resources (water, soils, climate, and energy), flooding, volcanic activity, and earthquakes are among the topics considered, with emphasis on current events. Lecture, discussion, laboratory, field study. One Saturday or Sunday field trip. (4U) Offered yearly.

Offerings

Description

From the wrath of Achilles to the Golden Bough, this class examines how ancient civilizations used mythology to make sense of their world. Students develop skills in literary and contextual analysis while investigating the intellectual traditions of myth and its role in intercultural exchange. The class also focuses on how the study of the ancient world can help us understand and appreciate our own modern mythologies. Taught in English. (5T)

Offerings

Description

In this class, students master the basic vocabulary and forms of the language of the Caesars, Cicero, and the citizens of the Roman Empire. Latin is an advantageous starting point for learning any of the modern Romance languages (including Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian), and an education in Latin literature was once considered the backbone of a liberal arts education. This course is designed to enable a disciplined student to deal as soon as possible with Latin texts in a competent and sure manner. (1S) Offered each fall.

Offerings

Description

The motley assemblage of genres not associated with ‘high culture’ (i.e., epic, lyric, and tragedy) embraces such writings as the first science fiction/fantasy story, animal fables (Aesop et al.), handbooks devoted to riddles and jokes, popular religious tales (and anti-tales), and that oft-maligned step-sister of epic—and second cousin (once-removed) of comedy—novels, the last literary genre invented by the ancients. And while we will explore all these different types of writings in this class, we will focus our energies on the novel, whose surviving examples have been described as ingenious, subtle, stylish, moving, funny, brash, silly, tasteless, and obscene (often all at the same time). Indeed, one could argue that these very peculiar literary works, in which cunningly crafted plots are built around such themes as romantic love, mistaken identity, magical transformation, divine visitation, kidnapping, pirates, kidnapping by pirates, adultery, violence, disembowelment, pederasty, bestiality, virginity-testing, and happy endings, are the great levelers of high and low culture, for they subsume all other genres, reshaping their external forms and internal ideologies into something entirely new. Taught in English. (5T) (Also listed as ENGL 250 and CPLT 230.) Offered occasionally.

Offerings

Description

What can a study of the ancient Greeks teach us about history, politics, philosophy, law, literature, gender, sexuality, and art? And how reliable are works of literature as historical sources? This course follows the birth and progression of Greek societies from the Bronze Age through the death of Alexander the Great. Students learn much about the Greeks, but are also challenged both to extract nuanced historical information from literary sources and to relate the ancient material of the course to modern day practices, ideas, and structures. Taught in English. (3B) (Also listed as History 221.) Offered fall term, even years.

Offerings

Description

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.

Offerings

Description

This course introduces students to historical inquiry by exploring particular themes or problems in history rather than providing traditional surveys based on geographical area and chronology. Regardless of the topic, each instructor approaches the issue of historical analysis and interpretation in a comparative social and cultural perspective or across a significant breadth of time. Students are expected to appreciate differing interpretations of the same historical questions and to learn how to distinguish primary and secondary source material. Topics include: Looking East from Medieval Europe; Identity and Religion in Early Modern Europe; The Chinese Almanac and Popular Culture; Memoirs and Travelogues in East Asia; Comparative Slavery in the Atlantic World; Social and Cultural History of the United States; The Workers are Revolting: European Labor History; Nations and Nationalism. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

Offerings

Description

This course explores the environmental and political history of the Middle East since the 1600s. Beginning with a brief overview of the premodern era, we will delve into how elements like climate, geography, plants, and animals have shaped the region’s societies, and how human activities have, in turn, impacted the natural world. By investigating the intersection of environment and society, we will explore the cultural and political institutions of the Middle East, its global connections, the impact of modern technology, and the historical origins of the environmental problems facing the region today.

Offerings

Description

Topical study on a specific theme, issue, area, or time period. Such topics reflect the current research interests of the faculty and meet the needs of history majors and non-majors. Topics include: Medieval and Early Japan; Historical Research Methods-China and Beyond; Books and Readers in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance; Colonial and Postcolonial Histories. Open to first-year students. The 5T- and 3B-domained versions of this course are, respectively, History 211 and 212.

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Description

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) (Also listed as EDYS 141.) Offered each fall and alternate spring terms.

Offerings

Description

This course explores how and why it is that we, as individuals and communities, read, write, and interpret histories to justify our love of or identification with musics and sounds. The purpose of this class is to learn how we can use music history (including the methods and tools of musicology, ethnomusicology, sound studies, and music historiography) to empower and liberate our sense of self, our identities, our communities, and our values. (5T) (Also listed as Music 150 and Critical Identity Studies 142.) Offered each fall semester.

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Description

This course will examine Chinese 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. No prerequisite.

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Description

Greek origins, the Bronze Age, the Middle Age, the rise of the city-state, archaic and classical civilization, the Persian and Peloponnesian Wars, the decline of the city-state, and the rise of Macedonia. Emphasis on the relationship between literature and history and on Greek historians. (3B) (Also listed as Greek, Latin, and Ancient Mediterranean Studies 202.) Offered occasionally. Open to first-year students.

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Description

This course surveys the period from the dissolution of the classical Greco-Roman world into three kindred civilizations (Byzantium, Islam, and Latin Christendom) to the formation of a new civilization in the West. The primary focus of the class is to develop a synthetic understanding of the Middle Ages through an integrated exploration of its art, music, literature, theology, politics, and sociology. (3B) Offered every year. Open to first-year students.

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Description

This course examines the cultural and religious changes that occurred in Western Europe during the periods known to historians as the “Renaissance” and the “Reformation.” We pay particular attention to the role of the visual arts and the printing press in promoting both religious and secular ideals, to the limited roles that women were able to play in public discourse, and to the upheavals that followed the religious changes brought about by the Protestant Reformation. A recurring question of this class is the tension between continuity and change: Why have historians tended to describe this period as an era of change? How accurate is that view? What aspects of earlier thought and culture stayed the same? How did this “Early Modern” period prepare the way for “Modern” Europe? (5T) Offered alternate years. Open to first-year students.

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Description

This course is designed to teach you how to use SQL (structured query language) for data analytics. We will start by learning the basics of relational database management systems (RDBMS) and database schema. Then we will move on to learning the basics of SQL and its various utilities such as creating reports for business as per the business requirements, creating tables in a database, modifying information in those tables, etc. If time permits, we will also look at advanced SQL topics such as stored procedures, views, and triggers. By the end of the course, students would be familiar with the different features of SQL and their use cases in businesses. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Offered occasionally. No prerequisite. (Also listed as ECON 271.)

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Description

What we think of as “mathematical” ideas may be viewed by other cultures within the contexts of art, navigation, religion, record-keeping, games, or kin relationships. This course treats mathematical ideas investigated by cultures such as North and South American Indians, Africans, and various peoples of the Pacific Islands, and analyzes them through Western mathematics (developed in Europe, the Middle East, and India). The course helps the student understand what mathematics is, both to Western culture and to other cultures, and how cultural factors influenced the development of modern mathematics. (Also listed as Mathematics 103.) (2A) Offered once per year.

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Description

Provides a foundation in basic Japanese. Students learn most of the basic Japanese grammatical patterns, the two phonetic alphabets, Hiragana and Katakana, as well as approximately 100 Chinese characters (Kanji). Instruction and training in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. (1S) Offered each year.

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Description

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 105 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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Description

These courses aim to expand students’ basic skills in the Japanese language and deepen their knowledge of Japanese culture. New speech styles and new Kanji are introduced. Students will read simple essays and write short compositions. Classes will be taught in Japanese. (1S) Prerequisite: Japanese 115 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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Description

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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Description

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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Description

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 or 113.

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Description

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)

Offerings

Description

This course explores how and why it is that we, as individuals and communities, read, write, and interpret histories to justify our love of or identification with musics and sounds. The purpose of this class is to learn how we can use music history (including the methods and tools of musicology, ethnomusicology, sound studies, and music historiography) to empower and liberate our sense of self, our identities, our communities, and our values. (5T) (Also listed as Critical Identity Studies 142 and History 211.) Offered each fall semester.

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Description

ow do social lives and musical cultures interrelate, and how have genres emerged over time? In this class, students answer these questions by using rap/hip-hop as a semester-long case study where students develop skills in analyzing genre formation through discussions on regional affiliation, musical influence, and technology. Students learn about the evolution of rap’s international popularity, its splintering sub-genres, and its reshaping of other current genres of music. Social theory and weekly close-listening assignments focused on rap albums from the 1970s to the present are paired to further strengthen students’ understanding of the role musical genre plays in understanding social attitudes and values. “Investigating Genre: Rap/Hip-Hop” is designed for students at any level of musical background: previous experience reading or making music is not required.

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Description

A survey of the educational, curatorial, exhibition, public relations, and research missions of museums. Stress is placed on the role of museums in various communities, their organizational and administrative structures, their ethical, moral, and legal obligations, and sources of support. Lecture, discussion, and field trips. Offered each fall semester.

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Description

This course invites critical reflection upon colonial systems of valuation and collection that have drawn objects of devotion into the cultural and aesthetic realms of our museums. It takes as its focus objects to which and with which devotion is offered—specifically, those artifacts found in the Wright and Logan Museum collections. The course juxtaposes museological modes of seeing and interacting with physical objects with those modes that are opened up when we consider the living presence and complex life stories with which these “objects” are endowed. We will consider theoretical and methodological insights from a range of disciplines, and engage with current ethical and aesthetic debates in museum studies about the status, treatment, and display of “religious” objects in fine art and anthropological collections. Students will design an exhibit intended to draw the attention of the viewer to the multiple and fraught ways of seeing, interacting with, and valuing these objects that are so often also accorded subjectivity and agency. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. (Also listed as CRIS 265.)

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Description

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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Description

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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Description

As an introduction to philosophy, this course covers all the same core problems as PHIL 110 and many of the same thinkers. However, this class will explore these philosophical questions through the lens of short fiction author Ted Chiang, whose “Story of Your Life” was the basis for the movie Arrival. We will work through both his collections of short fiction and read them alongside traditional philosophical readings on related topics. (5T) Prerequisite: not open to students who have taken Philosophy 110.

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Description

This course with explore human agency as a form of animal life. We will examine problems of freewill and determinism as consequences of taking the cosmos as a machine, then we will examine works that employ life as a proto-phenomenon, starting with mythic accounts of the cosmos as an animal and philosophical accounts that make activity prior to things, and working toward contemporary accounts of language, and the generation of meaning, as open-ended “forms of life.” (5T) No Prerequisite.

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Description

An introduction to the fundamental concepts of classical mechanics: Newton’s laws, conservation of momentum and energy, and oscillatory and rotational motion. Students planning to take additional physics courses should take Mathematics 110 concurrently with Physics 101. Four hours of classroom work and two hours of laboratory work are required each week. (4U) Offered each fall. Prerequisite: high-school mathematics, including trigonometry.

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Description

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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Description

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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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 EDYS 201.) Offered each fall.

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Description

An introduction to the basics of effective leadership, including an investigation of leadership theories and assessment of leadership styles. Guest speakers come to provide various viewpoints regarding different leadership styles. Students identify and describe leadership concepts and styles and apply strategies of leadership to various situations and contexts.

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Description

Calling all Artists (and arts researchers) interested in multi-media collaboration! The Arts Channel is 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 on Sept 22-24 , teams will conceive, produce, and rehearse or film a creative response to a “Collaboratory Prompt”. In the 48th hour, all work will be showcased in the first ever Arts Channel Collaboratory. An organizational meeting will be held on Sept 13 (12:30-1:30) 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!

May be repeated if topic is different. (2A) (This is the 2A domained version of PRAX 280.) Prerequisites: None.

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Description

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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Description

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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Description

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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Description

By engaging in small and large group discussions and giving presentations based on readings and media, students in this content-based course develop their oral language proficiency. Students increase their vocabulary, review and expand upon grammar, learn linguistic registers with the aim of making them more effective communicators. 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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Description

This course examines topics related to the Latinx experience in the United States. Using films, documentaries, multidisciplinary writings and/or literary pieces, this course also focuses on particular Latinx sub-populations in the United States, on identity and ethnicity, immigration, as well as issues relating to language, gender and sexuality, social movements, and/or politics. Students are required to spend time at an assigned field site to engage directly with local Latinx members. May be repeated for credit if topic is different. Taught in English or Spanish. Prerequisite: Spanish 240 or consent of instructor.

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Description

A fundamental acting course designed to develop basic acting skills with strong emphasis on the Stanislavski method. Focuses on the analysis of dramatic action and the process of developing a character. Applicable for majors and non-majors. (2A) Offered each semester.

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Description

Introduction to the technique, creative processes, and historical contexts of classical ballet. Classes include exercise at the barre, center work, and combinations across the floor designed to acquaint students with the basic principles of ballet movement and aesthetic. Students research, write about, and discuss the history of the art form. (2A) Offered each fall.

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Description

A study of major methods of dramatic and play analysis accompanied by extensive play reading. Works are analyzed from the points of view of the scholar, critic, director, designer, and actor. Major papers required. Offered even years, fall semester.

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Description

A continuation of Modern Dance I with further emphasis on movement proficiency and combinations. May be taken up to two times for credit. (2A) Offered each semester. Prerequisite: Theatre and Dance 113, and either Theatre and Dance 115 or 117.

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In this course, students learn the fundamentals of hip hop dance through foundation movements integrated with the history of hip hop culture. Foundations such as popping, house, and litefeet are explored and learned through warmups, technique, across the floor, and combinations that will help students understand and practice different styles. This class is high-energy and focuses on participation and effort during class, with lessons and assignments about movement and history to enhance understanding of hip hop.

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Description

This course explores the ways Hip Hop is performed in everyday life. Though emphasis is on Hip Hop as arguably the most significant cultural and aesthetic movement of post-civil rights America, this course encourages each student to explore their individually evolving self, using Hip Hop as a source of reference and performance. This course will construct a space for critical thinking and writing, experimentation, collaboration, and devising self-reflexivity towards Hip Hop Theatre. Coursework includes reading/viewing Hip Hop plays, discussion, and performance exercises towards devised writing and performance of the self. Surveying iconic identities in Hip Hop music and culture and studying visual and performance aesthetics will influence the process as each student will participate in determining a final performance for the class. (2A) (Also listed as CRIS 266.) Offered occasionally. Prerequisite: varies with topic. The un-domained version of this course is listed as Theatre and Dance 251; 5T-domained version is Theatre and Dance 253.

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Description

August 15, 1973 is considered the birthdate of Hip Hop. Today, after 50 years since DJ Kool Herc (nee Clive Campbell) threw that famed back-to-school party in the Bronx, New York, Hip Hop has impacted American society, cultures, and history. Performance is inherent in Hip Hop’s influence on American expressions of entertainment, storytelling, social movement, consciousness, and historiography. Hip Hop has even transformed American Theatre through historical remixes, such as Hamilton: The Musical based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton. This course will explore the history of Hip Hop from its inception in 1973 as an urban subculture and its effects on American history and theatre through its reflection and imitation of American society and language, literature, and performance. By centering the course in 1973, we will be able to trace—go back … way back—historical phenomena that led to the creation of Hip Hop while marking a timeline that traverses modern to contemporary theatre history. This course will fulfill the history credit offered every semester. The 2A, 3B, and 5T domained versions of this course are, respectively, Critical Identity Studies 266, 267, and 268. (Also listed as THDA 251.)

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Description

A continuation of Modern Dance II with further emphasis on stylization and performance attitude. May be taken up to two times for credit. (2A) Offered each fall. Prerequisite: Theatre and Dance 213, and either Theatre and Dance 215 or 217.

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Description

Advanced study of theatre, dance and related fields based on particular curricular focus, special interests of faculty, and demonstrated needs of students. May be repeated for credit if the topic is different. (2A) Offered occasionally. Prerequisite: varies with topic.

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Writing About Photography (1). This writing course explores the relationship between the photographic image and the written word, which we use as a topical framework for improving your writing skills for college-level work more generally. Students read and write critical analysis of the photographic medium, take their own photographs and write about them, and explore more creative aspects of putting words and images in play with each other as process and product. This course is a collaborative workshop format with a regular writing practice throughout the semester. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

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Description

Writing for Social Justice (1). This course is designed to practice your college-level writing schools. You will learn to think through the writing process, from planning, to drafting, to revision. You will also learn to write in different modes addressed to different audiences. We will also discuss and practice working with sources and the elements of good writing, from organization to sentence-level clarity and grammatical correctness. This section in particular focuses on social justice. You will be asked to think about the relation between personal life and social structures. You will be asked to engage with the campus community and the wider public while thinking about the intersections of power, race, class, gender, and sexuality. Students will also learn about possible careers in social justice. As a whole, the course may serve some students as a gateway to the Rights and Justice channel at Beloit. May be taken only once if a grade of “C” or better is received; otherwise a second course may be taken under a different topic. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.

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Description

Writing Place (1). Our course will explore the way that place shapes writing—and the way that writing shapes place. How can stories, memoirs, and essays help us build more inclusive and just places? How can writing help us feel at home in our shared world? We’ll answer these questions by exploring Beloit itself—its history, its culture, and its controversies. This course aims to help you claim a place at Beloit by writing about it. And it also aims to help you build basic skills in academic research and writing that will serve you throughout your career at Beloit and beyond. Throughout the term, members of this writing-intensive class will build confidence constructing arguments, revising their writing, conducting research, giving oral presentations, and building bridges between academic disciplines. Expect to write over 20 pages in a range of genres, including short essays, personal reflections, research papers, and informal writing exercises. You will also collaborate with your peers to polish your writing—and meet with me to work one-on-one to build your skills. May be taken only once if a grade of “C” or better is received; otherwise a second course may be taken under a different topic. (5T) Topics course. Offered each semester.