General Education Program

Department website

College: General

Degree Offered:

None

Program Contact: 
Program Director: Doug Singsen 
Email: generaleducation@uwp.edu 

Overview

The role of the general education program in the liberal arts education provided by UW-Parkside is twofold:

1. to acquire a knowledge and skill set used across all academic disciplines; and
2. to become aware that knowledge is diverse and composed of different principles and methodologies.

The goal is to prepare students to be successful in their professional, civic, and personal lives because a liberal arts education takes students beyond training for a specific career; it establishes the knowledge and fundamental skills used throughout life.

The program learning goals are communication, reasoned judgment and social and personal responsibility. These goals are defined by outcomes that reflect skills and abilities valued by all employers. These learning outcomes are:

Communication

1. Literacy – reading for understanding and writing effective communication
2. Oral communication – listening, speaking and presenting effectively
3. Information technology – using modern information technology to retrieve and transmit information
4. Creative expression – communicating through artistic statement

Reasoned Judgment

1. Critical thinking – applying logic and reasoning to problem solving
2. Ethical thinking – recognizing and analyzing ethical issues and actions
3. Scientific thinking – understanding and applying the scientific method
4. Analytical skills – understanding how to produce and interpret quantitative and qualitative information
5. Aesthetic skills – critiquing and appreciating the fine arts (literary, visual, and performing)

Social and Personal Responsibility

1. Individual accountability – understanding what a responsible choice is and that one’s present education and lifelong learning is a personal responsibility
2. Social justice – understanding and questioning the values and beliefs about social, political, economic and historical contexts that construct diversity and inequality
3. Civic engagement – learning to use knowledge and skills to contribute to the community
4. Global perspective – acquiring the knowledge and skills that provide an understanding of international/global issues and processes
5. Teamwork – working effectively with others for a common goal

These outcomes serve as university-wide shared learning goals and represent a framework for academic and professional success and lifelong learning. The distribution requirement fosters awareness of the difference principles and methodologies across disciplines as well as the similarities in the essential skills used by all disciplines. Students learn a “breadth” of knowledge by completing courses from disciplines representing:

• Humanities and the Arts
• Social and Behavioral Science
• Natural Science

The humanities and the arts foster imagination and creative expression through and about human experience in ways that the other areas do not. The social and behavioral sciences develop an understanding of social systems, the dynamics of individual and group behavior and the forces that operate in social relationships in areas ranging from economics to politics. The natural sciences develop an understanding of natural phenomena and the process and importance of scientific investigations.

Courses are approved on a bi-annual basis and reviewed on a five-year cycle by the General Education Committee. All General Education courses are to be offered on a yearly basis and at least one of the offerings from every department should be offered in an alternative format every three semesters. Course substitutions are typically not allowed because the assessment protocols are also part of the university’s accreditation by the Higher Learning Commission. In general, changes are announced a full year in advance.  

Courses meeting General Education Requirements

Students are required to take 12 credit hours from each area from at least three different departments/programs in each area. (A single course may be counted under one area only.)

UWX subject courses are for students in the online Associate of Arts and Sciences degree program.

Humanities and the Arts

12 credit hours from at least three different departments/programs

Course List (Per Attribute)

Code	Title	Credits
ART 100	Foundations of Art and Visual Culture	3
ART 102	Introduction to Two Dimensional Design	3
ART 103	Introduction to 3-D Design	3
ART 122	Introduction to Drawing	3
ART 124	Lowriders, Kicks, and Graffiti	3
ART 125	Survey of World Art	3
COMM 105	Public Speaking for the 21st Century	3
COMM 168	Introduction to Visual and Digital Communication	3
COMM 205	Oral Interpretation	3
COMM 285	Introduction to Conflict Analysis and Resolution	3
ENGL 106	Introduction to Creative Writing	3
ENGL 167	Introduction to Literature	3
ENGL 168	Introduction to Professional Writing	3
ENGL 252	Introduction to Film	3
ENGL 253	Literature Into Film	3
ENGL 267	Literature of Diversity	3
ETHN 208	Multicultural Theatre in America	3
GNED 102	Foundations of Learning: Humanities and the Arts	3
GNED 191	Special Topics: Humanities and the Arts	1-5
LBST 100	The Life Expressive: Introduction to the Arts and Humanities	3
LBST 101	Beauty, Bewilderment, and Love: The Humanities through 1500	3
LBST 102	Independence and Mystery: The Humanities from 1500 to the Present	3
LBST 103	Understanding Social Justice	3
MODL 191	Culture of Food: The French Case From Croissants to Champagne	3
MODL 218	French Life and Culture	3
MUSI 100	Appreciation of World Music	3
MUSI 101	Fundamentals of Music	3
MUSI 104	Music Appreciation	3
MUSI 106	Jazz Appreciation	3
MUSP 102	Large Music Ensemble	1
PHIL 101	Introduction to Philosophy	3
PHIL 102	Great Thinkers	3
PHIL 205	Philosophy of Religion	3
PHIL 206	Introduction to Ethics	3
PHIL 215	Contemporary Moral Problems	3
SPAN 203	Intermediate Spanish I	3
SPAN 204	Intermediate Spanish II	3
THEA 110	Theatre Appreciation	3
THEA 112	Behind the Scenes	3
THEA 114	Musical Theatre Appreciation	3
THEA 125	Acting I: Fundamentals of Acting	3
THEA 208	Multicultural Theatre in America	3
THEA 215	Queer Representation on Stage and Screen	3
UWX AR104	Introduction to Graphic Design and Digital Art	3
UWX AR175	Worlds of Art	3
UWX CM101	Introduction to Public Speaking	3
UWX CM114	Interpersonal Communication	3
UWX EN203	Creative Writing	3
UWX EN210	Business Communication	3
UWX EN250	Introduction to Literature	3
UWX EN278	Multicultural Literature in the United States	3
UWX LB103	Diversity in the U.S.	3
UWX MU278	Rock and Roll Roots	3
UWX PH121	Critical Thinking	3
UWX PH237	Technology, Values, and Society	3
UWX RE101	Introduction to Religion	3
UWX SP101	First Semester Spanish	4
UWX SP102	Second Semester Spanish	4
UWX SP236	Cultures and Civilizations of Mexico, the Caribbean, Central and South America	3
WGSS 112	Women In Literature	3
WGSS 215	Queer Representation on Stage and Screen	3

Social and Behavioral Science

12 credit hours from at least three different departments/programs

Course List (Per Attribute)

Code	Title	Credits
ANTH 100	Introduction to Anthropology	3
ANTH 200	Cultural Anthropology	3
ANTH 201	Introduction to Archaeology	3
BUS 100	Introduction to Business	3
BUS 201	Experiencing Business	3
CBL 101	Introduction to Community Engagement	3
COMM 107	Communication and the Human Condition	3
COMM 108	Media and Society	3
CPS 103	Introduction to Smart Cities	3
CPS 104	Introduction to Race and Ethnicity Concepts	3
CRMJ 101	Introduction to Criminal Justice	3
CSCI 279	Basic Information Security	3
ECON 101	The American Economy	3
ECON 120	Principles of Microeconomics	3
ECON 121	Principles of Macroeconomics	3
ETHN 101	Geography of American Ethnicity and Race	3
ETHN 201	Introduction to Ethnic Studies	3
FIN 134	Personal Financial Planning	3
GEOG 101	Geography of American Ethnicity and Race	3
GEOG 105	Contemporary Human Geography	3
GEOG 108	Culture and Environmental Sustainability	3
GEOG 110	Introduction to Geography: World Regions	3
GNED 104	Foundations of Learning: Social and Behavioral Sciences	3
GNED 193	Special Topics: Social and Behavioral Sciences	1-5
HIST 101	The United States: Origins to Reconstruction	3
HIST 102	The United States: Reconstruction to Recent Times	3
HIST 103	History and Cultures of Modern Asia	3
HIST 119	Western Civilization II: The Middle Ages to 1815	3
HIST 128	World History III: From 1800 to the Present	3
HLTH 270	Lifetime Wellness	3
INTS 100	Introduction to International Studies	3
INTS 210	Cultural Anthropology	3
INTS 228	Peoples of Southeast Asia	3
LBST 210	Introduction to Leadership	3
POLS 100	American Politics	3
POLS 103	Introduction to Comparative Politics	3
POLS 104	Introduction to International Relations	3
POLS 105	Introduction to Politics	3
POLS 116	Introduction to Law	3
PSYC 101	Introduction to Psychological Science	3
PSYC 275	Job Search and Work-Life Transitions	3
SOCA 101	Introduction to Sociology	3
SOCA 206	Race and Ethnic Relations in the U.S.	3
SOCA 207	Marriage and Family	3
SOCA 216	Social Issues in Substance Use and Abuse	3
SPMT 200	Ethics and Issues in Sport Management	3
SPMT 210	Sport in Society	3
UWP 294	Work-Based Learning	3
UWX AN100	Introduction to Anthropology	3
UWX BU101	Introduction to Business	3
UWX CM213	Intercultural Communication	3
UWX EC203	Macroeconomics	3
UWX EC204	Microeconomics	3
UWX FN210	Personal Finance	3
UWX GS101	Introduction to Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies	3
UWX GS231	Sex, Power, and Public Policy	3
UWX HE106	Lifetime Wellness and Self Growth	3
UWX HS102	U.S. History Since 1877	3
UWX HS127	The World in the 20th Century	3
UWX PL104	Introduction to American Government and Politics	3
UWX PS101	General Psychology	3
UWX PS250	Lifespan Psychology	3
UWX SC101	Introduction to Sociology	3
UWX SC222	Race and Ethnicity	3
UWX SC231	Crime and Criminal Justice	3
UWX SS310	Media Literacy	3
UWX SW150	Social Advocacy and the Social Work Experience	3
WGSS 110	Introduction to Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies	3
WGSS 213	Gender and Society	3

Natural Science

12 credit hours from at least three different departments/programs

Course List (Per Attribute)

Code	Title	Credits
ANTH 202	Human Evolution	3
BIOS 100	Nature of Life	3
BIOS 101	Bioscience	4
BIOS 103	Human Biology	3
BIOS 104	Environmental Science: Biological Approach	3
BIOS 109	Biology of Aging	3
BIOS 125	Fundamentals of Freshwater	3
CHEM 100	The World of Chemistry	3
CHEM 101	General Chemistry I	4
CHEM 115	Chemical Science	4
CSCI 105	Introduction to Computers	3
CSCI 130	Introduction to Programming	3
CSCI 220	Client Web Programming	3
CSCI 241	Computer Science I	5
ENVS 101	Introduction to Environmental Studies	3
ENVS 109	Fundamentals of Climate Change	3
ETHN 120	Astronomy of Native America	3
GEOG 100	Physical Geography and the Environment	3
GEOS 100	Earth in Perspective	3
GEOS 101	Introductory Geology	3
GEOS 105	Oceanography	3
GEOS 106	Great Lakes Water Resources	3
GEOS 107	Geology of National Parklands	3
GNED 106	Foundations of Learning: Natural Science	3
GNED 195	Special Topics: Natural Science	1-5
GSCI 102	Science and Pseudoscience	3
HLTH 250	First Aid and Safety	3
HLTH 280	Nutrition for Wellness	3
MATH 103	Elementary Statistics	4
MATH 110	Cultural Perspectives of Mathematics	3
MATH 221	Calculus and Analytic Geometry I	5
MATH 222	Calculus and Analytic Geometry II	5
MIS 221	Business Programming I	3
PHYS 101	Principles of Physics	4
PHYS 105	College Physics I	5
PHYS 110	Introduction to Astronomy	3
PHYS 120	Astronomy of Native America	3
PHYS 150	Physics of Music	3
PHYS 201	General Physics I	5
UWX AS100	Survey of Astronomy	3
UWX BL101	Concepts of Biology	4
UWX BL285	Anatomy and Physiology I	4
UWX BL286	Anatomy and Physiology II	4
UWX CH114	Chemistry in the Kitchen	4
UWX CH140	General Chemistry I Lab	1
UWX CH144	General Chemistry I	4
UWX CS130	Introduction to Programming	3
UWX ES105	Introduction to Environmental Science	3
UWX GE100	Physical Geography and the Environment	3
UWX GE170	Disasters: Living on the Edge	4
UWX HE209	Nutrition and Weight Management	3
UWX MA117	Elementary Statistics	4
UWX MA221	Calculus I	5

Courses offered by General Education