ENCHIRIDION HANDBOOK

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Part IV: The Core Curriculum

Every degree program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is made up of three components: the Core Curriculum, courses in the Major, and Electives.

The courses in the Core Curriculum treat a broad range of disciplines from a variety of approaches; at the same time, the Core strives to ensure depth of study and intellectual sophistication while recognizing that learning implies different modes of inquiry. Fact learning alone is not enough to justify the existence of a Core Curriculum; rather the purpose of the core is to achieve a synthesis of knowledge that provides a basis for informed judgment. The Core also seeks to promote literacy as a foundation for intelligent discourse and the articulation of informed views.

The Core aims to advance culture in a broad sense, training students to understand and to appreciate the interrelated patterns of customary beliefs and practices, social forms, aesthetics, and material traits that act to define a culture and its position within a larger historical and intellectual framework. This educational program does not simply look to the past, but acknowledges that culture is vibrant and continuously redefined. The Core challenges students to understand how the present is recognizably formed from past influences, and that in order to assess our culture and arrive at a view of its future, students must be trained to scrutinize and bring into perspective the relationship of the present culture with that of the past
.
In fostering active participation in learning, the Core prepares students to become active participants within society, to engage in the process of informed political debate, and to encourage an understanding and appreciation of the diversity of cultures and experiences, a respect for the individual, and the development of a multi-cultural and international perspective. The Core thus encourages personal development in preparing students to regard themselves as citizens living in a democratic society, as belonging to a world community, and as therefore having communal responsibilities.

A. Summary of Core Curriculum Course Requirements
1) Core Humanities Seminar 2 courses
2) College Ethics 1 course
3) Fine Arts 1 course
4) Foreign Language 2 courses
5) History 2 courses
6) Literature 2 courses
7) Mathematics 1 course
Mathematics/Computing Science 1 course
8) Philosophy 2 courses
9) Theology and Religious Studies 2 courses
10) Social Sciences 3 courses
11) Natural Sciences 2 courses w/labs

B. Explanation of Course Requirements
In general, once a sequence of courses is begun in a particular discipline, a student may not revert to a lower level course in that same discipline to fulfill a core requirement without prior approval from the Dean’s Office. Courses or sections of courses that are approved to fulfill Core requirements are designated as such in the Pre-registration Master Schedule issued at pre-registration each semester. Retroactive approval of a course taken previously for fulfillment of a core requirement is not possible.

The Department of Humanities and Augustinian Traditions and the Honors program offer and integrated, interdisciplinary curriculums. In some cases courses are designed to fulfill many of the general education requirements of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Some offerings also offers alternative approaches to established courses in the Core Curriculum for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Consequently relevant Humanities and Honors courses will fulfill certain requirements for the Core Curriculum of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

C. Listing of Core Course Requirements
1) Core Humanities Seminars
The following two courses must be taken by all students during the first year of study:

CHS 1000 Ancient, Medieval and Renaissance Thought
CHS 1001 Modern Thought: Enlightenent to the Present
NOTE: Students are not allowed to drop or withdraw from Core Humanities Seminars courses without academic penalty.

2) College Ethics (1 course)
This course is normally taken during the sophomore year.
ETH 2050 Ethical Traditions and Contemporary Life

3) Fine Arts (1 course)
Each student is required to take one course in Fine Arts. The purpose of the Fine Arts Requirement is to develop an understanding and appreciation of artistic creativity encompassing both the creative processes that go into making a work of art as well as analysis and interpretation of the products of that artistic creativity. Special designated courses in Theater, Studio Art, Art History, English and Communication (Rhetoric/Performance and Media/Film Studies) fulfill this requirement. Consult Novasis each semester at pre-registration time for a list of courses that will fulfill this requirement. Scroll down to the fine arts requirement under the Attributes window. Please note that not all Studio Art courses meet the fine arts requirement.

4) Foreign Language (2 courses in most cases)
There are three options that a student may choose to fulfill the foreign language requirement. Note: the credit value of language courses varies from three to six credits. Regardless of the number of credits, a language course only counts as one course.

Language Option A:
Students who choose languages listed below under Language Option A to fulfill the two course language requirement are required to complete at least two courses in the same foreign language at or above the intermediate level. All students who decide to continue their study of French, German, Italian, or Spanish from high school are required to complete the online language placement examination for the language in which they will enroll.

The online language placement examination consists of questions on
vocabulary, grammar, and reading comprehension and generally takes about 25 minutes to complete. Based on the results of the test and a number of other factors (such as the number of years of study of the language in high school, study or time abroad, etc.) you will be placed by professors of the language of your choice. For important additional information on the online placement exam and to take the online examination, please refer to the following Website:
http://www.artsci.villanova.edu/langtest

Please note that if a student chooses a language listed below for Language Option A and has never studied the language before they must register for the first semester introductory course numbered 1111. They do not have to take the online placement examination. But in this case they must successfully complete 4 semesters of that language-the two introductory courses and two intermediate courses from the Language Option A list below in order to fulfill the language requirement.

Two courses from the following list fulfill the requirement of two courses at or above the intermediate level:

FRE 1121/1122 Intermediate French I and II
FRE 1131/1132 Conversation and Composition I and II

GER 1121/1122 Intermediate German I and II
GER 1131/1322 Conversation and Composition I and II

ITA 1121/1122 Intermediate Italian I and II
ITA 1131/1132 Grammar&Composition and Conversation&Comp.

SPA 1121/1122 Intermediate Spanish I and II
SPA 1131/1132 Conversation and Composition I and II

LAT 2031/2032 Intermediate Latin I and II

Language Option B:
The two course language requirement may also be satisfied with two semesters of study at the introductory level for Arabic, Chinese, Greek (ancient), Japanese or Russian as follows:

ARB 1111/1112 Intensive Basic Modern Arabic I and II
CHI 1111/1112 Intensive Basic Chinese I and II
GRK 1001/1002 Introductory Greek (Ancient) I and II
JPN 1111/1112 Intensive Basic Japanese I and II
RUS 1111/1112 Introductory Russian I and II

Language Option C:
International students (for whom English is a second language) may choose to fulfill their language requirement in their native language by taking two advanced literature courses in the language.

Or they may choose to fulfill the language requirement by taking a total of four English courses (ENG-1050 and three advanced literature courses at the 2100 level or above) to fulfill both the literature and foreign language core requirements.

International students always have the option of selecting a third language for study.

5) History (2 courses)
HIS 1040 Themes in Pre Modern World History or
HIS 1050 Themes in Modern World History
A second history course, with a course number of 2000 or higher, chosen from the History departmental course offerings.

6) Literature (2 courses)
ENG 1050 The Literary Experience
A second English literature course, with a course number of 2100 or higher, chosen from the English departmental course offerings, or a literature course in another language offered by the Department of Classical and Modern Languages.

7) Mathematical Sciences/Computing Sciences (2 courses)
two courses from the Department of Mathematical Sciences (MAT) or
one course from the Department of Mathematical Sciences and one course from the Department of Computing Sciences (CSC).

All courses for which a student has the appropriate pre-requisites or equivalent experience may be used to satisfy this requirement. Beginning a course in a particular series does not obligate a student to finish that series. For example, a student taking MAT 1320 (Calculus I for the Liberal Arts) is not required to take MAT 1325 (Calculus II for the Liberal Arts).

Note: Students intending to apply to medical, dental or veterinary medicine schools must take two semesters of Calculus. For additional information, contact Dr. Friede (Health Professions Advisor, x94833) Students anticipating a Business Concentration should take Introductory Statistics: MAT 1230 and 1235.

8) Philosophy (2 courses)
PHI 1050 Introduction to Philosophy
A second philosophy course, with a course number of 2000 or higher, chosen from the Philosophy departmental course offerings.
Education Majors may count EDU 4290, Philosophy of Education fulfilling their upper level Philosophy requirement

9) Theology and Religious Studies (2 courses)
THL 1050 or THL 1051 Christian Theology: An Introduction or Christianity in History
A second Theology and Religious Studies course, with a course number of 2000 or higher, chosen from the Theology departmental course offerings.
NOTE: THL 1050 and THL 1051 are academic presentations of Christian thought and historical impact suitable for any student. In special cases courses such as the following may be substituted to fulfill the requirement with the permission of the Dean.

THL 5100 The Heritage of Judaism
THL 5170 Islamic Philosophy and Theology
THL 5270 The Buddhist Tradition
THL 5285 Religion in India and Southeast Asia

10) Social Sciences (3 courses)
Each student is required to take three social science courses; one introductory course in each of two distinct disciplines, and one advanced course (2000 level or above) in one of those two disciplines. The Social Sciences disciplines are: Economics, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology.

11) Natural Sciences (2 courses with 2 labs)
Each student is required to complete two semesters of natural sciences with accompanying laboratories by the end of the sophomore year. Each student may choose Option A or Option B as described below:

Natural Sciences Option A
A year-long sequence (two courses with two labs) in one scientific discipline consisting of an introductory course followed by a theme course for which an introductory course is a prerequisite. These courses have been designed for non-science majors. The following sequences may be used to satisfy this option:

1) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 1
AST 1050/1051 Planet Earth I and Lab
and
AST 1052/1053 Planet Earth II and Lab

2) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 2
AST 1072/1073 The Birth and Death of Stars and Lab
and
AST 1074/1075 Planetary Skies and Landscapes and Lab

3) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 3
BIO 1505 Biology for Today
and
One of the following Theme Courses:
BIO 1605 Heredity and Human Affairs
BIO 1625 How Microbes Rule The World
BIO 1655 Human Physiology: Body Works
BIO 1705 Life in the Sea
BIO 1785 Special Themes in Biology
Note: Offerings will vary from year to year. The required BIO 1505 is an introductory survey course that is suitable for any student. In special cases, a Theme course may be substituted for this course with permission from the Dean.

4) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 4
CHM 1050/1001 Chemistry Themes: Foundations and Lab
and
One of the following theme courses:
CHM 1054/1004..Chemistry Themes: Environmental Chemistry/Lab
CHM 1057/1007 Chemistry Themes: Criminalistics and Lab

5) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 5
ENV 1050 Environmental Science I
and
ENV 1051 Environmental Science II
Courses required for Environmental Studies Concentration

6) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 6
PHY 1050 Nature’s Laws I
and
PHY 1052 Nature’s Laws II

7) Natural Sciences Option A: Sequence 7
PHY 1020/102..Great Ideas in Physics: Aristotle to Einstein I & Lab
and
PHY 1022/1023...Great Ideas in Physics Aristotle to Einstein II &Lab

NATURAL SCIENCES OPTION B
A year-long sequence (two courses with labs) in one scientific discipline. These courses are generally taken by science majors. The following course sequences satisfy this option:

1) Natural Sciences Option B: Sequence 1
AST 2121/2133 Solar System Astronomy and Lab
and
AST 2122/2134 Galaxies and Cosmology and Lab

2) Natural Sciences Option B: Sequence 2
BIO 2105 General Biology I and Lab
and
BIO 2106 General Biology II and Lab

3) Natural Sciences Option B: Sequence 3
CHM 1131/1103 General Chemistry I and Lab
CHM 1134/1108 General Chemistry II and Lab

4) Natural Sciences Option B: Sequence 4
CHM 1151/1103 General Chemistry I and Lab
and
CHM 1152/1104 General Chemistry II and Lab

5) Natural Sciences Option B: Sequence 5
PHY 2410/2411 University Physics: Mechanics and Lab
and
PHY 2412/2413 University Physics: Electricity and Magnetism
and Lab
or
PHY 2414/2415 University Physics: Thermodynamics and Lab
 

C. Core Curriculum Distribution Requirements
In addition to satisfying the curricular requirements listed above, students are required to satisfy certain distribution requirements. The distribution requirements may be satisfied by courses used to satisfy either core, major or elective requirements. Additionally, a single course may satisfy more than one of the distribution requirements.

1) Writing Requirement (8 courses)
Each student must take at least four courses that are designated as Writing Intensive; and at least four additional courses that are designated as Writing Enriched. These designations will appear in the Master Schedule available during pre-registration each semester.
NOTE: The Core Humanities Seminars (CHS 1000 and CHS 1001) and the Introductory Literature course (ENG 1050) fulfill three of the four Writing Intensive course requirements. The fourth Writing Intensive course requirement is to be taken in the student’s major area. College Ethics (ETH 2050) fulfills one of the four Writing Enriched requirements.

Writing Intensive Course Characteristics
• At least 20 pages of assigned writing, a portion of which should be polished prose reflecting disciplinary conventions
• Much of the writing for the course is the result of a revision process involving discussion and un-graded evaluation of student texts
• A significant portion of class time is devoted to disciplinary prose
• Writing intensive courses are limited to 15-17 students

Writing Enriched Course Characteristics
• At least 10 pages of writing in response to at least two assignments
• At least one revision in response to evaluative feedback on rough drafts
• At least some attention to rhetorical dimensions of the disciplines

2) Integrative Sequences (2 sequences of 2 courses each)
• Integrative courses enable a student to examine a topic or theme from the perspective of several disciplines. One of these sequences is to be in the humanities and the other is to be in the sciences. The two Core Humanities Seminars fulfill the former and the Natural Science core requirement fulfills the latter.

3) Diversity Requirement (2 courses)
Each student is required to select one course in two of the following three areas:

Diversity (1):
Courses which provide a focus on studies emphasizing ethnic and minority experiences in the United States

Diversity (2):
Courses which provide a focus on women’s experiences and highlight the ways in which gender influences experience.

Diversity ( 3):
Courses which provide a focus on the culture, economics, politics or ecology of societies and nations other than those of Europe and the United States.

NOTES:
1.) A student may not use a single course to fulfill more than one category of the diversity requirement.
2.) The diversity requirement cannot be fulfilled by independent study or a senior thesis.
3.) Language courses cannot fulfill the requirement, although literature courses in a foreign language can fulfill the requirement provided they focus on appropriate material.

 

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