Environmental Science Course Descriptions
ENVS 051: Global Science Issues
Credits: 5.0High school course exploring global environmental issues. Introduces Earth's systems that promote life and major issues, i.e., climate change, pollution, biodiversity, etc. Emphasis on problem solving, personal responsibility and action. Counts toward high school Lab Science or Contemporary World Problems credit. Prerequisite(s): Departmental advising required.
Course Level Objectives
- Describe the spread and impact of environmental toxins.
- Apply scientific knowledge and skills to solve problems or propose solutions to global environmental challenges.
- Analyze and describe the living and nonliving factors that affect organisms in ecosystems and the relationships among species within important ecosystems, such as coral reefs, wetlands, and tropical rain forests.
- Analyze and explain the effects human activities have on Earth's capacity to sustain biological diversity.
- Plan and conduct systematic and complex scientific investigations and evaluate results of such investigations.
- Identify and articulate sustainable choices and actions that individuals persons could make that would result in fewer resources being consumed and less pollution.
- Analyze the patterns and arrangements of Earth systems and subsystems and how these systems sustain the biosphere.
- Identify the factors that influence weather and climate and how these patterns relate to ecosystems.
- Define the complex, integrated and regulated processes (such as photosynthesis and energy transfer in a food web) by which organisms, use matter and energy to sustain life.
- Analyze local, regional, national or global problems or challenges in which scientific design can be or has been used to design a solution.
ENVS 053: Pacific Northwest Science Issues
Credits: 5.0High School course that explores current environmental issues in the Pacific Northwest with a focus on the interrelationships between humans, plants and animals. Emphasis on problem solving, personal responsiblity and action. Counts toward high school Lab Science or Contemporary World Problems credit. Prerequisite(s): Departmental advising required.
Course Level Objectives
- Analyze processes that have caused changes to the features of the Earth's surface, including plate tectonics, glaciation, volcanism, etc.
- Explain the factors that influence weather and climate and how these patterns relate to Northwest ecosystems.
- Describe the complex, integrated and regulated processes (such as photosynthesis and energy transfer in a food web) by which organisms use matter and energy to sustain life.
- Analyze and describe the living and nonliving factors that affect organisms in ecosystems and the relationships among species within selected Pacific Northwest ecosystems.
- Describe the process of evolution and the concepts of natural selection, speciation, adaptation and biological diversity.
- Analyze and explain the effects human activities have on the capacity of Pacific Northwest ecosystems to sustain biological diversity.
- Conduct systematic and complex scientific investigations and evaluate results of such investigations.
- Apply scientific knowledge and skills to solve problems or propose solutions to regional environmental challenges in the Pacific Northwest.
ENVS 054: Northwest Ecology and Citizenry
Credits: Maximum of 5.0 possibleIntroduction to the ecology of Pacific NW ecosystems, including the impact of historic and contemporary issues. Includes applied study of WA State Constitution and Government, focusing on problem-solving. Counts as WA state History/Social Studies and/or Science credit. Prerequisite(s): Departmental advising required.
Course Level Objectives
- Explain the complex, integrated and regulated processes by which organisms use matter and energy to sustain life.
- Analyze and describe the living and nonliving factors that affect organisms in ecosystems and the relationships among species within selected Pacific Northwest ecosystems.
- Analyze and explain the effects that human activities have on the capacity of Pacific Northwest ecosystems to sustain biological diversity.
- Describe the nature and structure of Washington state government and constitution, and how citizens interact with it.
- Connect patterns of habitation and development in the Pacific Northwest to changes in resource availability, land use, and biological diversity.
- Examine the historic and contemporary roles Native Americans have played in ecological stewardship, especially in terms of salmon and current recovery efforts.
- Apply the methods of social science investigation to examine historical controversies that impacted the Pacific Northwest and continue to impact present-day politics, the economy and the environment.
- Apply scientific knowledge and skills to solve problems or propose solutions to regional environmental challenges in the Pacific Northwest.
ENVS& 101: Introduction to Environmental Science w/Lab
Credits: 5.0A combination of information from biology, chemistry, physics and geology that stresses a scientific approach towards understanding the nature and scope of current environmental issues. Prerequisite(s): Placement into MATH 087 or higher and placement into ENGL& 101.
Course Level Objectives
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of general scientific principles, with an emphasis on environmental science scientific principles.
- Clearly communicate the fundamental knowledge particular to environmental science with their peers using the appropriate vocabulary.
- Apply the concepts and information in environmental science to problems that affect their lives, in particular, and our society, in general.
- Demonstrate the use of mathematics appropriate to environmental science and perform calculations appropriate to the task.
- Make reliable measurements and perform analysis appropriate for environmental science.
ENVS 105: Weather w/Lab
Credits: 5.0The earth's atmosphere including origin, composition and structure. Particular emphasis on weather observations, map discussions and forecasting. Physical processes involved in weather systems including highs, lows, fronts, jet streams and storms. Prerequisite(s): Placement into MATH 087 or higher and placement into ENGL& 101.
Course Level Objectives
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of general scientific principles, with an emphasis on meteorological scientific principles. These include the principles underlying the theories and processes underlying scientific discovery and the nature of scientific evidence upon which such contemporary scientific theories are based.
- Apply the concepts and information in meteorology to problems that affect their lives, in particular, and our society in general.
- Use mathematics appropriate to meteorology and perform calculations appropriate to the task.
- Clearly communicate the fundamental knowledge particular to meteorology with their peers using the appropriate vocabulary.
- Make reliable measurements and perform analysis appropriate for meteorologists, including weather forecasting.
ENVS 199: Special Projects in Environmental Science
Credits: 5.0Individual projects in Environmental Science.
Course Level Objectives
- Develop a project proposal, in conjunction with a faculty sponsor from the Natural Science and Mathematics Division, and successfully present it for approval at a meeting of the Science and Mathematics Division.
- Demonstrate that the special project deals with a topic directly or indirectly related to the natural sciences.
- Demonstrate that college level learning was required to complete the proposed project to the satisfaction of the faculty sponsor.
ENVS 299: Special Projects in Environmental Science
Credits: 5.0Individual projects in Environmental Science.
Course Level Objectives
- Develop a project proposal, in conjunction with a faculty sponsor from the Natural Science and Mathematics Division, and successfully present it for approval at a meeting of the Science and Mathematics Division.
- Demonstrate that the special project deals with a topic directly or indirectly related to the natural sciences.
- Demonstrate that college level learning was required to complete the proposed project to the satisfaction of the faculty sponsor.