Emphasis will be on study of real, concrete examples of systems through the use of historical narrative, essays, readings, case studies, etc. The following components should be included in every Systems core course. The focus of the course is understanding and applying systemic approaches to viewing and understanding issues, situations, and the world in which we live. The concepts of systems theory including complex interdependency and causality will be illustrated and applied via course content. Each course will address interactions among multiple systems.
Systems emerge, change, and end within historical contexts.
As constant change is a key characteristic of any system, historical perspective is vital to the understanding of current systems. How tension within and among established systems and social organizations affect the way systems change. These courses should ask students to address a variety of questions including questions that don't easily find their home within a single academic discipline. The necessary broad analytical framework requires a variety of theoretical perspectives and methods. On-going faculty collaboration across disciplines is essential to understanding systems and will enrich our teaching.