Spring 2027

Systems Thinking

Systems Thinking explores concepts and practices to define systems, building competencies to describe, assess, understand, and manage complexity from local to global scales.

offering recorded3 credits
Recorded instructors · Spring 2027 Jonathan Tellman Sullivan

Summary

1 / 3

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 3.98 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=20 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.71 GPA, 83.3% A/AB (n=12 letter grades).

What you’ll be able to do

  • Define a system and explain the structure, behavior, and functionality of systems, including the characteristics and interconnections among environmental, social, and economic systems.

  • Define and identify common patterns of systems.

  • Use a variety of systems thinking tools to model various natural, physical, and social systems.

  • Explain sustainability in terms of design and systems.

  • Value the importance of understanding causality in problem solving and strategic thinking.

  • Use a holistic approach and systems thinking tools to diagnose complex problems in natural and physical systems.

  • Identify biotic and abiotic aspects of systems as stocks and flows of energy and matter within and between organizational levels.

  • Explain and analyze how the management of natural and physical systems influences ecological and social processes.

  • Solve systemic problems using logic and reasoning by identifying and differentiating the strength and value of information, evidence, and approaches related to the management and sustainability of social, physical, and natural systems.

Source: UW Guide

Grade history

↗
average GPA
letter grades
A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F

All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors

Prerequisites

Course map

Sophomore standing

  • Sophomore standing
ENVIRST 365

This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree
  • Sophomore standing

Professors

Spring 2027
Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

Calendar & sections

Spring 2027

Schedule loads here as you scroll.

SectionModeEnrolled / capacityWaitlist
LEC 001Classroom Instruction0 / 730

Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.

Meeting source records
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Student experience

the class

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2025: 3.98 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=20 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.71 GPA, 83.3% A/AB (n=12 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

No workload feedback recorded.

Topics

  • Systems science, complexity, behavior of adaptive systems, networks, emergence, and patterns of organization.
  • Social, physical, and natural systems; the rise of complexity; and resilience in social-ecological systems.
  • How decisions influence processes and outcomes at different levels of complexity.

Skills

  • Analyze how the design and implementation of integrated systems contribute to solutions for societal challenges.
  • Use systems thinking tools to model natural, physical, and social systems.
  • Diagnose complex problems in natural and physical systems using a holistic approach.
  • Solve systemic problems using logic and reasoning by evaluating information, evidence, and approaches.

Grades

Latest available · Spring 2026— not enough history to project Spring 2027.

average GPA
A / AB grades
letter grades
Instructor

Grade distribution · % of letter grades

A
AB
B
BC
C
D
F

Grades over time

Through Spring 2026

More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data

Not enough comparable courses for Spring 2027 in UW–Madison.

Sources & history

UW–Madison

Catalog & offerings

Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.

Catalog observation history

Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.

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Selected offering source records
ENVIRST 365 · Spring 2027

Systems Thinking

Recorded 2026-10-14
Raw records 
[
  {
    "run_id": "20261014T203208-0851c9a1",
    "semester": "1274",
    "observed_at": "2026-10-14 17:50:09.728220+00:00",
    "offering_id": "1274:360:026870",
    "course_id": "ENVIRST 365",
    "course_uid": "course_c8dbd0105886f889e1cfcc16",
    "term_id": "1274",
    "source_course_id": "026870",
    "source_subject_id": "360",
    "title": "Systems Thinking",
    "credits_min": 3,
    "credits_max": 3,
    "typically_offered": "Not Applicable"
  }
]
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Student reviews

Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.

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Madgrades

Grade history

Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.

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Dataset & model

Recorded 2026-10-14

View the dataset on Hugging Face
Model outputs & technical records
Qwen/Qwen3.8-27B
LLM outputs across runs
Download part 1
Full model traces

Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.

Download part 1
Model & dataset provenance 
{
  "model": "Qwen/Qwen3.8-27B",
  "model_revision": "1d4bf0f2ff6012fd82039f2fa52739d0dd7c60c0",
  "task_version": "17",
  "output_id": "bd9b5b02d87659859fb1f3e879ba6105e993a52f44870b66cd1d188822993fcf",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "fc1811fa52e581ea57a35c0cf3343f8740a8ffbf",
  "observed_at": "2026-10-14 17:50:09.728220+00:00"
}