Fall 2026

Human Language

LINGUIS 101 introduces elementary theory and practical work in phonetics, phonology, morphology, and syntax with attention to formal grammar.

offering recorded3 credits
Recorded instructors · Fall 2026 Rebecca Shields4.3/5Calvin KosmatkaKayla Morey +1 more

Summary

1 / 7

The course requires weekly online quizzes and assignments, often tied to discussion attendance or worksheets. The final exam is significant, worth 40% of the grade, and success depends on attending lectures and completing the provided materials.

Grade history

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

All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors

Prerequisites

Course map

Not open to students with credit forLINGUIS/​ANTHRO 301.

LINGUIS 101 used by

“Used by” includes alternatives; linked courses may have other requirements. This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.

Prerequisite text tree

Professors

Fall 2026

Rebecca Shields

/5Adjusted rating
/5RMP difficulty
captured reviews
About this rating

Raw average: 4.43/5 from 72 quality ratings. The adjusted rating blends this with the UW review average (3.66/5), weighted as 20 additional ratings. Smaller samples stay closer to that average. Each captured review is counted once in the prior; this does not correct who chooses to leave a review.

For this course: 4.0/5 raw quality · 2.4/5 difficulty · 7 reviews

RMP profile ↗ · All captured review dates; profile matched by name.

Rebecca Shields is consistently described as enthusiastic, organized, and helpful, providing clear materials and structure. However, reviews disagree on the course experience; some find the content boring or the lectures dragging, while others find the material easy and the class interesting.

One reviewer reports that Shields is not accommodating with grading and that lectures do not cover all necessary material, describing the course as difficult and not worth taking.

Recent recorded grades — Fall 2023: 3.21 GPA, 57.8% A/AB (n=268 letter grades); Fall 2024: 3.37 GPA, 67.6% A/AB (n=225 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.34 GPA, 67.0% A/AB (n=233 letter grades).

Historical instructors & teaching patterns

Historical reviews of Ryan Henke: Ryan Henke is described as passionate and friendly, with clear lectures that are recorded for review. Reviewers note he organizes the class well and provides straightforward exams. One reviewer found the content boring and noted the lecture pace can be intense.

REBECCA SHIELDS is recorded teaching in Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012, Fall 2012, Spring 2013, Fall 2013, Spring 2014, Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2019, Fall 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2023, Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

RYAN HENKE is recorded teaching in Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2024, Spring 2025, Spring 2026. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.

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

Calendar & sections

Fall 2026

Schedule loads here as you scroll.

SectionModeEnrolled / capacityWaitlist
LEC 001Classroom Instruction224 / 2880
DIS 401Classroom Instruction23 / 240
DIS 403Classroom Instruction24 / 240
DIS 404Classroom Instruction24 / 240
DIS 407Classroom Instruction20 / 240
DIS 410Classroom Instruction10 / 240
DIS 402Classroom Instruction18 / 240
DIS 405Classroom Instruction21 / 240
DIS 406Classroom Instruction9 / 240
DIS 408Classroom Instruction13 / 240
DIS 411Classroom Instruction23 / 240
DIS 409Classroom Instruction16 / 240
DIS 412Classroom Instruction23 / 240

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

Rebecca Shields is described as enthusiastic and organized, providing clear materials and structure. Some students find the content boring or the workload demanding, while others find the material easy to understand if they attend lectures and complete weekly tasks.

Recent recorded grades — Spring 2025: 3.47 GPA, 76.3% A/AB (n=215 letter grades); Fall 2025: 3.34 GPA, 67.0% A/AB (n=233 letter grades); Spring 2026: 3.67 GPA, 85.1% A/AB (n=114 letter grades).

difficulty & workload

The course requires weekly online quizzes and assignments, often tied to discussion attendance or worksheets. The final exam is significant, worth 40% of the grade, and success depends on attending lectures and completing the provided materials.

Students appreciate the thorough lecture slides and structured discussions, which aid studying. Conversely, some find the lectures dragging and the content annoying or overly dense, with one reviewer noting that not all necessary information is covered in lecture.

Topics

  • Phonetics, phonology, morphology, and syntax
  • Formal grammar

Skills

  • Practical application of formal grammar concepts in phonetics, phonology, morphology, and syntax
  • Elementary theoretical understanding of linguistic structures

Grades

Historical instructor

Fall 2026 · Projected

Before grades are released

– average GPA

Approximate 80% prediction interval

About this estimate

The course’s semester-average GPA, not an individual student’s grade. The center uses 5 same-season terms, weighted toward recent results.

The range uses the finite-sample 80th-percentile rank of absolute errors from earlier same-season forecasts. Each forecast uses only records from earlier terms. At least four forecasts are required; bounds are rounded outward and limited to 0–4. This is an empirical estimate: changing instructors or grading policies can reduce its coverage.

8 earlier forecasts · 0.11 GPA average error.

Grades over time

Through Fall 2026

More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data

Where this course fits relative to

Latest available grades · Spring 2026 · all course levels

GPA

Higher than % of other courses in this group.

Course GPAs · red marks this course’s range

letter grades

More recorded grades than % of other courses in this group.

Typical course in this group: letter grades.

About this comparison

1283 courses over the same term, each with at least 30 recorded letter grades. Cross-listed courses count once. GPA is not a measure of difficulty or teaching quality. The typical course is the median by recorded grade count; tied values are not counted as lower. Grade counts describe course scale, not unique students or typical section size.

Descriptions compare GPA with this group’s average: at least 0.20 higher or lower; otherwise close to average. Section size uses median recorded enrollment: small up to 30, mid-sized 31–99, large 100+. Lectures and discussion/lab sections are described separately.

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
LINGUIS 101 · Fall 2026

Human Language

Recorded 2026-09-07
Raw records
[
  {
    "run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
    "semester": "1272",
    "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
    "offering_id": "1272:550:011268",
    "course_id": "LINGUIS 101",
    "course_uid": "course_97c2ccf8d6ed1c7d34040f07",
    "term_id": "1272",
    "source_course_id": "011268",
    "source_subject_id": "550",
    "title": "Human Language",
    "credits_min": 3,
    "credits_max": 3,
    "typically_offered": "Fall, Spring, Summer"
  }
]
Rate My Professors

Student reviews

Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.

Read original reviews
Download part 1
Madgrades

Grade history

Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.

Explore recorded grades
Dataset & model

Recorded 2026-09-07

Download the original dataset
Model outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Download part 1
Full model traces

Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.

Download part 1
Model & dataset provenance
{
  "model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
  "model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
  "task_version": "14",
  "output_id": "d37c16d43b6bdfb14d6680b60efbcecf398439ba82fba55e1b4aece80c67fa02",
  "requirements_status": "valid",
  "dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}