Jen was a really kind teacher, and the workload wasn't too bad. Four 600 word write ups, four 400 word reflections, 1500 midterm, and a 2100 final are all the assignments we did- which sucks if you hate writing. In section participation is graded on if you read and discussed with others. Overall the class was great and the lectures were recorded.

Lectures were interesting but they kinda just ended up restating things in the readings. Not a huge workload. Take this class for an easy GE.

Her lectures can be dry but she tries her best to make them interesting/interactive and really cares about her students. Super accessible & helpful outside of class and takes feedback seriously. Graded by section participation, big quarter-long project and reflection essay at end. She assigns a lot of reading but not really necessary.

Participation in section makes up 20% of the grade. There's a heavy load of articles you have to read each week, discuss, then write a 600-word reflection to, and two 2000-word essays throughout the quarter. Lectures are long and boring because she talks so slow. however, she is definitely a caring professor who wants you to succeed.

Env S 3 was a fun class with Martin. Lots of reading, but low time commitment otherwise. About 1-2 hours of lectures a week, 4 pre-section reflections, and essays for midterm/final. She's clearly super passionate about her work and super empathetic towards students. Would recommend!

The lectures and course content have been super interesting but most importantly the professor has been so kind and understanding about circumstances outside of school. Not too lecture heavy which is great but there is a lot of reading and a decent amount of writing. Would recommend if you're interested in the subject though!

Your grade pretty much depends on your TA. Participate in section and go to your TA's office hours to see exactly what they're looking for in the papers. You have to participate in section for full credit anyways, and the material can get pretty interesting. Lectures are pretty boring, but worth going through so you know what the class is all about

I am making this rating to emphasize how understanding of student's circumstances Professor martin has been in all of her classes throughout this pandemic. She really makes it feel like our health and well being come first. The classes are interesting enough, but it is her compassion that makes her so wonderful.

Her lectures were boring and dry, she read off a piece of paper the whole time. The class was very interesting and it was basically reading 2 books (1498 and the Great Acceleration). I enjoyed both the books but I could not stand her lectures I was going to die from boredom. Her tests are fair but SA graded harshly (depends on TA). Focus on paper.

*COVID version of class* Loved it! Readings were super interesting; you learn more about the Anthropocene/history rather than technical ES topics though. She is really kind and wants you to succeed. Doable amount of work each week: reading, videos, quiz, forum posts and responses. The forum posts prep you for the big final essay. No midterm/final.

*took during online spring '20 so may be diff in person* Great prof! Cares a lot abt subject & students. Lectures are v interesting but talks a lot & doesn't have much on slides so gotta listen well. Weekly quizzes on reading 40ish pages/wk (books actually interesting). No midterm/final, just big essay. Interesting class for everyone to take w her

Jen is honestly an amazing professor! Clearly very passionate about ES and this class will definitely broaden your perspectives. Quite a bit of reading to do every week but they are manageable because the assigned readings are so extremely interesting and correspond with the class topics. Super nice as are all the T.A.s for the course.

Interesting concepts in the class and I feel like Professor Martin really tried her best and is super passionate but I don't feel like this class really contributed to my overall understanding of environmental studies. Lectures and readings are super dense, exams were super specific so it's really difficult to study.

I love her enthusiasm for every subject I've had her in, but an incredibly tough grader. I've written her 4 essays and poured my heart and soul into them and she never grades me above a C. I'm not the world's best writer but I have written some really good papers for her, alas, she doesn't like them.

2 midterms, final, paper, and section attendance, MC questions on exams are super specific and historical (not related to the core concepts), IDs (essays) on exams are impossible to get full points on (even if you write a lot) books are super long & she takes questions from them that are very detailed so its impossible to remember

very passionate about the subjects she teaches & you are able to learn so much from her teaching methods. Yes, you have to pay attention in lecture and go to class (most of the time haha), and she tends to assign readings, but you really extend your knowledge and perspective of life. Class for ppl interested in the matter, not a GE if u don't read

She tried really hard which I did appreciate but the class was difficult. Mainly difficult because the slides were bare but the lectures were dense so it was hard to go back and review material. If she reads this review in the future, please post more lecture notes!!

I thought Jen was a great, caring professor. She is knowledgeable on the course and really teaches you a lot. Yes, she does lecture pretty fast, but you also get to learn so much in 10 weeks. She is passionate and very available for questions and extra help.

ugh super frustrating I took this GE as a grade. waaaaay harder than expected and book was way too long, lectures were waaaaay too specific. two midterms and a paper on the long ass book. IDs on the midterms and its not you get 5 and pick 3 its you HAVE TO DO EVERY SINGLE ONE :( sad bc I feel like shes really trying to make the class enjoyable

Concept of this class was not hard, but a majority of the questions she chose to ask were more historical (and arguable insignificant) and contributed nothing to my overall understanding of environmental studies. Lecture slides are posted online but have zero explanation to them so going to class is recommended. Not a good teacher for this subject.

Slides are useless, just random bullet points with no actual info or context. Most information come from a paper she reads off of in lectures, which she reads way faster than my hand could copy down. Throws a bunch of case study at you and expects you to memorize them. test is split into MC, T/F, FRQ aka identifications, and map locations,STAY AWAY

This class has been the worst one I have taken at UCSB. The prof only reads off of a paper and makes lectures really boring. Slides have barely any info on them so you have to write down a lot of what she says. She talks fast and it's hard to get everything down.

try to avoid her ES3 classes. for sure one of the worst classes i've taken so far. class averages have been low 70s and she says she won't curve...

Her lecture slides are very brief and unhelpful. Her explanations focus on history rather than the relationship between the event and how it affected the environment. Honestly, this is just a boring history class. Would not recommend taking this class with Dr. Martin but have heard great things about this class with a different professor.