I've taken 2 classes with Paul- History 2C & 164IB and I had such a pleasant experience both times. He really cares about the material he teaches (especially 164). If you do the reading and go to class, its super manageable. I cannot recommend office hours enough. Getting to know Paul is one of the highlights of my UCSB experience!
I'm a good student, but this class made me doubt myself until I figured out he was the problem. Posts too many lectures with like 2 bullet points every 5 slides and just rambles without giving concrete info. I had to use my 10th grade sister's history book to write the final essay because I had no info from him. And oh, had to read 7 novels.
Prof. Spickard is a great teacher & actually cares about helping his students. The only grades for the class come from 2 term papers, which makes it sort of hard to get a high grade if you're not a strong writer, but the lectures & extra reading he offers are really interesting.
An easy P, lectures are interesting. I would recommend my TA Lei Dou, who is pursuing his second PhD in UCSB, very nice guy.
Professor Spickard is a great guy! Has great lectures that are really thought-provoking and inspirational and funny. He genuinely cares about his students and goes out of his way to help them! I haven't finished the class yet but I had to put this down that his class is definitely worth taking in the future.
I spent so much time on this class because of how much reading he assigns. He records his lectures but he makes them so long and boring. He basically rambles on whatever is on his mind and lecture is done when he runs out of things to say. He basically expects us to spend all our time on this class and he is not understanding at all.
Spickard really cares about his students. The course material is really interesting and his lectures were really engaging. If you do most of the reading and pay attention in lecture you're guaranteed an A.
A lot of reading and depends on your TA how they handle the reading load in section. Very easy to write papers on and he is very passionate and understanding during this time.
Lots of readings in this class for a non-major student. Took this class for GE but it eventually got an A due to the extra credits and the grading system. Spickard really cared about the students ' well-beings and was pretty approachable via email and OH. His lectures could be a bit ambiguous and seemed to be off tangent. But overall a ez class
Prof. Spickard is an amazing professor who is well-informed, and embracing to different ideas in this class. He literally introduced us to various topics of world history, which were easy to understand. The readings maybe a bit too much but as long as you get the basics for that you will be fine. His lectures were also thought provoking !!
There was lots of reading , but if you made sure to read some, and summaries on the others , plus attend lecture, you are assured a good grade ! He is very clear with his grading and the TA is also a very important aspect in this class as section counts for a lot . Paul is such a caring and nice guy, you can really tell he cares about his students!
Spickard made us buy 7 books and honestly none of the readings are useful. Also constantly talks about how great he is.
mans is off topic 110% of the time. rambler. his lectures routinely wayyyy longer than allotted time/ necessary. also opinionated
I will give him credit for being extremely entertaining & thought provoking. His style of teaching is engaging. But I am sorry to say that Spickard is everything wrong with the public university system. He presents his feelings as fact and bends the truth. This class teaches you to feel victimized and oppressed rather than empowered and succeed.
Mr. Ware was one of the most candid professors Ive ever had. He possessed knowledge & passion about the subject. Some days he held lectures in a circle or outside which was inviting & intimate. Grade was based on 3 essays & participation. He was disorganized & hard to reach but it was his 1st quarter teaching at UCSB. Despite that, hes worth it!
Wares lectures are interesting, but hes extremely disorganized. He posted paper prompts and readings late and hardly ever responded over email, making it hard to plan out my work for this class. However, the paper prompts are straightforward and hes a really easy grader, so if youre willing to deal with how scatterbrained he is, its an easy A.
Amazing at lecture, but extremely unorganized. Very hard to reach outside of class. Didnt post lectures or required readings on time. In fact, final grades werent submitted on time on his end, and my grade currently marks as NR.
Spickard knows how to logically change your perspective about everything you thought about race, religion, and ethnicity. He is downright hilarious, funny, and CARES about his students and subjects. Go to his office hours
Took his Black Freedom and Revolutions class and he is a solid choice for a professor. He's young-ish, funny, and knows a lot about African and Islamic history. The only complaints i have are that he's disorganized and is hard to reach outside of class. Easy grader too
Paul is one of the best professors I've had at UCSB. He is hilarious and really brings a positive environment to class. I leave class every day with my mind changed and having really refined my understanding of very important themes about identity, race, and American culture. He has really inspired me to question myself, and has taught me a lot.
Incredible amounts of reading. I left lectures knowing more about his own opinions and thoughts rather than the actual material. Oddly strict about having technology out during lectures. I felt he was condescending. He would pose questions only to tell those that dare answer that they were wrong or lacking in information.
Spickard's classes are not your average history classes. He tells it how it is and this probably offends many people. His classes WILL change your perspective on history, race, ethnicity, and social issues. He is a professor who genuinely cares about his students, and is passionate about his subject
Prof Spickard DOES NOT TEACH HISTORY COURSES in the contemporary sense. Took his "History of Immigration" class and we just talked about the weekly news and our thoughts and opinions on it. Barely learned anything in his class aside from his opinion on things. DON'T TAKE HIS CLASS IF YOU WANT TO LEARN HISTORY OR HISTORICAL EVENTS LIKE ME.
Spickard is a great professor!! He makes history interesting and will keep you entertained. His classes are not boring. There is a lot of reading for this class but they are really interesting. Midterm and final are simple IDs and essay(s). One paper that you get to choose the topic for. Better hope you get a good TA.
