Definitely one of the best math professors at UCSB. If you have the chance to take 4A with him I would highly recommend.

While Peter was a nice professor, he is not a great teacher. His method of teaching was not conducive to learning math, in my opinion. Lectures were confusing and often consisted of him reading through his slides without working through any problems by hand. Definitely sign up for CLAS and use Khan Academy. Good Luck!

Peter's a great guy, although maybe not the best lecturer. Some lectures aren't paced well and we end up speeding to the end. Regardless, his humor made learning math fun and enjoyable. Homework is due before the next lecture and is pretty easy compared to lecture content. Exams are straightforward. Take his classes!

Prof Garfield is a very fun professor, lectures are good to go to, although you definitely need to spend time learning the content on your own. Midterms/finals are all fair.

Very nice professor, but a decently fast paced course so being able to teach yourself and answer your own questions is helpful. However, Peter is very good about being there and helpful during his office hours.

This professor lets you drop most of the final. Its wild. Most people i know got an a+. If you want an easy class this is it. Of course, he's also super nice and helpful.

Lectures could be very confusing and homework can be hard. The 3 midterm exams and final increase in weight which is unfortunate. Exams are the exact same as practice exams so it is very easy to be successful despite confusing content! A lot of homework/quiz grades are dropped which also bring up grade. Very generous grading!!

Garfield was fine. His lectures and explanations were confusing at times but the textbook always provided clarification. His exams are exactly like the practice exams so make sure to do those. My biggest issue is it takes FOREVER for him to get exam grades out. Like ridiculously long. Overall, not a hard class.

he does not teach very well - with that being said, the class is almost a guaranteed pass because the tests are very close to the practice exams (which he supplies a lot of). Homework is mild and you can get a lot of help (or in a lot of cases just look on nectar). most people succeed by memorization.

good and nice

Garfield was pretty cool but was a terrible prof/lecturer. Has problems with being timely and widely unorganized. Basically reads off slides and doesn’t do much to really teach. Practice exams are very similar to real exams which was nice. But him and his TAs don’t respond to emails and are difficult to reach. Don’t really recommend

Peter is one of the best professors Ive had at UCSB. His class is really straightforward and he wants you to succeed. He holds multiple office hour sessions per week, take advantage of them! The practice tests and homework really prepare you for the exams, stay on top of everything and youll be golden. Going to miss having Peter as a professor!

He’s a cool guy but a very poor professor. Many people like him cause they consider his class to be easy but neglect to mention how wildly unorganized the class is. I feel like he’s never thorough enough and most kids get by on memorization because his practice tests are exactly like the exams. TAs and professor never get back to you.

A great guy at heart but the class was terribly organized. There was a lot of frustration regarding the grades of our first midterm (which, two months later, is still not graded). The lectures are not very thorough—many of the steps and work for example problems are explained verbally; there is hardly any work shown. Wouldn't recommend.

I would love to give Professor Garfield another great rating, but after this class I can't. He's a funny guy who really cares about the class but this was a disaster. As of now(after we've taken the final) we still don't have our first midterm back. The class isn't too hard and the midterms are essentially old tests with new questions but still.

If youre taking a class with Garfield, be prepared to study by yourself. He only uses slides for lecture and the only help you will be getting is from CLAS or section. Work on your practice tests and maybe youll do good. Gives too much homework, imo. Very nice and respectful, but isnt thorough with explaining the math.

Professor Garfield is a mixed bag. On one hand he is a very nice guy with a fun personality in the classroom. On the other hand, he is an extremely slow grader with very imprecise lectures that make things more confusing than they need to be. As long as you slam the practice midterms this class is an easy A but prepare to deal with his confusion.

Peter is by far one of my favorite professors! Midterms and final are exactly like the practice tests he posts online. Weekly quizzes count more towards section attendance than for a true grade. Very easy to access outside of class and loves helping students during office hours. Very passionate about what he does and a very inspirational prof.

4A was a simple, straightforward class. I took it online. I enjoyed his lectures very much, he is a funny guy and gives lots of extensions if you just ask. However, I cant say that I really remember anything from this class a year later. Essentially, youll do fine, but its difficult to get a deeper understanding of the material.

The grade was mainly based on homework/participation and he gave a quiz every week and a final. The quizzes and final were super similar to homework and even if they weren't, he taught everything you needed to know in lecture. He is literally awesome and I would definitely take his class again.

i had garfield for math 4a in fall, 6a in winter, and now 4b in spring this quarter. he's such a caring and accommodating professor. his lecture examples cover all concepts u will need for hw, and quizzes/final are all really similar to hw. if u see garfield teaching a class, take him, u wont regret it! :)

Took this course in Spring 2021. He is famous for extending hw deadlines for the whole class. The hw is manageable. The quizzes are never unexpected. There was no midterm. The final is worth 2 quizzes and he drops the lowest 2 quizzes, so if u do well in weekly quizzes u can not take the final. U can also use Mathematica in the final. Choose him.

Took this course during Winter 2021. This is my second math class with Professor Garfield. His PowerPoints are clear and straight to the point. The weekly quizzes all based on hw and lecture. There was no midterm. The final basically worth 2 or 3 quizzes. He also taught us some Mathematica codes, which is very useful. Choose him if you can.

Took this course during Fall 2020. Professor Garfield is probably the best professor you can have for this class. He is funny and caring. He splits the course into mini-lectures and homework that are completely manageable. The weekly quizzes are easy. There was no midterm. The final basically worth 2 or 3 quizzes. Choose him if you can.