MY GOAT. Explains concepts great, class covers very interesting topics. Flip schedule so lecture recording before class then class is interactive q&a. Easy to Average difficulty, shouldn't be any problem for Bio majors. Goard is just so likeable.
Final curve saved me, very generous. Had heard that the class wasn't too bad and was easy, but I felt very challenged. The final was pretty hard. two midterms, he lets us have one sheet of paper with notes for those, but i didn't really think it was helpful. so much material covered, pretty hard concepts. Goard was really sweet and passionate.
Professor Janusonis was the best Professor I've ever had. He is passionate about the topics and exposes you to things you would never learn. You have to read a lot but it is worth it if you are truly interested in the brain. I am forever grateful to Dr. Janusonis for what he taught us in this course. If you want an easy A, don't take this class.
Professor Goard was really kind and the lectures are recorded while you go into class to answer iclicker questions. He would give candy to anyone who volunteered to answer a question. His curve is VERY kind. Definitely go to OH and section, if I did i would've gotten more than a C. He cares about us learning without penalizing us with bad grades.
There's only two exams. Imo the reader questions that are on the exams are very straightforward. Questions I missed were on the lecture material so make sure you attend lecture because he does mention test material that aren't explicitly stated in the slides since his slides are very minimal. Great professor to talk to in office hours! Very smart.
Assigns a proper amount of reading on important studies, but bases some assignment questions on the most obscure parts of the studies.
Prof. Goard definitely cares a lot about his students and is a very understanding person. Although he allows two pages of notes during midterms, his exams are still tricky. Lectures are recorded but once a week he holds iClicker sessions. Section attendance is not mandatory. He is really cool about crashers and waitlisted students.
Goard was fine. Lectures are online, class time is used for a "discussion" which is mostly just him zooming through slides at high speed. He is friendly and approachable, but his teaching was mediocre for me personally. You do have to read the textbook to do well on the exams. Neurobiology didn't really click for me but he tried his best.
best professor and class ever
Dr. Goard is one of the MCDB department's shining stars. It's rare to find a professor teaching an upper division biology course that actually tests on what they teach in their lectures. The class is taught in a progressive format, building neurobiological framework that leads to current research in the field at the end of the course. Recommend !!!
This is a class that needs effort, but so does everything good in life, you will need to read a bunch of research articles, some tough some easy and in class quizzes are based on it thats 1/4 of ur grade,and the MT/Final is really fair, goes over key concepts in lecture but overall the material is very satisfying to learn, very fun class!
A coding class that will require a lot of graph theory and mathematical knowledge. Not a psych class at all. We were creating fractals by code. He lectures about something completely different to the code that is needed to complete the assignments. He also lectures very quietly and it is difficult to hear. Seems like an interesting guy though
Overall, the class structure is not friendly to those who have learning disabilities (doesn't upload lecture slides, so hard to optimize taking notes as someone with a learning disability-- was asked to upload slides on gaucho space before class but refused, hard to follow along in lectures as he speeds through slides and doesn't go back, etc.)
1 midterm, 1 final grade only. Lots of articles, but not all were empirical/hard. All readings were extremely interesting. We learned about phantom limbs in the brain, Capgras delusion, and some anatomy but not much. His lectures blew my mind, but sometimes were hard to stay 100% focused. He is very respected and is a true neuroscientist.
I loved taking this class! There was a LOT of reading however the content is accessible and the testing material is made clear. Lectures were also incredibly interesting! Professor Janusonis is very considerate of his students, helpful in office hours, and an overall great professor deserving more recognition
A great professor. Lectures are very well organized and explainations are clear. You can tell he wants you to succeed and does not waste your time. You get notes for the midterm and final. TAs are great as well. He seems genuinely happy, unlike most faculty and staff at UCSB.
Michael is a very kind person and you can tell that he really loves neurobiology. His passion for the material definitely made lectures easier to watch. The material itself is difficult and tests can be tricky, however you are allowed 2 sides of notes for midterms and 4 sides for the final. He is a very good professor and I would highly recommend!
Kind man. True scientist and educator.
This class used to be very fair, but the professor LITERALLY said it was "TOO EASY" so this quarter he made it RIDICULOUS instead. They take points off of HW problems for every little thing. And despite what he says, it IS a coding class. My partner is a CS major and HE couldnt even figure out several of the problems worth a huge % of the grade
DO NOT take Psy113L with him. Even my TA said she regrets TAing for this class, and her office hours were truly the only saving grace. The prof goes out of his way to make you feel bad for emailing him. He could care less if you were kicked out on the street in the middle of the pandemic. Its unconscionable. You will hate yourself for taking it.
PSY 113L is brain cell analysis lab, an acceptable course to satisfy the biopsy lab requirement. There is no analyzing of any brain cells, the class is just a coding with a program literally no one uses. This has been the biggest disappointment and waste of my time with a condescending & belittling professor to contribute to the pain of this class.
do not take 113L if you are a psychology major at UCSB. this class was the worst most irrelevant thing I have ever experienced. it was all coding and graph theory and it never slightly related to the brain in a way that I could understand.
Hands down the most exceptional professor I have ever had at UCSB. He cares about students and teaching so much and he is beyond receptive and understanding. This class was extremely fair except for the final exam. He changed the format + harder Q's because some students were caught cheating on a MT. It was really hard and dropped my grade by A LOT
One of the best classes I've taken. Goard has an amazing personality, and encourages people to ask questions. The class structure is great. I learned so much in this class and really enjoyed it. The tests were open notes for an online class. However, I'm sure this class would have been a lot harder if it was taken in person.
