Participation is extremely important in this course and Prof Bermudez will call on you if you don't volunteer. But in a condescending way and it doesn't foster an environment where students are encouraged to participate or feel they want to. TA was very nice and sections were easier. Make sure to read before every class and read very carefully.
The course syllabus is diametrically opposed to the teaching of the class. Panoptic pedagogy, Royal Spanish Academy imperialism, cultural and linguistic Eurocentrism and enlightened despotism are the professors pedagogical methods.
Silvia is the reason I am remaining a Spanish double major. She is literally one of the most amazing Spanish Department professor's who deserves the whole world. If there's one professor you should take, it's her!!! The course was really interesting and because she is so invested in the material, the class is even better!!
She's really passionate and may scare you at first but she really cares about the content of her classes and thinks it is important. She doesn't grade too hard despite how she comes off. Super chill class, basically an introduction class with little homework.
Not a hard class by any means, but she does expect you to read and participate- which is hard when the reading is dense. However, she does like to show short videos in class, and bring modern concepts into the study of Galician culture which allows you to put a lot of things into context. Two papers, a midterm, and attendance make up your grade!
She is very passionate about the subject matter, but expects a lot from her students. She is also pretty intimidating. Get ready to read A LOT. Everything about this class is based on the readings and you will have to do them because the midterm and finals are strictly based off of them. Would not recommend if you are not a native Spanish speaker.
Bermúdez is very intimidating, but if you do the reading and are prepared for class then she'll love you. She's very straight forward with what she expects. This was the first class in my college career in which I did all of the reading because I was afraid to be unprepared for class, but I consider this a good thing. I've never learned so much.
She can be intimidating but if you do what's expected of you she will respect you. A very tough grader but she will always tell you how to improve. My only issue is that both she and her TA grade the assignments (one after the other) so although you get 2 pair of eyes looking at your papers it can be tricky to sort the feedback.
Extremely intelligent and passionate. If you pay attention in class you are in for one of the best educational experiences our Spanish dept has to offer.
Great professor!!
Silvia es la mejor maestra de Espanol de UCSB. Apasionada en su trabajo, liberal y preocupada en que sus estudiantes tomen conciencia y hagan buen uso de sus inteligencias y de las inovaciones tecnologicas. Un privilegio haber tomado sus clases.
She's an amazing professor. I've taken a lot of her classes and they are always interesting. She makes everything easy to understand. She's one of the very few people that care about helping the students.By taking her classes you will notice that you're constantly becoming a better student, writer, you will constantly be improving thanks to her.
I had her twice in Span 172 and Span 110C. Three words define her: loud, eccentric, passionate. Really good professor, may be a little scary and intimidating but good overall.
She's the best spanish professor!! Loves teaching but will try and intimidate her students.
SHE IS THE BEST PROFESSOR IN THE SPANISH DEPARTMENT
She is a great professor you couldn't ask for a better one. She's a very fair teacher and is very interested in helping you understand the material so you can do well in the class. She makes any topic interesting and offers unique perspectives. I've had several courses with her Span 110 C and D as well as Span 175 and i've taken Independent studies
Ok, so yes just like everyone mentioned she does come of as somewhat mean and condescending. However, she is a great professor and very passionate about the literature. Class is pretty easy.
Every class I have ever taken with her was quite challenging. She can be very intimidating and overbearing but she truly is passionate about her field. If your ideas are well founded she will respect them. She has some liberal, feminist, pov's that might rub some people the wrong way but I found her alternative views refreshing.
GET OUT WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!! This is the WORST class I took as an undergrad. She constantly criticizes students for being lazy, stupid, etc. Not to mention that her class is SO ridiculously hard. All she does is talk! There's no outline or way to follow. I took this class with friends and we ALL hated her. Study groups turned into HATE groups.
Like already mentioned very liberal, anti-america, not helpful in class, if students dont feel like talking about the literature then she wont either, apparently its not her job to analyze the literature unless students do it first, fairly easy 2 tests and a paper, but as a person she really got under my skin
She will scare you the beginning of the class, but her classes are manageable. I got an A in this class and I only studied 2 hours before each test. Just know how to survive for this class and you will do fine
By far the worst professor I have had at UCSB. Every other professor I've had in the Spanish department has been very helpful and extremely approachable. Silvia is arrogant and condescending whenever possible. She is self-righteous and puts down students that hold different views than her own. Take something else if you can.
Incredibly arrogant, very liberal, will make you agree with her opinions if you want to pass the class. She doesn't teach. You read and are responsible for starting the discussion. I enjoyed the book and learned a lot from it, but she taught me nothing and annoyed me quite a bit.
She's engaging and funny, but her whole mantra is about trying to get you to think for yourself and she does exactly the opposite of this. She doesn't discuss opposing views, is not objective at all (VERY liberal) and makes serious generalizations about the class's intelligence and awareness of the world around them.