I loved this class and prof. She was super nice and organized when lecturing. Assignments only include pre-section and post section reflection (400-600 words) four times in the quarter, a midterm essay, and final essay. This was a super easy class that just required minimal effort, but still very interesting. I truly recommend it.

Loveee love loved Prof Martin!!! Never been disappointed by UCSB's ES department and she is not an exception! Super cool and very passionate about environmental justice

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.

Very kind professor who cares about her students and takes the time to give positive feedback where it is due. I hope that I can take a class with Prof. Martin again before I graduate.

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.

She speaks so slowly. Her lectures, although somewhat interesting, are incredibly boring. Her TA's lead the mandatory sections and are super helpful but also extremely tough graders. This class is a quarter-long research project where you can get advice from TA's and prof, but otherwise there is not a lot of structure to the project.

Jen Martin is a great professor and ES 40 is an easy class.

Lectures are sometimes repetitive, but interesting. Martin really wants students to do well and is really student oriented. Not a lot of work outside of the final project which is very freeform. I enjoyed this class, but wouldn't take it if I didn't have to for my major.

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.