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!
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.)
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!
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.
Do what he asked and keep up with reading assignments along with lectures, you will learn a lot of interesting facts about brain as well as pass the class. Professor Goard really cares about the students and wants them to learn. He is very straightforward with his expectations.
One of the best professors I've had for a biology class here. Lectures are easy to follow and well-organized. Concepts are clear, and he's very responsive when something in the class needs adjusting or clarification. Weekly structure is great -- there's one mandatory participation lecture, and one discussion section where you can ask questions.
Really enjoyed this class. Two asynchronous lectures a week, optional discussions, and 8 out of 10 mandatory problem sets during class. The problem sets were very helpful and graded very easily (as long as you got 50% or more you would receive credit). The only downside was that zoom meetings (discussions and problem sets) were not recorded.
Professor Goard is by far one of the best professors I've had in the Biology department. While this class is definitely lecture heavy, if you go over the material and follow along the class isn't hard at all. He definitely made a difficult subject easy to understand and appreciate! Great class and prof!!
His class has the WORST structure. You have a quiz, then lecture, and then take a group quiz on the lecture material. ALSO, for exams, first you have lecture for an hour, and then the exam includes what was covered in the lecture.... how he expects people to memorize information as it comes out of his mouth is beyond me.
Great professor, great class! Tough but I learned much more in this course than any other Biopsych UD.
Hard class but curved. A lot of reading. Would take again. Make sure to do well on reading responses and in class work, it helps in the end.
Amazing lecturer. I learned SO MUCH in this class, really interesting material. It is a difficult course but he does curve it in the end. I feel like he wanted everyone to do well. Make sure you get a good group to do the in class work with because that can make or break your grade unfortunately as he does not randomly assign groups.