Difficult class, but very rewarding and helpful. Fair grader. Peer revision was especially rewarding since 3-4 people take home copies of your paper and make comments, then return to class and within your grp, discuss each other's papers. also found helpful the mandatory appt w/prof b4 ea. paper is due. tough class, but definitely worth it.
Gives a lot of work, and works quickly, won't kill you. LISTEN, he knows what he is talking about. He is very committed to writing, and seems to enjoy teaching very much. Acceptably hard. I'd guess the class avg. grade was a B-. BOTTOM LINE: If you want to improve as a writer, take him. If you want an easy A, don't.
a lot of assingments and somewhat helpful in office hours, interesting class discussions, includes peer editing which is very helpful, can sound really harsh when giving feedback on papers but really pushes students to improve writing, not an easy class at all.
Class was difficult, but worth it. He pushed students to improve their work and think critically ON THEIR OWN(wouldn't spoon feed you the answers in office hours). Some, other professors in the department included, claim he is a difficult grader. I, however was only a 2nd year when I took the class and was the only person to EARN an A in the class.
He's really critical and you have to keep a thick skin in his class. There's a ton of reading and lots of assignments, and he never sticks to his schedule, BUT he is a good teacher and WILL teach you something about research writing. I think I learned a lot.
yes, this guy is very challenging, one of my hardest courses, but he is very helpful. You must keep up with the readings and all the assigments or you will pay for it. Take it, if you are ready for a challenge. I may take him again, and i usually like to take the easy way out of things.
He is a bit alarming at first because he is not willing to waste ANY time, and every moment of class has a sense of urgency, but he WILL TEACH YOU how to write. There's quite a bit of HW and reading, but that is necessary for a Writ class. Class is interesting, and he is very helpful.
good teacher. may give a lot of work towards the beginning but towards the end it's not that bad. always willing to help with any questions. he knows what he's doing and he's also very entertaining
By FAR the best class I've taken at UCSB up to this point. Only class so far in my college career where a REAL and INTENSE class discussions took place. Professor is extremely sharp and funny. Don't take this class if you're a slacker. You will hate it. But if you have a brain and actually want to enjoy learning, join in. You won't regret it.
He is extremely critical and hard to get along with, but he actually does teach you a lot about writing. Do not take if you're looking for an easy class.
He is definitely a challenging professor. He expects A LOT and most of the time, your essays will not be good enough and revision is KEY. (doesnt help) I don't like his essay/response formats. However I did learn methods to writing... but it's still difficult.
He is a challenging teacher but having him as my teacher made me want to kill myslef. I came home a couple of times close to tears because he is harsh and unclear about what he really wants in a paper. Your paper basically is never going to be good enough no matter what you do.
Not an easy professor to get along with - he is arrogant and condescending but if you can impress him you're ok. I think he grades pretty fairly but he has very high standards and his own opinions he looks for in your writing. I was interested in a writing minor until I took this class.
Literally the worst professor I've ever had. He's arrogant, rude, and should not be a teacher. You'll have to revise each piece of writing at least 3 times, and no matter what you do it will never be right.
Great Prof, puts you in your place and makes you learn. Doesn't let you slack off. Take him if you want to feel like your in college.
He definitely requires his students to participate in class, which is refreshing being that most classes don't. He's very arrogant and opinionated, but he is a good teacher. I don't think he's much of a fair grader, but this was the first class where I felt like a college student.
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Challenging class. Requires significant effort. Picks on students who do not participate. Grades on improvement. Assigns incoherent reading assignments which are of no use. However, you will become a better writer. A little too fruity for my taste, but to each his own.
Arrogant and disrespectful. If you ever want to have low self-esteem he's the guy to go to. I had to take this class with him because of my work schedule, but I REALLY am looking forward to never seeing him again.
One of my favorite professors. A little stand-offish at first but very funny, warm and incredibly smart once you get to know him.His best class is magazine writing.
I thought Writing 1 was going to be pain in my butt and it turned out to be so. He is so damn hard for Writing 1. But he was very helpful in terms of helping my writing to improve. Also his materials were interesting. I'd strongly recommend him if you truly want to improve your writing or have a challenging class.
WORST TEACHER EVER HE'S NOT FRIENDLY AND NOT HELPFUL AT ALL. HE'S PERHAPS THE WORST TEACHER I'VE HAD HERE AT UCSB.
REALLY REALLY arrogant. Although this was writing for VISUAL ARTS, all we did in class was editing and reading different sentences to correct. The class was boring and he gave us no direction to do the assignments. He's a tough professor but not a nice one at all. He gives you no encouragement whatsoever and doesn't bother listening to your issues
A great writing professor, but he is a tough one. I got a B+ in his class, and I tried my best. Although he is a hard teacher, I feel that my writing really improved after taking him. Take his class if you really want to learn how to write.