If you attend lecture and do all of the homework, then you should have no problem passing the class. I would also recommend taking CLAS if it is confusing for you at first. Bigelow is a wizard!
He's a hilarious guy and is loved by students. His lectures are good but I found his explanations a bit confusing. You get an A as long as you understand the basics of basics of the class. So the tests are really easy. Wish I could have got a bit more out of the class though.
Bigelow gave great lectures w examples to reinforce the core skills that he expected you to know for the tests. The tests were straight forward and you'll do well as long as you understand examples from the notes. Bigelow held three office hour sessions per week and was more than happy to answer any clarification questions. Awesome teacher!
Pretty straightforward teacher, and I imagine one of the easiest math professors at UCSB. His tests are pretty straight forward, but you'll have to do more than the homework to be prepared for them. His homework doesn't prepare you at all for his tests, so don't think that you can just do the homework and not study a lot and be ready to do well.
One of the best math professors I've taken thus far. Ended up with an A by doing the following: doing MyMathLab hw (worth the investment, his hw is too short!), allowing myself to miss a couple lectures (slides are posted online), and CLAS (cannot exaggerate how helpful this is). I also felt like the book was pretty useless. Anyways, TAKE HIM!
Bigelow puts all his lectures online which really helps. Allows a 3x5 card for 2 midterms and final exam. Clas helps you do well in the Clas. He made his tests pretty straightforward. Gives a little bit of HW, not enough to master topics.
He knows we just want to memorize procedures and gtfo, so his tests let you get away with that. Pretty easy class. Funny guy. Somewhat unclear in lecture if you actually want to understand.
Best math teacherprofessor I have ever had. So hilarious and really loves math. Just go to lecture and take good notes and you will be fine. The midterms are fair and there are no tricks- everything is pretty straightforward.
He is a wizard
Two midterms and a final. iClicker points won't help you. Homework is sparse (5-8 problems every two weeks, ish) and nothing at all like his tests. The tests are purely theoretical. He tries to jump into theory before actually teaching you what a matrix is (typically it's the opposite). He's funny though, and an A on the final is an A in the class.
This class is really simple. All the exams were easy and straight to the point. I attend lecture and CLAS but I don't think CLAS was necessary. He is a good teacher in lecture and office hours. Highly recommend you take Bigelow the math wizard of Campbell Hall!!
I love this professor!
lectures and tests are straight forward, nice professor and helps to go to office hours
Hard class, wonderful professor. Dr. Bigelow is one of the most helpful professors on campus. Make sure to go to his office hours as he will often go above and beyond to help you learn the material. Teaching style is very straight forward, but this is much preferred to some professors that jump all over the place. Happy I took this class with him.
Bigelow's 4A class was an easy A. As long as you attend (and pay attention to) his lectures, they are clear and easy to understand. Both the midterm and the final were very straightforward (you are also allowed a note-card). The WebWork is insanely easy. Bigelow answers questions very clearly and is approachable. Great professor!
The online lecture notes were extremely helpful when studying for the exams. Make sure to go to CLAS and sections. (Miss 2 sections and your grade goes down half a grade A-->A-) Midterms got 85%, then 100%. Final 95%. Straightforward test questions just know the basics he doesnt try to trick you.
I thought he was a pretty good teacher. As the quarter progressed, I felt I adjusted more to his teaching style. Make sure you sit in the front of the class because it is easy to get distracted in the big class. Math 4A was generally easy and tended to be a repetition of the same concepts but with different vocabulary names. Tests are very easy!!
Professor Bigelow is definitely one of the better math teachers on campus. He's hard to understand sometimes and is usually not clear during his lectures. He's a sweet man, though! Midterms were easy-got As on both. Final was basically the same format as the midterms but x2. Easy A as long as you go to CLAS and attend your sections regularly.
Easy class especially if you have done matrices/vertices in the past. (Or taking ENGR 3 at the same time). However, due to the class size (650+), he was unclear and hard to comprehend during lectures. His homework and iclicker questions should be the key to his tests. Good teacher, compared to the reputation of the other math teachers at UCSB.
Very smart and passionate. Go to lecture and pay attention to pass. Tests are easy and mimic the Webwork/iClicker questions. TAs are helpful as well. You should have no problem passing if you put in an ounce of effort.
Has absolutely no idea what he is doing. Ended up skipping more than half the lectures. Only thing that got me to pass the class was CLAS.
Hes really funny and i like going to his class
He must be part computer or something, because his lectures are robotic, boring, and borderline useless. His only emotions seem to be condescension and derision. Does not care about students or if they are learning the material. Has hard iClicker questions and then does a terrible job explaining them, if at all. Avoid avoid avoid!
He is by far the best prof in math department, super helpful! must went to his OH! i didn't do well on midterms but I worked really hard and went to his OH all the time, eventually got a A+ ;)