Reviews for HONR238D

Information Review
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/12/2015
Rothman is a really nice professor and the class is interesting. The musicals and work she gives aren't time consuming, but it can get a little repetitive to always be watching musicals and reading 5 pages about said musical. The thing I dislike most is how harshly she grades; this is an honors course, so you would expect it, but she takes off a LOT on essays without having given you a rubric to guide you through the writing process. There aren't very many assignments, however, which is a plus. I would recommend this class if you're a strong writer, but still be wary even if you think you're amazing. I was used to As on papers and got a B on the very first paper I wrote for this class since she grades like an English teacher.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
Anonymous
06/13/2012
Okay, seriously, I made an OurUMD account just so that I could rant about Rothman. That's how much I disliked her. The class itself is interesting if, like me, you enjoy musical theatre. You can do other homework or something during the mandatory movies she makes you watch, so its not too much of a waste of time, and most of them are pretty good. The thing that I hated in this class was that you were forced to agree with her all the time in class. Protip: She loves Stephen Sondheim so much that she would go straight for him (too bad he's gay!). So if you happen to like something that she hates she will rip your response apart. Just trust me, agree with everything that crazy woman says. The only way to get out of class is to have a signed note from the health center or your doctor. Any other reason is inexcusable. And don't even think about leaving early or arriving late, even for a legitimate reason. She will take off all your participation for the day. My advice is to just try to speak once to twice a class period, never have an original opinion and have an extremely open mind. You will watch the most God-awful musical ever about this gay transsexual he/she trying to escape Berlin. It is ALARMING. Just be prepared. I got an A because I can write well and I know how to keep my mouth shut about my opinions. Good luck.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
drhsuss
05/21/2012
Dr. Rothman wants you to engage in the material and be involved in class. However, you should only take this class if you enjoy musical theater already, or want to enjoy musical theater. It's not a class that requires much thinking, as all of your homework assignments are to watch musicals and read articles, but this can take between 2-5 hours a week, depending on how many musicals are assigned. I think the grade distribution (93% A) is a bit misleading, as no one slacked off and didn't put a significant amount of time and effort into the class. That being said, I would strongly recommend this class to anyone who intends to watch musicals.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/31/2011
Prof. Rothman is a really good professor. She is genuinely interested in this course and makes it pretty fun. However, to be honest, I personally didn't like the class. Make sure that if you're signing up for HONR238D that you thoroughly enjoy musical theatre. Its a big time commitment. You have to watch 2 hour musicals twice a week. She's a pretty easy grader, but it is completely possible to get a B in this class.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
traintu
12/24/2011
Dr. Rothman is super nice, a great speaker, and a lot of fun to talk to. Make sure to show up to class everyday to get participation points (you can lost 2% for every class you miss), and make sure to have interest in musicals before signing up for this class, because it won't be awfully fun if you have zero interests. The homework generally consists of watching a musical every week, which honestly isn't stressful at all. The class consists of an in class presentation, about 3 very short papers, and a final presentation. Not too much work, but these few things do take up a bit of time, especially since their are very few guidelines for these assignments. Also their is a lot of extra credit available!
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
mreese
05/07/2011
I have mixed feelings about Dr. Rothman and this class. Overall, I would recommend 238D for anyone who really enjoys musical theatre or needs a seminar and an HA, but there are a couple things that prevent me from giving her five stars. Yes, the semiweekly homework is usually watching a musical and reading a couple articles. But these musicals aren't selected for being good or fun to watch; they're chosen for representing topics discussed in class. And when they aren't fun to watch, they're obnoxious timesinks if you want to do well on the quizzes. Dr. Rothman tends to ask a couple pretty specific questions on each one. The worst part of the class is the big assignments. Dr. Rothman isn't very good at having clear expectations for presentations and papers, and the assignments themselves are surprisingly boring. They include a presentation on an assigned musical, a "process paper" about your research on the musical, a review of a live musical, and the final. The final is kind of strange, the only things she requires you do are write another "process paper" and present for 15 minutes. How you present your musical is entirely up to your group. Maybe I'm just a whiny engineering major, but this kind of work thoroughly upsets me. The only thing I sort of had fun with was the review. Seriously, what the hell is a process paper? None of this stuff contributes to my understanding of musical theatre. Negativity aside, the class discussions were generally quite interesting, and Dr. Rothman is funny and enthusiastic. 20 points of extra credit (to 500 total class points) can be earned in a number of ways. She's also very caring, I went to a scheduled "office hour" with none of the work I was supposed to have and she played therapist for a while instead of being annoyed with me.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/07/2010
I LOVE Professor Rothman! She is absolutely hilarious and very knowledgeable about theatre! Her enthusiasm makes the class fun and interesting. HONR238D took up a fair bit of time outside of class (watching musicals) but a homework assignment to watch a movie is always fine in my books! If you enjoy theatre then you will definitely enjoy her class, and you most likely will not find it difficult. She really cares about her classes, offers a lot of extra credit, and is just generally a fun professor.
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
amy
12/26/2009
Best class I have ever taken! Dr. Rothman is funny, super nice, and knows what she is talking about. You get easy extra credit (10 points for dressing up for Halloween) and your homework is basically watching musicals. The quizzes can be a little tough, but you'll do fine if you pay attention during the movie. The only quizzes I did badly on were the ones where I barely paid attention and only wikipedia'd the plot. There's also extra credit on all the quizzes. You have a couple of presentations and papers, and you have to go see two shows, but it's really not a big deal. As long as you put in a little bit of time (and start your papers early--don't do it the night before or you'll be up til 6 am), you're likely to get an A. Dr. Rothman is honestly the best, and this class was super interesting and really really fun! I looked forward to every class. Take it!!!!
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A+
Pugluvr291
12/24/2009
Absolutely amazing professor! She cares about all her students and makes the class extremely fun and interesting. Class is almost entirely discussion based, but that is part of what made it so engaging. Dr. Rothman is very knowledgeable and fun. You will learn a lot from this class. Ignore that bad ratings of her because she is one of the best teachers there is. This class requires a good deal of time, but it is worth every minute. If you don't love musicals at the beginning of the class, you will love them by the end!! TAKE THIS CLASS!!! You will LOVE it!!!!
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting a B
nosnibor
12/23/2009
I put more time into this class than I did into orgo 2!! This class generally requires about 6 hours of time each week outside of class watching musicals and reading about them. Also, 2% of your grade will be taken away for every class period you miss (or even if you show up late). Her papers require you to follow strict 5 paragraph format with annotated bibliographies (like middle/high school). The only good point about the class was that it got me HA and D core credits. And a word of advice, DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU AREN'T INTERESTED IN THEATER
Korey Rothman
HONR238D

Expecting an A
metchison9191
12/14/2009
Dr. Rothman is the best teacher ever!!! She made the class really fun and she always has the best stories! From Hair to Hairspray will definitely be my favorite class my whole time here at Maryland. Most of your homework is watching musicals and reading articles about them. You have a quiz on every musical, but if you watched it, you'll do fine. She has an extra credit question on every quiz also. You have class discussions on the musical every class, which are very open. I always felt comfortable talking, and I used to hate seminars. You have a presentation on one of the musicals and you have to go see two shows, and a few papers. There's no final for the class. You have to come up with an original idea for a musical and pitch it to the class in groups. There's also a lot of other extra credit opportunities. We got ten points for dressing up like a character from a musical for Halloween. Seriously, just take this class. It's awesome and it counts for two CORE credits (HA and D)