Reviews for HONR269E

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Dorith Grant-Wisdom HONR269E Expecting an A Anonymous 01/26/2012	Pretty boring class. Just like every honors seminar. The readings aren't even necessary. I read the first two and blew them off the rest of the way and did fine. If you choose not to do the readings you just have to stand out by being vocal and actively participating in the discussion. Though we disagreed with pretty much everything, she respects you if you bring intelligent points up and that goes a long way in determining how you do in the course. The subject matter is really mundane. I walked out of the course still wondering what I really learned and gained other than an easy A. She's really nice though and is always enthusiastic about the class each day and does say some thought provoking things. 2 5-7 page papers, and a 12-15 page final paper. Some quizzes scattered throughout on the readings, but I feel like they weren't even worth much of the grade.
Dorith Grant-Wisdom HONR269E Expecting an A Anonymous 11/21/2011	Great professor, intelligent, knowledgeable, engaging, and just plain nice! Take this class if you want to learn a lot but without the tedious BS of most other seminars.
Dorith Grant-Wisdom HONR269E Expecting an A Anonymous 11/02/2011	Grant-Wisdom is such a good professor. If you're in the class for just the grade, don't take her class, you won't learn anything. Her teaching style is different from your average professor at the University of Maryland. She tries to engage you to think beyond what's given to you or implied. She tries to open your eyes to subjects that we are generally unaware of. She tries to give you an education that is beyond memorizing terms and taking exams. She truly wants people to learn. Her papers are about 5-7 pages and there are pop quizzes (30% of the grade) and a debate as well as a 10-12 page paper at the end. If you actually try and DO THE READINGS, you will get a good grade. She has a tendency to not believe students when they say they have read. However, if you show her that you have by participating and even bringing in your own experiences and thinking on a "different level," she will enjoy your company and this helps with grading. The paper topics are usually very general but she provides a series of questions that can guide you through writing them. If you answer all the questions and REFER TO THE IN CLASS READINGS, you should do very well. Reading is very important for her, so definitely do it. Also, there are in-class presentations that the students do every class period. If you take this class, don't make it boring for your classmates. Include questions, images and video. Bring in your own stuff. She is very intelligent with a liberal perspective and she loves to rack people's brains with difficult questions. She doesn't answer them for you which is why some may think she doesn't understand questions, but she wants you to think, not to rely on her for your education. Don't be mad at her for making you think. Lastly, keep up with the news and current events. It helps you as a person understand the world better and also helps you understand the concepts.
Dorith Grant-Wisdom HONR269E Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/28/2011	Piss-poor professor. She's angry, unintelligent and uninspired. Her lectures are mind-numbingly dull and her interaction with the class in mandatory (and wholly unfruitful) discussion periods are just as bad. She often fails to understand questions and comments and regularly responds (and often interrupts) with emphatic non-sequiturs. Lectures vacillate between student presentations (boring), her own crude powerpoint-driven lectures (yawn) and lengthy discussion that she expects to shake us from our collective dogmatic slumber (which might actually work if we didn't have the natural curiosity of students with more intelligence than a sack of bricks). The class requires two 5-7 page papers, a 10-12 page final paper, a presentation of one of the readings and an in-class debate. In short, it's a lot of grunt work for a class from which you aren't going to learn much anyway. The readings (and there are many!) are rather dry, but you'd better read them well them because she enjoys giving pop quizzes. Grading is based on how much she thinks you care. If it's obvious you don't pay attention in class (she watches like a hawk) then your paper grades will suffer. If you decide to shape up and somehow get her to notice, you can crap on a stick and she'll give you a decent grade. Don't take this class, and don't take her.
Dorith Grant-Wisdom HONR269E Expecting an A Anonymous 12/14/2010	Teaches as if you know both philosophy and all fundamentals of all governments around the world. The readings are long and tedious but you really don't have to do them if you know the subject well enough to discuss it in class. Really easy grader and you basically are guaranteed an A if you talk in class and put effort into the essays and presentations. No exams. Basically the class is easy to get an A in but you will feel like you really have accomplished nothing in the class because every class you just talk in circles.