MATH113 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 11/19/2024	MATH113 should be an easy class but this professor makes it soooo hard. The workload is kind of ridiculous, but she does give you enough time to get it done although it does pile up and can be a lot if you try to cram it. The homework questions (on a website called ALEKS) are so hard and the assignments take forever. The examples she gives in class and the quizzes are way too easy and do not prepare you well for the tests or the homework. I take notes in class and sometimes they barely help with the homework. The worksheet answers are given on ELMS, so if you miss a step or get a question on the worksheet wrong, you get a 50 or a 0. She is extremely unforgiving. During class, she says "you should already know this" or "this is easy" a LOT. She posts practice exams for the tests which definitely help for preparation and are really similar to the test. There are discussions every Wednesday, and that is where the quizzes are taken. A lot of people only show up near the end of the discussion, when the quiz is handed out. Attendance isn't mandatory for the lecture or discussions. She is a nice person and apparently her office hours are really helpful, but her way of explaining things and her workload just doesn't work for me and for a lot of others. She is the only professor available for MATH113, so if you can take 115 I would recommend that. If she isn't avoidable, it is a doable course, but takes a lot of outside learning from tutors, friends, TAs, etc.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 11/18/2024	I personally do not think this class is hard at all. Maybe I am too good at math. I have always been good at math but everything in this class i learned in middle school and high school. I could literally skip lectures and not watch the recordings and still do good on the exam. I personally do not understand how some people are struggling in this class. I do agree that the workload is a little too much but even then she assigns the ALEKS assignments 6 days in advance and I have always finished all of them on time.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a D+ Anonymous 11/15/2024	She seems very nice, and I will say while she does have a french accent I can still understand her. However: I think it’s a combination of the course and her teaching, but this is absolutely the hardest college course I have taken thus far. I am a transfer student and this is my first semester at UMD, and this class alone has made me want to dropout. The amount of content total and amount that you are expected to absorb each day just feels so unattainable to me. math is definitely not my strong suit, and I haven’t done algebra or trig in years, but barbara’s teaching style definitely didn’t help. from my perspective she sort of just wrote the problem on the board and that was it. she said a lot things like “you already know how to do this” like from highschool, but doesn’t even give an overview or say at all how it’s done. There are also SO MANY ASSIGNMENTS. an exit ticket every single class (you have like 3-5 mins) a quiz once a week (i kid you not you have like 5 mins) as well as occasional worksheets, 4 exams, and weekly aleks assignments that are typically 30-50 ish questions in total. If i were to take this class over again (hoping to everything i won’t have to) i would be sure to have a light course load along side it. having this class with a full course load has made me sewerslideal <3
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/14/2024	she's a nice lady but oml she can't teach (Im definitely not finishing this semester with a A)
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 11/14/2024	Avoid this class at all costs!!! I am definitely biased because I hate math but I think even my classmates who liked math in this class also dreaded it. There are lengthy online homework assignments (called ALEKS) that are supposed to be review of the course material but to me did not make any sense (some of it was not even taught). I spent almost every spare hour I had in office hours trying to re-learn everything, and oftentimes left there just feeling even more confused. I also attended every single class and discussion and left each one stressed and confused. It might depend on your TA though but my TA's were awful and were not good at explaining things at all. Professor Michelato is nice and you can tell she cares about the course content and has been doing this a while. However, she has no sympathy like if you do badly on a test she will just tell you to study more for next time. She just cares that you pass the class even if that means a C. The are 3 exams- they are fair and are similar to the study guides and review sheets she makes. She also posts the old exams for you to review. To do well on the exams I would recommend studying literally ALL of the material she provides you with. To be honest, if I could do it all again I wouldn't. I would try to re-take the math placement exam and score higher to be placed in a higher class. Or I would find an equivalent class at a local community college or something and take the course through there...
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 11/13/2024	She's the worst professor I've ever had. She doesn't give +/—, so if you get, for example, an 89% in the class, you get a B. She's also normally the only teacher for MATH113, so take it at community college or skip it entirely. I would give 0 stars if I could.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 mangopichu 11/13/2024	She's honestly not that bad of a teacher, she just focuses more on what she wrote rather than the class understanding what she's saying.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 11/13/2024	She is a chill professor, if you study you'll pass, if you're gonna drop it please do before mid october to not waste your time.
Karen McLaren MATH113 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 08/14/2024	Professor McLaren was an awesome professor! She was always prepared for class and was very thorough in her instruction. She always paused throughout the lecture to answer any questions as they came up (including private messages in the Zoom chat), and she was always willing to stay afterwards to answer individual questions. She was also very responsive to email, which I really appreciated as well. I always felt equipped to do any homework assignment or assessment, and I think that is largely due to how well Professor McLaren taught the material. The XYZ homework was a great resource because it allowed me to really grasp the concepts we were learning, and if I needed more help, I could watch a help video or see a similar example problem. Also, the weeklong deadlines for homework and assessments really eased the pressure for me of trying to rush through the assignments to make a deadline (although I did try as best as possible to keep up with the pace and not save all the homework assignments for the weekend). I don't really have any changes for this course- I really appreciated the virtual format as it was very convenient and accommodating with my schedule. One of the best decisions I've made to take this class over the summer.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 08/12/2024	J is a great professor, he is lenient and understands his students. The course itself is challenging and takes time but if you stick to the deadlines and have open communication with J you should be able to pass! The homework is very extensive and tedious but nothing unbearable. If you need to pass this class as a Gen Ed I HIGHLY recommend J as your professor and HIGHLY recommend taking this course during the summer because the only professor available in the fall and spring is not as great.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 08/12/2024	For it being a fast paced course over the summer professor J does a good job of teaching and reviewing concepts however it can be a lot as you are learning a new concept every day. There is a lot of work but he is flexible with deadlines and is a very nice person who is kind and wants to help you. The exams make up a very large portion of your final grade but he does drop one midterm which is nice. I would recommend taking this class with him as your professor overall.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 08/10/2024	Great professor! He made sure to go through each math problem thoroughly and ensured that if we had any questions to reviewed parts we didn't understand. Provided lots of extra office hours throughout the week. His exams and quizzes were fair as well, and overall was a reasonable class for a fast-paced semester.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 08/10/2024	Professor J is helpful with his students. Answers all the questions and goes back over any problems anybody is confused on whenever they ask Responds in a timely manner to all emails I've sent and very understanding. Workload can be pretty tedious with multiple deadlines throughout the week with multiple sections each being around 30-40 questions, but that's to be expected in a 6-week summer course. Has some slip ups here and there but over all a good professor.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 08/10/2024	J is a great teacher. Just wish quizzes weren’t timed. He’s very understanding when it comes to life and assignments as well. Expected to end with a B+/A-.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 08/10/2024	J is a phenomenal instructor he's very organized and makes content easy to understand by using real life examples which is awesome! Also, he's lenient, understanding, and flexible when it comes to students, which I love as a student who was not only taking classes in the summer but also working. Also, he post notes online if you can't attend Zoom which is great because then you won't have to go to office hours to ask what was completed. However, in this class you CANNOT TAKE THIS COURSE AND TREAT IT LIKE ITS NOTHING. You have to make sure to take a couple hours out of your day to complete the assignments since you have 2-4 math lab sections due, multiple quizzes worth 15% of your grade, worksheets and of course 3 midterms worth 45% of your grade, and 1 final worth 32% of your grade. However, J does drop 1 of your lowest midterms, and 3 of your lowest quizzes. Also, his office hours are everyday which was helpful since I attended a couple. IF YOU PUT IN THE TIME AND EFFORT FOR THIS CLASS YOU WILL DO WELL! Overall, I found out relatively quickly that J cares about his students and wants them to succeed in everything they do. Also, he'll find anyway possible to help his students succeed which ALOT OF PROFESSORS OR INSTRUCTORS DON'T DO! There are ONLY 2 MATH PROFESSORS I KNOW THAT REALLY WANTS THEIR STUDENTS TO SUCCEED and JERMAINE IS ONE OF THEM! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU TAKE THIS CLASS IN THE SUMMER WITH JERMAINE! THANK YOU J FOR BEING THE BEST MATH PROFESSOR! YOU ARE THE PROFESSOR THAT COLLEGE STUDENTS WISH FOR, BUT SOMETIMES DON'T GET! I AM SO HAPPY I DECIDED TO TAKE THIS CLASS, DEFINITELY A GREAT EXPERIENCE! AS I SAID IF YOU CAN HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU TAKE THIS CLASS WITH SPECIFICALLY JERMAINE HE IS A GEM AND ONE OF A KIND!
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 08/07/2024	J is a great instructor when it comes to visuals and presentation. His lesson organization for trigonometry and algebra is great and easy to follow. He follows a good pace when it comes to taking notes and reading the content. He answers questions attentively and listens to student needs in and out of class. Taking this course online is a bit challenging, but he is present in office hours and always open and responsive to emails.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 06/13/2024	awful professor. don't take this class if you can. she is an awful teacher, and I write this as someone who has historically been good at math.
Nick Forman MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 05/21/2024	HIS LAST NAME DOESN'T HAVE AN "E," IN IT. Nick is really sweet, knowledgeable and helpful. If you ask a question he'll answer it, and if you don't get it the first time he'll explain it another way and will even ask questions to make sure he understands your question. I love his sense of humor and you can tell that he genuinely cares about us. He also hosted 2 hr review sessions before the exams which we were all grateful for. He also responds to emails in a timely fashion and grades quickly. You'll see that I withdrew from the class and that was because I was failing due other outside things happening in my life that had nothing to do with Nick like getting into a car accident and poor time management lol
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/17/2024	Do anything in your power to avoid this class. I strongly encourage you to take MATH115 if possible. This professor does not care if everyone is failing. The average final exam grade was 54% and she will not curve. I consider myself good at math and this is the first time I have felt like a math class was difficult. If you have her STUDY. She is extremely unforgiving and will not admit that she is the problem.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/16/2024	Okay, if you have previous knowledge about pre-calc, or are extremely good at math then you will do fine, but if not you will struggle. Her lectures aren't the worst it's just that she sometimes makes constant mistakes with basic arithmetic. Her grading is not on a curve even despite the 50-60% average in the class she will not adjust. She is a nice person, but I do think she blames her students for why they fail despite the fact that a majority of the class has done less than ideal in the class. My biggest warning as someone who originally thought she was going to get an A, and now has a B is that the final exam is very long and doesn't feel the same as the other exams. So study extra hard for that one. overall I would avoid if there is better but if not then try the class and see how you feel.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/12/2024	Mrs. Michelato is the sweetest! She is super nice, though the course can definitely be difficult. It can be tricky if you do not know the basics of the content coming in. I am not great at math but came in knowing the basics of the course from high school classes, and I did just fine! Barbara's teaching methods were definitely not great, but the homework (ALEKS) in my opinion were amazing, and so I was able to teach myself so much of it. I did a lot of the homework during class because it would go along with the lecture notes, and to me that was very helpful. Hence, outside of class I would spend maybe 30 minutes to an hour doing homework a week. If you have to take this class, just make sure you know the best ways of teaching yourself work sometimes, whether it's through YouTube videos, homework assignments, etc. She provides so many old exams that you can go through which is a 10/10 as well.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/07/2024	She teaches with almost entirely examples in class, so going to lecture is pretty necessary for this course. The content isn't hard but its just alot in a pretty short period of time. Lots of homework BUT she offers so much practice and it's a great way to pad your grade. Exams are okay, I got around a 85-95 on each midterm with a pretty significant amount of studying. If you come to class and do your assignments you'll be fine. The people who complain abt this prof are literally just lazy
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 04/28/2024	I placed math 140, but took this class to fulfill a requirement. I stopped going to class when I realized she wasnt the best teacher and since for me it was review I just learned everything on youtube. Many people fail the exams because she doesnt explain things properly to them as well as grades every minute thing on the test. The first exam although all my answers were right I didnt get a 100% because of the grading. There are also no curves, extra credit, or grace. If you need to take her, use the "files of the day" video, slides, and youtube to teach yourself.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 04/15/2024	Such a waste of time taking this class. I dropped it halfway into the semester when I realized I would never get my grade up because of how hard the homework and tests were. She really doesn't care if anyone is failing the class and she'll just tell you to go to office hours and talk to the TA. Unfortunately, she is the only professor for MATH113 but I would 100% avoid at all costs.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 04/09/2024	Barbara does not know how to teach math. When our exam averages are 40-50%, she blames US and does not try to help us succeed. Majority of the students in this course are failing, and instead of helping us, she assigns homework that takes 4+ hours and isn't on the exam. If you do not have to take Math113, then DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. Multiple people in my class have brought this issue up with the math department and they continue to say that they are working on this issue, but nothing has been done. Barbara is a raging joke. She deserves to be fired.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 04/08/2024	Worst professor I've ever had. Her accent alone is reason enough for her to be fired. But she assigned exorbitant amounts of work, and didn't give us time to prepare for exams. Her exams also deviated from her review guides and so we were basically set up for failure. I had to drop her class. Avoid taking her class if you can. She's quite literally the worst. I would give her negative 2 stars if I could. Least accommodating professor I've ever had.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 04/04/2024	Please avoid at all costs. Lectures are pointless and the homework does not help at all. The quizzes and exit tickets she gives are easy but not a reflection of what will be on the exams which is misleading when studying. There is no extra credit or curves even though the exams average at a 50%.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 04/03/2024	If I could give 0 stars I would. Math has typically been my strong suit, but this time, I'm really struggling. She is hard to follow and not clear in her explanations. I found that I did better when I stopped attending lectures and taught myself. It's the worst class I've ever taken. She lacks empathy and doesn't prepare us for exams, which heavily impact our grades. If possible, avoid taking her class.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 03/31/2024	Please do not take this class. I have always been good at math and never have struggled. When I took her class, I made a mistake. She moves very fast through the lectures and doesn't explain anything. Many tests average around 50-60% and have no makeup or curves. Everyone in the class is falling right now, even those who are good at math.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 03/21/2024	The class average was 56%, and she blamed it on us and took no feedback. There is no extra credit, curving, or makeups. Even if your good at math, do not expect to pass
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 03/06/2024	Worst professor I have ever had. Moves way too fast in lectures and doesn't explain anything at all. The quizzes and homeworks are missleading as the exams are way harder and test scores reflect that. Average exam scores will be in the low 50s and she will not curve at all. UMD needs to fire her, not really sure how she got a job in the first place. She seems nice but doesn't know how to teach or care about her students at all. AVOID this class at all costs. TRUST ME.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 01/24/2024	If you can avoid to take this class with her, DO IT!!!! She really doesn’t know how to teach and there’s moments where she expects you to already know what to do. She goes fast paced and can even make mistakes as she goes. She does give a huge amount of homework on ALEKS and it’s just a stressful overall. The TA I had taught me more than the professor.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 01/01/2024	She's a good person, but is a bad professor. Her lectures are so pointless. She doesn't know how to explain things correctly, and her TA's are equally as terrible. I stopped wasting my time going to her lectures and began teaching myself instead with the ALEKS program you have to use for the course. Unfortunately, she's the only professor for MATH113, so luckily I got to drop her course in time and retook my math placement and tested into a higher math. If you're taking the course, I sincerely pray for you.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/25/2023	I honestly don’t understand why she has such a low rating, I personally felt like she was a good instructor. She gives u enough time to do the hw, but it is a lot for a week. She’s really nice and prepares you enough for the quizzes and exams.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/23/2023	You all are dragging for sure, these reviews are so dramatic lol. I am not at all a math wiz and was genuinely terrified walking into this class after reading her reviews, but this class was easy to succeed in. Professor Michelato was kind and her accent was not difficult to understand in the slightest. I will say that even though lectures are not mandatory, you'll likely be lost if you miss one class because barely anything covered in lecture is posted on Canvas. Try to make a friend in that class in case you miss a day so that you're able to catch up. Her teaching style is not what I'm used to, and she occasionally makes small errors in her work, but as long as you're attentive and take good notes you'll be fine. It's truly up to you if you do well in the class or not. There is a lot of time-consuming homework on ALEKS, but it's doable, although they are graded on accuracy. There are detailed examples on each of the questions, and in total, you have nine chances to get a single problem right. The questions on there are harder than what you'll be tested on, but it's still really easy to get 100% as your homework grade. There were 11 quizzes containing the content we learned the week prior. Most of them were taken during discussion, and we typically reviewed the content right before taking it. The questions were very easy, and your three lowest quiz grades were dropped. There weren't any make-ups for the quizzes, so if you missed one, it'd be a zero. I'd say try to be at all discussions so you have more leniency to mess up on a quiz rather than miss it due to absence. As for her tests, Professor Michelato posts a hefty amount of material to review. There are 3 midterms and one final, which is cumulative. There are around 4 or so former tests per exam for you to practice with. All of them were helpful, but the more recent exams were way more similar to the actual exam as opposed to something that's from 2017. I'd say the best studying you could do for these exams is to continuously do the practice exams. Just don't wait until the night before to cram since the exams do cover a lot of content (4 double-sided pages.) I'm telling you all, you will be fine. Just put in time and effort and you can definitely make the grade!!
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a D Anonymous 12/22/2023	This lady cannot speak English well enough to teach a college level math course. She is sweet and nice but cannot successfully prepare her students for the exams. The home work is just a bunch of Aleks assignments.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/18/2023	Barb's class is an interesting one. Her format of teaching is not bad, however, most of the issues develop because of her grading scale. You have three midterms and a final. Each of the 3 midterms are 15%, making up 45% of your grade. The final is worth 25% of your grade as well. If you pass those, you will pass the class. There are 8 counted quizzes as well that will total 15% of your grade and for me were easy grades. If you pay attention and take good notes you should be fine. I am not the best test taker and because of my text anxiety screwed up my first midterm giving me a bad start, but its definitely possible to get an A or high B. She's getting a 3 because of her grading scale along with the fact that she can be careless at times. I had a student vomit during class, the fire alarm go off three different times, and tech issues frequently throughout the semester and she does whatever it takes to continue to teach class.
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/18/2023	The other reviews are right - he’s one of the better college professors and math teachers I’ve had. Just do all the homework on schedule (there’s a lot and you have to keep pace) and ask questions if you need help. It’s easy to fall behind but he’ll help you, especially if you take initiative.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/17/2023	NOT AS BAD AS YOU THINK!!! I promise I will tell you everything you need to know to pass this class, coming from a freshman student that is awful at math and low-key cheated in math all through highschool. First couple weeks are a slap in the face. 1-3 aleks assignments given per class (I had class tuesday and thursday), quiz every discussion although you can miss three, lectures are NOT posted and instruction is on a chalk board. I really really hated the chalk board, do not come to class late or you will surely be lost. Aleks does a great job at concreting what you learn in class and is typically more helpful than how we learn things in class sometimes. Barbara does go very fast but it really isn't her fault she has so many units to cover. GO.TO.OFFICE.HOURS. I went every week and it helped so so much. No one really goes and I would almost get an hour to myself to go over the practice quizzes, aleks, etc. She does not give study guides, however she makes files with units you should cover, practice exams, and practice worksheets. I could have gotten As on all my exams but i just ended up making dumb mistakes which led to my B in the class. I was scared shitless reading these reviews but yall she is really not as bad as you think. You will be doing a lot of independant studying, make flashcards your friend and ask questions. You will survive!
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 12/16/2023	IF I COULD GIVE NEGATIVE STARS I WOULD!!! Terrible professor, she does not care about you as a student at all and will let you know. She will constantly remind you she has better things to do and that you are the least of her problems. Not understanding at all, talks too fast, makes fun of you if you don't understand and overall makes learning simple math very very very difficult. If you put in a lot of time outside of her class and study, you could pass but do not expect to do well in this class if you are not naturally gifted with math.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2023	She was good but had a fast pace in lectures. Her explanations were helpful but she only went over them once maybe twice so make sure to pay attention if you want to understand the material. Most of the material I taught myself as the software they use, ALEKS, was very helpful. Her study guides for exams are almost exactly like the exams so this was great for preparing myself for midterms. If you take her class, just try and you'll pass pretty easily.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/16/2023	UMD needs to fire her. She's not even qualified to teach, just reads her answers off of a paper and makes mistakes FREQUENTLY.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W sch1ar 12/14/2023	I actually dropped her class when I was able to since personally, I felt like the class wasn't worth it in the long run. I decided I'd study on my own for the math placement test and I did better. MATH113 does not give you any credit so taking it is basically a waste of time. she does have an accent, and it's ok to understand, she can be a little condescending when answering questions and when teaching she does it as if someone's rushing her. she'd always say "easy, right?" which got annoying. Overall, everyone is different she's a good professor, very smart, but not for me
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/14/2023	Absolutely awful. I cannot even begin to explain to you how useless Michelato is at her job. She assigns outrageous amounts of homework on aleks and separate worksheets that are tedious and not helpful at all, she gives you a 5 question quiz every week that is the easiest thing in the world, but all that does is lure you into a false sense of security as the exams are very very difficult and are never curved. She will also make mistakes on her work that the students actually have to correct her on. She also ignores questions often and doesn't respond to any emails. I learned better from my TA in my weekly discussion that was 50 minutes long than I did from Michelato's twice a week lecture that lasts an hour and fifteen minutes. She goes way too fast and teaches off of a piece of paper. Retake the math placement test if you can because for me there was no other way to avoid her as she was the only one teaching this class this semester. Absolutely AVOID AT ALL COSTS!!
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/13/2023	Professor Michelato was really nice and helpful to my learning all semester. For every topic, she provided a ton of material to practice with. She does teach kind of fast, but if you ask questions or ask her to slow down a little, she will. All of her assignments and lectures are organized and easy to follow for the most part. Every exam is proceeded by a helpful review and many practice materials. You know exactly what will be on the tests, because she tells you. My only gripe is that for discussion quizzes, you are unable to make it up if you miss one, but she drops the worst 3. They are super easy fr and if you pay attention during discussion right before, then you will be fine. Be prepared for a heavy Italian accent, however she is very easy to understand. I have no idea how she has such bad reviews, but I knew I would like her since syllabus week.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 12/13/2023	Nice lady but doesn't know how to teach at all nor does she care how her students are doing. Avoid this class and professor if you can.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 12/13/2023	Class was extremely fast paced, and work load was ridiculous for the level and content of the class. Little sympathy for failing students or those that are struggling. Poor communication with TA's. Little opportunity to raise your grade if you did poorly on a test (despite averages in the D range). Weekly quizzes are easy, but not a good reflection of the tests or other major grades. Just redo the placement exam or take the class at a community college.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 12/11/2023	Taking Professor Michelato was just a terrible decision I made. If you can take literally any other professor do it. Although her lectures are completely terrible to follow, her course process is just awful. I learned everything by teaching myself and through ALEKS assignments. During her lectures it lowkey feels like she thinks you already know the material and she just talks to herself. It gets extremely confusing at times. She does not record lectures or upload lecture notes. So if you missed lectured you're fukkd. If you're not good at math please do not take her and suffer. Theres a quiz every week, which aren't terrible but they do have an effect on your grade. IF YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE HER, go to office hours or get tutoring, I have only barely survived because all my friends are in like extremely advanced classes. SAVE YOURSELF AND DONT TAKE HER. SHE HAS ZERO MERCY FOR HER STDUDENTS. She literally has no curves, extra credit, retakes, or make ups. If i don't get a C+ in her final i have to re take the flipping class. SAVE YOURSELF.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/10/2023	not willing to go through the topics carefully. flies through the material without taking the time to make sure students understand what is going on. "I am not your teacher i am your lecturer"
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a B+ chadvader29 12/09/2023	There is nothing inherently wrong about this person, she is very kind. Although, as a professor, she is certainly a little lacking. Her lectures are downright confusing and she certainly confuses the TA, multiple times in the discussion the TA would teach us a different way of solving the problem and it felt like the communication there was quite lacking. Overall, I give her an extra star because it feels like a very hard class to teach, there is simply too much material to get through in a semester, so it has to be as fast paced as it is.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/08/2023	While I do not think she deserves all the hate she gets, she isn't that great of a professor. She moves way too fast and doesn't review anything. I found myself needing to reteach myself the material a lot of the time. But she does a good job of preparing students for exams, such as providing old tests to review.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/07/2023	Seriously one of the most confusing professors ever. She continually makes mistakes on the board and its often a student that has to point it out for her. She offers little to no help for her students, the TAs basically are the teachers in the discussion sessions. I started to improve when I stopped showing up for class. Do not take if you don't want to teach yourself literally every single topic. I loved pre-calc in high school and she ruined it for me because of how confusing she made it. She doesn't curve exams, the homeworks take forever and sometimes there are like six due on the same day. If you have another option, take that. Seriously do not take this class everyone I know in it hates it also. She is a nice person but also sometimes calls students out for weird things in class, like a girl coughed once and she made a comment for literally no reason. Seriously can't stress this enough, don't take this class.
Michael Rozowski MATH113 Anonymous 12/07/2023	Very easy to understand and explains concept after concept. He is my TA for MATH113 and he is really reliable, so I recommend him
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/07/2023	From reading these reviews, yes, I agree that the professor tends to rush in her lectures and she can be unhelpful, but I feel like she actually tries to explain things for students to understand, so a bit of credit and effort to her for that. A lot of people complain about her not caring about the class and other things, but I honestly believe that she does and I feel like not everyone understands that. We all have our own opinions though, but the workload is manageable at the least. They're all online from a website and they're pretty self-explanatory to do. The only thing you come to class to is her reviewing homework assignments, so although attendance isn't really as cared for here, but I highly suggest trying to attend to all of them to not get behind. Luckily I had people that I knew in this class so having someone that you can ask for help and receive company from can make the class a bit fun. She is also a sweet teacher and is very generous for offering help to students, especially after class. She tends to ramble a lot sometimes too because I remember this one time where me and her were talking privately one on one and she kept me for 2 hours, but no complaints lol. I feel like the more you talk to her, the more you will appreciate her and feel more understanding for her. Otherwise, not too bad of a professor though.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/07/2023	Worst teacher I have ever had or will have. - Regularly gets problems wrong in class. - Makes up her own math rules and terms (i.e. "Jackie Chan" was her explanation as to foiling) - Hard to understand - Could care less about her students and their grades - Does not round or grade with pluses or minuses-- If a student finishes the course with a 90, they receive an A (4.0), and an 89.99 would be a B (3.0) - Assigns a ridiculous amount of homework that does not correlate to exams in the slightest - Does not allow students to ask questions-- always rushes through lectures only to end them 45 minutes early - No notes provided during class - Extremely unorganized and has no idea what is happening with regards to assignments and grades - Gives a midterm a week before the final. In conclusion, do not take this class. You would be better off going directly into Calc or Stat. I know less about math now then I did at the start of the semester.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/06/2023	She is a nice person and can be funny at times, however she is a horrible math teacher. All love to her I bet she is a blast to have a conversation with but not about math. She does not explain how to do problems or rules or anything like that. She "goes over" the homework by just speaking about it and not actually explaining. She also is absolutely no help during office hours and cannot explain a concept to save her life. If you are not the best at math I do not recomend her I had at least five mental breakdowns becuase of this class. The worst math teacher I have ever had and that is saying a lot. Theres also NO textbook... I think giving one star was generous.
Shuhan Kou MATH113 Anonymous 12/05/2023	10/10. Compared t the professor, she's leagues better at math, as well as teaching it. If you get her as your TA, your life just got WAY easier. It'll still be a struggle though, just a less painful struggle.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/04/2023	Ms Menecio is very nice, but she isn't very willing to help students understand lectures or assignments. The discussions also aren't helpful because half the time the TA is confused by the way she taught us materials. If you want to understand the course I wouldn't recommend her.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B TerpyWerpy 12/04/2023	Damnnnn these reviews are low LMAO. I mean I think shes an okay teacher, I learn better here than HS. I like her TA Shuhan Kou, she's really good TA who made learning concepts easier. Sometimes there's a lot of homework on ALEKS. The midterms are alright. Everything is just decent. She does make mistakes which students correct like once every 2 classes and her accent really isn't that hard to understand. These past reviews are lowkey mad dramatic lol. Like she's really just an alright teacher, not super good but not super bad. You just gotta put in work to study and understand better but that's like all classes.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 12/03/2023	If I could give 0 stars I would. Just don't take her if you can. She doesn't explain things well, offers no mercy and make mistakes in class all the time.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/01/2023	nice but terrible class. Confusing lectures, and does ot help when you are struggling in class. Homework assignments take forever and do not help at all. Tests are never curved. Only ood thing is quizzes are easy, but you have a quiz EVERY week.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/01/2023	Avoid if you can. Nice lady but not a good teacher. Homework assignments are long and tedious. No curves on exams.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 11/30/2023	I took the equivalent to this class in high school, and all Michelato did was confuse me. I genuinely started doing better in the class when I stopped showing up. This may seem harsh but her teaching method is not good. She continually makes mistakes on problems, and only realizes when a student asks a question to clarify or question how she got an answer. Speaking of questions she does not answer them, she will intentionally avoid the multitude of hands raised each class and does not answer emails. Furthermore she seems to have a genuine disregard for the safety of the students, twice this semester the fire alarm has gone off, and once a student puked in the lecture hall, each time she kept lecturing and refused to allow us to leave. To finish this review off I will leave a direct quote from her in regards to her attendance policy, "I do not care if you get hit by a car on the way here, you must show up to class." Do not take this course from her, I would recommend re-taking the placement test.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/29/2023	I was a transfer student coming into UMD and MATH113 is almost identical to the one I took at my other institution in the Spring semester. The comparison between my other professor and Michelato is insane. If I didn't already have an understanding of the coursework I think I'd struggle very hard in her class. I found myself going back to my notes from my previous professor because I think her explanations and ways of doing the problems are complicated and hard to understand so I went off on my own a lot. Lectures and course is extremely fast paced, heavy workload but I guess that's the same with any class at UMD. Overall, she was kind of nice and you could tell that she means well, but I would take this class with somebody else if algebra and trig is not a strong suit of yours.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Anonymous 11/15/2023	Try and stay away from her. She teaches very fast and her accent makes it kinda hard to understand. She literally teaches off a piece of paper and sometimes she makes mistakes and the students end up correcting her. She doesn't really care about your grade and if you don't have a good understanding of algebra coming into this class it's hard to do well. She teaches so fast to the point where she covers like 3 topics that are really confusing and you don't really know what's going on. If you can take the placement test again and try to get into 120 or take this class at a community college. She's not the worst teacher I've ever had but she's definitely not a teacher you want. Don't recommend
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an XF Anonymous 11/07/2023	Absolute joke of a class. Way too much material is covered (2-3 topics per lecture) and the homework will take you forever. Both of the first two exams had low averages and weren't curved. You're much better skipping this class entirely and taking Calc 1 at a community college. Michelato doesn't care about the success of her students and you should NOT take this class.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 11/01/2023	You know what? I came into this class even while knowing all the negative reviews surrounding this professor with an open mind. I decided to not let the reviews decided wether I should or should not pay attention to them so I wanted to see for myself how this class actually is. 1. She teaches the topics as if someone is telling her there'll be no tommorow. after teaching, her saying is "Easy, right?!". I was doing halfway but I decided to drop it because it is easier to drop your grade then boost it and I would rather not have an XF. 2. Everyone understands math differently, even though I personally never felt like I sucked at math this class made me lose all my motivation. She gives no partial points which I think is stupid, no extra credit, and what's worst is she is the only professor who teaches this class. If you want to take her and prove everyone else wrong, Good luck! But i would save myself the headache this class gives ;):
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 10/06/2023	DO NOT TAKE HER. Not sure why UMD hasn't fired her yet. She will blame students for not doing well when she teaches by copying a piece of paper. I doubt she can even do the math. She makes so many mistakes even with the cheat sheet she uses. Students constantly have to correct her. Sometimes she will just write a problem and the answer on the board, not explain or show work, and say "Easy, right?" and move on without a care in the world.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F mnew 10/05/2023	Please do not take her. You will not pass this class. Unless you are already 100% sufficient in advanced algebra, you will fall behind. She makes mistakes in lectures that students have to correct even though she is reading straight from a paper that tells her all the answers. Sometimes she will go over 3-4 topics in the 75-minute class period and she will never review anything. If you ask a question in class, she will not assist you or will simply just repeat herself. Sometimes she will just write an answer on the board, not show any work, and expect students to know how she got there. She includes untaught topics on the quizzes and tests. She is unhelpful outside of class and does not communicate with TAs. Methods taught in lecture vs discussion are completely different due to lack of communication. Please take another professor
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W pierogi 09/25/2023	I’ve had bad teachers, I’ve had good teachers, but I’ve never had one that struck a nerve quite like Barbara Michelato. The woman is extremely condescending, and ridicules students for not knowing the material. She moves through topics far too quickly, sometimes covering 2 or 3 in the 75 minute lecture. She then expects students to spend EXTENSIVE time reviewing concepts independently. It is entirely lost on her that this class leads to MATH120, which by its very nature is a calculus class for people who will never use calculus in their professional or academic lives. There are 3 midterms and a cumulative final that make up a total of 60% of your grade. There are multiple sections due on ALEKS every week (more than my 300-level classes). Personally I plan to attempt the CLEP calculus test before the semester is over and just withdraw from the class. I highly recommend anyone who gets placed in to this class to retake the MPT and get into MATH120 instead of dealing with this nonsense.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 09/06/2023	Not a great teacher, genuinely did not help or care if one was struggling; do yourself a service and take 120 or take this class at a community college
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 09/06/2023	Please, please, no like PLEASE do not take this professor. Giving her a zero wasn't possible, so i gave her a one. I was never great at math but in high school took honors and could always study my way to an A. This professor literally singlehandedly made me hate my semester. No, i'm not great at math. But, I did put in an honest effort, went to office hours every week, and took notes and participated during class. She is quite literally incapable of teaching and should be fired. I had a study group of about ten people and besides one girl we all never got over an 80 even after spending countless hours studying, and the girl that got an a took this class at a community college and UMD wouldn't accept her credits. So the only person I personally know who was able to get over an 80 had already taken this class and still struggled. Her assignments are all over the place, she doesn't coordinate with TA's, she makes mistakes during lectures and refuses to go over her mistake, and half the time she just writes answers on the board without explaining how one should/could get there. She doesn't allow for makeups even with a doctor's note, etc. She literally said on the first day of class "if you get in a car accident don't complain to me, you have a week to do each assignment." She sucks, no other way to say it. Like I simply could not say enough bad about this professor. I swear on my life, I had a 3.9 before this class and had all A's in all of my other classes. I really did try. Read all the other reviews and decide if you want to struggle for an entire semester. Please take this seriously, she's awful.**IF IT IS STILL THE ADD/DROP PERIOD GET OUT OF THIS CLASS!!!!!!! I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH**
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 08/21/2023	Overall a fine professor. He explains things well, is clear about how the grades are calculated, and gives opportunities to improve the grade by throwing in an extra quiz and dropping the lowest. He posted supplemental videos and charts too.
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 08/20/2023	He's excellent, one of the few professors that really goes out of his way to help you. Really flexible about people's summer work schedules and allowed extensions on homework. He made the subject interesting too and that's a big plus because I actually looked forward to coming each day. His tests can be difficult but his sample tests are good preparation, and the grading, by a TA and him, seemed fair. I don't know why he got a couple bad reviews but like the one after said, you need to give it a chance and you'll see him shine. He helps motivate you to shine. The only con I guess is there's a lot of homework every week, but as noted he will give extensions. I recommend him.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 05/22/2023	To the person that gave her a 5, I would like to say her teaching style might work for you but it does not work for most students. Over 70 people dropped by the 12-week mark. She once blamed the classes and belittled everyone for having an average of 42 on the first midterm. People stopped attending her class after she made such comments and just thought it would be better to teach themselves the concepts. She did not help motivate her students but instead brought them down. Please don't take her class, I wish someone could have warned me about how bad she was. To the people who are taking her, I wish you luck and hope you are able to get through it. You will waste your money if you take her. If you want to know a different course of action, either take the class at community college or retake the math placement exam and place higher. If you fail this class and worry abt your GPA, you can ask for freshman forgiveness, anyone under 25 completed credits can ask for this, but you do have to retake the class to get rid of the fail, and if you do that, you can retake it during the summer at umd online, the professor is different and way better. You are also able to take the math placement as many times as you want, that's the route that I took, and now I'm taking Math120, the class that I actually need. Good luck people!!!
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 05/18/2023	Where do I even begin? Michelato covers way too much content for a normal person to digest in lectures and if you ever zone out for more than 30 seconds you will be totally lost. The averages for the exams have all been well below failing. After the first exam, the average was ridiculously below failing and someone asked her if there would be any curve and her response was "Well, one person was able to get a 100% so there will be no curve," meanwhile the average was around half of that. I was only able to pass this class due to hours and hours of studying on the nights before the exams. This is the most I've worked for a class for a poor grade... Do not take this class at UMD if Michelato is teaching, I would strongly suggest taking it at a community college.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/17/2023	The three stars I am giving her are for the experiences I had when I went to her office hours for questions. She is pretty nice and can explain things in a one on one setting. Other than that, this class is a hot mess. I am not the best at math but certainly did not expect to get a C in college algebra. I didn't realize how much could improved in this course and professor until I took my math 120 course and got an A. For one, she makes mistakes while doing the problems, which often aren't legible because she does everything on the chalk board. Second, I HATE the twice a week lecture style. My class was roughly an hour and a half, and we'd usually cover three units per lecture. It was impossible to learn and the homework wasn't great at reinforcing. Her files section of canvas, while it did provide a lot of practice, was also disorganized. She would upload exam review materials and practice like a week in advance. She was just overall disorganized. The math113 here in general sucks and it is way too much trig. I recommend retaking the placement test and getting into math 120 if you are business major like me.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/17/2023	As someone who has struggled in math my whole life, this class was relatively easy to follow and was just as demanding as any college course. Since it is the math course that proceeds many major requirements for math (like math120 and 140), the course basically has to prepare you for the demands of higher-level math courses. To succeed in the course, go to lectures, take notes, and do a bunch of practice exams to prepare for the tests. The homework is seriously not bad if you go to the lecture because you can use your notes for the assignments. I don't understand how people "taught themselves" the class because if I didn't go to lecture I'd be failing also. Personally, I felt that Professor Michelato's teaching style is completely appropriate to what is expected from a course like this, and I genuinely believe that the awful reviews reflect the individual problems of the students. After week three of the semester, only about 40 people out of 200 students attended lectures, and the professor does not post or record her lectures so going is CRUCIAL. If you do not go, you will fall behind. Additionally, if you approach the course with a victim mindset claiming the professor is out to get you instead of putting in the work necessary, you will fall behind also. Many of these negative reviews come from students who were complaining about the professor not curving the exams. For a course that is meant to catch us up to everyone else, it might be best to reconsider your major choice if you are failing a 100-level math class. Professor Michelato was met with incredible amounts of disrespect and judgment throughout the semester, yet still was patient during lectures when people interrupted to ask questions. For a college professor, she is incredibly easygoing and empathetic, and I genuinely admire her patience with the students attending her class. For the first time in a VERY long time, I'm expecting an A in a math course, and this is thanks to her teaching style. Please, please, please don't take the negative reviews as the general attitude of the class.
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2023	If you need to take Math 113 then definitely take it with Professor Sax! Even if the only class he's teaching is the 013/113 version and you placed into Math 113 directly, still go through the 013 just to have him for Math 113 - it's worth it. He knows his stuff and is very clear when he shows how to do a problem. He's very generous about late work, drops multiple quizzes and he goes through practice exams which are super good preparation for the exams themselves. They're like the same content and same format, and he goes through them the week before the exam. He also answers any problem you want especially during office hours. He remembers what topics you were having trouble with and he'll even email you before the final to make sure you understand those topics well. He really cares and I'm happy I had him for my professor.
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2023	This class moves very quickly and the professor sometimes rushes at the end. It’s not entirely his fault and you can tell he’s trying, but he takes a lot of time answering people’s questions and doesn’t always manage the class well. One student kept interrupting and he gave in each time. I think he wants to go faster and get into it, but uses a lot of patience to slow it down and you can tell sometimes he’s frustrated too. If I designed this course I would make the 013 part much less and give more time to do Math 113 because that’s the course that counts. I still like Professor Sax and I agree with the other posts that he wants to be helpful. He’s very good at showing how to do a problem step by step, and he likes to make connections between the topics we learned, like transforming functions. I think someone said he teaches Math 120 and it will be interesting to see how that goes.
Steven Sax MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2023	He will do a lot of office hours and review sessions and they really do help. His lectures are good but sometimes get a little long winded. What I like best is when he goes over homework problems. If he just spent every lecture going over problems then it would be perfect. His exams are just like the practice exams (except the second one). He’s humble enough to admit any mistakes he makes during lecture but just don’t insult him or blame him for the class going too quickly. He himself said it goes very quickly but if you blame him then he’ll just get defensive and it’ll go nowhere. Everything else about him is great. He’s very understanding about making up missed work and he also drops the lowest THREE quizzes which is awesome. I recommend taking him.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 05/13/2023	Honestly, people are pretty dramatic. I’ve never considered myself great at math, but I feel this class is manageable. From the start, people have complained about this professor/class, so people go into it with a bad attitude, ultimately finding every excuse as to why they didn’t pass. I’ve managed to get B’s on all exams. I barely show up to class because the homework’s are really helpful. There’s a lot of them, but they’re due all on one day so you have the whole week to do them. Michelato posts past exams and worksheets in organized folders for each exam. There really isn’t an excuse to fail the exams unless you’re just not applying yourself. Study, do the practice problems, watch YouTube videos and you’ll be fine. Lots of this class is just basic concepts that I learned in middle school that build off of eachother. Just don’t be dramatic and actually pay attention and you’ll be fine
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 05/09/2023	IF I COULD DO A ZERO, I WOULD. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS- MICHEALTO WANTS YOU TO FAIL. When the average has been below a 60 for ALL Students, she says it is "our" fault, and that she designed the test easily. She sets you up to fail and does not care if you are not doing well.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a D- Anonymous 05/09/2023	I have never in my life failed a course. I put in over 15 hours of studying every week but exam scores are worth 70% of our grade. I am a bad test taker and I feel like I had minimal opportunity to improve after a bad test score. Content discussed in classes were very fast paced and I would get ignored while raising my hand for a question. The study guides did not reflect all the content learned over the sections so during the exam information that we spent 1 day on would pop up and you will have forgotten about it while trying to learn the newest content. When confronted about this, she says that we "should know it". If you take this course, please utilize the tutoring in the math department. Office hours are not helpful. The TAs (In my experience: Duc) do not communicate with the professors and are completely unaware of what content we are learning and how we were taught it during class. I have put more effort into this class than any class (including sciences) I've ever taken and am failing horribly. Failing this class sets me back a semester at school which is hard because it is the only class left for my major prerequisites. Please choose another professor if you can or take this class at a community college.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 05/09/2023	Easily the worst professor I have ever had. Horrible teacher and the amount of work is borderline ridiculous, not to mention you have a quiz every single week. Do yourself a favor and do not take Michelato under any circumstance.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/08/2023	It's really on you if you're going to do well or not. She gives you all the materials you need to get an A in this class. Lectures are so fast paced and if you don't show up to every single one and pay attention start to finish, you will get lost. ALEKS homework is an absolute must - it was almost always harder than the exams and prepared me better than my notes. Quizzes every week - you can and will get a 100% if you simply do the 10 question practice quizzes. Exams are MUCH HARDER than the quizzes - be prepared. She treats you like adults in this class and you are expected to be 100% fluent in all math leading up to this class. She was kind and always allowed questions and offered help. But you will need to do your part - study hard and do the homework in order to do well.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C- Anonymous 05/04/2023	Horrible teacher. Terrible lecturer, difficult to understand. WS/Quiz nothing similar to any of the tests. I tend to be someone pretty good at math but did not succeed in this course. Expects you to know everything when she is a horrible teacher. Avoid at all costs.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 05/02/2023	This is a nightmare professor every bad trope of a professor you could think of she fulfills her class is extremely difficult and she does not properly prepare you for exams and quizzes. This is on top of copious amounts of homework. For your sake if possible do not take her if possible. If I could give 0/5 I would.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 03/30/2023	for your own sake don't take her, even if she is the only option, just take it at a community college, I've cried 3 times over this class and it is not worth it, I going to drop it for my own sake and just take freshman forgiveness if I could I would give a 0/5
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 02/07/2023	goated professor
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a D+ Anonymous 01/31/2023	You've seen the other comments, what else is there to say.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/23/2023	Professor Michelato is a very sweet person but was not great at teaching this class. First off she is very hard to understand, and also does a terrible job of understanding others. She would blatantly ignore people who were raising their hands to ask questions, and when she did respond to a question it took her way too long to understand what they were asking. She also made so many mistakes most of which we caught her for. I was fortunate enough to come from a very strong math background in high school so I found this class pretty easy, but I saw how other really struggled and I was able to help. Each week we had at least 1 quiz, textbook work, and sometimes a worksheet. The homework was relatively easy but sometimes there was content that she didn't teach us and most of the time it never appeared on any of the quizzes so the 2 hours I spent doing one section of graph transformations, for example, was useless. The worksheets were genuinely helpful, however, she only put one topic on the worksheet which was pointless because usually, that was the easier one of the week. She also has an extremely ridiculous grading policy. If you get a singular question wrong, don't show your work, or don't make an answer obvious you get a 50 or a 0 in some cases. Her quizzes were super easy and usually way better than expected besides the way they were graded (no partial credit for anything) All the exams were pretty easy, but the grading was very harsh and inconsistent between TAs. My TA was very hard to understand and had no concept of how the professor taught things. They both taught very quickly which didn't bother me since I understood everything but for other people could be really hard. She also didn't help me at all when I was home with covid. She told me to look at the textbook in which the wrong page numbers were listed so I was so confused about the HW and she still refused to help me. My advice to anyone taking this class would be to do all the extra worksheets she puts in the folders, those legitimately helped me a ton in addition to forming study groups.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 01/18/2023	I've had a lot of poor math teachers in my life, but Michelato was 100% THE WORST. She was rude and condescending to students who asked questions during lecture and rarely actually provided a beneficial response. Quizzes were supposed to be during weekly discussion, however certain weeks she would decide to hold them during the last 10 minutes of lecture (lectures were useless too). She never opened the tests with enough time to let us finish them and not be late for our next class. Midterm and final exam grades were 60's to low 70's and NO CURVE! I did 10 old practice exams and still didn't do well. Awful professor, awful woman, and awful class. Avoid at all costs if you care about your grades or your sanity.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 01/07/2023	I would not take this class. It got to a point where she would either make mistakes on accident or purpose to see if we would notice. She doesn't understand students questions and therefore can't answer them. For example, one student asked if the professor could rewrite the answer since they couldn't read it clearly and Michelato didn't understand. There were a total of 68 homework and worksheet assignments which the homework's took very long and weren't useful for the quizzes or tests. They also wouldn't help your grade. Quizzes every week which weren't bad, 5 questions with no partial credit but she did end up dropping the 4 lowest ones and gave weekly practice quizzes. 3 tests which were hard, averages were in the 60's despite given old exams. I tried going to the professor's office hours, wasn't very helpful but luckily I had a very good TA. I did hours and hours of homework and studying to struggle maintaining a B-.
Steven Sax MATH113 Anonymous 01/01/2023	He is nice guy and really tries to help everyone. For the first exam he didn't provide a study sheet and it showed in the exam scores, but for all other exams he did give study sheets and practice problems and they were spot on! The exam problems were very much like the practice problems and quizzes so if you knew how to do those you'd be fine. And the professor was available anytime to explain anything, so if you put in the effort to go over the practice problems with him in office hours, then you could ace the exams.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/27/2022	Ngl if i studied much better for my third midterm i couldve gotten an A.... but thats beside the point!!!!! she's a sweet lady, but a terrible teacher. i basically taught myself the entire semester. she is also kinda evil tho since she gave an in person quiz (with a password) the day before thankgiving break.... like everyone had to go home. anyways, study for everything! you can pass, but with some extra effort (booo).
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/19/2022	This class is not impossible for you to get an A in but it sure is difficult. Most of the people around me studied and attended every lecture and still got a B in the class. My advice if you do have her is to do practice problems every day until you can do any variation of what she will throw at you on the exam. Not the worst teacher but you definitely have to have good background knowledge to succeed. I have A's in all of my other classes but barely passed this one. She is a good person but not the best teacher.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/19/2022	Professor Menecio was very difficult to understand during lectures, she moved too quickly, and taught the material incorrectly, practice exams were completely different from real exams when were told to "master" the practice exams. She does not care about her grade point average, as the average was 60 or lower. This class was very unhelpful and avoid it at all costs. I'm disappointed by the lower level math classes here in general because they are made to difficult and professors like Menecio don't really care.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/17/2022	If you are not familiar with the course material then do NOT take this class with Michelato; the homework assignments take a terribly long time and do not anything for your grade. The quizzes that are every week don't have any partial credit - so if you get 90 percent of the question right but mess something up you are getting docked 20 percent. Michelato as a teacher is terrible at explaining concepts and ends up making a lot of things more complicated than they have to be.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/17/2022	I don't even know where to start with this class. I came from Calc A AP in high school and placing into this (because I hated algebra) and this was the hardest math course I have taken. Barbara Michelato is a really nice person, but just the worst teacher. Rushes through material, hardly explains; half the class I was just trying to figure out what she was writing on the board and doing. Your final grade is practically determined by 4 tests, the 3 midterm exams being 45 percent of your grade and the final being 25 percent. Not only are they lengthy and confusing with the material, but there are no curves. Not. A. Single. Curve. The test averages were 63 or below and she did not curve anything or give any extra credit. The class is absurd and I have never heard of a math class not having a curve in all my years. Just stay away from this class, its not like the material is hard but the way it is taught just confuses the whole class.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Anonymous 12/15/2022	I recommend taking this class at community college. If you did not already take this class in HS it will be difficult to pass. Barbara Michelato is not a good professor, in fact she is quite bad. Midterm exams are way harder than the weekly quizzes. It was an awful experience in this class, youtube videos explain the math concepts better than she did. Also, there is a midterm like a little less than 2 weeks before the final exam so you have to cram study A LOT. I wish I could give 0/5 stars. Good luck if you need this class.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/12/2022	The only way you will pass this class is if you have already learned the material in high school. Barbara Michelato is an awful teacher. She is probably the least accommodating professor I have ever had. She refuses to curve grades or give extra credit. Your final grade is determined by the weekly quizzes, 3 midterm exams, and the final exam (all of which you have no opportunity to get points back for). Her exams are literally designed to make you fail, no matter how much you study the homework or her lectures there is no way you can expect what types of problems will be on the exams. The material isn't even that hard but the way she teaches it makes even more confused then when you started. She is rude and makes it hard to build any sort of connection with her.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Anonymous 12/07/2022	Do not take this class if you do not have to.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Anonymous 12/07/2022	A decent woman, horrible teacher. Do not take this class with her. She has a terrible grading system. If you get any part of the problem wrong, you get no credit at all. For example, if you solve and show all of the steps correctly but fail to specify the exact term you are solving for (even if it is SO obvious), expect a zero on the entire assignment. If you get a 44/45, your grade is a zero. There are quizzes every week in discussion which you must put lots of time into preparing for. She assigns hours of online homework as well. The midterms are designed to make students fail and do not reflect class work at all. Everything is taught on a black board which is illegible because she scribbles all over it without giving context. It does not help that she has a very thick accent and does not understand questions either. She refuses to curve grades. 0/5. I have watched people cry in this class, it should never be this hard.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/07/2022	Barbara is a nightmare come true. I cannot urge you enough if you can, please avoid having her as your professor. I will be honest, the only way to get a passing grade in this class is if you dedicate extensive amounts of time to this course alone. That is quite impossible since we have other classes in conjunction with hers. There are weekly quizzes, and there were about 12 quizzes this semester. The quizzes are relatively straightforward and not comparable to the midterm content. She does provide practice quizzes weekly to "prepare" for the quizzes, so if you do those and get used to the procedures, the quizzes are OK. The quizzes are all or none, and no partial credit is offered. There are three exams during the semester, and they make up 45% of your total grade, which is absolutely absurd within itself. Conversely, the midterm content is entirely different from the quiz material, and she deliberately makes it way harder. I have had friends that have bombed one midterm, and they are stuck, stressing, trying to climb themselves back up to a passing grade. In lectures, she goes way too quickly and does not slow down, even when she is asked to by other students. There is weekly homework on a platform called Aleks, and it takes me hours at a time weekly to complete just one assignment, and there are multiple at one time, often more than 4. Btw, the final is CUMULATIVE... If you do need to take this class and want to pass, invest your time in math tutoring multiple times throughout the week, make friends and watch YouTube videos when you do not understand.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 12/07/2022	Don't take this class. Good person, but a bad teacher. I ace all my other classes but struggle to maintain a passing grade in this one.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 12/07/2022	She is a decent person, but a terrible teacher. If you have the option, avoid having her as a professor. I can not stress it enough. I am normally a straight-A student, even in math. But right now I am barely maintaining a B-. Even when dedicating a lot of time to this class, bombing one of her tests is still very likely. If I could rate this class a 0/5 I would.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/06/2022	She is a very nice woman, but her teaching methods and overall notes were very unhelpful for this course. She teaches way too fast and commonly makes mistakes in the notes, which she goes back and changes. Not to mention she schedules a midterm a WEEK before the final. Overall this course was made more difficult because of the way she taught the material.
Santuria Orsetti MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/06/2022	He is a great teacher and explains everything and doesn't mind answering questions until the class understands. assigns homework every night but only collects 5 throughout the semester at random classes. If you miss hw when he collects it is an automatic zero for that assignment with 0 negotiation which isn't so good. He does give out around 10 quizzes and only grades 5 and drops the other which is a huge plus in his class. Highly recommend taking him he also made he class fun by making jokes.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/06/2022	I'm not particularly good at math, but her class is extremely hard to follow. She stands in front of her writing and her lectures go very fast. She has quizzes every week which are 5 points and there are about 14 of them. There are three midterms and one final. The last midterm was only a week before the final giving you no time to study for the final exam. The homework is an online workbook that takes a good amount of your time and does not raise your grade at all. I have an 83% currently but I am not confident that it will maintain.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/01/2022	Teaches VERY fast and goes through lectures as if we all already know all the topics. I had to go to the TA a lot for exam prep. Can be funny sometimes but teaches at such a fast pace it stresses me out. Also held her office hours before the class... didn't make much sense since everyone has class before her class since we are FC kids.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Anonymous 08/30/2022	Very unkind :(
Ian Teixeira MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 06/22/2022	So disorganized. Doesn't know how to teach/doesn't want to teach. Would be an amazing TA with how much he knows, but idk who gave him a phd let alone encouraged him to pursue academia.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 05/16/2022	This class should not be as profoundly difficult as it is. He is not helpful in the slightest and he is extremely condescending. He is not kind and does not explain things well at all. Overly complicates simple concepts and scoffs at the suggestion of simplifying them down. At such a low level, the instructor should be understanding and want to explain things in ways that their students will understand, rather than waxing poetic about their own intelligence and making you feel small for not understanding. This is an incredibly frustrating class as it's structured now, but it's even worse with someone like this teaching the course. He would probably be a better fit for a higher-level math course. If you can avoid it, do not take his class.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting a D+ Anonymous 05/14/2022	This class can either intensify or give you depression. The teacher is not helpful at all and never willing to represent his students interests to his supervisors. The most you will get is « I can’t do anything about that ». He explains the class poorly and his office hours will only make you feel less than. The exam review is a waste because most likely than not whatever you’re reviewing will not be on it and same for the final. There will be times in class where he would explain things by just found hand gestures and saying things like « if it goes this way (with no illustrations by the way), then it gets bigger » and he will constantly ask if anyone has any questions but trust me you won’t have any because you won’t even know where to start.
Yong Cui MATH113 Anonymous 05/09/2022	DO NOT TAKE THIS TEACHER! You will have to teach everything to yourself. This was the worse class I have ever taken. It was so hard to learn anything.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 05/05/2022	unkind and makes you feel small when asking honest questions about the material. This class shouldn't be as difficult as it was.
Morgan Bryant MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 05/05/2022	If you have the choice, take this professor. Math is a hard subject, but she really cares about making sure you understand the material. If you don't understand something, email her or go to her office hours and she'll work with you until you understand it.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 04/18/2022	I would give him 0 stars if it were possible. He isn’t the best explainer, when answering questions he will confuse you more than you already are. If you go to his office hours he will be little you because you don’t understand the material fully. There is also a weekly quiz that 9/10 you aren’t prepared for because what he told you to study doesn’t match with what he said was going to be on the quiz. Take his class if you have time to dedicate to teach yourself the material so you can pass because he doesn’t grade on a curve. As a person he is okay, but as a professor, I would avoid him.
Jackson Hopper MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 02/04/2022	I would give him a 4 star review but I'm a bit salty that I didn't get a B+. He's a nice guy who wants you to learn, but I don't think he knows the best way to teach everything. He provided partial credit on quizzes and midterms which was nice, but tests were kind of tough. I don't think many people went to his office hours, so I don't think complaining about him being terrible is fair. I wouldn't mind taking him again.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Anonymous 01/27/2022	He's generous with grading, understanding, and super flexible with his students. Admittedly, he doesn't in-depth teach the content in class (which was the biggest 'problem' with his teaching style, especially as someone who struggles with math). He just pretty much gives you practice problems to solve and walks around helping whoever asks. However, the good thing is, if you ever want help all you need to do is reach out. He will guide you through the problems the best he can, which most of the time was pretty helpful. He also hosted study sessions and office hours. As for advice for the class, what worked best for me was doing the smartbook/Knewton Alta (sometimes repeatedly) as well as the practice tests he gives out (which almost always mirrored the exams). For my class, there were three midterms total, worth about 45% of your grade, and the final exam worth 25%, on top of weekly quizzes, and Knewton Alta assignments, all of which were manageable. I would tell people who wanna succeed to make sure to be consistent with note-taking/practice or it's very easy to fall behind. If you're bad at math, get ahead of the assigned textbook sections so when exams come around you have a free few days just to dedicate to studying, make good notes, and most importantly, practice! Don't be afraid to go to review sessions or office hours. The biggest takeaway from Jermain was that he never wanted to see a student fail. He genuinely wanted you to do your best and was willing to help you to achieve that. If you put in the effort, you can definitely do well.
Amador Jomuad MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 01/19/2022	Nice guy, not a great teacher. He seems to have a lot on his plate and simply does not effectively prepare, teach, grade, or offer any kind of help outside of class. Asking a question during class is more likely to leave everyone more confused than your question intended to be. If you haven't taken algebra before I'd suggest getting to know those in the class that have and trying to work things out together. Finding a study group so you can interchange tests, problems, and frustrations is probably the best way to study. Other than that, you have to teach yourself.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 01/04/2022	Would not recommend taking any class with Jacob Erickson as the teacher. Very condescending and rude towards his students. No matter how hard I studied and reviewed for quizzes (there's one every Friday) and exams (3 major ones and a final), I, along with many of my classmates, did poorly. He gets frustrated when students ask questions insisting that he doesn't know "how much simpler he can explain the lesson" and suggests that his students just "do better and try harder". Often times we would go into class and he would start a lesson without even telling us what we were learning. If anyone asked to review quiz or exam material either before or after we took it, he would scoff and roll his eyes and occasionally go over one or two questions that most of the time ended up not being topics on the quiz/tests at all. I could go on and on about why you shouldn't take a class with Jacob as a teacher but my one piece of advice is, if you take his class, get a tutor!
Raley Roberts MATH113 Anonymous 12/29/2021	Great professor! I had Raley Roberts for Math113, and I have nothing but good things to say about her. She answers emails within the hour (if not less) which is not always common with professors. Also, Raley was very willing to meet whenever she was free and would patiently answer all my questions until I understood the concept. My main complaint is with the class itself, not the professor. Course was very difficult, and concepts were taught very quickly. If you're not good at math, brace yourself. That's why it's very important to pick a professor who explains well and helps you. Definitely pick Raley!
Mansur Shakipov MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2021	He is a really nice man and will answer your questions if you approach him. His explanations were not the best for understanding the material which was somewhat confusing because he taught directly out of the textbook. You MUST take time outside of class to master the material in order to do well in this class. There was a quiz almost every week and the exams were decently hard but if you prepare for them you will be fine. He has a lot of review material for you so make sure to ask. The class if fast paced so make sure to not fall behind.
Sudheer Shukla MATH113 Anonymous 12/19/2021	As a recent review mentions, it does seem like he's a new professor here at UMD. Although I found his teaching to be entirely useless, I think that's a problem related to what I need versus what he provides. However, he has very available office hours and really wants to see his students succeed. Moreover, he prescribes a lot of review practice and previous exams as a way to review. If you have to take MATH113, I would recommend trying to find a more adequate professor. Also, I can confirm that he sometimes sent out review materials and solutions that were incorrect or at the very last minute. Despite this, his review materials were extremely relevant to the quizzes he gave and are absolutely worth using. He is far from the worst that UMD has to offer and is a very shy but kind individual. But do be warned, if you have to take MATH113, you may have to learn a lot of the material on your own if you don't vibe with his lectures. I also recommend reviewing whatever math you were taking before his course, as the first week was really an eye-opener as to what the expected baseline of math comprehension was.
Jackson Hopper MATH113 Expecting a D Anonymous 12/16/2021	I’ve had a terrible experience with this class. Mr. Hopper is a nice guy but his lack of experience made the course way more challenging then what it needed it to be. I am extremely disappointed and devastated that this was my first Math class at UMD. If you have the chance to switch please do.
Mansur Shakipov MATH113 Expecting a B- Anonymous 12/13/2021	He’s a really smart person and seems to know what he’s doing. Sometimes it feels like he’s not explaining how he got his answers but if you stop him and ask him he will explain. Also helps explain things more after class. Worst case you can Google what he was talking about because 90 percent of this class is from high school . He is super responsive outside of class. Tells you exactly what to study and provided A LOT of review material for you.
Stephen Sorokanich MATH113 Anonymous 12/13/2021	Does not do a good job of teaching content. Despite his acceptance of late work, he does not adequately prepare you for the quizzes.
Yong Cui MATH113 Anonymous 12/10/2021	Avoid! If given the option take the class with another professor. Everything was confusing and if you want to pass you will have to teach yourself.
Amador Jomuad MATH113 Anonymous 12/10/2021	Very nice professor but does not do a good job teaching the course. Often when I find myself going to ask for help he tells me he is too busy and rather never tells me another time that would work. Very nervous about not passing this course.
Samuel Dipasqua MATH113 Anonymous 12/09/2021	The professor is really nice in terms of grading and giving extensions, however heads up the study guide is no where as difficult as the actual test. I would say to study and go to his office hours. Personally, I was not always good at math so I struggled but if you're pretty good at it then you should be fine.
Jackson Hopper MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/09/2021	Hopper is extremely smart and you can clearly see it. He is very nice and is pretty accommodating. I understand these other reviews however as our semester progressed I think he gained more experience teaching people who do not fully understand math. I think he is just inexperienced with teaching and he is improving. Aside from that, he would go onto long tangents about math complexities no one understood and would follow with we didn't need to know this, which complicated things for a lot of people. Since I had already learned most of this material previously, I was able to keep up. If you are new to this level of math and you take it with Hopper, be prepared to put work in outside of class because the quizzes are difficult as they are written by the department not him.
Jackson Hopper MATH113 Expecting a D Anonymous 12/08/2021	PLEASE SWITCH OUT. the amount of times he will tell us he taught us the wrong information on the day of the test is ridiculous. he is not helpful and dismisses students comments when they comment about his teaching and ask for help
Mansur Shakipov MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/07/2021	He is a nice guy, but should NOT be hired as a professor. He understands how to do the math, but doesn't explain it to you. There are multiple times per class where someone will stop him and say " I don't understand when you throw random numbers on the board". He does also tend to mess up a lot during class. The only good thing about him is that he will provide the topics on the quizzes and tests. I got a 4 on the AP tests (both stats and calc), and have an A- in this class.
Sudheer Shukla MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/06/2021	Sudheer seems like a new professor. He is a very timid teacher and gets flustered easily but thoroughly explains topics through the lecture. Although his lectures may be hard to pay attention to, he is very dedicated to helping students learn. I have never met a professor to have such open office hours. He sat with me during office hours for a whole 2.5 hours to go over review problems. I know people who have met with him on weekends via zoom to go over problems and he replies to emails very quickly! He really seems to care so if you are willing to overlook his nervousness, you can learn. He also gives out review packets for exams and quizzes that help soooo much. I can see how people might not like him though because he is very introverted and doesn't connect with the students via lecture but if you meet with him one on one you can understand the material better.
Barbara Michelato MATH113 Anonymous 12/06/2021	Amazing person, awful teacher. She has a very thick accent which makes her difficult to understand sometimes and she didn't always understand student's questions. It's very clear she only understands how to teach the math one way so when students didn't understand that way, they were on their own. This course has 3 major exams, each worth 15% of the final grade and they weren't covered. There are also about 10 quizzes throughout the entire course, which you HAVE to study for otherwise you won't do well. Also, the content of the quizzes was often much harder than what we learned in class. During the last week of classes before finals, we had a quiz one day and the last huge exam the day after, which was also 6 days before the final. Grades aren't done yet but I'm not confident.
Sudheer Shukla MATH113 Anonymous 12/01/2021	HORRIBLE TEACHER!!!! Never knew what he was doing, sent out review material the night before or morning of WITH INCORRECT ANSWERS!!! This class should've been easy, but he made it terrible. Save yourself and pick any other professor.
Jacob Erickson MATH113 Expecting a W Anonymous 11/29/2021	A very nice person but honestly the worst learning experience I have ever had. At one point just suggested we just do better with no real help on how we could. I would avoid taking this class with Jacob. Can't say how many times they walked into class and didn't have a structured lecture. It's a real problem when half the people drop the class.
Amador Jomuad MATH113 Expecting a D+ Anonymous 11/19/2021	Really nice man. But horrible teacher. You’re gonna have to learn the stuff on your own. Someone really needs to bring this issue up to the math department.
Jackson Hopper MATH113 Anonymous 10/24/2021	He is a graduate student who is so knowledgeable that he cannot break down concepts into simple terms for us who aren't at his level of understanding. A lot of his class is failing and he doesn't seem to care. He gives us information that we don't need for the class we're in because he finds it interesting. Most of the time, this just confuses us more. He goes through extremely complicated examples without giving enough explanation. It feels as if you're just watching him solve a problem, not being taught how to solve it. He doesn't seem to understand that other people don't process things the way he does, so he explains things in ways that make no sense to a math novice. If you have a chance to not take a class taught by him- please do.
Dmitrii Gudin MATH113 Expecting an F Anonymous 06/28/2021	A lot of information to process over a zoom distanced learning. No real feedback, but no complaints. Thanks for teaching the course! will probably try again
Farrah Askari MATH113 Expecting a C+ Anonymous 05/18/2021	First things first, Mrs. Askari is NOT A PROFESSOR. She is a first year Ph.D student teaching a math class, so keep that in mind if you decide to take this course. This class was made even more difficult by the fact that she does not write the exams, the curse chair does. This also means the format of the exams come from the course chair, and not Mrs. Askari. Half of the content for each chapter was covered in the lectures, and the other half was expected to be self taught by reading the listed pages for each module. This style of learning in my personal opinion is cancerous, especially when it seemed as though she was also learning the content as it was being taught. She will answer your questions, is very polite, and obviously has office hours that you should attend. However, I was not pleased with the format this course was taught in, and hope it changes for in person instruction come the fall.
Amador Jomuad MATH113 Expecting a C Anonymous 12/15/2020	expect to do the learning on your own. very frustrating semester when it came to this class (This was for a semester during Covid//Cannot speak about what he is like when class is synchronous)
Darcy Conant MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/11/2020	Honestly, based on the reviews I was not expecting her to be good. She was actually decent and had really diligent lectures. She drops the three lowest quiz grades which helps a lot. I know I could’ve done better in her class but I’m happy with the grade I got
Amador Jomuad MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/02/2020	This is the worst math teacher I've ever had. He explains stuff horribly and gives us quizzes after failing to go over the lesson for the quiz at all beforehand. Very unorganized and poor communication skills.
Jermain McDermott MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 10/23/2020	He's nice, understanding, and in my opinion undoubtedly qualified to teach at the most prestigious of schools. Take him and you'll be good.
Jocelyn Menecio MATH113 Expecting an A- Anonymous 09/30/2020	If you can avoid this teacher that would be recommended. She goes over content way too fast and sometimes doesn't even give you extra practice and expects you to know topics that she went over for only 10 minutes. Overall just really really REALLY bad at explaining things and it can get pretty frustrating. However, if you are taking her for MATH113, the content is a bit easier since 90% of it is just stuff that you learned in high school. Also, I am not sure if this is just because of COVID-19 but we used a software called knewton alta and that provided a good amount of practice for 70% percent of the material and for the stuff that she really just flies by without much practice Khan academy will be your best friend. Thats basically the only reason why I say you can expect an A-. If it weren't for the fact that this class is a lot of review from high school math I would probably be failing.
Brandon Alexander MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/14/2020	Such a great prof! He includes so many notes in lectures so its always clear about how each concept works, such a nice guy too! i recommend taking him 100%
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2014	Really good teacher, explains everything well. Sometimes I feel she could've used class time better when she took forever to review a single problem. But overall she is really helpful. She tells you exactly when quizzes/tests are and will tell you exactly what's on them. She collected some homework but after the first few she didn't for the rest of the semester. I would definitely recommend her.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Anonymous 05/31/2014	Grade B/A. She is a great person! she cares about her students a lot. If you have trouble she will ask you to come to her for help, instead of just leaving you hanging. Do website and your textbook hw that she only collected like 2 or 3 in the beginning to scare you to make you do them. But do it anyways itll help you study. 3 exams. she will drop a few quizzes at the end too. #TakeHer
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A krych 12/19/2012	Prof. Stone is the best math teacher I've ever had. She really cares about her students and makes math really easy. Take Her for 113!
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 05/01/2012	Professor Stone is AMAZING! She truly cares about her students and tells us to email her if we're frustrated with your homework and tell me you trouble. She will work with you outside of the classroom. I actually earned a B, but she bumped me up to an A. STUDY THE TEST BANK. Tests dont really deviate much. Same concepts though. I took precal senior year and did horribly, but took this class the semester and got an A. It was easier than my high school math. TAKE IT WITH STONE!
Elif Kuz MATH113 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/22/2011	Okay professor. She has a very soft voice so it is difficult to hear her and stay awake during lectures. She also breaks down information a bit too much, making everything convoluted and difficult to follow. Besides that, she was nice and helpful when you came to ask her questions. Three exams, plus a cumulative final; the second exam is the most difficult. She also gives around 10 quizzes, the first half are take home and the rest are done during class. Also, there are weekly webassigns to complete that (usually) aren't too difficult.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Anonymous 10/28/2011	Extremely great math teacher. Learn easily in her class and as long as you study you will get an A or B. Also very nice, open and helpful. Definitely recommend taking her for math. Expect to put in time for online HW as well as textbook HW. Grading system is also very efficient and beneficial.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/04/2010	Jacqui Stone is potentially the best teacher I have ever had. She is so nice and does a great job of simplifying and explaining everything. I had learned this material before but she made it ten times more clear. Only annoying thing is doing webassign but if you have any problems she is a great help. Take her if you can.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A maglist1 05/04/2010	I Loved this lady she was great. She always went out of her way in this class to make it easier on you. She is extremely nice and approachable and like someone else said earlier she is like a kindergarten teacher and treats her class amazingly. He teaching style is perfection. She goes through problems that are identical to the ones on the test and the WebAssign is so easy it takes like 10 minutes to do. Take her if you can!!!
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A rebgii 04/06/2010	You HAVE to taker her!!!! she is the best teacher no doubt!! i feel like she's a kindergarten teacher she's sooo sweet and most importantly, its impossible not to understand. =)
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/20/2009	She's a great professor and a genuinely kind woman. I used to hate math, but now I definitely understand it more. It's no problem getting an A in the class.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/17/2009	Even though I had basically taken this class before I came to college, Stone did a good job of reinforcing and teaching new things that I hadn't learned. Class was based on web assign hw, three tests, quizzes in discussion every week, and the final. My TA was horrible, so I really depended on lectures to learn new topics. She gives you book hw after every lecture that basically goes over what was taught, so you don't really have to go but it helps. I'm not sure what the other math113 teachers are like, but Stone is definitely a safe bet.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/03/2009	Stone is by far the best math teacher I've ever had. She really takes the time to explain things clearly, and tells students WHY something is the way it is, not to just memorize the rule. She is very polite and friendly and easy to talk to after class if you ever have questions.
Jacqueline Stone MATH113 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/02/2009	She is such a sweetheart. I am a huge fan of hers. Stone teaches math in a non-threatening, sincere manner that made bombing the entrance test a blessing. Sometimes you have to turn in your homework but not that often, other than that just easy webassign's. Tests and quizzes are very straightforward and there are so many resources to do well, which she points out before every class. I'll miss her next semester when I have to take math220!

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
11/19/2024

MATH113 should be an easy class but this professor makes it soooo hard. The workload is kind of ridiculous, but she does give you enough time to get it done although it does pile up and can be a lot if you try to cram it. The homework questions (on a website called ALEKS) are so hard and the assignments take forever. The examples she gives in class and the quizzes are way too easy and do not prepare you well for the tests or the homework. I take notes in class and sometimes they barely help with the homework. The worksheet answers are given on ELMS, so if you miss a step or get a question on the worksheet wrong, you get a 50 or a 0. She is extremely unforgiving. During class, she says "you should already know this" or "this is easy" a LOT. She posts practice exams for the tests which definitely help for preparation and are really similar to the test. There are discussions every Wednesday, and that is where the quizzes are taken. A lot of people only show up near the end of the discussion, when the quiz is handed out. Attendance isn't mandatory for the lecture or discussions. She is a nice person and apparently her office hours are really helpful, but her way of explaining things and her workload just doesn't work for me and for a lot of others. She is the only professor available for MATH113, so if you can take 115 I would recommend that. If she isn't avoidable, it is a doable course, but takes a lot of outside learning from tutors, friends, TAs, etc.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
11/18/2024

I personally do not think this class is hard at all. Maybe I am too good at math. I have always been good at math but everything in this class i learned in middle school and high school. I could literally skip lectures and not watch the recordings and still do good on the exam. I personally do not understand how some people are struggling in this class. I do agree that the workload is a little too much but even then she assigns the ALEKS assignments 6 days in advance and I have always finished all of them on time.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a D+
Anonymous
11/15/2024

She seems very nice, and I will say while she does have a french accent I can still understand her. However: I think it’s a combination of the course and her teaching, but this is absolutely the hardest college course I have taken thus far. I am a transfer student and this is my first semester at UMD, and this class alone has made me want to dropout. The amount of content total and amount that you are expected to absorb each day just feels so unattainable to me. math is definitely not my strong suit, and I haven’t done algebra or trig in years, but barbara’s teaching style definitely didn’t help. from my perspective she sort of just wrote the problem on the board and that was it. she said a lot things like “you already know how to do this” like from highschool, but doesn’t even give an overview or say at all how it’s done. There are also SO MANY ASSIGNMENTS. an exit ticket every single class (you have like 3-5 mins) a quiz once a week (i kid you not you have like 5 mins) as well as occasional worksheets, 4 exams, and weekly aleks assignments that are typically 30-50 ish questions in total. If i were to take this class over again (hoping to everything i won’t have to) i would be sure to have a light course load along side it. having this class with a full course load has made me sewerslideal <3

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/14/2024

she's a nice lady but oml she can't teach (Im definitely not finishing this semester with a A)

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
11/14/2024

Avoid this class at all costs!!! I am definitely biased because I hate math but I think even my classmates who liked math in this class also dreaded it. There are lengthy online homework assignments (called ALEKS) that are supposed to be review of the course material but to me did not make any sense (some of it was not even taught). I spent almost every spare hour I had in office hours trying to re-learn everything, and oftentimes left there just feeling even more confused. I also attended every single class and discussion and left each one stressed and confused. It might depend on your TA though but my TA's were awful and were not good at explaining things at all. Professor Michelato is nice and you can tell she cares about the course content and has been doing this a while. However, she has no sympathy like if you do badly on a test she will just tell you to study more for next time. She just cares that you pass the class even if that means a C. The are 3 exams- they are fair and are similar to the study guides and review sheets she makes. She also posts the old exams for you to review. To do well on the exams I would recommend studying literally ALL of the material she provides you with. To be honest, if I could do it all again I wouldn't. I would try to re-take the math placement exam and score higher to be placed in a higher class. Or I would find an equivalent class at a local community college or something and take the course through there...

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
11/13/2024

She's the worst professor I've ever had. She doesn't give +/—, so if you get, for example, an 89% in the class, you get a B. She's also normally the only teacher for MATH113, so take it at community college or skip it entirely. I would give 0 stars if I could.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

mangopichu
11/13/2024

She's honestly not that bad of a teacher, she just focuses more on what she wrote rather than the class understanding what she's saying.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
11/13/2024

She is a chill professor, if you study you'll pass, if you're gonna drop it please do before mid october to not waste your time.

Karen McLaren
MATH113

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
08/14/2024

Professor McLaren was an awesome professor! She was always prepared for class and was very thorough in her instruction. She always paused throughout the lecture to answer any questions as they came up (including private messages in the Zoom chat), and she was always willing to stay afterwards to answer individual questions. She was also very responsive to email, which I really appreciated as well. I always felt equipped to do any homework assignment or assessment, and I think that is largely due to how well Professor McLaren taught the material. The XYZ homework was a great resource because it allowed me to really grasp the concepts we were learning, and if I needed more help, I could watch a help video or see a similar example problem. Also, the weeklong deadlines for homework and assessments really eased the pressure for me of trying to rush through the assignments to make a deadline (although I did try as best as possible to keep up with the pace and not save all the homework assignments for the weekend). I don't really have any changes for this course- I really appreciated the virtual format as it was very convenient and accommodating with my schedule. One of the best decisions I've made to take this class over the summer.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
08/12/2024

J is a great professor, he is lenient and understands his students. The course itself is challenging and takes time but if you stick to the deadlines and have open communication with J you should be able to pass! The homework is very extensive and tedious but nothing unbearable. If you need to pass this class as a Gen Ed I HIGHLY recommend J as your professor and HIGHLY recommend taking this course during the summer because the only professor available in the fall and spring is not as great.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
08/12/2024

For it being a fast paced course over the summer professor J does a good job of teaching and reviewing concepts however it can be a lot as you are learning a new concept every day. There is a lot of work but he is flexible with deadlines and is a very nice person who is kind and wants to help you. The exams make up a very large portion of your final grade but he does drop one midterm which is nice. I would recommend taking this class with him as your professor overall.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
08/10/2024

Great professor! He made sure to go through each math problem thoroughly and ensured that if we had any questions to reviewed parts we didn't understand. Provided lots of extra office hours throughout the week. His exams and quizzes were fair as well, and overall was a reasonable class for a fast-paced semester.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
08/10/2024

Professor J is helpful with his students. Answers all the questions and goes back over any problems anybody is confused on whenever they ask Responds in a timely manner to all emails I've sent and very understanding. Workload can be pretty tedious with multiple deadlines throughout the week with multiple sections each being around 30-40 questions, but that's to be expected in a 6-week summer course. Has some slip ups here and there but over all a good professor.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
08/10/2024

J is a great teacher. Just wish quizzes weren’t timed. He’s very understanding when it comes to life and assignments as well. Expected to end with a B+/A-.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
08/10/2024

J is a phenomenal instructor he's very organized and makes content easy to understand by using real life examples which is awesome! Also, he's lenient, understanding, and flexible when it comes to students, which I love as a student who was not only taking classes in the summer but also working. Also, he post notes online if you can't attend Zoom which is great because then you won't have to go to office hours to ask what was completed. However, in this class you CANNOT TAKE THIS COURSE AND TREAT IT LIKE ITS NOTHING. You have to make sure to take a couple hours out of your day to complete the assignments since you have 2-4 math lab sections due, multiple quizzes worth 15% of your grade, worksheets and of course 3 midterms worth 45% of your grade, and 1 final worth 32% of your grade. However, J does drop 1 of your lowest midterms, and 3 of your lowest quizzes. Also, his office hours are everyday which was helpful since I attended a couple. IF YOU PUT IN THE TIME AND EFFORT FOR THIS CLASS YOU WILL DO WELL! Overall, I found out relatively quickly that J cares about his students and wants them to succeed in everything they do. Also, he'll find anyway possible to help his students succeed which ALOT OF PROFESSORS OR INSTRUCTORS DON'T DO! There are ONLY 2 MATH PROFESSORS I KNOW THAT REALLY WANTS THEIR STUDENTS TO SUCCEED and JERMAINE IS ONE OF THEM! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU TAKE THIS CLASS IN THE SUMMER WITH JERMAINE! THANK YOU J FOR BEING THE BEST MATH PROFESSOR! YOU ARE THE PROFESSOR THAT COLLEGE STUDENTS WISH FOR, BUT SOMETIMES DON'T GET! I AM SO HAPPY I DECIDED TO TAKE THIS CLASS, DEFINITELY A GREAT EXPERIENCE! AS I SAID IF YOU CAN HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU TAKE THIS CLASS WITH SPECIFICALLY JERMAINE HE IS A GEM AND ONE OF A KIND!

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
08/07/2024

J is a great instructor when it comes to visuals and presentation. His lesson organization for trigonometry and algebra is great and easy to follow. He follows a good pace when it comes to taking notes and reading the content. He answers questions attentively and listens to student needs in and out of class. Taking this course online is a bit challenging, but he is present in office hours and always open and responsive to emails.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
06/13/2024

awful professor. don't take this class if you can. she is an awful teacher, and I write this as someone who has historically been good at math.

Nick Forman
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
05/21/2024

HIS LAST NAME DOESN'T HAVE AN "E," IN IT. Nick is really sweet, knowledgeable and helpful. If you ask a question he'll answer it, and if you don't get it the first time he'll explain it another way and will even ask questions to make sure he understands your question. I love his sense of humor and you can tell that he genuinely cares about us. He also hosted 2 hr review sessions before the exams which we were all grateful for. He also responds to emails in a timely fashion and grades quickly. You'll see that I withdrew from the class and that was because I was failing due other outside things happening in my life that had nothing to do with Nick like getting into a car accident and poor time management lol

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
05/17/2024

Do anything in your power to avoid this class. I strongly encourage you to take MATH115 if possible. This professor does not care if everyone is failing. The average final exam grade was 54% and she will not curve. I consider myself good at math and this is the first time I have felt like a math class was difficult. If you have her STUDY. She is extremely unforgiving and will not admit that she is the problem.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/16/2024

Okay, if you have previous knowledge about pre-calc, or are extremely good at math then you will do fine, but if not you will struggle. Her lectures aren't the worst it's just that she sometimes makes constant mistakes with basic arithmetic. Her grading is not on a curve even despite the 50-60% average in the class she will not adjust. She is a nice person, but I do think she blames her students for why they fail despite the fact that a majority of the class has done less than ideal in the class. My biggest warning as someone who originally thought she was going to get an A, and now has a B is that the final exam is very long and doesn't feel the same as the other exams. So study extra hard for that one. overall I would avoid if there is better but if not then try the class and see how you feel.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/12/2024

Mrs. Michelato is the sweetest! She is super nice, though the course can definitely be difficult. It can be tricky if you do not know the basics of the content coming in. I am not great at math but came in knowing the basics of the course from high school classes, and I did just fine! Barbara's teaching methods were definitely not great, but the homework (ALEKS) in my opinion were amazing, and so I was able to teach myself so much of it. I did a lot of the homework during class because it would go along with the lecture notes, and to me that was very helpful. Hence, outside of class I would spend maybe 30 minutes to an hour doing homework a week. If you have to take this class, just make sure you know the best ways of teaching yourself work sometimes, whether it's through YouTube videos, homework assignments, etc. She provides so many old exams that you can go through which is a 10/10 as well.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/07/2024

She teaches with almost entirely examples in class, so going to lecture is pretty necessary for this course. The content isn't hard but its just alot in a pretty short period of time. Lots of homework BUT she offers so much practice and it's a great way to pad your grade. Exams are okay, I got around a 85-95 on each midterm with a pretty significant amount of studying. If you come to class and do your assignments you'll be fine. The people who complain abt this prof are literally just lazy

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
04/28/2024

I placed math 140, but took this class to fulfill a requirement. I stopped going to class when I realized she wasnt the best teacher and since for me it was review I just learned everything on youtube. Many people fail the exams because she doesnt explain things properly to them as well as grades every minute thing on the test. The first exam although all my answers were right I didnt get a 100% because of the grading. There are also no curves, extra credit, or grace. If you need to take her, use the "files of the day" video, slides, and youtube to teach yourself.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
04/15/2024

Such a waste of time taking this class. I dropped it halfway into the semester when I realized I would never get my grade up because of how hard the homework and tests were. She really doesn't care if anyone is failing the class and she'll just tell you to go to office hours and talk to the TA. Unfortunately, she is the only professor for MATH113 but I would 100% avoid at all costs.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
04/09/2024

Barbara does not know how to teach math. When our exam averages are 40-50%, she blames US and does not try to help us succeed. Majority of the students in this course are failing, and instead of helping us, she assigns homework that takes 4+ hours and isn't on the exam. If you do not have to take Math113, then DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. Multiple people in my class have brought this issue up with the math department and they continue to say that they are working on this issue, but nothing has been done. Barbara is a raging joke. She deserves to be fired.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
04/08/2024

Worst professor I've ever had. Her accent alone is reason enough for her to be fired. But she assigned exorbitant amounts of work, and didn't give us time to prepare for exams. Her exams also deviated from her review guides and so we were basically set up for failure. I had to drop her class. Avoid taking her class if you can. She's quite literally the worst. I would give her negative 2 stars if I could. Least accommodating professor I've ever had.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
04/04/2024

Please avoid at all costs. Lectures are pointless and the homework does not help at all. The quizzes and exit tickets she gives are easy but not a reflection of what will be on the exams which is misleading when studying. There is no extra credit or curves even though the exams average at a 50%.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
04/03/2024

If I could give 0 stars I would. Math has typically been my strong suit, but this time, I'm really struggling. She is hard to follow and not clear in her explanations. I found that I did better when I stopped attending lectures and taught myself. It's the worst class I've ever taken. She lacks empathy and doesn't prepare us for exams, which heavily impact our grades. If possible, avoid taking her class.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
03/31/2024

Please do not take this class. I have always been good at math and never have struggled. When I took her class, I made a mistake. She moves very fast through the lectures and doesn't explain anything. Many tests average around 50-60% and have no makeup or curves. Everyone in the class is falling right now, even those who are good at math.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
03/21/2024

The class average was 56%, and she blamed it on us and took no feedback. There is no extra credit, curving, or makeups. Even if your good at math, do not expect to pass

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
03/06/2024

Worst professor I have ever had. Moves way too fast in lectures and doesn't explain anything at all. The quizzes and homeworks are missleading as the exams are way harder and test scores reflect that. Average exam scores will be in the low 50s and she will not curve at all. UMD needs to fire her, not really sure how she got a job in the first place. She seems nice but doesn't know how to teach or care about her students at all. AVOID this class at all costs. TRUST ME.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
01/24/2024

If you can avoid to take this class with her, DO IT!!!! She really doesn’t know how to teach and there’s moments where she expects you to already know what to do. She goes fast paced and can even make mistakes as she goes. She does give a huge amount of homework on ALEKS and it’s just a stressful overall. The TA I had taught me more than the professor.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
01/01/2024

She's a good person, but is a bad professor. Her lectures are so pointless. She doesn't know how to explain things correctly, and her TA's are equally as terrible. I stopped wasting my time going to her lectures and began teaching myself instead with the ALEKS program you have to use for the course. Unfortunately, she's the only professor for MATH113, so luckily I got to drop her course in time and retook my math placement and tested into a higher math. If you're taking the course, I sincerely pray for you.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/25/2023

I honestly don’t understand why she has such a low rating, I personally felt like she was a good instructor. She gives u enough time to do the hw, but it is a lot for a week. She’s really nice and prepares you enough for the quizzes and exams.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/23/2023

You all are dragging for sure, these reviews are so dramatic lol. I am not at all a math wiz and was genuinely terrified walking into this class after reading her reviews, but this class was easy to succeed in. Professor Michelato was kind and her accent was not difficult to understand in the slightest. I will say that even though lectures are not mandatory, you'll likely be lost if you miss one class because barely anything covered in lecture is posted on Canvas. Try to make a friend in that class in case you miss a day so that you're able to catch up. Her teaching style is not what I'm used to, and she occasionally makes small errors in her work, but as long as you're attentive and take good notes you'll be fine. It's truly up to you if you do well in the class or not. There is a lot of time-consuming homework on ALEKS, but it's doable, although they are graded on accuracy. There are detailed examples on each of the questions, and in total, you have nine chances to get a single problem right. The questions on there are harder than what you'll be tested on, but it's still really easy to get 100% as your homework grade. There were 11 quizzes containing the content we learned the week prior. Most of them were taken during discussion, and we typically reviewed the content right before taking it. The questions were very easy, and your three lowest quiz grades were dropped. There weren't any make-ups for the quizzes, so if you missed one, it'd be a zero. I'd say try to be at all discussions so you have more leniency to mess up on a quiz rather than miss it due to absence. As for her tests, Professor Michelato posts a hefty amount of material to review. There are 3 midterms and one final, which is cumulative. There are around 4 or so former tests per exam for you to practice with. All of them were helpful, but the more recent exams were way more similar to the actual exam as opposed to something that's from 2017. I'd say the best studying you could do for these exams is to continuously do the practice exams. Just don't wait until the night before to cram since the exams do cover a lot of content (4 double-sided pages.) I'm telling you all, you will be fine. Just put in time and effort and you can definitely make the grade!!

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a D
Anonymous
12/22/2023

This lady cannot speak English well enough to teach a college level math course. She is sweet and nice but cannot successfully prepare her students for the exams. The home work is just a bunch of Aleks assignments.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/18/2023

Barb's class is an interesting one. Her format of teaching is not bad, however, most of the issues develop because of her grading scale. You have three midterms and a final. Each of the 3 midterms are 15%, making up 45% of your grade. The final is worth 25% of your grade as well. If you pass those, you will pass the class. There are 8 counted quizzes as well that will total 15% of your grade and for me were easy grades. If you pay attention and take good notes you should be fine. I am not the best test taker and because of my text anxiety screwed up my first midterm giving me a bad start, but its definitely possible to get an A or high B. She's getting a 3 because of her grading scale along with the fact that she can be careless at times. I had a student vomit during class, the fire alarm go off three different times, and tech issues frequently throughout the semester and she does whatever it takes to continue to teach class.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/18/2023

The other reviews are right - he’s one of the better college professors and math teachers I’ve had. Just do all the homework on schedule (there’s a lot and you have to keep pace) and ask questions if you need help. It’s easy to fall behind but he’ll help you, especially if you take initiative.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/17/2023

NOT AS BAD AS YOU THINK!!! I promise I will tell you everything you need to know to pass this class, coming from a freshman student that is awful at math and low-key cheated in math all through highschool. First couple weeks are a slap in the face. 1-3 aleks assignments given per class (I had class tuesday and thursday), quiz every discussion although you can miss three, lectures are NOT posted and instruction is on a chalk board. I really really hated the chalk board, do not come to class late or you will surely be lost. Aleks does a great job at concreting what you learn in class and is typically more helpful than how we learn things in class sometimes. Barbara does go very fast but it really isn't her fault she has so many units to cover. GO.TO.OFFICE.HOURS. I went every week and it helped so so much. No one really goes and I would almost get an hour to myself to go over the practice quizzes, aleks, etc. She does not give study guides, however she makes files with units you should cover, practice exams, and practice worksheets. I could have gotten As on all my exams but i just ended up making dumb mistakes which led to my B in the class. I was scared shitless reading these reviews but yall she is really not as bad as you think. You will be doing a lot of independant studying, make flashcards your friend and ask questions. You will survive!

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
12/16/2023

IF I COULD GIVE NEGATIVE STARS I WOULD!!! Terrible professor, she does not care about you as a student at all and will let you know. She will constantly remind you she has better things to do and that you are the least of her problems. Not understanding at all, talks too fast, makes fun of you if you don't understand and overall makes learning simple math very very very difficult. If you put in a lot of time outside of her class and study, you could pass but do not expect to do well in this class if you are not naturally gifted with math.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2023

She was good but had a fast pace in lectures. Her explanations were helpful but she only went over them once maybe twice so make sure to pay attention if you want to understand the material. Most of the material I taught myself as the software they use, ALEKS, was very helpful. Her study guides for exams are almost exactly like the exams so this was great for preparing myself for midterms. If you take her class, just try and you'll pass pretty easily.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/16/2023

UMD needs to fire her. She's not even qualified to teach, just reads her answers off of a paper and makes mistakes FREQUENTLY.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
sch1ar
12/14/2023

I actually dropped her class when I was able to since personally, I felt like the class wasn't worth it in the long run. I decided I'd study on my own for the math placement test and I did better. MATH113 does not give you any credit so taking it is basically a waste of time. she does have an accent, and it's ok to understand, she can be a little condescending when answering questions and when teaching she does it as if someone's rushing her. she'd always say "easy, right?" which got annoying. Overall, everyone is different she's a good professor, very smart, but not for me

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/14/2023

Absolutely awful. I cannot even begin to explain to you how useless Michelato is at her job. She assigns outrageous amounts of homework on aleks and separate worksheets that are tedious and not helpful at all, she gives you a 5 question quiz every week that is the easiest thing in the world, but all that does is lure you into a false sense of security as the exams are very very difficult and are never curved. She will also make mistakes on her work that the students actually have to correct her on. She also ignores questions often and doesn't respond to any emails. I learned better from my TA in my weekly discussion that was 50 minutes long than I did from Michelato's twice a week lecture that lasts an hour and fifteen minutes. She goes way too fast and teaches off of a piece of paper. Retake the math placement test if you can because for me there was no other way to avoid her as she was the only one teaching this class this semester. Absolutely AVOID AT ALL COSTS!!

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/13/2023

Professor Michelato was really nice and helpful to my learning all semester. For every topic, she provided a ton of material to practice with. She does teach kind of fast, but if you ask questions or ask her to slow down a little, she will. All of her assignments and lectures are organized and easy to follow for the most part. Every exam is proceeded by a helpful review and many practice materials. You know exactly what will be on the tests, because she tells you. My only gripe is that for discussion quizzes, you are unable to make it up if you miss one, but she drops the worst 3. They are super easy fr and if you pay attention during discussion right before, then you will be fine. Be prepared for a heavy Italian accent, however she is very easy to understand. I have no idea how she has such bad reviews, but I knew I would like her since syllabus week.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
12/13/2023

Nice lady but doesn't know how to teach at all nor does she care how her students are doing. Avoid this class and professor if you can.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
12/13/2023

Class was extremely fast paced, and work load was ridiculous for the level and content of the class. Little sympathy for failing students or those that are struggling. Poor communication with TA's. Little opportunity to raise your grade if you did poorly on a test (despite averages in the D range). Weekly quizzes are easy, but not a good reflection of the tests or other major grades. Just redo the placement exam or take the class at a community college.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
12/11/2023

Taking Professor Michelato was just a terrible decision I made. If you can take literally any other professor do it. Although her lectures are completely terrible to follow, her course process is just awful. I learned everything by teaching myself and through ALEKS assignments. During her lectures it lowkey feels like she thinks you already know the material and she just talks to herself. It gets extremely confusing at times. She does not record lectures or upload lecture notes. So if you missed lectured you're fukkd. If you're not good at math please do not take her and suffer. Theres a quiz every week, which aren't terrible but they do have an effect on your grade. IF YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE HER, go to office hours or get tutoring, I have only barely survived because all my friends are in like extremely advanced classes. SAVE YOURSELF AND DONT TAKE HER. SHE HAS ZERO MERCY FOR HER STDUDENTS. She literally has no curves, extra credit, retakes, or make ups. If i don't get a C+ in her final i have to re take the flipping class. SAVE YOURSELF.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/10/2023

not willing to go through the topics carefully. flies through the material without taking the time to make sure students understand what is going on. "I am not your teacher i am your lecturer"

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a B+
chadvader29
12/09/2023

There is nothing inherently wrong about this person, she is very kind. Although, as a professor, she is certainly a little lacking. Her lectures are downright confusing and she certainly confuses the TA, multiple times in the discussion the TA would teach us a different way of solving the problem and it felt like the communication there was quite lacking. Overall, I give her an extra star because it feels like a very hard class to teach, there is simply too much material to get through in a semester, so it has to be as fast paced as it is.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/08/2023

While I do not think she deserves all the hate she gets, she isn't that great of a professor. She moves way too fast and doesn't review anything. I found myself needing to reteach myself the material a lot of the time. But she does a good job of preparing students for exams, such as providing old tests to review.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/07/2023

Seriously one of the most confusing professors ever. She continually makes mistakes on the board and its often a student that has to point it out for her. She offers little to no help for her students, the TAs basically are the teachers in the discussion sessions. I started to improve when I stopped showing up for class. Do not take if you don't want to teach yourself literally every single topic. I loved pre-calc in high school and she ruined it for me because of how confusing she made it. She doesn't curve exams, the homeworks take forever and sometimes there are like six due on the same day. If you have another option, take that. Seriously do not take this class everyone I know in it hates it also. She is a nice person but also sometimes calls students out for weird things in class, like a girl coughed once and she made a comment for literally no reason. Seriously can't stress this enough, don't take this class.

Michael Rozowski
MATH113

Anonymous
12/07/2023

Very easy to understand and explains concept after concept. He is my TA for MATH113 and he is really reliable, so I recommend him

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/07/2023

From reading these reviews, yes, I agree that the professor tends to rush in her lectures and she can be unhelpful, but I feel like she actually tries to explain things for students to understand, so a bit of credit and effort to her for that. A lot of people complain about her not caring about the class and other things, but I honestly believe that she does and I feel like not everyone understands that. We all have our own opinions though, but the workload is manageable at the least. They're all online from a website and they're pretty self-explanatory to do. The only thing you come to class to is her reviewing homework assignments, so although attendance isn't really as cared for here, but I highly suggest trying to attend to all of them to not get behind. Luckily I had people that I knew in this class so having someone that you can ask for help and receive company from can make the class a bit fun. She is also a sweet teacher and is very generous for offering help to students, especially after class. She tends to ramble a lot sometimes too because I remember this one time where me and her were talking privately one on one and she kept me for 2 hours, but no complaints lol. I feel like the more you talk to her, the more you will appreciate her and feel more understanding for her. Otherwise, not too bad of a professor though.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/07/2023

Worst teacher I have ever had or will have. - Regularly gets problems wrong in class. - Makes up her own math rules and terms (i.e. "Jackie Chan" was her explanation as to foiling) - Hard to understand - Could care less about her students and their grades - Does not round or grade with pluses or minuses-- If a student finishes the course with a 90, they receive an A (4.0), and an 89.99 would be a B (3.0) - Assigns a ridiculous amount of homework that does not correlate to exams in the slightest - Does not allow students to ask questions-- always rushes through lectures only to end them 45 minutes early - No notes provided during class - Extremely unorganized and has no idea what is happening with regards to assignments and grades - Gives a midterm a week before the final. In conclusion, do not take this class. You would be better off going directly into Calc or Stat. I know less about math now then I did at the start of the semester.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/06/2023

She is a nice person and can be funny at times, however she is a horrible math teacher. All love to her I bet she is a blast to have a conversation with but not about math. She does not explain how to do problems or rules or anything like that. She "goes over" the homework by just speaking about it and not actually explaining. She also is absolutely no help during office hours and cannot explain a concept to save her life. If you are not the best at math I do not recomend her I had at least five mental breakdowns becuase of this class. The worst math teacher I have ever had and that is saying a lot. Theres also NO textbook... I think giving one star was generous.

Shuhan Kou
MATH113

Anonymous
12/05/2023

10/10. Compared t the professor, she's leagues better at math, as well as teaching it. If you get her as your TA, your life just got WAY easier. It'll still be a struggle though, just a less painful struggle.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/04/2023

Ms Menecio is very nice, but she isn't very willing to help students understand lectures or assignments. The discussions also aren't helpful because half the time the TA is confused by the way she taught us materials. If you want to understand the course I wouldn't recommend her.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
TerpyWerpy
12/04/2023

Damnnnn these reviews are low LMAO. I mean I think shes an okay teacher, I learn better here than HS. I like her TA Shuhan Kou, she's really good TA who made learning concepts easier. Sometimes there's a lot of homework on ALEKS. The midterms are alright. Everything is just decent. She does make mistakes which students correct like once every 2 classes and her accent really isn't that hard to understand. These past reviews are lowkey mad dramatic lol. Like she's really just an alright teacher, not super good but not super bad. You just gotta put in work to study and understand better but that's like all classes.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
12/03/2023

If I could give 0 stars I would. Just don't take her if you can. She doesn't explain things well, offers no mercy and make mistakes in class all the time.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/01/2023

nice but terrible class. Confusing lectures, and does ot help when you are struggling in class. Homework assignments take forever and do not help at all. Tests are never curved. Only ood thing is quizzes are easy, but you have a quiz EVERY week.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/01/2023

Avoid if you can. Nice lady but not a good teacher. Homework assignments are long and tedious. No curves on exams.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
11/30/2023

I took the equivalent to this class in high school, and all Michelato did was confuse me. I genuinely started doing better in the class when I stopped showing up. This may seem harsh but her teaching method is not good. She continually makes mistakes on problems, and only realizes when a student asks a question to clarify or question how she got an answer. Speaking of questions she does not answer them, she will intentionally avoid the multitude of hands raised each class and does not answer emails. Furthermore she seems to have a genuine disregard for the safety of the students, twice this semester the fire alarm has gone off, and once a student puked in the lecture hall, each time she kept lecturing and refused to allow us to leave. To finish this review off I will leave a direct quote from her in regards to her attendance policy, "I do not care if you get hit by a car on the way here, you must show up to class." Do not take this course from her, I would recommend re-taking the placement test.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/29/2023

I was a transfer student coming into UMD and MATH113 is almost identical to the one I took at my other institution in the Spring semester. The comparison between my other professor and Michelato is insane. If I didn't already have an understanding of the coursework I think I'd struggle very hard in her class. I found myself going back to my notes from my previous professor because I think her explanations and ways of doing the problems are complicated and hard to understand so I went off on my own a lot. Lectures and course is extremely fast paced, heavy workload but I guess that's the same with any class at UMD. Overall, she was kind of nice and you could tell that she means well, but I would take this class with somebody else if algebra and trig is not a strong suit of yours.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Anonymous
11/15/2023

Try and stay away from her. She teaches very fast and her accent makes it kinda hard to understand. She literally teaches off a piece of paper and sometimes she makes mistakes and the students end up correcting her. She doesn't really care about your grade and if you don't have a good understanding of algebra coming into this class it's hard to do well. She teaches so fast to the point where she covers like 3 topics that are really confusing and you don't really know what's going on. If you can take the placement test again and try to get into 120 or take this class at a community college. She's not the worst teacher I've ever had but she's definitely not a teacher you want. Don't recommend

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an XF
Anonymous
11/07/2023

Absolute joke of a class. Way too much material is covered (2-3 topics per lecture) and the homework will take you forever. Both of the first two exams had low averages and weren't curved. You're much better skipping this class entirely and taking Calc 1 at a community college. Michelato doesn't care about the success of her students and you should NOT take this class.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
11/01/2023

You know what? I came into this class even while knowing all the negative reviews surrounding this professor with an open mind. I decided to not let the reviews decided wether I should or should not pay attention to them so I wanted to see for myself how this class actually is. 1. She teaches the topics as if someone is telling her there'll be no tommorow. after teaching, her saying is "Easy, right?!". I was doing halfway but I decided to drop it because it is easier to drop your grade then boost it and I would rather not have an XF. 2. Everyone understands math differently, even though I personally never felt like I sucked at math this class made me lose all my motivation. She gives no partial points which I think is stupid, no extra credit, and what's worst is she is the only professor who teaches this class. If you want to take her and prove everyone else wrong, Good luck! But i would save myself the headache this class gives ;):

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
10/06/2023

DO NOT TAKE HER. Not sure why UMD hasn't fired her yet. She will blame students for not doing well when she teaches by copying a piece of paper. I doubt she can even do the math. She makes so many mistakes even with the cheat sheet she uses. Students constantly have to correct her. Sometimes she will just write a problem and the answer on the board, not explain or show work, and say "Easy, right?" and move on without a care in the world.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
mnew
10/05/2023

Please do not take her. You will not pass this class. Unless you are already 100% sufficient in advanced algebra, you will fall behind. She makes mistakes in lectures that students have to correct even though she is reading straight from a paper that tells her all the answers. Sometimes she will go over 3-4 topics in the 75-minute class period and she will never review anything. If you ask a question in class, she will not assist you or will simply just repeat herself. Sometimes she will just write an answer on the board, not show any work, and expect students to know how she got there. She includes untaught topics on the quizzes and tests. She is unhelpful outside of class and does not communicate with TAs. Methods taught in lecture vs discussion are completely different due to lack of communication. Please take another professor

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
pierogi
09/25/2023

I’ve had bad teachers, I’ve had good teachers, but I’ve never had one that struck a nerve quite like Barbara Michelato. The woman is extremely condescending, and ridicules students for not knowing the material. She moves through topics far too quickly, sometimes covering 2 or 3 in the 75 minute lecture. She then expects students to spend EXTENSIVE time reviewing concepts independently. It is entirely lost on her that this class leads to MATH120, which by its very nature is a calculus class for people who will never use calculus in their professional or academic lives. There are 3 midterms and a cumulative final that make up a total of 60% of your grade. There are multiple sections due on ALEKS every week (more than my 300-level classes). Personally I plan to attempt the CLEP calculus test before the semester is over and just withdraw from the class. I highly recommend anyone who gets placed in to this class to retake the MPT and get into MATH120 instead of dealing with this nonsense.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
09/06/2023

Not a great teacher, genuinely did not help or care if one was struggling; do yourself a service and take 120 or take this class at a community college

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
09/06/2023

Please, please, no like PLEASE do not take this professor. Giving her a zero wasn't possible, so i gave her a one. I was never great at math but in high school took honors and could always study my way to an A. This professor literally singlehandedly made me hate my semester. No, i'm not great at math. But, I did put in an honest effort, went to office hours every week, and took notes and participated during class. She is quite literally incapable of teaching and should be fired. I had a study group of about ten people and besides one girl we all never got over an 80 even after spending countless hours studying, and the girl that got an a took this class at a community college and UMD wouldn't accept her credits. So the only person I personally know who was able to get over an 80 had already taken this class and still struggled. Her assignments are all over the place, she doesn't coordinate with TA's, she makes mistakes during lectures and refuses to go over her mistake, and half the time she just writes answers on the board without explaining how one should/could get there. She doesn't allow for makeups even with a doctor's note, etc. She literally said on the first day of class "if you get in a car accident don't complain to me, you have a week to do each assignment." She sucks, no other way to say it. Like I simply could not say enough bad about this professor. I swear on my life, I had a 3.9 before this class and had all A's in all of my other classes. I really did try. Read all the other reviews and decide if you want to struggle for an entire semester. Please take this seriously, she's awful.****IF IT IS STILL THE ADD/DROP PERIOD GET OUT OF THIS CLASS!!!!!!! I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH****

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
08/21/2023

Overall a fine professor. He explains things well, is clear about how the grades are calculated, and gives opportunities to improve the grade by throwing in an extra quiz and dropping the lowest. He posted supplemental videos and charts too.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
08/20/2023

He's excellent, one of the few professors that really goes out of his way to help you. Really flexible about people's summer work schedules and allowed extensions on homework. He made the subject interesting too and that's a big plus because I actually looked forward to coming each day. His tests can be difficult but his sample tests are good preparation, and the grading, by a TA and him, seemed fair. I don't know why he got a couple bad reviews but like the one after said, you need to give it a chance and you'll see him shine. He helps motivate you to shine. The only con I guess is there's a lot of homework every week, but as noted he will give extensions. I recommend him.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
05/22/2023

To the person that gave her a 5, I would like to say her teaching style might work for you but it does not work for most students. Over 70 people dropped by the 12-week mark. She once blamed the classes and belittled everyone for having an average of 42 on the first midterm. People stopped attending her class after she made such comments and just thought it would be better to teach themselves the concepts. She did not help motivate her students but instead brought them down. Please don't take her class, I wish someone could have warned me about how bad she was. To the people who are taking her, I wish you luck and hope you are able to get through it. You will waste your money if you take her. If you want to know a different course of action, either take the class at community college or retake the math placement exam and place higher. If you fail this class and worry abt your GPA, you can ask for freshman forgiveness, anyone under 25 completed credits can ask for this, but you do have to retake the class to get rid of the fail, and if you do that, you can retake it during the summer at umd online, the professor is different and way better. You are also able to take the math placement as many times as you want, that's the route that I took, and now I'm taking Math120, the class that I actually need. Good luck people!!!

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
05/18/2023

Where do I even begin? Michelato covers way too much content for a normal person to digest in lectures and if you ever zone out for more than 30 seconds you will be totally lost. The averages for the exams have all been well below failing. After the first exam, the average was ridiculously below failing and someone asked her if there would be any curve and her response was "Well, one person was able to get a 100% so there will be no curve," meanwhile the average was around half of that. I was only able to pass this class due to hours and hours of studying on the nights before the exams. This is the most I've worked for a class for a poor grade... Do not take this class at UMD if Michelato is teaching, I would strongly suggest taking it at a community college.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/17/2023

The three stars I am giving her are for the experiences I had when I went to her office hours for questions. She is pretty nice and can explain things in a one on one setting. Other than that, this class is a hot mess. I am not the best at math but certainly did not expect to get a C in college algebra. I didn't realize how much could improved in this course and professor until I took my math 120 course and got an A. For one, she makes mistakes while doing the problems, which often aren't legible because she does everything on the chalk board. Second, I HATE the twice a week lecture style. My class was roughly an hour and a half, and we'd usually cover three units per lecture. It was impossible to learn and the homework wasn't great at reinforcing. Her files section of canvas, while it did provide a lot of practice, was also disorganized. She would upload exam review materials and practice like a week in advance. She was just overall disorganized. The math113 here in general sucks and it is way too much trig. I recommend retaking the placement test and getting into math 120 if you are business major like me.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/17/2023

As someone who has struggled in math my whole life, this class was relatively easy to follow and was just as demanding as any college course. Since it is the math course that proceeds many major requirements for math (like math120 and 140), the course basically has to prepare you for the demands of higher-level math courses. To succeed in the course, go to lectures, take notes, and do a bunch of practice exams to prepare for the tests. The homework is seriously not bad if you go to the lecture because you can use your notes for the assignments. I don't understand how people "taught themselves" the class because if I didn't go to lecture I'd be failing also. Personally, I felt that Professor Michelato's teaching style is completely appropriate to what is expected from a course like this, and I genuinely believe that the awful reviews reflect the individual problems of the students. After week three of the semester, only about 40 people out of 200 students attended lectures, and the professor does not post or record her lectures so going is CRUCIAL. If you do not go, you will fall behind. Additionally, if you approach the course with a victim mindset claiming the professor is out to get you instead of putting in the work necessary, you will fall behind also. Many of these negative reviews come from students who were complaining about the professor not curving the exams. For a course that is meant to catch us up to everyone else, it might be best to reconsider your major choice if you are failing a 100-level math class. Professor Michelato was met with incredible amounts of disrespect and judgment throughout the semester, yet still was patient during lectures when people interrupted to ask questions. For a college professor, she is incredibly easygoing and empathetic, and I genuinely admire her patience with the students attending her class. For the first time in a VERY long time, I'm expecting an A in a math course, and this is thanks to her teaching style. Please, please, please don't take the negative reviews as the general attitude of the class.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2023

If you need to take Math 113 then definitely take it with Professor Sax! Even if the only class he's teaching is the 013/113 version and you placed into Math 113 directly, still go through the 013 just to have him for Math 113 - it's worth it. He knows his stuff and is very clear when he shows how to do a problem. He's very generous about late work, drops multiple quizzes and he goes through practice exams which are super good preparation for the exams themselves. They're like the same content and same format, and he goes through them the week before the exam. He also answers any problem you want especially during office hours. He remembers what topics you were having trouble with and he'll even email you before the final to make sure you understand those topics well. He really cares and I'm happy I had him for my professor.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2023

This class moves very quickly and the professor sometimes rushes at the end. It’s not entirely his fault and you can tell he’s trying, but he takes a lot of time answering people’s questions and doesn’t always manage the class well. One student kept interrupting and he gave in each time. I think he wants to go faster and get into it, but uses a lot of patience to slow it down and you can tell sometimes he’s frustrated too. If I designed this course I would make the 013 part much less and give more time to do Math 113 because that’s the course that counts. I still like Professor Sax and I agree with the other posts that he wants to be helpful. He’s very good at showing how to do a problem step by step, and he likes to make connections between the topics we learned, like transforming functions. I think someone said he teaches Math 120 and it will be interesting to see how that goes.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2023

He will do a lot of office hours and review sessions and they really do help. His lectures are good but sometimes get a little long winded. What I like best is when he goes over homework problems. If he just spent every lecture going over problems then it would be perfect. His exams are just like the practice exams (except the second one). He’s humble enough to admit any mistakes he makes during lecture but just don’t insult him or blame him for the class going too quickly. He himself said it goes very quickly but if you blame him then he’ll just get defensive and it’ll go nowhere. Everything else about him is great. He’s very understanding about making up missed work and he also drops the lowest THREE quizzes which is awesome. I recommend taking him.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
05/13/2023

Honestly, people are pretty dramatic. I’ve never considered myself great at math, but I feel this class is manageable. From the start, people have complained about this professor/class, so people go into it with a bad attitude, ultimately finding every excuse as to why they didn’t pass. I’ve managed to get B’s on all exams. I barely show up to class because the homework’s are really helpful. There’s a lot of them, but they’re due all on one day so you have the whole week to do them. Michelato posts past exams and worksheets in organized folders for each exam. There really isn’t an excuse to fail the exams unless you’re just not applying yourself. Study, do the practice problems, watch YouTube videos and you’ll be fine. Lots of this class is just basic concepts that I learned in middle school that build off of eachother. Just don’t be dramatic and actually pay attention and you’ll be fine

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
05/09/2023

IF I COULD DO A ZERO, I WOULD. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS- MICHEALTO WANTS YOU TO FAIL. When the average has been below a 60 for ALL Students, she says it is "our" fault, and that she designed the test easily. She sets you up to fail and does not care if you are not doing well.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a D-
Anonymous
05/09/2023

I have never in my life failed a course. I put in over 15 hours of studying every week but exam scores are worth 70% of our grade. I am a bad test taker and I feel like I had minimal opportunity to improve after a bad test score. Content discussed in classes were very fast paced and I would get ignored while raising my hand for a question. The study guides did not reflect all the content learned over the sections so during the exam information that we spent 1 day on would pop up and you will have forgotten about it while trying to learn the newest content. When confronted about this, she says that we "should know it". If you take this course, please utilize the tutoring in the math department. Office hours are not helpful. The TAs (In my experience: Duc) do not communicate with the professors and are completely unaware of what content we are learning and how we were taught it during class. I have put more effort into this class than any class (including sciences) I've ever taken and am failing horribly. Failing this class sets me back a semester at school which is hard because it is the only class left for my major prerequisites. Please choose another professor if you can or take this class at a community college.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
05/09/2023

Easily the worst professor I have ever had. Horrible teacher and the amount of work is borderline ridiculous, not to mention you have a quiz every single week. Do yourself a favor and do not take Michelato under any circumstance.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/08/2023

It's really on you if you're going to do well or not. She gives you all the materials you need to get an A in this class. Lectures are so fast paced and if you don't show up to every single one and pay attention start to finish, you will get lost. ALEKS homework is an absolute must - it was almost always harder than the exams and prepared me better than my notes. Quizzes every week - you can and will get a 100% if you simply do the 10 question practice quizzes. Exams are MUCH HARDER than the quizzes - be prepared. She treats you like adults in this class and you are expected to be 100% fluent in all math leading up to this class. She was kind and always allowed questions and offered help. But you will need to do your part - study hard and do the homework in order to do well.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C-
Anonymous
05/04/2023

Horrible teacher. Terrible lecturer, difficult to understand. WS/Quiz nothing similar to any of the tests. I tend to be someone pretty good at math but did not succeed in this course. Expects you to know everything when she is a horrible teacher. Avoid at all costs.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
05/02/2023

This is a nightmare professor every bad trope of a professor you could think of she fulfills her class is extremely difficult and she does not properly prepare you for exams and quizzes. This is on top of copious amounts of homework. For your sake if possible do not take her if possible. If I could give 0/5 I would.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
03/30/2023

for your own sake don't take her, even if she is the only option, just take it at a community college, I've cried 3 times over this class and it is not worth it, I going to drop it for my own sake and just take freshman forgiveness if I could I would give a 0/5

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
02/07/2023

goated professor

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a D+
Anonymous
01/31/2023

You've seen the other comments, what else is there to say.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/23/2023

Professor Michelato is a very sweet person but was not great at teaching this class. First off she is very hard to understand, and also does a terrible job of understanding others. She would blatantly ignore people who were raising their hands to ask questions, and when she did respond to a question it took her way too long to understand what they were asking. She also made so many mistakes most of which we caught her for. I was fortunate enough to come from a very strong math background in high school so I found this class pretty easy, but I saw how other really struggled and I was able to help. Each week we had at least 1 quiz, textbook work, and sometimes a worksheet. The homework was relatively easy but sometimes there was content that she didn't teach us and most of the time it never appeared on any of the quizzes so the 2 hours I spent doing one section of graph transformations, for example, was useless. The worksheets were genuinely helpful, however, she only put one topic on the worksheet which was pointless because usually, that was the easier one of the week. She also has an extremely ridiculous grading policy. If you get a singular question wrong, don't show your work, or don't make an answer obvious you get a 50 or a 0 in some cases. Her quizzes were super easy and usually way better than expected besides the way they were graded (no partial credit for anything) All the exams were pretty easy, but the grading was very harsh and inconsistent between TAs. My TA was very hard to understand and had no concept of how the professor taught things. They both taught very quickly which didn't bother me since I understood everything but for other people could be really hard. She also didn't help me at all when I was home with covid. She told me to look at the textbook in which the wrong page numbers were listed so I was so confused about the HW and she still refused to help me. My advice to anyone taking this class would be to do all the extra worksheets she puts in the folders, those legitimately helped me a ton in addition to forming study groups.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
01/18/2023

I've had a lot of poor math teachers in my life, but Michelato was 100% THE WORST. She was rude and condescending to students who asked questions during lecture and rarely actually provided a beneficial response. Quizzes were supposed to be during weekly discussion, however certain weeks she would decide to hold them during the last 10 minutes of lecture (lectures were useless too). She never opened the tests with enough time to let us finish them and not be late for our next class. Midterm and final exam grades were 60's to low 70's and NO CURVE! I did 10 old practice exams and still didn't do well. Awful professor, awful woman, and awful class. Avoid at all costs if you care about your grades or your sanity.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
01/07/2023

I would not take this class. It got to a point where she would either make mistakes on accident or purpose to see if we would notice. She doesn't understand students questions and therefore can't answer them. For example, one student asked if the professor could rewrite the answer since they couldn't read it clearly and Michelato didn't understand. There were a total of 68 homework and worksheet assignments which the homework's took very long and weren't useful for the quizzes or tests. They also wouldn't help your grade. Quizzes every week which weren't bad, 5 questions with no partial credit but she did end up dropping the 4 lowest ones and gave weekly practice quizzes. 3 tests which were hard, averages were in the 60's despite given old exams. I tried going to the professor's office hours, wasn't very helpful but luckily I had a very good TA. I did hours and hours of homework and studying to struggle maintaining a B-.

Steven Sax
MATH113

Anonymous
01/01/2023

He is nice guy and really tries to help everyone. For the first exam he didn't provide a study sheet and it showed in the exam scores, but for all other exams he did give study sheets and practice problems and they were spot on! The exam problems were very much like the practice problems and quizzes so if you knew how to do those you'd be fine. And the professor was available anytime to explain anything, so if you put in the effort to go over the practice problems with him in office hours, then you could ace the exams.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/27/2022

Ngl if i studied much better for my third midterm i couldve gotten an A.... but thats beside the point!!!!! she's a sweet lady, but a terrible teacher. i basically taught myself the entire semester. she is also kinda evil tho since she gave an in person quiz (with a password) the day before thankgiving break.... like everyone had to go home. anyways, study for everything! you can pass, but with some extra effort (booo).

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/19/2022

This class is not impossible for you to get an A in but it sure is difficult. Most of the people around me studied and attended every lecture and still got a B in the class. My advice if you do have her is to do practice problems every day until you can do any variation of what she will throw at you on the exam. Not the worst teacher but you definitely have to have good background knowledge to succeed. I have A's in all of my other classes but barely passed this one. She is a good person but not the best teacher.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/19/2022

Professor Menecio was very difficult to understand during lectures, she moved too quickly, and taught the material incorrectly, practice exams were completely different from real exams when were told to "master" the practice exams. She does not care about her grade point average, as the average was 60 or lower. This class was very unhelpful and avoid it at all costs. I'm disappointed by the lower level math classes here in general because they are made to difficult and professors like Menecio don't really care.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/17/2022

If you are not familiar with the course material then do NOT take this class with Michelato; the homework assignments take a terribly long time and do not anything for your grade. The quizzes that are every week don't have any partial credit - so if you get 90 percent of the question right but mess something up you are getting docked 20 percent. Michelato as a teacher is terrible at explaining concepts and ends up making a lot of things more complicated than they have to be.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/17/2022

I don't even know where to start with this class. I came from Calc A AP in high school and placing into this (because I hated algebra) and this was the hardest math course I have taken. Barbara Michelato is a really nice person, but just the worst teacher. Rushes through material, hardly explains; half the class I was just trying to figure out what she was writing on the board and doing. Your final grade is practically determined by 4 tests, the 3 midterm exams being 45 percent of your grade and the final being 25 percent. Not only are they lengthy and confusing with the material, but there are no curves. Not. A. Single. Curve. The test averages were 63 or below and she did not curve anything or give any extra credit. The class is absurd and I have never heard of a math class not having a curve in all my years. Just stay away from this class, its not like the material is hard but the way it is taught just confuses the whole class.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Anonymous
12/15/2022

I recommend taking this class at community college. If you did not already take this class in HS it will be difficult to pass. Barbara Michelato is not a good professor, in fact she is quite bad. Midterm exams are way harder than the weekly quizzes. It was an awful experience in this class, youtube videos explain the math concepts better than she did. Also, there is a midterm like a little less than 2 weeks before the final exam so you have to cram study A LOT. I wish I could give 0/5 stars. Good luck if you need this class.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/12/2022

The only way you will pass this class is if you have already learned the material in high school. Barbara Michelato is an awful teacher. She is probably the least accommodating professor I have ever had. She refuses to curve grades or give extra credit. Your final grade is determined by the weekly quizzes, 3 midterm exams, and the final exam (all of which you have no opportunity to get points back for). Her exams are literally designed to make you fail, no matter how much you study the homework or her lectures there is no way you can expect what types of problems will be on the exams. The material isn't even that hard but the way she teaches it makes even more confused then when you started. She is rude and makes it hard to build any sort of connection with her.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Anonymous
12/07/2022

Do not take this class if you do not have to.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Anonymous
12/07/2022

A decent woman, horrible teacher. Do not take this class with her. She has a terrible grading system. If you get any part of the problem wrong, you get no credit at all. For example, if you solve and show all of the steps correctly but fail to specify the exact term you are solving for (even if it is SO obvious), expect a zero on the entire assignment. If you get a 44/45, your grade is a zero. There are quizzes every week in discussion which you must put lots of time into preparing for. She assigns hours of online homework as well. The midterms are designed to make students fail and do not reflect class work at all. Everything is taught on a black board which is illegible because she scribbles all over it without giving context. It does not help that she has a very thick accent and does not understand questions either. She refuses to curve grades. 0/5. I have watched people cry in this class, it should never be this hard.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/07/2022

Barbara is a nightmare come true. I cannot urge you enough if you can, please avoid having her as your professor. I will be honest, the only way to get a passing grade in this class is if you dedicate extensive amounts of time to this course alone. That is quite impossible since we have other classes in conjunction with hers. There are weekly quizzes, and there were about 12 quizzes this semester. The quizzes are relatively straightforward and not comparable to the midterm content. She does provide practice quizzes weekly to "prepare" for the quizzes, so if you do those and get used to the procedures, the quizzes are OK. The quizzes are all or none, and no partial credit is offered. There are three exams during the semester, and they make up 45% of your total grade, which is absolutely absurd within itself. Conversely, the midterm content is entirely different from the quiz material, and she deliberately makes it way harder. I have had friends that have bombed one midterm, and they are stuck, stressing, trying to climb themselves back up to a passing grade. In lectures, she goes way too quickly and does not slow down, even when she is asked to by other students. There is weekly homework on a platform called Aleks, and it takes me hours at a time weekly to complete just one assignment, and there are multiple at one time, often more than 4. Btw, the final is CUMULATIVE... If you do need to take this class and want to pass, invest your time in math tutoring multiple times throughout the week, make friends and watch YouTube videos when you do not understand.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
12/07/2022

Don't take this class. Good person, but a bad teacher. I ace all my other classes but struggle to maintain a passing grade in this one.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
12/07/2022

She is a decent person, but a terrible teacher. If you have the option, avoid having her as a professor. I can not stress it enough. I am normally a straight-A student, even in math. But right now I am barely maintaining a B-. Even when dedicating a lot of time to this class, bombing one of her tests is still very likely. If I could rate this class a 0/5 I would.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/06/2022

She is a very nice woman, but her teaching methods and overall notes were very unhelpful for this course. She teaches way too fast and commonly makes mistakes in the notes, which she goes back and changes. Not to mention she schedules a midterm a WEEK before the final. Overall this course was made more difficult because of the way she taught the material.

Santuria Orsetti
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/06/2022

He is a great teacher and explains everything and doesn't mind answering questions until the class understands. assigns homework every night but only collects 5 throughout the semester at random classes. If you miss hw when he collects it is an automatic zero for that assignment with 0 negotiation which isn't so good. He does give out around 10 quizzes and only grades 5 and drops the other which is a huge plus in his class. Highly recommend taking him he also made he class fun by making jokes.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/06/2022

I'm not particularly good at math, but her class is extremely hard to follow. She stands in front of her writing and her lectures go very fast. She has quizzes every week which are 5 points and there are about 14 of them. There are three midterms and one final. The last midterm was only a week before the final giving you no time to study for the final exam. The homework is an online workbook that takes a good amount of your time and does not raise your grade at all. I have an 83% currently but I am not confident that it will maintain.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/01/2022

Teaches VERY fast and goes through lectures as if we all already know all the topics. I had to go to the TA a lot for exam prep. Can be funny sometimes but teaches at such a fast pace it stresses me out. Also held her office hours before the class... didn't make much sense since everyone has class before her class since we are FC kids.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Anonymous
08/30/2022

Very unkind :(

Ian Teixeira
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
06/22/2022

So disorganized. Doesn't know how to teach/doesn't want to teach. Would be an amazing TA with how much he knows, but idk who gave him a phd let alone encouraged him to pursue academia.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
05/16/2022

This class should not be as profoundly difficult as it is. He is not helpful in the slightest and he is extremely condescending. He is not kind and does not explain things well at all. Overly complicates simple concepts and scoffs at the suggestion of simplifying them down. At such a low level, the instructor should be understanding and want to explain things in ways that their students will understand, rather than waxing poetic about their own intelligence and making you feel small for not understanding. This is an incredibly frustrating class as it's structured now, but it's even worse with someone like this teaching the course. He would probably be a better fit for a higher-level math course. If you can avoid it, do not take his class.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting a D+
Anonymous
05/14/2022

This class can either intensify or give you depression. The teacher is not helpful at all and never willing to represent his students interests to his supervisors. The most you will get is « I can’t do anything about that ». He explains the class poorly and his office hours will only make you feel less than. The exam review is a waste because most likely than not whatever you’re reviewing will not be on it and same for the final. There will be times in class where he would explain things by just found hand gestures and saying things like « if it goes this way (with no illustrations by the way), then it gets bigger » and he will constantly ask if anyone has any questions but trust me you won’t have any because you won’t even know where to start.

Yong Cui
MATH113

Anonymous
05/09/2022

DO NOT TAKE THIS TEACHER! You will have to teach everything to yourself. This was the worse class I have ever taken. It was so hard to learn anything.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
05/05/2022

unkind and makes you feel small when asking honest questions about the material. This class shouldn't be as difficult as it was.

Morgan Bryant
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
05/05/2022

If you have the choice, take this professor. Math is a hard subject, but she really cares about making sure you understand the material. If you don't understand something, email her or go to her office hours and she'll work with you until you understand it.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
04/18/2022

I would give him 0 stars if it were possible. He isn’t the best explainer, when answering questions he will confuse you more than you already are. If you go to his office hours he will be little you because you don’t understand the material fully. There is also a weekly quiz that 9/10 you aren’t prepared for because what he told you to study doesn’t match with what he said was going to be on the quiz. Take his class if you have time to dedicate to teach yourself the material so you can pass because he doesn’t grade on a curve. As a person he is okay, but as a professor, I would avoid him.

Jackson Hopper
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
02/04/2022

I would give him a 4 star review but I'm a bit salty that I didn't get a B+. He's a nice guy who wants you to learn, but I don't think he knows the best way to teach everything. He provided partial credit on quizzes and midterms which was nice, but tests were kind of tough. I don't think many people went to his office hours, so I don't think complaining about him being terrible is fair. I wouldn't mind taking him again.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Anonymous
01/27/2022

He's generous with grading, understanding, and super flexible with his students. Admittedly, he doesn't in-depth teach the content in class (which was the biggest 'problem' with his teaching style, especially as someone who struggles with math). He just pretty much gives you practice problems to solve and walks around helping whoever asks. However, the good thing is, if you ever want help all you need to do is reach out. He will guide you through the problems the best he can, which most of the time was pretty helpful. He also hosted study sessions and office hours. As for advice for the class, what worked best for me was doing the smartbook/Knewton Alta (sometimes repeatedly) as well as the practice tests he gives out (which almost always mirrored the exams). For my class, there were three midterms total, worth about 45% of your grade, and the final exam worth 25%, on top of weekly quizzes, and Knewton Alta assignments, all of which were manageable. I would tell people who wanna succeed to make sure to be consistent with note-taking/practice or it's very easy to fall behind. If you're bad at math, get ahead of the assigned textbook sections so when exams come around you have a free few days just to dedicate to studying, make good notes, and most importantly, practice! Don't be afraid to go to review sessions or office hours. The biggest takeaway from Jermain was that he never wanted to see a student fail. He genuinely wanted you to do your best and was willing to help you to achieve that. If you put in the effort, you can definitely do well.

Amador Jomuad
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
01/19/2022

Nice guy, not a great teacher. He seems to have a lot on his plate and simply does not effectively prepare, teach, grade, or offer any kind of help outside of class. Asking a question during class is more likely to leave everyone more confused than your question intended to be. If you haven't taken algebra before I'd suggest getting to know those in the class that have and trying to work things out together. Finding a study group so you can interchange tests, problems, and frustrations is probably the best way to study. Other than that, you have to teach yourself.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
01/04/2022

Would not recommend taking any class with Jacob Erickson as the teacher. Very condescending and rude towards his students. No matter how hard I studied and reviewed for quizzes (there's one every Friday) and exams (3 major ones and a final), I, along with many of my classmates, did poorly. He gets frustrated when students ask questions insisting that he doesn't know "how much simpler he can explain the lesson" and suggests that his students just "do better and try harder". Often times we would go into class and he would start a lesson without even telling us what we were learning. If anyone asked to review quiz or exam material either before or after we took it, he would scoff and roll his eyes and occasionally go over one or two questions that most of the time ended up not being topics on the quiz/tests at all. I could go on and on about why you shouldn't take a class with Jacob as a teacher but my one piece of advice is, if you take his class, get a tutor!

Raley Roberts
MATH113

Anonymous
12/29/2021

Great professor! I had Raley Roberts for Math113, and I have nothing but good things to say about her. She answers emails within the hour (if not less) which is not always common with professors. Also, Raley was very willing to meet whenever she was free and would patiently answer all my questions until I understood the concept. My main complaint is with the class itself, not the professor. Course was very difficult, and concepts were taught very quickly. If you're not good at math, brace yourself. That's why it's very important to pick a professor who explains well and helps you. Definitely pick Raley!

Mansur Shakipov
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2021

He is a really nice man and will answer your questions if you approach him. His explanations were not the best for understanding the material which was somewhat confusing because he taught directly out of the textbook. You MUST take time outside of class to master the material in order to do well in this class. There was a quiz almost every week and the exams were decently hard but if you prepare for them you will be fine. He has a lot of review material for you so make sure to ask. The class if fast paced so make sure to not fall behind.

Sudheer Shukla
MATH113

Anonymous
12/19/2021

As a recent review mentions, it does seem like he's a new professor here at UMD. Although I found his teaching to be entirely useless, I think that's a problem related to what I need versus what he provides. However, he has very available office hours and really wants to see his students succeed. Moreover, he prescribes a lot of review practice and previous exams as a way to review. If you have to take MATH113, I would recommend trying to find a more adequate professor. Also, I can confirm that he sometimes sent out review materials and solutions that were incorrect or at the very last minute. Despite this, his review materials were extremely relevant to the quizzes he gave and are absolutely worth using. He is far from the worst that UMD has to offer and is a very shy but kind individual. But do be warned, if you have to take MATH113, you may have to learn a lot of the material on your own if you don't vibe with his lectures. I also recommend reviewing whatever math you were taking before his course, as the first week was really an eye-opener as to what the expected baseline of math comprehension was.

Jackson Hopper
MATH113

Expecting a D
Anonymous
12/16/2021

I’ve had a terrible experience with this class. Mr. Hopper is a nice guy but his lack of experience made the course way more challenging then what it needed it to be. I am extremely disappointed and devastated that this was my first Math class at UMD. If you have the chance to switch please do.

Mansur Shakipov
MATH113

Expecting a B-
Anonymous
12/13/2021

He’s a really smart person and seems to know what he’s doing. Sometimes it feels like he’s not explaining how he got his answers but if you stop him and ask him he will explain. Also helps explain things more after class. Worst case you can Google what he was talking about because 90 percent of this class is from high school . He is super responsive outside of class. Tells you exactly what to study and provided A LOT of review material for you.

Stephen Sorokanich
MATH113

Anonymous
12/13/2021

Does not do a good job of teaching content. Despite his acceptance of late work, he does not adequately prepare you for the quizzes.

Yong Cui
MATH113

Anonymous
12/10/2021

Avoid! If given the option take the class with another professor. Everything was confusing and if you want to pass you will have to teach yourself.

Amador Jomuad
MATH113

Anonymous
12/10/2021

Very nice professor but does not do a good job teaching the course. Often when I find myself going to ask for help he tells me he is too busy and rather never tells me another time that would work. Very nervous about not passing this course.

Samuel Dipasqua
MATH113

Anonymous
12/09/2021

The professor is really nice in terms of grading and giving extensions, however heads up the study guide is no where as difficult as the actual test. I would say to study and go to his office hours. Personally, I was not always good at math so I struggled but if you're pretty good at it then you should be fine.

Jackson Hopper
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/09/2021

Hopper is extremely smart and you can clearly see it. He is very nice and is pretty accommodating. I understand these other reviews however as our semester progressed I think he gained more experience teaching people who do not fully understand math. I think he is just inexperienced with teaching and he is improving. Aside from that, he would go onto long tangents about math complexities no one understood and would follow with we didn't need to know this, which complicated things for a lot of people. Since I had already learned most of this material previously, I was able to keep up. If you are new to this level of math and you take it with Hopper, be prepared to put work in outside of class because the quizzes are difficult as they are written by the department not him.

Jackson Hopper
MATH113

Expecting a D
Anonymous
12/08/2021

PLEASE SWITCH OUT. the amount of times he will tell us he taught us the wrong information on the day of the test is ridiculous. he is not helpful and dismisses students comments when they comment about his teaching and ask for help

Mansur Shakipov
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/07/2021

He is a nice guy, but should NOT be hired as a professor. He understands how to do the math, but doesn't explain it to you. There are multiple times per class where someone will stop him and say " I don't understand when you throw random numbers on the board". He does also tend to mess up a lot during class. The only good thing about him is that he will provide the topics on the quizzes and tests. I got a 4 on the AP tests (both stats and calc), and have an A- in this class.

Sudheer Shukla
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/06/2021

Sudheer seems like a new professor. He is a very timid teacher and gets flustered easily but thoroughly explains topics through the lecture. Although his lectures may be hard to pay attention to, he is very dedicated to helping students learn. I have never met a professor to have such open office hours. He sat with me during office hours for a whole 2.5 hours to go over review problems. I know people who have met with him on weekends via zoom to go over problems and he replies to emails very quickly! He really seems to care so if you are willing to overlook his nervousness, you can learn. He also gives out review packets for exams and quizzes that help soooo much. I can see how people might not like him though because he is very introverted and doesn't connect with the students via lecture but if you meet with him one on one you can understand the material better.

Barbara Michelato
MATH113

Anonymous
12/06/2021

Amazing person, awful teacher. She has a very thick accent which makes her difficult to understand sometimes and she didn't always understand student's questions. It's very clear she only understands how to teach the math one way so when students didn't understand that way, they were on their own. This course has 3 major exams, each worth 15% of the final grade and they weren't covered. There are also about 10 quizzes throughout the entire course, which you HAVE to study for otherwise you won't do well. Also, the content of the quizzes was often much harder than what we learned in class. During the last week of classes before finals, we had a quiz one day and the last huge exam the day after, which was also 6 days before the final. Grades aren't done yet but I'm not confident.

Sudheer Shukla
MATH113

Anonymous
12/01/2021

HORRIBLE TEACHER!!!! Never knew what he was doing, sent out review material the night before or morning of WITH INCORRECT ANSWERS!!! This class should've been easy, but he made it terrible. Save yourself and pick any other professor.

Jacob Erickson
MATH113

Expecting a W
Anonymous
11/29/2021

A very nice person but honestly the worst learning experience I have ever had. At one point just suggested we just do better with no real help on how we could. I would avoid taking this class with Jacob. Can't say how many times they walked into class and didn't have a structured lecture. It's a real problem when half the people drop the class.

Amador Jomuad
MATH113

Expecting a D+
Anonymous
11/19/2021

Really nice man. But horrible teacher. You’re gonna have to learn the stuff on your own. Someone really needs to bring this issue up to the math department.

Jackson Hopper
MATH113

Anonymous
10/24/2021

He is a graduate student who is so knowledgeable that he cannot break down concepts into simple terms for us who aren't at his level of understanding. A lot of his class is failing and he doesn't seem to care. He gives us information that we don't need for the class we're in because he finds it interesting. Most of the time, this just confuses us more. He goes through extremely complicated examples without giving enough explanation. It feels as if you're just watching him solve a problem, not being taught how to solve it. He doesn't seem to understand that other people don't process things the way he does, so he explains things in ways that make no sense to a math novice. If you have a chance to not take a class taught by him- please do.

Dmitrii Gudin
MATH113

Expecting an F
Anonymous
06/28/2021

A lot of information to process over a zoom distanced learning. No real feedback, but no complaints. Thanks for teaching the course! will probably try again

Farrah Askari
MATH113

Expecting a C+
Anonymous
05/18/2021

First things first, Mrs. Askari is NOT A PROFESSOR. She is a first year Ph.D student teaching a math class, so keep that in mind if you decide to take this course. This class was made even more difficult by the fact that she does not write the exams, the curse chair does. This also means the format of the exams come from the course chair, and not Mrs. Askari. Half of the content for each chapter was covered in the lectures, and the other half was expected to be self taught by reading the listed pages for each module. This style of learning in my personal opinion is cancerous, especially when it seemed as though she was also learning the content as it was being taught. She will answer your questions, is very polite, and obviously has office hours that you should attend. However, I was not pleased with the format this course was taught in, and hope it changes for in person instruction come the fall.

Amador Jomuad
MATH113

Expecting a C
Anonymous
12/15/2020

expect to do the learning on your own. very frustrating semester when it came to this class (This was for a semester during Covid//Cannot speak about what he is like when class is synchronous)

Darcy Conant
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/11/2020

Honestly, based on the reviews I was not expecting her to be good. She was actually decent and had really diligent lectures. She drops the three lowest quiz grades which helps a lot. I know I could’ve done better in her class but I’m happy with the grade I got

Amador Jomuad
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/02/2020

This is the worst math teacher I've ever had. He explains stuff horribly and gives us quizzes after failing to go over the lesson for the quiz at all beforehand. Very unorganized and poor communication skills.

Jermain McDermott
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
10/23/2020

He's nice, understanding, and in my opinion undoubtedly qualified to teach at the most prestigious of schools. Take him and you'll be good.

Jocelyn Menecio
MATH113

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
09/30/2020

If you can avoid this teacher that would be recommended. She goes over content way too fast and sometimes doesn't even give you extra practice and expects you to know topics that she went over for only 10 minutes. Overall just really really REALLY bad at explaining things and it can get pretty frustrating. However, if you are taking her for MATH113, the content is a bit easier since 90% of it is just stuff that you learned in high school. Also, I am not sure if this is just because of COVID-19 but we used a software called knewton alta and that provided a good amount of practice for 70% percent of the material and for the stuff that she really just flies by without much practice Khan academy will be your best friend. Thats basically the only reason why I say you can expect an A-. If it weren't for the fact that this class is a lot of review from high school math I would probably be failing.

Brandon Alexander
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/14/2020

Such a great prof! He includes so many notes in lectures so its always clear about how each concept works, such a nice guy too! i recommend taking him 100%

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2014

Really good teacher, explains everything well. Sometimes I feel she could've used class time better when she took forever to review a single problem. But overall she is really helpful. She tells you exactly when quizzes/tests are and will tell you exactly what's on them. She collected some homework but after the first few she didn't for the rest of the semester. I would definitely recommend her.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Anonymous
05/31/2014

Grade B/A. She is a great person! she cares about her students a lot. If you have trouble she will ask you to come to her for help, instead of just leaving you hanging. Do website and your textbook hw that she only collected like 2 or 3 in the beginning to scare you to make you do them. But do it anyways itll help you study. 3 exams. she will drop a few quizzes at the end too. #TakeHer

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
krych
12/19/2012

Prof. Stone is the best math teacher I've ever had. She really cares about her students and makes math really easy. Take Her for 113!

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
05/01/2012

Professor Stone is AMAZING! She truly cares about her students and tells us to email her if we're frustrated with your homework and tell me you trouble. She will work with you outside of the classroom. I actually earned a B, but she bumped me up to an A. STUDY THE TEST BANK. Tests dont really deviate much. Same concepts though. I took precal senior year and did horribly, but took this class the semester and got an A. It was easier than my high school math. TAKE IT WITH STONE!

Elif Kuz
MATH113

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/22/2011

Okay professor. She has a very soft voice so it is difficult to hear her and stay awake during lectures. She also breaks down information a bit too much, making everything convoluted and difficult to follow. Besides that, she was nice and helpful when you came to ask her questions. Three exams, plus a cumulative final; the second exam is the most difficult. She also gives around 10 quizzes, the first half are take home and the rest are done during class. Also, there are weekly webassigns to complete that (usually) aren't too difficult.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Anonymous
10/28/2011

Extremely great math teacher. Learn easily in her class and as long as you study you will get an A or B. Also very nice, open and helpful. Definitely recommend taking her for math. Expect to put in time for online HW as well as textbook HW. Grading system is also very efficient and beneficial.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/04/2010

Jacqui Stone is potentially the best teacher I have ever had. She is so nice and does a great job of simplifying and explaining everything. I had learned this material before but she made it ten times more clear. Only annoying thing is doing webassign but if you have any problems she is a great help. Take her if you can.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
maglist1
05/04/2010

I Loved this lady she was great. She always went out of her way in this class to make it easier on you. She is extremely nice and approachable and like someone else said earlier she is like a kindergarten teacher and treats her class amazingly. He teaching style is perfection. She goes through problems that are identical to the ones on the test and the WebAssign is so easy it takes like 10 minutes to do. Take her if you can!!!

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
rebgii
04/06/2010

You HAVE to taker her!!!! she is the best teacher no doubt!! i feel like she's a kindergarten teacher she's sooo sweet and most importantly, its impossible not to understand. =)

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/20/2009

She's a great professor and a genuinely kind woman. I used to hate math, but now I definitely understand it more. It's no problem getting an A in the class.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/17/2009

Even though I had basically taken this class before I came to college, Stone did a good job of reinforcing and teaching new things that I hadn't learned. Class was based on web assign hw, three tests, quizzes in discussion every week, and the final. My TA was horrible, so I really depended on lectures to learn new topics. She gives you book hw after every lecture that basically goes over what was taught, so you don't really have to go but it helps. I'm not sure what the other math113 teachers are like, but Stone is definitely a safe bet.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/03/2009

Stone is by far the best math teacher I've ever had. She really takes the time to explain things clearly, and tells students WHY something is the way it is, not to just memorize the rule. She is very polite and friendly and easy to talk to after class if you ever have questions.

Jacqueline Stone
MATH113

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/02/2009

She is such a sweetheart. I am a huge fan of hers. Stone teaches math in a non-threatening, sincere manner that made bombing the entrance test a blessing. Sometimes you have to turn in your homework but not that often, other than that just easy webassign's. Tests and quizzes are very straightforward and there are so many resources to do well, which she points out before every class. I'll miss her next semester when I have to take math220!

Reviews for MATH113