MATH221 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting a B Anonymous 01/29/2015	He is a great math professor. He makes notes you can print and bring which he goes through in class. I took MATH140 before I took him so that may have made it easier. I didn't out in as much work as I shouldmhave so I got a B but an A should be easily attainable if you study.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/25/2013	TAKE TIM'S CLASS. He is an EXCEPTIONAL calculus professor, ESPECIALLY compared with the other shitty calc teachers at this school. He is enthusiastic, easy to follow, hilarious, and very knowledgeable. He is very clear about what he expects you to know and doesn't want you to know. Plus he sometimes brings in his sugar gliders (they're like pet flying squirrels) to class! How to get an A- - GO TO LECTURE. He has lecture outlines that you can follow along in. - USE THE TESTBANK! He posts past tests AND answer keys, and they look very similar year to year - he doesn't change much. - DO WEBASSIGN AND DISCUSSION WORKSHEETS. The book is useful only for practice problems - the book explanations are useless compared to Tim's straightforward explanations. If you do buy it, you do NOT need the solutions manual that comes with it.
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A Rosha 02/13/2012	Awesome Professor, If you are planing on taking this class, you should take it with Dr.Washington.
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/05/2012	Nicest teacher ever! He is very engaged and is always there to help with any questions. For the exams he posts past exams that show the exact same format for the actual exam..the questions are exactly the same except the numbers are changed. i suggest doing the homework problems since the quizzes take 2 or 3 problems from the assigned homework
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/24/2011	Love this professor! He is easy as long as you go to class, take notes, review the notes before exams, do the assigned book problems for the quizzes, do the practice exams, then you will be fine. I took notes in class and used them to study, I didn't even need to look at the book! There are quizzes in every discussion (except for the week after the exam). The problems are from the assigned book problems, about ~3 questions on each quiz. As long as you do it before your discussion section, you will be fine. Also, book problems are great practice for exams. Before the exam, he gives out 1~3 practice exams which have about the same format as the actual exam, so make you know how to do them! The averages were about the mid 80s. For the final, he also gives out ~2 practices. He reviewed the 2010 final on the last day of class, and the final was also the exact same format! As long as you take sometime to study and know what he taught, you will be fine :)
Justin Wyss-Gallifent MATH221 Expecting a B defeatthehuns 11/15/2011	He's #1 on this site for a reason. His exams are fair, he makes sure you know the material inside and out, he's really nice and funny, always willing to answer questions and explain things thoroughly. Whether you are an A student or an F student, take his class. He is a wonderful person and an intelligent professor. Also, the lowest 7 webassigns being dropped doesn't hurt either, ha haha
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A KG 05/14/2011	Five star lecturer! Easy class and take it with Larry!!!!
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A Bolun 12/22/2010	Larry is an awesome professor!He is always trying his best to make math interesting. The TAs are awesome too! Very easy class.As long as you go to class(actually I skipped most of them ^_^) and take notes, you will get an A.
Lawrence Washington MATH221 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/23/2010	Decent class. Information can get tricky, but he gives out practice tests which have the EXACT same format as the actual exam. Getting an A is manageable with a moderate amount of work.
Tobias von Petersdorff MATH221 Anonymous 01/04/2010	I have no idea what happened to me in this class. Math used to be my favorite, and best subject. But for some reason I got to this class and was just clueless. From what I heard, my classmates all found the class very easy and were doing very well on his exams. Me? I ended up with a C in the class because I failed the final miserably. The lectures left me lost and confused. On a side note, he was always very helpful during office hours. I don't quite know how to review him. Everyone around me found his exams easy. For me, I was just lost and confused.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting an A aralchen 12/21/2009	I have no idea why people rate him this low; he's at least a 4/5 teacher. As you probably know, Math 220/221 has the reputation of being the calculus for dummies. While that's generally true, it is less so in Pilachowski's class. He doesn't dumb down his teaching just because it's supposed to be an easy class. That said, he's definitely the hardest teacher for the subject. However, if you take him you'll be counting your blessings when taking the final exam, which is the product of a colaborative departmental effort. His class makes an otherwise frustrating final a fairly easy task. His exams aren't as easy as you'd come to expect from a 220/221 class. They actually require knowledge of the subject. He offers 4 extra credit points on his exams, which can really mean a difference between an A and a B. To do well in the class COME TO LECTURES! He uses powerpoint slides that he DOES NOT POST ONLINE. The only way to make up the information is by asking a friend for notes or reading the book. Absolutely do old practice exams from previous years (available on test bank). They're all in the same format and the questions tend to be very similar to one another. Answers are also available. Some people mentioned that he appears to be condescending to students. He really isn't. There's a fine line between a condescending attitude and a person's quirks. In Pilachowski's case, he's just really quirky, something these commenters failed to realize. Just keep an open mind and you won't even notice his oddities after a while. On the bad side, he is, like many mentioned, always late to class. This means he covers material somewhat superficially (not always) and goes over the 50 minutes alloted for class (always). He tends to make numerous mistakes, but they're rather minor arithmatic issues rather than calculus issues. He doesn't curve at all and doesn't allow any calculator use.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting a B lizzine07 07/07/2009	Dr. Pilachowski was a great professor. I learned so much from him personally, I find calc2 much easier than calc1. Anyways so many people rate him low, and that's because lots of ppl do bad in his class.. the ones that do NOT do the webassign BY THEMSELVES (yes--we know you can do virtually all of the problems in the TI-89) will do poorly because if you are able to do the webassigns and some of the practice book problems, then you WILL GET AN A. I just so happen to not get an A because I did miss a couple of classes... The final exam will be a piece of cake to you, since he is the hardest prof to take for calc, and all the calc profs write the exam together. I had a 95% on the final exam, was happy, and i believe there was a curve on the class... overall... great teacher. avoid him if your a procrastinator, like to wait until 2-3 days before an exam to study, or just plain want everything to be easy...
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting an A- matt11 06/06/2009	He is a pretty good lecturer. One thing I liked about him that some other people did not appreciate was the fact that he uses powerpoints. I found that more useful than a chalkboard because it's easy to copy off of and keeps my notes organized. The discussions are nice because you have group worksheets that are always a guaranteed 100% because the TA goes over the answers at the end. Webassign can be a pain, especially if you have other exams to study for, but they are not that bad. It is important to do the webassign because they will count as an exam grade at the end. Overall, an easy class if you go to lecture and discussion.
David Hamilton MATH221 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/09/2008	Not a bad teacher, have had better math teachers but he is very fair and open for questions.
David Hamilton MATH221 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/04/2008	Dr. Hamilton is a good math teacher. I normally have a lot of trouble with math, but having Dr. Hamilton helped. He does problems on the board and takes questions, which is helpful. He moves a bit fast but as long as you can pay attention (which is hard sometimes), you can follow what he is doing. I thought he was an effective teacher with fair tests.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting a B jessgord 11/15/2008	He was occasionally an entertaining guy. Yes he was late sometimes, but that was not a big deal and didn't affect learning. His powerpoint lectures were decent and I thought he did a good job explaining them. They include a lot of repetitive examples to drill the concept into your head. The exams are just 4 questions with multiple parts, and yes, there were tricky questions. The online WebAssign homeworks were a hassle (especially the ones due Sunday mornings that you forget about until the middle of a party Saturday night). ...I was so close to having an A!
Justin Wyss-Gallifent MATH221 Anonymous 03/31/2008	Amazing professor. I had a really good Calc teacher in High School and his teaching style was very similar so I had no problem with the material. He is very detailed in his lectures, and probably is the only math teacher who writes full sentences on the blackboard. The intense detail can get a little boring sometimes, but I would prefer that than a quick overview and then not understand what he's saying. He has a great sense of humor and is very upbeat. I highly recommend his class.
Justin Wyss-Gallifent MATH221 kmann2989 01/07/2008	Really good teacher but it was soooo elementary at times. I guess thats why the course is elementary calculus. Its good if you don't understand math at all, but can be kind of pointless if you do. His tests are exactly like the review sheets, if you can understand them, the tests will be a piece of cake. Also drops like the lowest 7 webassigns which was amazing!! Worst part about the class was discussion, the hardest little quizes ever, maybe just my T.A.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/05/2007	His exams are fair, though he is habitually 5-10 minutes late for class and fails to make available lecture outlines sometimes until 10am the morning of class (2pm). However, he demands the (3-times-a-week) web assigns be completed by 8am regardless of your busy weds. schedule-no flexibility, ironic considering his very lax, comedic and entertaining lecturing-a of good-work-ethic hypocrisy. He is saving grace, is, that he is a good professor... organized, and has wonderful clarity.
Justin Wyss-Gallifent MATH221 Anonymous 11/17/2007	Best teacher ever. period. you will want to go to class, and if you're a girl, marry him.
Michael Laskowski MATH221 Expecting an A+ kbe12478 11/14/2007	A very clear and insightful teacher. Three tests and and exam, plus weekly quizzes in discussion. I would recommend him to anyone who needs to take a math course.
Timothy Pilachowski MATH221 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/03/2007	His exams are are fair but theres always one or two tricky questions. He uses power point so his lectures are very organized.
Michael Laskowski MATH221 Expecting an A vdawg 10/21/2007	Good lecturer (as far as math lecturers go), but he really does care that you understand the material, and will go out of his way to respond to your questions. I had to miss his final exam, and he was an absolute dear in accomodating me.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting a B
Anonymous
01/29/2015

He is a great math professor. He makes notes you can print and bring which he goes through in class. I took MATH140 before I took him so that may have made it easier. I didn't out in as much work as I shouldmhave so I got a B but an A should be easily attainable if you study.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/25/2013

TAKE TIM'S CLASS. He is an EXCEPTIONAL calculus professor, ESPECIALLY compared with the other shitty calc teachers at this school. He is enthusiastic, easy to follow, hilarious, and very knowledgeable. He is very clear about what he expects you to know and doesn't want you to know. Plus he sometimes brings in his sugar gliders (they're like pet flying squirrels) to class! How to get an A- - GO TO LECTURE. He has lecture outlines that you can follow along in. - USE THE TESTBANK! He posts past tests AND answer keys, and they look very similar year to year - he doesn't change much. - DO WEBASSIGN AND DISCUSSION WORKSHEETS. The book is useful only for practice problems - the book explanations are useless compared to Tim's straightforward explanations. If you do buy it, you do NOT need the solutions manual that comes with it.

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A
Rosha
02/13/2012

Awesome Professor, If you are planing on taking this class, you should take it with Dr.Washington.

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/05/2012

Nicest teacher ever! He is very engaged and is always there to help with any questions. For the exams he posts past exams that show the exact same format for the actual exam..the questions are exactly the same except the numbers are changed. i suggest doing the homework problems since the quizzes take 2 or 3 problems from the assigned homework

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/24/2011

Love this professor! He is easy as long as you go to class, take notes, review the notes before exams, do the assigned book problems for the quizzes, do the practice exams, then you will be fine. I took notes in class and used them to study, I didn't even need to look at the book! There are quizzes in every discussion (except for the week after the exam). The problems are from the assigned book problems, about ~3 questions on each quiz. As long as you do it before your discussion section, you will be fine. Also, book problems are great practice for exams. Before the exam, he gives out 1~3 practice exams which have about the same format as the actual exam, so make you know how to do them! The averages were about the mid 80s. For the final, he also gives out ~2 practices. He reviewed the 2010 final on the last day of class, and the final was also the exact same format! As long as you take sometime to study and know what he taught, you will be fine :)

Justin Wyss-Gallifent
MATH221

Expecting a B
defeatthehuns
11/15/2011

He's #1 on this site for a reason. His exams are fair, he makes sure you know the material inside and out, he's really nice and funny, always willing to answer questions and explain things thoroughly. Whether you are an A student or an F student, take his class. He is a wonderful person and an intelligent professor. Also, the lowest 7 webassigns being dropped doesn't hurt either, ha haha

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A
KG
05/14/2011

Five star lecturer! Easy class and take it with Larry!!!!

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A
Bolun
12/22/2010

Larry is an awesome professor!He is always trying his best to make math interesting. The TAs are awesome too! Very easy class.As long as you go to class(actually I skipped most of them ^_^) and take notes, you will get an A.

Lawrence Washington
MATH221

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/23/2010

Decent class. Information can get tricky, but he gives out practice tests which have the EXACT same format as the actual exam. Getting an A is manageable with a moderate amount of work.

Tobias von Petersdorff
MATH221

Anonymous
01/04/2010

I have no idea what happened to me in this class. Math used to be my favorite, and best subject. But for some reason I got to this class and was just clueless. From what I heard, my classmates all found the class very easy and were doing very well on his exams. Me? I ended up with a C in the class because I failed the final miserably. The lectures left me lost and confused. On a side note, he was always very helpful during office hours. I don't quite know how to review him. Everyone around me found his exams easy. For me, I was just lost and confused.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting an A
aralchen
12/21/2009

I have no idea why people rate him this low; he's at least a 4/5 teacher. As you probably know, Math 220/221 has the reputation of being the calculus for dummies. While that's generally true, it is less so in Pilachowski's class. He doesn't dumb down his teaching just because it's supposed to be an easy class. That said, he's definitely the hardest teacher for the subject. However, if you take him you'll be counting your blessings when taking the final exam, which is the product of a colaborative departmental effort. His class makes an otherwise frustrating final a fairly easy task. His exams aren't as easy as you'd come to expect from a 220/221 class. They actually require knowledge of the subject. He offers 4 extra credit points on his exams, which can really mean a difference between an A and a B. To do well in the class COME TO LECTURES! He uses powerpoint slides that he DOES NOT POST ONLINE. The only way to make up the information is by asking a friend for notes or reading the book. Absolutely do old practice exams from previous years (available on test bank). They're all in the same format and the questions tend to be very similar to one another. Answers are also available. Some people mentioned that he appears to be condescending to students. He really isn't. There's a fine line between a condescending attitude and a person's quirks. In Pilachowski's case, he's just really quirky, something these commenters failed to realize. Just keep an open mind and you won't even notice his oddities after a while. On the bad side, he is, like many mentioned, always late to class. This means he covers material somewhat superficially (not always) and goes over the 50 minutes alloted for class (always). He tends to make numerous mistakes, but they're rather minor arithmatic issues rather than calculus issues. He doesn't curve at all and doesn't allow any calculator use.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting a B
lizzine07
07/07/2009

Dr. Pilachowski was a great professor. I learned so much from him personally, I find calc2 much easier than calc1. Anyways so many people rate him low, and that's because lots of ppl do bad in his class.. the ones that do NOT do the webassign BY THEMSELVES (yes--we know you can do virtually all of the problems in the TI-89) will do poorly because if you are able to do the webassigns and some of the practice book problems, then you WILL GET AN A. I just so happen to not get an A because I did miss a couple of classes... The final exam will be a piece of cake to you, since he is the hardest prof to take for calc, and all the calc profs write the exam together. I had a 95% on the final exam, was happy, and i believe there was a curve on the class... overall... great teacher. avoid him if your a procrastinator, like to wait until 2-3 days before an exam to study, or just plain want everything to be easy...

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting an A-
matt11
06/06/2009

He is a pretty good lecturer. One thing I liked about him that some other people did not appreciate was the fact that he uses powerpoints. I found that more useful than a chalkboard because it's easy to copy off of and keeps my notes organized. The discussions are nice because you have group worksheets that are always a guaranteed 100% because the TA goes over the answers at the end. Webassign can be a pain, especially if you have other exams to study for, but they are not that bad. It is important to do the webassign because they will count as an exam grade at the end. Overall, an easy class if you go to lecture and discussion.

David Hamilton
MATH221

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/09/2008

Not a bad teacher, have had better math teachers but he is very fair and open for questions.

David Hamilton
MATH221

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/04/2008

Dr. Hamilton is a good math teacher. I normally have a lot of trouble with math, but having Dr. Hamilton helped. He does problems on the board and takes questions, which is helpful. He moves a bit fast but as long as you can pay attention (which is hard sometimes), you can follow what he is doing. I thought he was an effective teacher with fair tests.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting a B
jessgord
11/15/2008

He was occasionally an entertaining guy. Yes he was late sometimes, but that was not a big deal and didn't affect learning. His powerpoint lectures were decent and I thought he did a good job explaining them. They include a lot of repetitive examples to drill the concept into your head. The exams are just 4 questions with multiple parts, and yes, there were tricky questions. The online WebAssign homeworks were a hassle (especially the ones due Sunday mornings that you forget about until the middle of a party Saturday night). ...I was so close to having an A!

Justin Wyss-Gallifent
MATH221

Anonymous
03/31/2008

Amazing professor. I had a really good Calc teacher in High School and his teaching style was very similar so I had no problem with the material. He is very detailed in his lectures, and probably is the only math teacher who writes full sentences on the blackboard. The intense detail can get a little boring sometimes, but I would prefer that than a quick overview and then not understand what he's saying. He has a great sense of humor and is very upbeat. I highly recommend his class.

Justin Wyss-Gallifent
MATH221

kmann2989
01/07/2008

Really good teacher but it was soooo elementary at times. I guess thats why the course is elementary calculus. Its good if you don't understand math at all, but can be kind of pointless if you do. His tests are exactly like the review sheets, if you can understand them, the tests will be a piece of cake. Also drops like the lowest 7 webassigns which was amazing!! Worst part about the class was discussion, the hardest little quizes ever, maybe just my T.A.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/05/2007

His exams are fair, though he is habitually 5-10 minutes late for class and fails to make available lecture outlines sometimes until 10am the morning of class (2pm). However, he demands the (3-times-a-week) web assigns be completed by 8am regardless of your busy weds. schedule-no flexibility, ironic considering his very lax, comedic and entertaining lecturing-a of good-work-ethic hypocrisy. He is saving grace, is, that he is a good professor... organized, and has wonderful clarity.

Justin Wyss-Gallifent
MATH221

Anonymous
11/17/2007

Best teacher ever. period. you will want to go to class, and if you're a girl, marry him.

Michael Laskowski
MATH221

Expecting an A+
kbe12478
11/14/2007

A very clear and insightful teacher. Three tests and and exam, plus weekly quizzes in discussion. I would recommend him to anyone who needs to take a math course.

Timothy Pilachowski
MATH221

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/03/2007

His exams are are fair but theres always one or two tricky questions. He uses power point so his lectures are very organized.

Michael Laskowski
MATH221

Expecting an A
vdawg
10/21/2007

Good lecturer (as far as math lecturers go), but he really does care that you understand the material, and will go out of his way to respond to your questions. I had to miss his final exam, and he was an absolute dear in accomodating me.

Reviews for MATH221