ENGLISH 22
Intro to Literature and the Environment
Professor Ken Hiltner
Course Evaluations, Fall 2020
(Jump right to Student Ratings and Comments or FAQs)
Ken’s Comment
It is hardly surprising that a variety of products and services are rated online – usually on a scale of 1 to 5, often with comments – as this feedback can be eyeopening. You may be surprised to learn, however, that many colleges and universities have been asking students to similarly evaluate courses and professors for decades now. Some universities make this information public, others do not. Because UCSB does not, I have taken it upon myself to post my evaluations to this site.
Why doesn’t UCSB publish these ratings and comments? To be honest, I do not know. To be completely candid, I find it frustrating that they do not.
Students are asked to rate both the instructor and the course on a scale of 1 to 5. Jump down to Ratings and Comments.
In order to obtain these ratings, students receive the following instructions:
1) Instructor: “In rating a course, you should consider the instructor’s teaching apart from the course materials or content. Please rate the overall quality of the instructor’s teaching.”
2) Course: “Please rate the overall quality of the course, including its material or content, independent of the instructor’s teaching.”
Students are also encouraged to provide two written comments:
1) “Please indicate what you consider to be the most valuable aspects of the course.”
2) “How could the course be improved? (e.g. additional detail about topics, modifications to instructional materials, different teaching strategies, etc.).”
Both sets of these comments are below, starting with the first. Note that 1) all the comments are here in their entirety, 2) they have not been edited in any way, 3) they appear in the order that they do on the UCSB report, and 4) because Eng 22 had an enrollment of 1000 students in 2020-21, there are quite a few comments here. For more on these reviews and how they were obtained, see the FAQs.
Instructor Rating, 4.5 out of 5
Course Rating, 4.5 out of 5
The course material is carefully selected so that there’s not random busy work but everything you do in the class is very thoughtful. I can really really tell that the professor is passionate about what he does and I can very confidently say that Professor Hiltner is not only knowledgeable in this subject, but also one of the most kind hearted and empathetic professors. I think this course is amazing but what stood out the most is the professor. I cannot say enough times how thoughtful he is.
—
The focus on such a vast array of material, both in terms of time and space
—
Hilt we is clearly very passionate about what he is teaching and it is clear that a lot of effort is put into the production of his lectures and course materials/sources.
—
Knowledge about the environment
—
I really appreciated the consistent format of the course. It was easy to navigate the website, and having a consistent set of assignments on a weekly basis provided routine and comfort for a class during a pandemic. The lectures were quite interesting and really engaging. I declared a minor in English because of this class, with a plan to follow a thematic course of literature and the environment. I really loved it overall!
—
There are always some interesting films provided to us, which is related to our course topic.
—
I can really learn a lot of things that I’ve never heard of before. It’s really pleasant and happy to learn with Ken
—
All the lecture materials are given in pdf, which is super useful when reviewing contents.
—
The interesting films and the value they convey.
—
I think the most valuable parts of the course to be the lectures and the documentaries. The lectures are relatively long, but very educational and interesting to listen to. The documentaries provided various pieces of insight that fit nicely into the course material and lectures.
—
Ken is an amazing teacher! I’ve taken his courses before and he is engaging and informative!
—
I really like how this class can be applied to our everyday lives. I appreciate the fact that Ken provides different ways for us to view the class material.
—
The amount of literature we read was really amazing. We read important works from the past 4700 years. This allowed me to gain a really clear insight into how the environment has shaped literature. It was also really valuable for me to watch the documentaries alongside what we were reading. These documentaries were produced in the 21st century, so it was interesting to read text from hundreds of years ago and then watch a documentary from 10 years ago that was discussing the same issue. This class was an excellent survey of literature and really helped me see the incredible nuances that the environment brought to it.
—
Lectures, films, and office hours
—
I like how the course is designed to be an online course and tailored to the needs of every student unlike almost every other course.
—
the different aspects of the course- lecture, reading and documentary all come together to offer different perspectives on the environment and literature. having it be all asynchronous is AMAZING and what lectures should be. it is so helpful and considerate to me and students who have busy lives.
—
Everything I have learnt and how I have grown as a person upon taking this class
—
The course teaches us how to decrease our impact on the planet.
—
I find the course material extremely interesting and well-explained in the Prezi’s.
—
I like how he outlines the course, it is a very nice timeline that has helped me retain the information more effectively.
—
The lectures were very thorough
—
The comprehensive lectures and the discussion posts in response to films and documentaries.
—
I love how interested the professor is in the material. his voice is very calming and lectures are engaging. I really really learned a lot from all of the documentaries we had to watch. I also appreciated how he didn’t give us a lot of busy work.
—
I enjoy how much Ken relates his content to current events and the real world.
—
Watching the documentaries and reading how other people felt about them.
—
The Professor made active and conscious choices in how to configure this course into a virtual format and it worked extremely well. Everything was clear, interesting, and followed a set schedule every single week, which I really liked. The course’s readings were dense and complex at times, but the Professor clearly explained how they were relevant to our current world, which made me feel like this course would give me tools in the real world. I liked how the course managed self-paced learning and it worked very well for me.
—
Watching the various assigned documentaries is what helped me learn the most and expose me to new perspectives on different environmental issues.
—
The most valuable aspect of this course is learning about the different aspects of the environment. It’s interesting to learn about the symbolism and meaning behind the literature we read and how that relates to the environment. It offers me a different —
I enjoy how much Ken relates his content to current events and the real world.
—
Watching the documentaries and reading how other people felt about them.
—
The Professor made active and conscious choices in how to configure this course into a virtual format and it worked extremely well. Everything was clear, interesting, and followed a set schedule every single week, which I really liked. The course’s readings were dense and complex at times, but the Professor clearly explained how they were relevant to our current world, which made me feel like this course would give me tools in the real world. I liked how the course managed self-paced learning and it worked very well for me.
—
Watching the various assigned documentaries is what helped me learn the most and expose me to new perspectives on different environmental issues.
—
The most valuable aspect of this course is learning about the different aspects of the environment. It’s interesting to learn about the symbolism and meaning behind the literature we read and how that relates to the environment. It offers me a different perspective. As for the films we watch, they give me a new lifestyle changes to take and apply to my own life.
—
I love the concept of this course. Learning about the idea of New Historicism and the process of learning about perspectives of the environment changing and being reflected in the culture is eye-opening. I find that as the class went on I was able to analyze the readings myself without the environmental impacts being pointed out, and I can now execute that skill on my own with other literature.
—
The most valuable aspect of this course was discovering why we see the environment in the way that we do as a modern society
—
The education regarding literary styles that relate to ecocriticism and the analysis of milestone texts was very well communicated.
—
I have enjoyed watching and analyzing the documentaries.
—
The accessibility of class materials and its asynchronous nature.
—
The most valuable aspects of this course have been all the new things I have learned about our world. This course has helped me realize how much changes need to be made and how there are many people that have helped to communicate this to the public over the years. Every lecture was interesting and I was always intrigued by everything Ken spoke about.
—
The very first section on gilgamesh and genesis. I learned the most and enjoyed that the most.
—
The lectures!
—
The lectures are very interesting and informative. The professor is organized so it’s easy to understand the material and know what’s expected of you.
—
learning about climate change
—
There are many valuable aspects of this course which include the prezi which goes into grave detail of our readings (which is much appreciated), the assigned films are very insightful and helpful to understand the course from a better perspective as well as the assigned readings.
—
The course material is the most important part because each lesson/chapter we go through shows me how the environment was seen throughout the generations which is the main point of this course
—
good
—
The lectures and hearing him share his knowledge on how the past has influenced today was really interesting.
—
The lectures are very interesting and informative. The professor is organized so it’s easy to understand the material and know what’s expected of you.
—
learning about climate change
—
There are many valuable aspects of this course which include the prezi which goes into grave detail of our readings (which is much appreciated), the assigned films are very insightful and helpful to understand the course from a better perspective as well as the assigned readings.
—
The course material is the most important part because each lesson/chapter we go through shows me how the environment was seen throughout the generations which is the main point of this course
—
good
—
The lectures and hearing him share his knowledge on how the past has influenced today was really interesting.
—
knowledge of how the current environmental crisis came to be
—
Everything is organized and considerate of the circumstances.
—
Either the documentaries or the lecture quizzes.
—
Everyone should take this course. I have learned so much about climate change and what can be done to fix it. The information is very important.
—
It was designed to be taken online.
—
This course has broadened my horizons of reading quite a bit and also has made me more aware of how much you can look into readings and of the time the pieces were wrote and how much they could be a product of their time but still matter to current day issues.
—
Apart from learning English and literature skills, the material is very rewarding. Being able to learn about the environment has changed my lifestyle.
—
Being able to connect texts to relevant movies about environmental issues made the class very interesting.
—
I think the course itself was genuinely life-changing. Learning from Ken Hiltner was so valuable and I will never forget the material and new perspectives of the world he taught me through ecocriticsm 101.
—
Learning more about problems in the environment that I had not previously known about.
—
Watching the films
—
I really value the visible care that the professor has for the material that he is teaching his students. The professor demonstrates a genuine concern for the potential impact that the course material can have on a new generation of scholars.
—
Personally, I’ve really enjoyed the weekly films, because they allow for further exploration of the course’s presented topics.
—
I absolutely love the information and the overall message present in this course. It asks us to examine our own behaviors and actions and reflect on them so that we can work toward changing our own lives, just like you would in a hermeneutic approach.
—
I would say one of the most valuable aspects of the course is the instructors love for the material even though he could shorten his videos a small amount as his passion for the subject sometimes take over.
—
I loved learning the material. It was very well organized, easy to access, interesting, and I could tell that a lot of work was put into making the course accessible and engaging.
—
Watching the films
—
I really value the visible care that the professor has for the material that he is teaching his students. The professor demonstrates a genuine concern for the potential impact that the course material can have on a new generation of scholars.
—
Personally, I’ve really enjoyed the weekly films, because they allow for further exploration of the course’s presented topics.
—
I absolutely love the information and the overall message present in this course. It asks us to examine our own behaviors and actions and reflect on them so that we can work toward changing our own lives, just like you would in a hermeneutic approach.
—
I would say one of the most valuable aspects of the course is the instructors love for the material even though he could shorten his videos a small amount as his passion for the subject sometimes take over.
—
I loved learning the material. It was very well organized, easy to access, interesting, and I could tell that a lot of work was put into making the course accessible and engaging.
—
Through watching different documentaries, we can have a deeper understanding for Ecocriticism.
—
I really enjoy this course & how everything is set up on the prezzi.
—
Critical thinking skills that we learned through this course.
—
The professor makes all the course material extremely accessible for all.
—
The passion and information given really helped me learn about the issues we face with climate change. You can tell the professor really cares. Great readings.
—
The documentaries were very interesting and enjoyable to watch.
—
The professor always offers the notes that he used in the lecture. This is really helpful for later review.
—
Asynchronous course, beautiful recorded lectures, lecture notes/materials made accessible and available, Q&A thread for questions, reasonable grading. enjoyable films
—
the films helped in explaining the literature pieces of that week.
—
Our professor is very kind, and his lectures can explain the concepts of difficult ideas very clearly. His reading, watching assignments and lectures are completely enough for us to answer the quiz and mid term. Also his lectures are interesting (sometimes the chicken makes me Laugh Out Loud)
—
The in-depth, cohesiveness of the course. None of the subjects or topics come from left field, and build off each other nicely.
—
I believe the lectures are the most valuable aspects of the course along with the documentaries as I have learned many morally important and impactful concepts.
—
The most valuable aspects of the course are the accessibility of the material. The notes are available as PDFs and there are multiple ways to access the lectures which are very convenient.
—
Learning about climate change and ecological issues in modern day society
—
In this class, I like to watch the documentary about climate recommended by Ken, which always makes me think and reflect on my own and people’s behavior a lot.
—
I really enjoy the movies bc they really get me to think about my actions against the environment the chicken makes me Laugh Out Loud)
—
The in-depth, cohesiveness of the course. None of the subjects or topics come from left field, and build off each other nicely.
—
I believe the lectures are the most valuable aspects of the course along with the documentaries as I have learned many morally important and impactful concepts.
—
The most valuable aspects of the course are the accessibility of the material. The notes are available as PDFs and there are multiple ways to access the lectures which are very convenient.
—
Learning about climate change and ecological issues in modern day society
—
In this class, I like to watch the documentary about climate recommended by Ken, which always makes me think and reflect on my own and people’s behavior a lot.
—
I really enjoy the movies bc they really get me to think about my actions against the environment
—
The most valuable aspects of the course was the material and how the material was taught. I thoroughly enjoyed this course since I’m interested in the content and the professor was able to deliver clearly enough for the students to understand.
—
quality recording of lectures.
—
The course did a great job of highlighting continuity and change. Certain aspects of environmentalist were recurrent in spite of changing time periods while some environmental attitudes changed with time. It was interesting to see this.
—
There is an aspect to the course that can be applied to the real world and proves valuable in teaching its students about an important and relevant issue. This is through the documentaries that are assigned every week.
—
Professor Hiltner talks through the literary works during lectures. I found this very helpful because it provides a good understanding of the literature and makes some meaningful connections to other things.
—
The setup of Prezi by professor Ken is very useful and constructive. In my previous classes, i have never seen such thing.
—
I get the chance to know a whole new aspect of environmentalist- literature. I don’t know the connection between these two things until I enroll in this course. The whole course is magical.
—
The instructor’s enthusiasm and passion swayed me to feel similarly about the topic.
—
The insight it provides into the excuses religion provides to further the climate crisis.
—
This course is very thought provoking and well structured so that students feel invited to discuss topics rather than be forced to.
—
Prof Kenneth really provides us a whole new way of thinking about the environmental issues
—
The most valuable aspect of the course is the fact that everything is so easy to access. Lecture videos, instructions, and homework are all incredibly easy to find and understand. Ken Hiltner truly put in a lot of effort to make this course as open and transparent as possible, and it really helped my learning.
—
I liked that the course website was easy to navigate and full of all the information we needed.
—
The lectures were very in depth and Kenneth Hiltner did an amazing job of explaining the course details.
—
I thought this course was one of the most insightful and impactful courses I have taken. A lot of the concepts are extremely valuable and applicable to real life. The course challenges students to take in consideration and practice the impoartant concepts
—
This course is very thought provoking and well structured so that students feel invited to discuss topics rather than be forced to.
—
Prof Kenneth really provides us a whole new way of thinking about the environmental issues
—
The most valuable aspect of the course is the fact that everything is so easy to access. Lecture videos, instructions, and homework are all incredibly easy to find and understand. Ken Hiltner truly put in a lot of effort to make this course as open and transparent as possible, and it really helped my learning.
—
I liked that the course website was easy to navigate and full of all the information we needed.
—
The lectures were very in depth and Kenneth Hiltner did an amazing job of explaining the course details.
—
I thought this course was one of the most insightful and impactful courses I have taken. A lot of the concepts are extremely valuable and applicable to real life. The course challenges students to take in consideration and practice the impoartant concepts discussed.
—
His ability to explain the material in a digestible manner.
—
Being able to apply the knowledge gained to real world situations
—
This course is absolutely perfect in my opinion. Hiltner is probably the best professor for remote learning, he has everything pre made and I have absolutely no complaints about it. I also Hiltner really down-to-earth and that makes the subject really inclusive, I feel.
—
Your thorough explanation of the Prezi was extremely helpful. I really enjoyed hearing your enthusiasm about each environmetnal issue and reading that we covered.
—
I learned a lot from this class, things I had never really given a thought about before
—
This course provides a new perspective on Western culture and on how we live our everyday lives. It provides opportunities for self-reflection and a reevaluation of beliefs. It highlights what I see as the greatest fight that humanity has encountered and provides ways to approach the problem in more ways than one.
—
learning ways to help the environment
—
the documentaries are really great and open up discussion for climate change related topics
—
I feel the quizzes each week were a great assistant to really highlight the most important topics from each lecture. There is so much material covered through reading and through the lectures. I feel the quizzes did a nice job at highlighting some of the important topics that may be seen on the exams.
—
The freedom that Ken gives us when it comes to our responses and assignments is always great.
—
I really liked watching the weekly documentaries for this course. I felt like they really helped to heighten my perspective and I would never have found them or have the capability to watch them without the course.
—
The progression of the class was extremely well planned out and made it super easy to follow and retain the information. Loved the way the professor lectured.
—
The real world knowledge about climate change and what is (and is not) being done about it. Also all of the resources and extensive information provided.
—
I appreciated the time and effort that was put into the class as everything seemed professionally done.
—
much material covered through reading and through the lectures. I feel the quizzes did a nice job at highlighting some of the important topics that may be seen on the exams.
—
The freedom that Ken gives us when it comes to our responses and assignments is always great.
—
I really liked watching the weekly documentaries for this course. I felt like they really helped to heighten my perspective and I would never have found them or have the capability to watch them without the course.
—
The progression of the class was extremely well planned out and made it super easy to follow and retain the information. Loved the way the professor lectured.
—
The real world knowledge about climate change and what is (and is not) being done about it. Also all of the resources and extensive information provided.
—
I appreciated the time and effort that was put into the class as everything seemed professionally done.
—
I think this course does a good job at examining the environment through important literature and making students taking the course aware of the environmental problems that are occurring around us.
—
The most valuable aspects of this course was the set up, despite it not being on Gauchospace the course website was very useful and made finding relevant material quite simple.
—
N/A
—
The materials including the lectures and the documentaries used in this course are all amazingly thought-provoking, I really like them!
—
the lectures
—
Help me to read more books, expanding my knowledge aspects.
—
interesting material and a professor who you can tell is really passionate about the subject he teaches. I wish I could have met him in person because he seems like a very kind person.
—
I believe the way Professor Ken Hiltner set up his class to be fully asynchronous is especially helpful in this course when you take into account all the lectures and documentaries. The weekly lecture and reading quizzes help solidify the material taught in the course and the selected documents offer students a way of thinking about the bigger picture.
—
The exposure of what goes behind the scenes for many corporations to maintain their reputation, brand and product popularity, and it is all decimating the environment. This information is little known to public for obvious reasons, so I think keeping that will be good.
—
The most valuable aspect of the course for me may have been the chosen reading material. It was never overwhelming in amount each week and was always very interesting excerpts. As well I always enjoyed when the chicken made himself known in Professor Ken’s lectures. It always improved my mood. I sincerely enjoyed this course.
—
I liked how prof. hiltner connected each work to our day to day life and other topics such as religion and culture. It helped me to connect to each work more and have a deeper understanding of them.
—
I actually really love the documentaries! I find them to give lots of valuable information in a way that is easy to understand.
—
The accessibility of the textbook (although I do wish it were a lower price, it is pretty low comparatively to other courses which is nice), the availability of Lecture PDFS and clear explanation of the course format and material.
—
amazing class organization! Lectures are high quality and easy to follow. I appreciated that PDF’s of the lecture transcript were it is all decimating the environment. This information is little known to public for obvious reasons, so I think keeping that will be good.
—
The most valuable aspect of the course for me may have been the chosen reading material. It was never overwhelming in amount each week and was always very interesting excerpts. As well I always enjoyed when the chicken made himself known in Professor Ken’s lectures. It always improved my mood. I sincerely enjoyed this course.
—
I liked how prof. hiltner connected each work to our day to day life and other topics such as religion and culture. It helped me to connect to each work more and have a deeper understanding of them
—
I actually really love the documentaries! I find them to give lots of valuable information in a way that is easy to understand.
—
The accessibility of the textbook (although I do wish it were a lower price, it is pretty low comparatively to other courses which is nice), the availability of Lecture PDFS and clear explanation of the course format and material.
—
amazing class organization! Lectures are high quality and easy to follow. I appreciated that PDF’s of the lecture transcript were provided, as well as the PDF’s for the Prezi material. They were very helpful when studying for quizzes and the tests. Very interesting readings, which were easily accessible through the course reader. Film documentaries were really great. They introduced me to a lot of things I hadn’t known about before, and I am super grateful that they were a required part of this course.
—
The course materials are accessible in plenty of ways, and the assignments are within reasonable difficulty given the quality of lectures.
—
Lecture material.
—
The lectures are the most valuable aspects of the course. Here is where Ken synthesizes the readings with his analysis and the cultural context of the work(s). I enjoy learning from him, though he is rather circuitous in his speech. Initially his excessive anecdotes and winding, repetitive speech bothered me. However, I have come to understand his style as necessary. One must sit with the concepts, let them marinade, mull over them, and often revisit ideas. That being said I would appreciate a more strait forward organization of the material.
—
I think all of the information about the climate is valuable. I also like how he makes us watch documentaries because I think all of the information in those movies are valuable.
—
The course let me know the importance of protecting the environment. The professor will give us a related documentary every week, which is interesting and informational.
—
The most valuable aspect of this course were the documentaries and their message of what is truly important in life. It truly touched me and was inspiring.
—
The access to the pdf that aligns with the lectures is extremely helpful.
—
It helps students develop a sense of problems in the world right now.
—
The overall purpose of the class, I would say, is very valuable. But if I had to choose something specific I would say the most valuable aspect of the course is that it helped me realize how much I take our earth for granted.
—
I find the lectures incredibly useful – especially given all the tools provided (prezi, youtube video, pdf, transcripts).
—
Professor Hiltner is the most valuable aspect of this course. He presents the information in a clear and interesting manner. I really appreciate the quality of the lecture videos and the prepared pdf of the notes. It makes it very easy to study for the course and know the most important information.
—
The application of the class through text and films were very interesting and valuable to the course.
—
The access to the pdf that aligns with the lectures is extremely helpful.
—
It helps students develop a sense of problems in the world right now.
—
The overall purpose of the class, I would say, is very valuable. But if I had to choose something specific I would say the most valuable aspect of the course is that it helped me realize how much I take our earth for granted.
—
I find the lectures incredibly useful – especially given all the tools provided (prezi, youtube video, pdf, transcripts).
—
Professor Hiltner is the most valuable aspect of this course. He presents the information in a clear and interesting manner. I really appreciate the quality of the lecture videos and the prepared pdf of the notes. It makes it very easy to study for the course and know the most important information.
—
The application of the class through text and films were very interesting and valuable to the course.
—
The detailed lectures and Ken’s thoughtful manner of speaking. Sometimes I am unable to read everything for the course, but the lecture gives me enough detail that I can get by until I am able to read it. And Ken is very understanding about people’s access to internet, electronics, etc. and it seems that he truly wants to teach us about the changing relationship we have with the environment and never tries to trick us or overcomplicate it.
—
Hiltner did an amazing job of formatting the class remotely. The course was very easy to follow online and the lessons were very thought out.
—
his lecture material is very thought provoking and presented in a very meaningful and organized way.
—
The course content is very useful as it can at times reflect real-life issues very prominently
—
The course gives historical literature relevance to today’s issues on climate change and environmental destruction. The topics brought up encourage students to live a more eco-friendly life and increase their compassion for others and the world.
—
Getting to watch movies about contemporary environmental problems and also unfamiliar lifestyles helped broaden my view of environmentalism.
—
The different perspectives gained about literature.
—
Wide range of texts and documentaries that give the student a solid and all encompassing perspective on the issues discussed in lectures.
—
The content. It explores environmental devastation and views throughout history via literature.
—
I really enjoyed the way the class was set up where you can take the quiz any time during the week. This was super helpful in review the lecture I just watched and in preparation for the midterm
—
the documentaries ! I loved watching and learning from them
—
the enthusiasm and depth of lectures
—
The most valuable aspect was the broad range of perspective he introduced about the topic.
—
Clear syllabus
—
kens amazing lectures. he puts so much effort and thought into them. also the films are very interesting
—
The lectures were my favorite part of this course. I felt that they really helped clarify some of the more difficult readings. The content. It explores environmental devastation and views throughout history via literature.
—
I really enjoyed the way the class was set up where you can take the quiz any time during the week. This was super helpful in review the lecture I just watched and in preparation for the midterm
—
the documentaries ! I loved watching and learning from them
—
the enthusiasm and depth of lectures
—
The most valuable aspect was the broad range of perspective he introduced about the topic.
—
Clear syllabus
—
kens amazing lectures. he puts so much effort and thought into them. also the films are very interesting
—
The lectures were my favorite part of this course. I felt that they really helped clarify some of the more difficult readings.
—
I loved everything about this class. I loved his connections to several different eras and parts of the world.
—
The professor offers various ways of accessing/studying the lecture content (prezi, pdf) for students with different preferences. The content was often interesting to learn and I especially enjoyed watching the assigned documentaries.
—
the course website is good
—
Very comprehensive prezis, explained everything in great details and relateable
—
This course has changed my life! I learned so much valuable information I will carry with me and new personal values. It also made me more passionate about my major: Environmental Studies. This was my favorite class only because it focused so much on teaching us concepts relevant to our lives. The multi-media approach helped to keep our attention as well.
—
The personal growth as we see the ways we can change our personal habits to be better of the environment.
—
The most valuable aspect of the course was learning about how the literature we read contributed to the environmental crisis we see today. The lectures were very valuable in understanding the course texts and in learning about the topic in general. The documentaries were also very interesting.
—
obtained a new perspective on a variety of topics
—
lectures
—
Explores how the relation to out planet is imagined.
—
The films were very interesting and good for context.
—
extremely thought provoking and challenges many preconceived notions of contemporary American society
—
I enjoyed the range of the course material along with how they related to each other.
—
The variety of topics that focused on a particular ideal helped me understand what I was learning through different perspectives. For example, the idea of a metaphysical realm was noted in multiple lectures, and not just through one lens, but through many. This helped me process what my new learnings as I can relate what I learned in different settings.
—
Learning about our relationship with the environment and how it was formed. Learning how to be more environmentally conscious and how to improve our lifestyles for the benefit of ourselves and our planet.
—
Explores how the relation to out planet is imagined.
—
The films were very interesting and good for context.
—
extremely thought provoking and challenges many preconceived notions of contemporary American society
—
I enjoyed the range of the course material along with how they related to each other.
—
The variety of topics that focused on a particular ideal helped me understand what I was learning through different perspectives. For example, the idea of a metaphysical realm was noted in multiple lectures, and not just through one lens, but through many. This helped me process what my new learnings as I can relate what I learned in different settings.
—
Learning about our relationship with the environment and how it was formed. Learning how to be more environmentally conscious and how to improve our lifestyles for the benefit of ourselves and our planet.
—
I really appreciated Ken’s explanations of how the various concepts connected throughout the course, such as drawing the comparison between Silent Spring and the Epic of Gilgamesh, with Carson and environmentalists as a new type of genius loci. This helped me think about the concepts in a bigger, more overarching way. I also enjoyed several of the readings — the Epic of Gilgamesh and Lanyer’s Description of Cookeham come to mind. I also found the film comments more valuable than I do most post in a forum type assignments in online courses, and I actually had some good discussions with classmates. I think the more open form of the comments helped with this, rather than responding to a specific prompt and trying to meet a word count for the comments each week. This course’s style of comments made it easier for me to write what I actually felt, and analyze the films more genuinely.
—
I really enjoy the different perspectives that the professor offers. Although it did add more work, I enjoyed the documentaries as well. The reading is also more entertaining than the professor made it seem.
—
I think having the weekly documentaries was a great way to add a large range of perspectives into the course in a fun and interesting way.
—
I really enjoyed Ken’s lectures because he always expanded on topics and helped include more information about the readings.
—
A diffferent, scholarly approach at looking at climate change and humanity’s relationship with the environment through the development of written text and classic literature.
—
I appreciate the fact that the assignments were organized into weeks and dates and everything was pretty doable.
—
You can pace yourself. The class materials are publicly available so you can share your learning with other people. The course focuses on Western tradition, therefore it is very effective in making us, students, reflect on our specific cultural aspects.
—
The weekly documentaries were an amazing selection. Really opened my eyes.
—
The documentaries
—
Accessibility
—
The prezis
—
I thought the lectures were very valuable as I always found them to be very thought-provoking and have changed the way I viewed our attitude to the environment.
—
Organization is impeccable. Course material is relevant to the topic being studied. I appreciate the concentration. Professor is incredibly well equipped to teach in an online platform. This class can and should be offered online even during normal circumstances.
—
The weekly documentaries were an amazing selection. Really opened my eyes.
—
The documentaries
—
Accessibility
—
The prezis
—
I thought the lectures were very valuable as I always found them to be very thought-provoking and have changed the way I viewed our attitude to the environment.
—
Organization is impeccable. Course material is relevant to the topic being studied. I appreciate the concentration. Professor is incredibly well equipped to teach in an online platform. This class can and should be offered online even during normal circumstances.
—
Learning about climate change and how to improve one’s self is admirable!!!
—
I think the weekly quizzes are really helpful and effective ways of learning. The documentaries were all very engaging and I loved them all. Having a separate website for this course was also probably one of the best aspects of the course, it made it more convenient to access content.
—
The interactiveness of the professor during online lecture.
—
I thought that the videos and resources Professor provided were easily accessible, and very well produced
—
The professor had a set schedule and followed it.
—
i like watching films that professor recommended every week, all of them are interesting and profound.
—
Ken’s explanations were clear, and he showed a lot of passion in teaching. Really enjoyed watching the lectures, and I more often than not came out understanding everything that he had covered.
—
This course helps me establish the awareness of protecting environment and it gives me a lot of information about environmental literature which I didn’t know before.
—
It really helps me form a different perspective towards the way I live.
—
Everything.
—
From the course, I have learned to think environmentally. For example, when I am reading posts on forums in social media, I will immediately notice those perspectives that could be dangerous to the environment.
—
The YouTube comment is great.
—
I learned a lot of new perspectives on how topics of climate crisis relate to our culture and society.
—
The effort the Professor put into adapting and making his online lectures fun and accessible that caters to all students (ie: pdf forms of lecture slides/subtitles in other languages/transcripts of lectures and his voice-overs). I’ve never had a professor put so much into this whole online instruction, I learned a lot and enjoyed it!
—
The most valuable aspects were how he was very organized with the course material, and he provided multiple forms of the course material each week so we could get the most out of it.
—
The lectures themselves were very rich and interesting as I looked forward to watching them each week. The prezi format also helps
—
From the course, I have learned to think environmentally. For example, when I am reading posts on forums in social media, I will immediately notice those perspectives that could be dangerous to the environment.
—
The YouTube comment is great.
—
I learned a lot of new perspectives on how topics of climate crisis relate to our culture and society.
—
The effort the Professor put into adapting and making his online lectures fun and accessible that caters to all students (ie: pdf forms of lecture slides/subtitles in other languages/transcripts of lectures and his voice-overs). I’ve never had a professor put so much into this whole online instruction, I learned a lot and enjoyed it!
—
The most valuable aspects were how he was very organized with the course material, and he provided multiple forms of the course material each week so we could get the most out of it.
—
The lectures themselves were very rich and interesting as I looked forward to watching them each week. The prezi format also helps to keep everything organized.
—
I think the lectures provided valuable analyses of the course material and gave a more in-depth approach to the material than the readings alone.
—
The knowledge of what exactly is causing the climate crisis and how to personally make a difference
—
was a very clear course with a clear outline of ideas. did a good job of pointing out what was important to know.
—
the pdf transcripts of lecture were very helpful, and the timing of deadlines for the course was very accommodating
—
The potential for use outside of class
—
What I consider the most valuable aspect of this course is that it has an array of material ranging from literature and provides films or videos about the topic. He provides both the lectures in prezi and the lecture in youtube and pdfs of the slides. He makes it accessible and allows for time to finish the quizzes and film comments. The texts are relevant and lecture all tie nicely together. It all relates and teaches the subject really well.
—
The fact that this course is applied to current day issues and current events is very appealing and made me appreciate this class and its contents even more than I normally would. Additionally, I think the weekly documentaries are a great addition to the class because they were all extremely interesting and provided good information that I am happy to now be better informed on. — He taught broadly about the different aspects of our environmental crisis, in an easy and effective way to understand. The films were a plus since it helps visual learners and others to see what’s really happening in our planet.
—
I liked that the prezi text and lecture transcripts were also posted. It made it a lot easier to follow along.
—
Clearly defined outline of the course and expectations. Asynchronous format never felt confusing. Intriguing material and lectures!
—
I enjoyed the lecture format of Ken being able to address us in a little bubble/on screen while reading lecture slides. I also thought the grading system of this class was wonderful, with the reading quizzes and film responses. I think taking smaller quizzes every week as well as the other larger tests helps solidify information more concretely and discourages cramming of material the day before. I also loved the material covered in class, and learned many new things that will stick with me and apply to other areas of my life. Thank you Ken!
—
I love how he connects such old texts to such modern issue
—
The most valuable aspect of this course is the open-ended themes surrounding the world’s climate crisis. Applies literature from many decades and films from recent years to open student’s minds about their personal impact on the planet. were a plus since it helps visual learners and others to see what’s really happening in our planet.
—
I liked that the prezi text and lecture transcripts were also posted. It made it a lot easier to follow along.
—
Clearly defined outline of the course and expectations. Asynchronous format never felt confusing. Intriguing material and lectures!
—
I enjoyed the lecture format of Ken being able to address us in a little bubble/on screen while reading lecture slides. I also thought the grading system of this class was wonderful, with the reading quizzes and film responses. I think taking smaller quizzes every week as well as the other larger tests helps solidify information more concretely and discourages cramming of material the day before. I also loved the material covered in class, and learned many new things that will stick with me and apply to other areas of my life. Thank you Ken!
—
I love how he connects such old texts to such modern issues
—
The most valuable aspect of this course is the open-ended themes surrounding the world’s climate crisis. Applies literature from many decades and films from recent years to open student’s minds about their personal impact on the planet.
—
I think the topics covered in this course were very well explained by the teacher.
—
I loved watching the documentaries every week!
—
It is an important course to take because the problems discussed in the lecture are very pertinent at the moment.
—
I really enjoyed this course. It introduced me to aspects of the environment and literature that I had never considered before. It seemed as though we covered a massive amount of information, yet there was a manageable workload each week. Plus, it was really nice that the class was entirely asynchronous so I could work on the material when I had time.
—
Async
—
The weekly documentaries were extremely eye-opening and helped me to constantly think about my own life with the perspective of knowing the struggles that some out there deal with.
—
I think the readings are the most valuable aspects of the course because they’re really interesting and it’s really cool how at the end of the quarter all of the knowledge comes together.
—
The instruction
—
The documentaries because they are what made me be more aware of the current environmental situation and the climate crisis, and some of them made me rethink and change my current lifestyle a little bit.
—
I enjoyed the weekly movies assigned, as they were very informative in applying the information learned to everyday life.
—
Lectures were always very engaging and interesting! Some of the readings we did were rather difficult to understand, so the lectures certainly helped with that. Additionally, I absolutely adored the documentary assignment each week. I love that we were able to learn about different topics regarding the environment and really enjoyed the multi-faceted approach to environmental consciousness! Thank you so much.
—
He is very passionate about his subject matter and it shines in his lectures.
—
This course was laid out perfectly! Super considerate to the how students might need to access all of the course material. If you need an outline to properly do an online class, turn to this one.
—
I thought that although the Christianity lectures were more controversial, they were very important and are symbolic of the purpose of the course as it provides relevancy to modern day. I enjoyed the film assignments and most of them kept me interested enough to watch through the entire thing. Overall, I loved the course and would take it again so there’s not much that comes to mind when I
—
I enjoyed the weekly movies assigned, as they were very informative in applying the information learned to everyday life.
—
Lectures were always very engaging and interesting! Some of the readings we did were rather difficult to understand, so the lectures certainly helped with that. Additionally, I absolutely adored the documentary assignment each week. I love that we were able to learn about different topics regarding the environment and really enjoyed the multi-faceted approach to environmental consciousness! Thank you so much.
—
He is very passionate about his subject matter and it shines in his lectures
—
This course was laid out perfectly! Super considerate to the how students might need to access all of the course material. If you need an outline to properly do an online class, turn to this one.
—
I thought that although the Christianity lectures were more controversial, they were very important and are symbolic of the purpose of the course as it provides relevancy to modern day. I enjoyed the film assignments and most of them kept me interested enough to watch through the entire thing. Overall, I loved the course and would take it again so there’s not much that comes to mind when I think of what can be changed.
—
the variety of content and formats to use to listen to it.
—
The flexibility with the time assignments and such are due because gives everyone including international students to have opportunity to turn in things at times that work for them. Professor Ken is also very attentive to possibilities of having trouble with internet quality/access and provides different ways to get around this potential problem.
—
The most valuable aspects of the course are the lectures. I think the instructor does a great job preparing and recording lectures. He does a good job explaining the material and it is quite interesting as well. The instructor also prepares pdf files and additional prezis are helpful in order to follow along.
—
I particularly enjoyed the functionality of the course webpage. The setup catered to all my basic needs for learning, while also giving me plenty of variety in learning options.
—
I like the weekly movies and Professor Ken’s deep analysis about the readings. This class has taught me to care more about the environment.
—
Great website, lots of resources
—
I like the thinking and the fascinating lectures that the professor brought to us. It renews my perspective on environmentalism and prompts me to think about our next step to protect the planet.
—
This course was very valuable in providing information about the climate crisis and what must be done in order to fix the issues. Information was often very informational and interesting. Many of the movies that needed to be watched for this course were very interesting.
—
The course is relatively easy in terms of concept and is very well taught.
—
I think the most valuable aspect of this course was that it was very eye opening about the many aspects regarding the climate crisis. I feel that I have a much deeper understanding of the problems regarding climate issues.
—
I love this man. He is an amazing educator
—
The organization, the professor’s ability to adapt to online learning, the format, and the lecture PDFs I really enjoyed how easily accessible he made the information and how thorough he was in creating resources for everyone. Love the prezi/pdf format.
—
The analysis of the literature through Kenneth’s lectures.
—
This course was very valuable in providing information about the climate crisis and what must be done in order to fix the issues. Information was often very informational and interesting. Many of the movies that needed to be watched for this course were very interesting.
—
The course is relatively easy in terms of concept and is very well taught.
—
I think the most valuable aspect of this course was that it was very eye opening about the many aspects regarding the climate crisis. I feel that I have a much deeper understanding of the problems regarding climate issues.
—
I love this man. He is an amazing educator
—
The organization, the professor’s ability to adapt to online learning, the format, and the lecture PDFs I really enjoyed how easily accessible he made the information and how thorough he was in creating resources for everyone. Love the prezi/pdf format.
—
The analysis of the literature through Kenneth’s lectures.
—
Professor Hiltner is one of the best professors I’ve ever met in UCSB. He is very thoughtful. The readings he selected were very interesting. His lectures of climate crises give me impression and encouragement that we are absolutely not too late to do something to help. The way he organized the course made me feel like I’ve been through a long and interesting journey. I probably would never forget him and this journey, and I will spread the beliefs and knowledge I got to people around me to make any change I can.
—
content
—
It helps us to realize and encourages us to do something about the current climate crisis.
—
This course is incredibly valuable as it delves deep into why we have allowed environmental degradation get as bad as it has.
—
The lecture content is so great!
—
The content is extremely intriguing for me. Just the way environmentalism is connected with literature is a very interesting topic. The course also covered a variety of topics and fields, including literature, culture, envionmentalism, and even religion.
—
I think the course material is really interesting and meaningful. I really like the point to use literature to approach nature. I learned a lot in this class.
—
The actual material when it comes to the lectures is alright
—
I really liked the lectures and the weekly quizes that solidified my knowledge of that past week.
—
I liked the layout of the course it was straight forward and easy to follow. I also liked the documentaries
—
The most valuable aspects of the course for me were how flexible the work was and how easy it was to find the course work for each week.
—
This course has been switched to online format wonderfully and the content is interesting. I truly appreciate the effort put into making this class accessible online as it has made learning during this time so much easier.
—
Good films and info
—
The awareness it instills in the people whom take it
—
Ken clearly knows a lot about what he is lecturing and doesn’t feel like he is being paid to teach us, but rather that he is doing it only because he wants to.
—
I liked the layout of the course it was straight forward and easy to follow. I also liked the documentaries
—
The most valuable aspects of the course for me were how flexible the work was and how easy it was to find the course work for each week.
—
This course has been switched to online format wonderfully and the content is interesting. I truly appreciate the effort put into making this class accessible online as it has made learning during this time so much easier.
—
Good films and info
—
The awareness it instills in the people whom take it
—
Ken clearly knows a lot about what he is lecturing and doesn’t feel like he is being paid to teach us, but rather that he is doing it only because he wants to.
—
The documentaries really show the weight of the climate crisis problem, and the lectures really go in depth into the readings which I only found interesting because of the way Ken explained them.
—
The movie discussions were super interesting! I thought that was a super interesting way to interact with other students in such a big class.
—
Everything
—
Weekly documentaries were very interesting and insightful.
—
Insightful class
—
Ken’s teaching is extremely effective in the lectures that he gives. A lot of the analogies he is able to draw effectively relate the content in a way that is simple to understand and progresses a broader knowledge about the issue.
—
They apply to real world scenarios.
—
I really appreciated the documentaries and films we watched not because they were fun to watch, but because I actually learned an incredible amount of information from them and even made lifestyle changes because of them.
—
The organization of the course website. The course readings and films.
—
I loved the discussion of Buddhism and the decision to end the course on a counter-point and solution to the problematic nature of many Western attitudes to the environment. I was amazed at how well-thought-out the course was with Prezis, PDFs, and lectures being downloadable. I thank Ken for making course materials as accessible as possible, thus encouraging student success.
—
I really enjoyed all the documentaries throughout the quarter.
—
I took out (mostly from the films) some specific changes I can make in my life to be more environmentally friendly without drastically changing my life, which was pretty cool.
—
I learned so much in this class!!! I enjoyed every lecture because it gave me a unique perspective on texts & how we perceive the environment today. I feel like everything I learned was truly valuable. I have already changed several aspects in my lifestyle to start making a difference — the class was inspirational and induced an environmental awakening within me. I also appreciated the way in which the class was structured.
—
There are two aspects that I can think of of this course that I believe to be valuable: the opportunity to contribute to a knowledgeable discussion through film comments and the opportunity to understand the problems, potential solutions, and history of humanity’s relationship with the planet. I enjoyed taking this course because environmental wellbeing was something that interests many Western attitudes to the environment. I was amazed at how well-thought-out the course was with Prezis, PDFs, and lectures being downloadable. I thank Ken for making course materials as accessible as possible, thus encouraging student success.
—
I really enjoyed all the documentaries throughout the quarter.
—
I took out (mostly from the films) some specific changes I can make in my life to be more environmentally friendly without drastically changing my life, which was pretty cool.
—
I learned so much in this class!!! I enjoyed every lecture because it gave me a unique perspective on texts & how we perceive the environment today. I feel like everything I learned was truly valuable. I have already changed several aspects in my lifestyle to start making a difference — the class was inspirational and induced an environmental awakening within me. I also appreciated the way in which the class was structured.
—
There are two aspects that I can think of of this course that I believe to be valuable: the opportunity to contribute to a knowledgeable discussion through film comments and the opportunity to understand the problems, potential solutions, and history of humanity’s relationship with the planet. I enjoyed taking this course because environmental wellbeing was something that interests me. Learning more about these topics made me more aware of the world and how everything is connected to Earth’s wellbeing: economically, socially, spiritually, personally, communally, etc.. It’s like every kind of problem that we have in this world revolves around the Earth’s wellbeing. On the topic of the film comments, I was shocked yesterday when I saw that I had 6 replies on my comment to the Green New Deal, which has never happened to me before. I was able to see what others were able to contribute to the comment I started. I read through every reply and all of them had brought up good points and even information that I wasn’t aware of. It was a knowledgeable discussion and it felt nice and informational.
—
I found the philosophical elements in restructuring ideas on our culture, consumerism, and views on environmentalism the most valuable as they reach the heart of what will help people fight for change both for themselves and the world around them.
—
Throughout this course, the most valuable aspect I have found, was the real-world applications that have been involved in line with the lecture videos and film responses.
—
real world examples and comparisons to the lectures and readings
—
I think just the overall way that you do things for us. For example, the youtuber videos, prezis and PDFs are all ways that we can help ourselves succeed in class. You give us a lot of resources to succeed and I appreciate that.
—
I thought that the open-mindedness and the invitation for many different perspectives on our topic made the class feel very friendly towards open discussion, and it made me feel like there were constantly new and interesting thing’s that I could take away from the course from both people in our readings and documentaries, as well as other in the class discussions as well.
—
I think the most valuable aspect of the course was the ability to learn about how our relationship with the earth changed over time.
—
i valued the content of the course itself, as it is applicable and critical in our present world. also, the professor’s clear teaching in lecture, as well as accommodations for people in many different situations (by posting lectures on diff platforms, posting transcripts, etc) is very appreciated!
—
The most valuable aspect of the course is the lectures as they are informative, interesting, and educational.
—
Such powerful and inspiring documentaries with great information
—
I really like the teaching style of Prof.Ken. He puts the courses and videos together on one website, which can be accessed by just clicking the link, which is very convenient. Especially for remote online study students, it provides great help.
—
Everything is simple to follow along and stay on track every week with quizes and discussion post
—
I consider the movie assignments and lectures to be the most valuable aspects of the course.
time.
—
i valued the content of the course itself, as it is applicable and critical in our present world. also, the professor’s clear teaching in lecture, as well as accommodations for people in many different situations (by posting lectures on diff platforms, posting transcripts, etc) is very appreciated!
—
The most valuable aspect of the course is the lectures as they are informative, interesting, and educational.
—
Such powerful and inspiring documentaries with great information.
—
I really like the teaching style of Prof.Ken. He puts the courses and videos together on one website, which can be accessed by just clicking the link, which is very convenient. Especially for remote online study students, it provides great help.
—
Everything is simple to follow along and stay on track every week with quizes and discussion post
—
I consider the movie assignments and lectures to be the most valuable aspects of the course.
—
One the most valuable aspect of the course for me was using literature to help discover where our attitude towards the environment originates from. Another valuable aspect for me was using the different forms of literature to develop an understanding and conscious of the issues our planet faces with the climate change.
—
lectures
—
I found that learning about the history of environmentalists and how our ideas of the environment have been shaped really valuable. It made me realize my ideas were not necessarily my own and with that in mind I can now start to form opinions that are fully mine.
—
To identify ecocentrism in literature and evaluate details in literary texts that exemplify a relationship to the environment.
—
Everything! Very reliable format and GREAT content. It is extremely relevant. Professor responds quickly.
—
I think the asynchronous flexibility is most valuable. The entire week’s assignments are uploaded along with all other information needed to complete. He allows so much time to finish assignments and I think he understands that we have other classes as well. This is my second time having him as a professor and you still see his passion for the topic from in person carry on through his async presentations.
—
Most valuable would be the lesson on history and the context behind each reading given during lectures instead of simply just reading the materials.
—
I gained a new understanding of how our environmental consciousness has developed through religious teachings and literature, and why the human race has historically abused the planet. I thoroughly enjoyed the material and thought that Professor did an excellent job of communicating the information in a clear, insightful and accessible way.
—
The documentaries were the most informing.
—
Climate crisis and how we take care of our planet
—
The quizzes and film choices
—
I love seeing the environmentalism through history. Also this class has probably impacted my thoughts and actions on the environment more than any other class i’ve been in.
—
The film assignments are fun. I enjoyed it a lot and learn a variety of ideas from them, including natural disasters, consumption, and natural protection. The lectures are good enough to explain everything in detail.
—
I think the most valuable aspect of this course was that it helped me create my environmental consciousness. Prior to taking this why the human race has historically abused the planet. I thoroughly enjoyed the material and thought that Professor did an excellent job of communicating the information in a clear, insightful and accessible way.
—
The documentaries were the most informing.
—
Climate crisis and how we take care of our planet
—
The quizzes and film choices
—
I love seeing the environmentalism through history. Also this class has probably impacted my thoughts and actions on the environment more than any other class i’ve been in.
—
The film assignments are fun. I enjoyed it a lot and learn a variety of ideas from them, including natural disasters, consumption, and natural protection. The lectures are good enough to explain everything in detail.
—
I think the most valuable aspect of this course was that it helped me create my environmental consciousness. Prior to taking this course I knew very little about the climate crisis and all the ways in which I, along with the rest of the world, contribute to it. This class has impacted me in a way that will change the way I choose to live my life from now on because I now realize the gravity of the situation and the many ways in which I can begin to make a difference for the world.
—
The films were extremely relevant and informational.
—
I think some of the most valuable aspects of this course are the weekly documentaries that are featured. Especially because so much of this class deals with the past, the documentaries provide insight into what is happening in our world today in a way that the lectures can’t always do. The documentaries are always extremely thought provoking and informational as well, even if they tend to be a bit distressing, which I understand is necessary if the problem of climate change is going to be conveyed effectively.
—
The most valuable aspects of this course were content such as the films and slides.
—
I think the quizzes prepare students very well for the exams, and I do appreciate that you post the lecture prezis in addition to the videos themselves. Thank you for making it as easy as possible for students to take this class in an online format – it was nice to have so many different ways to view all of the materials.
—
I like they way to interpret how cultural attitudes towards the environment have developed.
—
I enjoyed watching the films for the course because they were very informative and we’re enjoyable to watch because they related to many issues we see in our lives.
—
Documentaries are super interesting and pdf of notes are very helpful
—
Interesting lectures, I really appreciate the content.
—
definitely the ways that everyone can help the environment
—
I would say every single aspect of the course is valuable. More broadly and with the class’ subject, is the importance of learning about how our thoughts on the environment are culturally constructed and affect how we view it today. Due to climate change being a major issue in todays world, I believe the class’ structure, content and the way old perceptions are applied to current sobering realities is something that is desperately needed at UCSB. Additionally, the provision of an explanation and understanding of how climate change occurs, as well as what can be done at both a national and individual level, are topics that I have never truly been introduced to prior to this class. I truly enjoyed it and would recommend it to others.
—
I’d say the most valuable part is just gaining a different perspective on the climate crisis and learning more about it.
—
I loved this course! The documentaries were incredibly valuable in reinforcing the concepts taught in the lectures in a more emotional way. I also greatly enjoyed Ken’s lectures on Buddhism as a sustainable alternative to the ideologies we’d studied
—
Interesting lectures, I really appreciate the content.
—
definitely the ways that everyone can help the environment
—
I would say every single aspect of the course is valuable. More broadly and with the class’ subject, is the importance of learning about how our thoughts on the environment are culturally constructed and affect how we view it today. Due to climate change being a major issue in todays world, I believe the class’ structure, content and the way old perceptions are applied to current sobering realities is something that is desperately needed at UCSB. Additionally, the provision of an explanation and understanding of how climate change occurs, as well as what can be done at both a national and individual level, are topics that I have never truly been introduced to prior to this class. I truly enjoyed it and would recommend it to others.
—
I’d say the most valuable part is just gaining a different perspective on the climate crisis and learning more about it.
—
I loved this course! The documentaries were incredibly valuable in reinforcing the concepts taught in the lectures in a more emotional way. I also greatly enjoyed Ken’s lectures on Buddhism as a sustainable alternative to the ideologies we’d studied throughout the rest of the course.
—
The most valuable aspects of the course was learning about how different aspects of our everyday lives can greatly affect the environment.
—
I now have a better understanding of the climate crisis and the urgency that is needed for change
—
Ken’s lectures were so informative and interesting. I learned so much. The documentaries were also very eye-opening.
—
I was really interested in learning things through a different literary lens than I am used to, but it didn’t really fit the way I was expecting it to.
—
What I consider to be the most valuable aspect within this course is the specifics of the climate crisis and what the major cause of climate change is. In addition to this, I felt that the readings and the meaning of the readings from an environmental perspective were another very valuable aspect within this course.
—
The documentaries and information we were given was super helpful.
—
The lectures that are provided for us weekly.
—
Learning about how to change my lifestyle and think differently about the things around me.
—
Seeing where different ideas about the environment evolved from next to representations of our most current attitudes towards the environment (documentaries) was very enlightening
—
Out of all my classes, the online experience was great. Professor used all the tools, had easy to understand website that had everything needed for the course along the quarter.
—
Hiltner’s lecture voice is incredibly soothing.
—
I thought that the most valuable aspect of this course were the lectures. Dr. Hiltner is passionate and knowledgable on the topics discussed and it shows through his teaching. I felt engaged and interested in the material throughout the course.
—
the films were interesting
—
This class was my favorite! lots of information gained and understood clearly.
—
Lectures are the best part of the course, readings can be skipped because important aspects are mentioned in the lecture. When I tried doing most of the readings I did not understand most of what it was about. environment (documentaries) was very enlightening
—
Out of all my classes, the online experience was great. Professor used all the tools, had easy to understand website that had everything needed for the course along the quarter.
—
Hiltner’s lecture voice is incredibly soothing.
—
I thought that the most valuable aspect of this course were the lectures. Dr. Hiltner is passionate and knowledgable on the topics discussed and it shows through his teaching. I felt engaged and interested in the material throughout the course.
—
the films were interesting
—
This class was my favorite! lots of information gained and understood clearly.
—
Lectures are the best part of the course, readings can be skipped because important aspects are mentioned in the lecture. When I tried doing most of the readings I did not understand most of what it was about.
—
Professor Hiltner went into great depth in his material throughout the course. We also covered a great deal of material in such a short time. I really enjoyed watching the documentaries each week they weren’t a chore at all, in fact, I was very interested in the majority of them so I was glad I got the opportunity to watch them.
—
The information.
—
I consider the approach to cultural impacts on the environment to be a very important aspect to the course. The readings that were provided gave a lot of insight into the zeitgeists of the various time periods we analyzed.
—
Let me be more aware of the environment and environmental footprint.
—
great life implications and lessons to take into my future
—
the lectures of course! Ken is an extremely wise man and I loved hearing his perspective and knowledge on each topic.
—
I very much enjoyed the assigned weekly documentaries. I though they were an excellent way to tie what we were learning into real life and some of them were extremely eye-opening for me. I also really appreciated all of the different resources provided to us. Not only did we have access to video lectures, but to Pdfs and transcripts as well. Furthermore, Professor Hiltner always made an effort to make the films and books for the class as cheap as possible, if not free, which is very much appreciated.
—
I had taken English 23 and I have to agree that these courses are better online. Recorded lectures allowed a lot of flexibility for us and the fact that they were posted on youtube was helpful because of the captions settings. The course was very accessible with all the materials provided.
—
I really like how the class is composed of both literature and film assignments because it has allowed me to see many connections between the past and present and between different forms of media that I may have previously looked over. I find Professor Hiltner’s class webpage to be very user friendly and helpful as he makes videos, pdfs, lectures, and press very accessible. — very approachable and down to earth with the subject matter.
—
It is very straightforward in its content, and presents everything very clearly.
—
passion of the professor about topic of course
—
Ability to open perspective for other views.
—
This course was life changing. Literally. The content of this course is something I think is important for everyone to learn about and for more classes to discuss, as much of this class is rooted in history, literature, philosophy, and other liberal arts in all the materials provided.
—
I really like how the class is composed of both literature and film assignments because it has allowed me to see many connections between the past and present and between different forms of media that I may have previously looked over. I find Professor Hiltner’s class webpage to be very user friendly and helpful as he makes videos, pdfs, lectures, and press very accessible.
—
very approachable and down to earth with the subject matter.
—
It is very straightforward in its content, and presents everything very clearly
—
passion of the professor about topic of course
—
Ability to open perspective for other views.
—
This course was life changing. Literally. The content of this course is something I think is important for everyone to learn about and for more classes to discuss, as much of this class is rooted in history, literature, philosophy, and other liberal arts in other major studies. As a history major myself, I found the opportunity to look at primary sources form an eco critical perspective to be very insightful and engaging.
—
I found this course to be really informative and interesting, especially taken with ENVS 1, because it showed current issues while ENGL 22 showed the history of where those issues came from.
—
I feel I truly learned so much from the course. You made it very exciting and thoughtful and though it was plenty of work you gave us more than enough time to complete it. I also appreciated how you published the lectures on YouTube where we can put on subtitles and adjust the speed!
—
To me, the most valuable aspect of the course was being able to learn first hand how much our actions affect the earth.
—
learn things about Ecocriticism in diverse aspects! amazing!
—
I felt the content, particularly the lectures to be the most valuable because of the in-depth knowledge within them, and how these teachings are related to our present culture. Additionally, I enjoyed the films and their comments which gave me a new environmental perspective.
—
The professor is very acknowledged on the material, and try to make his lectures clear.
—
I really like the fact that this class is asynchronous. It really allows me to learn on my own time. I also love the different kinds of material that Ken teaches with.
—
The concepts the professor provided and a combination of western thinking and Buddhism. Also the documentaries the professor suggested to watch make me realize the severe environmental issues and the actions people can do to them.
—
A change of mindset towards the environment through the cultural analysis of previous cultures and how that relates to today’s society.
—
The films as source material were amazing. They helped me to contextualize the class in real world scenarios.
—
The lectures were very engaging and the content was extremely relevant and eye-opening.
—
The youtube discussions and films were the most valuable aspects.
—
I will say this course purify my mind.
—
Watching the documentaries/videos
—
The concepts the professor provided and a combination of western thinking and Buddhism. Also the documentaries the professor suggested to watch make me realize the severe environmental issues and the actions people can do to them.
—
A change of mindset towards the environment through the cultural analysis of previous cultures and how that relates to today’s society.
—
The films as source material were amazing. They helped me to contextualize the class in real world scenarios.
—
The lectures were very engaging and the content was extremely relevant and eye-opening.
—
The youtube discussions and films were the most valuable aspects.
—
I will say this course purify my mind.
—
Watching the documentaries/videos
—
the way the class was set up was very easy to follow and stay on top of despite being async. Material was very engaging and well presented
—
Best integrated online course I’ve taken at UCSB; Professor was very thoughtful of students across different time zones.
—
The course material and lectures from the instructor were both not only easy to understand, but also very powerful and thought provoking. Very glad I took this course.
—
I really enjoyed how the course incorporated literature as well as documentaries.
—
This course gave me insight into how our modern view of the environment was formed. It was interesting and engaging!
—
Gives a worldly and historical perspective on environmental issues that plague us today.
—
The most valuable aspects of the class were reading important literature and learning about how the literature is connected to the environment.
—
I think the whole concept of the class, ecocritism, is an extremely valuable idea as it allows us to look over works of writing as well as art and try to understand their historical and cultural impact on our perception of the environment. The way we view and value the environment is an essential part of thinking about how we can solve the climate crisis, and looking at literature both ancient and modern is a very valuable way to understand why we view the environment the way we do and how we can change our view to one that is more supportive rather than degrading of the environment.
—
The weekly films and film critiques that are implemented in the course deliver current world examples of the weekly readings. Furthermore, the course includes real, everyday solutions to the problems introduced in the readings.
—
Everything good class
—
This course is extremely relevant to our current day and age, which I appreciated.
—
The lectures were the most valuable and taught me the most. The quizzes kept me on track.
—
awareness of real world issues
—
I think the lectures and the readings go well together, as the lectures do a really good job of explaining certain ideas from the reading that are hard to pick up on your own without greater context
—
I always have a deep thinking about our life and environment after the class
—
The weekly films and film critiques that are implemented in the course deliver current world examples of the weekly readings. Furthermore, the course includes real, everyday solutions to the problems introduced in the readings.
—
Everything good class
—
This course is extremely relevant to our current day and age, which I appreciated.
—
The lectures were the most valuable and taught me the most. The quizzes kept me on track.
—
awareness of real world issues
—
I think the lectures and the readings go well together, as the lectures do a really good job of explaining certain ideas from the reading that are hard to pick up on your own without greater context
—
I always have a deep thinking about our life and environment after the class
—
I honestly really enjoyed the way Mr. Ken organized this course. I wish more professors went the extra mile he does in order to ensure we all get the best quality even though it is remote. He has all the material accessible online not only for us but for the public too. I think that this being a class about climate change many people can benefit from watching a lecture or two. The fact that he provides transcripts and pdfs really helps us too. Overall this is the best class I have taken remotely that is why I enrolled in English 23. Thank you for an amazing 10 weeks, thank you for being so accessible and making the material engaging even through a virtual format.
—
I consider the most valuable aspects of the course to be the focus on the severity of climate change and the effects it will have on our future as well as the in-depth explanations on how we as a society can help slow the progression of climate change. I appreciate how this class has taught me facts about climate change that I would have never known if I had not taken this class.
—
getting to know different types of religions and history
—
The amount of resources Professor Hiltner made available for us was amazing and extremely helpful! He really tried his best to set us up for success in every way possible.
—
Better understanding of the current climate crisis and ways I can individually make a difference
—
The lectures and films were immensely important because in the lectures we were able to see how environmental consciousness was present all throughout history and in the films, we can see how it is just as important today.
—
There are countless ways that this course was invaluable, but in my opinion the most significant was teaching about how the actions of the an individual can effect the onset of climate change.
—
Learning about how western culture has shaped our perspective on the climate crisis in the format of literature and diving into the theories and beliefs of Buddhism enabled me to reflect on my carbon footprint and redefine my understanding of environmental issues. I enjoyed the asynchronous lectures because I was able to manage my time more efficiently with the reading assignments (Silent Spring by Rachel Carson was my favorite) and quizzes and found the lectures to be most helpful in understanding the material. The weekly quizzes are also extremely helpful when managing the course load and staying on task each week.
—
The most valuable aspect is learning about the climate and what we as a species have done to exemplify this situation. I absolutely enjoyed learning about everything that was talked about in this course and I wish that I was faster in signing up for ENGL23 but I am overjoyed to have been a part of this class learning about this material
—
The professor has very detailed lectures and notes.
—
The documentaries! I loved every one of them and I learned so much and am really trying to do my part now that I know how important it is. I also benefitted from having the transcripts and notes easily accessible to study from.
—
Learning about how western culture has shaped our perspective on the climate crisis in the format of literature and diving into the theories and beliefs of Buddhism enabled me to reflect on my carbon footprint and redefine my understanding of environmental issues. I enjoyed the asynchronous lectures because I was able to manage my time more efficiently with the reading assignments (Silent Spring by Rachel Carson was my favorite) and quizzes and found the lectures to be most helpful in understanding the material. The weekly quizzes are also extremely helpful when managing the course load and staying on task each week.
—
The most valuable aspect is learning about the climate and what we as a species have done to exemplify this situation. I absolutely enjoyed learning about everything that was talked about in this course and I wish that I was faster in signing up for ENGL23 but I am overjoyed to have been a part of this class learning about this material
—
The professor has very detailed lectures and notes.
—
The documentaries! I loved every one of them and I learned so much and am really trying to do my part now that I know how important it is. I also benefitted from having the transcripts and notes easily accessible to study from.
—
I really enjoyed how he tried to keep his class as interstice as possible through the videos he provided. The films he provided were a clear wake up call to what it is that needs to happen to keep our earth clean. He really tied it into the class very well.
—
The different perspectives offered to students is, in my opinion, extremely valuable as it helps to further an understanding of how different people can hold different views in regards to a similar yet controversial topic such as climate change.
—
The documentaries were really insightful and I liked the way Ken set up the course and how accessible all of the content was.
—
As an asynchronous course, the course website has been extremely helpful in terms of organizing the content and having it easily available for us each week.
—
We did cover a lot.
—
I really liked learning about modern environmental issues as well as how people’s perception of the environment has changed over time.
—
I found that the films were a very helpful tool in seeing how all of the material we learned has/is currently affecting the world today. Also learning how we as humans went from one way of perceiving the earth to a different way, was very interesting. It was helpful in seeing this from other perspectives.
—
The subject material and accesibility of lecture materials
—
I found Ken’s lectures to be the most valuable aspect of the course. The many forms of material he provided for review were also helpful, however I found his lectures to be informative and fascinating. I greatly enjoyed listening to him speak and comment occasionally on his chicken clucking in the early hours of the morning.
—
makes you to reflect on own life
—
I really enjoyed how the class made me question several aspects of my own life.
—
All the lectures, films, and readings were great. I especially liked the accessibility of the course material: having a PDF of the lecture to do notes, transcribed lectures, low cost of materials.
—
Lecture transcripts and notes
—
This course is really thought inspiring, as it focuses on climate issues through a unique perspective: literature. Through this course, I realized where and why different opinions about climate crises are fostered, and the purpose of generating them, and I also learnd how to identify if one opinion in this field is really trustworthy. I strongly recommend my peers to take this course.
—
helpful, however I found his lectures to be informative and fascinating. I greatly enjoyed listening to him speak and comment occasionally on his chicken clucking in the early hours of the morning.
—
makes you to reflect on own life
—
I really enjoyed how the class made me question several aspects of my own life.
—
All the lectures, films, and readings were great. I especially liked the accessibility of the course material: having a PDF of the lecture to do notes, transcribed lectures, low cost of materials
—
Lecture transcripts and notes
—
This course is really thought inspiring, as it focuses on climate issues through a unique perspective: literature. Through this course, I realized where and why different opinions about climate crises are fostered, and the purpose of generating them, and I also learnd how to identify if one opinion in this field is really trustworthy. I strongly recommend my peers to take this course.
—
The extremely organized course, along with the repeated structure of each week, made learning and navigating the course easy and interesting. The professor was also very passionate about the material.
—
Literally everything, this course is a life-changer. I have loved it. It is so incredibly valuable and important. The literature is all very relevant to make environmental conclusions and understand how culture has infleunced the environment. Most importantly, this course is the first of two that inform how each of us can help save the planet. Ken is truly a saint.
—
How relevant the information the course provides is to current issues.
—
I learnt a lot. Thank you!
—
Professor Hiltner’s course material is very accessible. I wish all professors taught like him and provided PDF’s to the lecture slides with space to write on the side. As someone with a learning disability, this helped me immensely as I was now able to focus more on the professor lecturing rather than taking perfect notes. It also helped me study because you have everything from lecture right in front of you. The material is as well amazing. He makes really dense material easy to understand. The weekly documentaries were also great! I wish I could retake this class or at least take his Eng 23 class but I already filled that GE requirement.
—
This class gives the tools and the knowledge that we need as students to become leaders, mitigate issues, while being prepared to give this information to the world.
—
Professor really showed that he cared and put in the time and effort into everything. The lectures were very thorough and he would always answer us in great detail if we had a small question. He was very organized and it was amazing. There was not much busy work, and you had to know what you were doing for the quizzes. I also liked the weekly discussions.
—
How could the course be improved? (e.g. additional detail about topics, modifications to instructional materials, different teaching strategies, etc.)
Id say sometimes the readings were pretty time consuming and maybe could be cut down a bit.
—
N/a
—
I would have loved a formal essay or paper coupled with the midterm and final.
—
Professor can consider the method of zoom teaching, in order to increase the interactions between students and teacher.
—
I think the course can be more interesting somehow (but I know this course is really full of things and it’s hard to keep it short and make it fun at the same time)
—
The Course Reader of bookstore cannot be downloaded and it takes us several minutes to open the website each time.
—
I think the quizzes were oriented towards details and specifics brought up during lectures or during the reading, which is fine but sometimes annoying if you received a question that was rather vague, detail-specific, and not covered in the lectures. I think partially this is due to that the quizzes open thursday, while I might read the readings several days before.
—
While the teaching was great, a 5 question quiz is not an indicator of how well I know the material and should not determine that much of my grade as a result.
—
I would suggest extending the time given for each quiz and exam. The quizzes were each only 5 minutes and the exams were only 30. While I always finished on time, this led me to feeling rushed and I often didn’t have enough time to really think through and review my answers.
—
Instead of having a reader that we have to purchase, perhaps links to the readings that can be found for free online?
—
Besides the instructor going over lecture times, I think the course was overall good.
—
I think it would be nice if the material for the week was posted Sunday afternoon rather than randomly on Sunday.
—
The lectures are just too long honestly. It is an interesting subject matter but the long lectures make it impossible to keep focus the whole time.
—
The online lectures are long, but they are manageable.
—
Though the lectures were thorough they were very long which made it hard to sit at my computer for two hours
—
While I always finished on time, this led me to feeling rushed and I often didn’t have enough time to really think through and review my answers.
—
Instead of having a reader that we have to purchase, perhaps links to the readings that can be found for free online?
—
Besides the instructor going over lecture times, I think the course was overall good.
—
I think it would be nice if the material for the week was posted Sunday afternoon rather than randomly on Sunday.
—
The lectures are just too long honestly. It is an interesting subject matter but the long lectures make it impossible to keep focus the whole time.
—
The online lectures are long, but they are manageable.
—
Though the lectures were thorough they were very long which made it hard to sit at my computer for two hours
—
sometimes lectures are very long and there can be a lot of reading. also had to spend a lot of money on course material
—
Maybe aim to make lectures shorter.
—
Make lectures shorter and more concise.
—
Honestly, I don’t have any major suggestions! I’m sure this course would be different in person, but the virtual format worked very, very well for me. I’m looking forward to taking the next segment of the course next quarter!
—
Please make the lectures shorter because it’s hard to pay attention, especially with remote learning.
—
N/A
—
I think this course has great potential but was executed poorly. Because of what is tested on, there is no critical thinking or analysis in this class. We are tested on things that simply do not matter and we are never asked about what we are actually trying to learn. I and many other students have found that when we don’t watch the lectures, we perform better. I think making this class more about analyzing the content ourselves and having discussions would be much more effective. Also, I understand the professor wants to check if we do his assignments, and that is why unrelated questions are asked. However, this creates a situation where tests only show if students can search for an answer quickly, and don’t evaluate if we learned anything at all. The detailed questions about readings or minute things mentioned in lecture do not make people do the assignments, and just make the class harder for those of us that are actually trying to learn the overall concepts of the class and apply them.
—
It would be helpful to have a little more time on quizzes and exams as the current amount of time we get to answer questions is very short and makes it difficult to think and not rush through questions.
—
Some lectures ran very long – after an hour and a half, it’s difficult for me to retain new information. The Epic of Gilgamesh needs a sexual assault content warning.
—
I would have liked if the quizzes opened earlier in the week.
—
I think the course is good as it is and the instructions, once understood and kept in your routine, are easy to follow.
—
NA
—
Maybe give a little bit more time on the quizzes, I’m a pretty slow reader so having 1 minute per question was quite difficult for me.
—
I think it’s great right now.
—
very short and makes it difficult to think and not rush through questions.
—
Some lectures ran very long – after an hour and a half, it’s difficult for me to retain new information. The Epic of Gilgamesh needs a sexual assault content warning.
—
I would have liked if the quizzes opened earlier in the week.
—
I think the course is good as it is and the instructions, once understood and kept in your routine, are easy to follow.
—
NA
—
Maybe give a little bit more time on the quizzes, I’m a pretty slow reader so having 1 minute per question was quite difficult for me.
—
I think it’s great right now.
—
It is great
—
The lectures are a tad bit longer than anticipated.
—
Break the extra long lectures up into smaller parts
—
good
—
I felt disconnected from the class only because we never did projects and I never met anyone else in the class. I feel was repetitive each week. That being said I still really enjoyed the class.
—
The lectures were consistently too long, and sequential navigation on the quizzes was unfair. In my opinion, the additional time on the lectures should have been optional to watch. It was unfair that the quizzes and tests were set to sequential navigation due to past instances of cheating. It made taking the quizzes and tests a lot more stressful and harder than it would have been in the past. It felt like we were given more work because the quarter was online. I was also very disappointed that we were not given a shorter workload on the week of Thanksgiving.
—
I understand the academic integrity of the quizzes, however, more time or even being able to review my answers would have helped me a lot and improved my grade. A little nervous going into the final because of this.
—
In an online capacity, I wish I could have done the lecture quizzes earlier in the week. I didn’t like that I had to wait until Thursday to take them.
—
N/A
—
N/A
—
I don’t have any problems with this course as it is as Kenneth goes into quite a bit of detail and explains on his lectures on the readings of the week.
—
N/A
—
The material was sufficient for the class, and I don’t think any changes are needed.
—
I don’t think it needs improvement! I think it’s set up perfect to accommodate all students’ needs.
—
Some of the readings were hard to understand.
—
Don’t ask questions irrelevant to material on quizzes, midterms, etc. that you mention for 1 second in the lecture N/A
—
N/A
—
I don’t have any problems with this course as it is as Kenneth goes into quite a bit of detail and explains on his lectures on the readings of the week.
—
N/A
—
The material was sufficient for the class, and I don’t think any changes are needed.
—
I don’t think it needs improvement! I think it’s set up perfect to accommodate all students’ needs.
—
Some of the readings were hard to understand.
—
Don’t ask questions irrelevant to material on quizzes, midterms, etc. that you mention for 1 second in the lecture
—
N/A
—
The quizzes would be better formatted if you were allowed to skip and return to questions, especially since the time is limited.
—
I think by the end there’s a little too much overlap between ENG 22 and 23 in terms of films/assignments. Maybe add some more so there isn’t repeats?
—
I would say that the weekly quizzes for the lectures should be opened earlier in the week so that students can watch the lectures and then take the quiz after. I do this and now I have to wait till Thursday in order to do this, luckily I do not procrastinate too much so I can find the time to do this but other students might have a harder time. Shortening of videos would be nice because the professor sometimes goes on tangents about certain subjects that he is fond of.
—
My only suggestion would be to have a more organized, accessible syllabus. The syllabus was very long and most of it could have been listed on an FAQ sheet. It was also only accessible via the class website. Although the class website was very accessible and easy to navigate, I think separating out the grading, requirements, and expectations onto a PDF would be beneficial. (That is my only complaint, I loved this class.)
—
none
—
I feel the timing of quizzes is really stressful. I know they are set up to prevent cheating, but I do all the work for the class and I still get anxious about the timing.
—
Monotonous voice of the instructor could be improved if the professor can act more passionate during the lecture.
—
Maybe just have more office hours offered
—
No suggestions
—
the lectures were very detailed but formatted in paragraphs. Key points on lectures would be more helpful.
—
If can make each lecture video a little bit shorter that will be great and this will be helpful for students to pay more attention to it.
—
Make Course Reader in different format
—
the only small issue is that his lectures are so long.
—
I have absolutely no complaints. It was lovely. Monotonous voice of the instructor could be improved if the professor can act more passionate during the lecture.
—
Maybe just have more office hours offered
—
No suggestions
—
the lectures were very detailed but formatted in paragraphs. Key points on lectures would be more helpful.
—
If can make each lecture video a little bit shorter that will be great and this will be helpful for students to pay more attention to it
—
Make Course Reader in different format
—
the only small issue is that his lectures are so long.
—
I have absolutely no complaints. It was lovely.
—
I believe the course could be improved, at least in the sense of the current conditions, through the evaluations of whether or not one has watched the lectures. While I understand the quizzes are meant to be used to ensure a student has paid attention to the lectures, it had personally given me stress that I felt was unnecessary during the poor academic environment I was in. Even when I believed I was able to fully understand what the lecture entailed, a 5 minute quiz with 5 questions that I could not review and must choose my question right then and there as it does not allow sequential navigation made me feel rushed and punished for not being able to capture a minute detail within a roughly hour to hour and a half lecture. I hope that for the next time this class is taught, if online, there should be a better way to evaluate the understanding of a lecture.
—
Personally, I think the course is already amazing and there are no improvements that need to be made.
—
You literally just had to look at the lectures and then take the quizzes. Buying the books, as the professor recommended, was a waste of time because I never had to touch them for any quiz or midterm. I know it’s online learning, but I don’t feel like I’m getting my money’s worth of education when quizzes are 5 questions.
—
Make the quiz non-sequential
—
N/a
—
I think one thing that the course could be better at is to be concise. Although I agree that the reference to previous lectures is conducive to a better understanding of the themes, the recurrent materials could lead to a dull experience.
—
I think the course content in every lecture is a little bit too much. Sometimes i feel boring and can’t memorize all the stuff mentioned by professor.
—
I am satisfied with the current state of the course, and I currently don’t need any improvements.
—
Focus on less readings, and go more in depth on them.
—
Nothing, it was great
—
The lectures need to be shorter and standardized in time. They are often too long (an-hour-and-a-half to an hour-and-forty-five minutes) and never feel equal in terms of time either. Additionally, the pacing of the lectures could be quicker too. Keeping lectures to a universal time limit that swiftly covers topics will be more effective for student retention of topics. It will also dissuade feelings that the instructor may be taking undue advantage of the online format during a pandemic (this is a criticism for almost every professor at this school).
—
Add some real discussion part during the study
—
mentioned by professor.
—
I am satisfied with the current state of the course, and I currently don’t need any improvements.
—
Focus on less readings, and go more in depth on them.
—
Nothing, it was great
—
The lectures need to be shorter and standardized in time. They are often too long (an-hour-and-a-half to an hour-and-forty-five minutes) and never feel equal in terms of time either. Additionally, the pacing of the lectures could be quicker too. Keeping lectures to a universal time limit that swiftly covers topics will be more effective for student retention of topics. It will also dissuade feelings that the instructor may be taking undue advantage of the online format during a pandemic (this is a criticism for almost every professor at this school).
—
Add some real discussion part during the study
—
I truly do not think the course can be improved in any way. It is fantastic.
—
Shorten the class lectures to the amount of time actually scheduled for the class on GOLD
—
The lectures were a bit repetitive sometimes.
—
If the lectures were condensed. An hour and 40 minuntes for a lecture is way too long. I was losing interest after an hour. I would highly recommend making the lectures between an hour or an hour 15 minutes.
—
The website is amazing and adds everything I could ask for to supplement the lectures
—
It’s perfect, no changes needed.
—
I think that your virtual class set up was absolutely perfect and I look forward to taking ENGL 23
—
Lecture go way over the allotted time.
—
I feel that having set lecture times would improve this course. I found my self many times having to do the week’s worth of work in a rather short amount of time, and I feel having set lecture times would help prevent this from happening and spread the work out into a more digestible distribution. With that being said, I think that if the lectures had specific meeting times, there should be recordings of the lectures available so students can review any lecture they need in order to help them prep for an exam or catch up if they miss a lecture.
—
Perhaps by shortening the lectures just a little bit, it often feels as if they’re dragging on for quite some time.
—
The slides of the lecture prezis all too often are word for word the same as what the professor is saying when he lectures. This is only helpful if the goal is to have students miss the lecture, not watch it later, and instead just read the prezis. Having slides filled with text does not help me to isolate the important points from the slide. Ideally, I would like the professor to make most slides have short statements that summarize an idea and then have the professor elaborate on them, rather than him just read text in front of me.
—
It would’ve been nice to have a section for this class because I would love to have discussions on the weekly lectures, readings, and films!
—
More concise!!
—
I wish that I could have heard what the opposing side of some of the controversies would have said as it seemed like everyone was agreeing with everyone.
—
Perhaps by shortening the lectures just a little bit, it often feels as if they’re dragging on for quite some time.
—
The slides of the lecture prezis all too often are word for word the same as what the professor is saying when he lectures. This is only helpful if the goal is to have students miss the lecture, not watch it later, and instead just read the prezis. Having slides filled with text does not help me to isolate the important points from the slide. Ideally, I would like the professor to make most slides have short statements that summarize an idea and then have the professor elaborate on them, rather than him just read text in front of me.
—
It would’ve been nice to have a section for this class because I would love to have discussions on the weekly lectures, readings, and films!
—
More concise!!
—
I wish that I could have heard what the opposing side of some of the controversies would have said as it seemed like everyone was agreeing with everyone.
—
I think this course could be improved by engaging the students more. The course was asynchronous but I think because of this I personally felt disconnected from everything and the other people in the class.
—
The films we watch do not seem to be tied into the course material in any way other than climate change and I would love for there to be a more open discussion about them. The lectures can tend to be drawn out & the material feels repetitive at times.
—
less quizzes
—
I think more group works could be assigned.
—
reduced lectures
—
I think professor could upload the quiz earlier, allowing me to finish all the work as early as possible.
—
not sure
—
As of right now, I think the course is fine as it stands. I enjoyed the timeline of topics and I think that should be kept the same.
—
this class is way beyond 4 units. Each lecture is overrun, and the quiz doesn’t even make sense. We only have 5 min for 5 questions, and often the questions are not clear enough and we might need to ask for verification. Overall, this is the most stressful class for me, and it is so hard to understand the huge amount of information in a week with lectures that are so boring and not interactive.
—
I really enjoyed Professor Ken’s lectures. Sometimes sitting down and watching a lecture for the entire hour and thirty-six minutes was a little long but I understand there is a lot of course material to get through and he keeps his lectures engaging despite their length.
—
The lectures are pretty long, and I feel as though they could be 50 minute lectures instead of 1:45, I thought there was a lot of important information in each lecture, but there is a bit of repetition before you get to the next topic.
—
I actually enjoy sections, or even perhaps a weekly discussion forum, so that we can each give our own analysis of the texts and talk about them more together, rather than simply be told what they mean or what their significance is.
—
The lecture videos were usually very long and sometimes difficult to get through; generally there was a lot of video time with the addition of the documentaries. I found a lot of the documentaries incredibly disturbing (The True Cost stands out as one, also Fire in Paradise) and at times, detrimental to my mental health. There are important concepts in these films that I believe can be taught without showing violent/emotionally charged scenes.
—
I really enjoyed Professor Ken’s lectures. Sometimes sitting down and watching a lecture for the entire hour and thirty-six minutes was a little long but I understand there is a lot of course material to get through and he keeps his lectures engaging despite their length.
—
The lectures are pretty long, and I feel as though they could be 50 minute lectures instead of 1:45, I thought there was a lot of important information in each lecture, but there is a bit of repetition before you get to the next topic.
—
I actually enjoy sections, or even perhaps a weekly discussion forum, so that we can each give our own analysis of the texts and talk about them more together, rather than simply be told what they mean or what their significance is.
—
The lecture videos were usually very long and sometimes difficult to get through; generally there was a lot of video time with the addition of the documentaries. I found a lot of the documentaries incredibly disturbing (The True Cost stands out as one, also Fire in Paradise) and at times, detrimental to my mental health. There are important concepts in these films that I believe can be taught without showing violent/emotionally charged scenes.
—
I could not think of anything to improve this course. Truly one of my favorite courses I have ever taken. Really amazing teacher and great material.
—
This has been the best async course I have taken. I am not sure how this could be improved.
—
I believed the course was great how it was.
—
I would appreciate better conclusions of the lectures/prezis. After watching a lecture packed with material, so much is swimming in my head and it’s hard to make sense of it all. This is where I would benefit from a mention of the some key take-aways that summarize the main ideas and demonstrate how they all fit together. I know that I learn best through review, so if Ken could review the key points at the end of each lecture I would better absorb the material.
—
Students should be given more time to take the quizzes and exams. I understand that there is a time limit to discourage students from cheating, but my brain just takes time to function sometimes and I found myself constantly running out of time on the weekly quizzes and the test. I just needed more time to think and with the time limit sometimes I would panic and just click something random without thinking it through fully. Also it would be great to be able to go back to past questions and skip around a bit to give myself more time to recall information. It was difficult to only be able to answer each question in the particular order without being able to go back to past questions.
—
I think the quiz time should be longer and not sequential. I do bad on them just because the time limit. If it was a bit longer I would’ve done better.
—
I hope the exam of the course could not test the content of the documentary, because I will forget some details after watching it several weeks.
—
The course could be improved by making the lecture videos much shorter as they are too long to watch.
—
I know it is a lot of content, but maybe shorter lectures? Or dividing the lectures to be shorter. Sometimes the length is difficult to manage and I feel taking breaks in between the video lecture takes away from my learning experience.
—
Hiltner is a good teacher – he clearly cares about the subject and his students. However, his lectures repeat so much, I feel like I’ve heard the same messages over and over again. And his lectures were pretty long, so it really felt like their length was unnecessary as he saying lots of things I had heard him say before. I also am not sure if he really thought his students were going to do the readings and watch the documentaries all the time – I’m almost certain many of the readings were not done and many of the docs were not watched. The documentaries were interesting though.
—
The course could be improved with fewer quizzes. Having 2 a week including midterms and finals was not fair and took up more time than should be allowed for a 4 unit class.
—
several weeks.
—
The course could be improved by making the lecture videos much shorter as they are too long to watch.
—
I know it is a lot of content, but maybe shorter lectures? Or dividing the lectures to be shorter. Sometimes the length is difficult to manage and I feel taking breaks in between the video lecture takes away from my learning experience.
—
Hiltner is a good teacher – he clearly cares about the subject and his students. However, his lectures repeat so much, I feel like I’ve heard the same messages over and over again. And his lectures were pretty long, so it really felt like their length was unnecessary as he saying lots of things I had heard him say before. I also am not sure if he really thought his students were going to do the readings and watch the documentaries all the time – I’m almost certain many of the readings were not done and many of the docs were not watched. The documentaries were interesting though.
—
The course could be improved with fewer quizzes. Having 2 a week including midterms and finals was not fair and took up more time than should be allowed for a 4 unit class.
—
The course is structured very well and professor Hiltner provides a lot of material which makes navigating the course a lot easier and more flexible. I would recommend adding a practice midterm and final because it’s hard to test your own knowledge on the class by just reviewing the same material provided.
—
maybe have the lectures a bit shorter and less repetitive
—
n/a
—
I know for copy right reasons we can’t download the course reader when we buy the digital copy, so I won’t put this issue on Ken, but I found it hard to read everything digitally and wished I could have printed it out.
—
I don’t have any suggestions.
—
n/a
—
Lectures can connect the documentaries to the week’s unit for more cohesion and clarity.
—
Great class, wouldn’t have it any other way
—
The course could be improved by assigning more relevant films and keeping the amount of time to complete assignments to a manageable amount.
—
None, this is a well structured course. Maybe some more study material for revision for exams.
—
More considerable lectures in terms of time. Majority of the lectures go far beyond the 1 hour and 15 minute mark. I felt as though my time was being taken advantage of merely because it could be due to online instruction. In person instruction was never like this.
—
I feel like it might be easier to balance the work if there were only documentaries every other week. Due the the heavy workload i found myself skimming some of the readings, when I wish I could’ve paid more attention to them.
—
Perhaps making the course more engaging – participating in some way during lecture. Which I know is difficult during online learning. overall, well organized class.
—
more review sessions
—
More accessible reading materials.
—
less lengthy lectures. too long to comprehend and pay attention to
—
More considerable lectures in terms of time. Majority of the lectures go far beyond the 1 hour and 15 minute mark. I felt as though my time was being taken advantage of merely because it could be due to online instruction. In person instruction was never like this.
—
I feel like it might be easier to balance the work if there were only documentaries every other week. Due the the heavy workload i found myself skimming some of the readings, when I wish I could’ve paid more attention to them.
—
Perhaps making the course more engaging – participating in some way during lecture. Which I know is difficult during online learning. overall, well organized class.
—
more review sessions
—
More accessible reading materials.
—
less lengthy lectures. too long to comprehend and pay attention to
—
I wish that this course could’ve had discussion sections.
—
I would not change anything about this class. This was by far my favorite class and teacher. Everything was great as an incoming freshman. Possibly more ways to get involved and support the movement toward a sustainable Earth.
—
Though I enjoyed the material, the lectures sometimes felt a bit repetitive and could get a little long.
—
add some extra credits opportunities
—
The lectures seemed to be a bit repetitive and dragged on a bit. But I appreciate the low resolution tip at the beginning of the quarter, and the white background to limit our consumption!
—
I really liked this class, but I wished there were more opportunities to discuss what I was learning with other students. I feel like the Youtube comments were meant to be a means for discourse between students, but I would have liked to do this over zoom instead of through comments. Something like student hours for people to discuss together would have been great. — less reading
—
Shorter lectures.
—
I think its amazing how it is right now
—
I think it would be useful to have synchronous discussions with our sections to further our thoughts on topics and hear others opinions.
—
I think having some sort of review questions at the end of the lecture (sort of like iclicker questions) would be ideal. Students can pause the video, answer the question on their own, then continue with the video showing the answer. This can be a good refresher with so much content going on!
—
Lectures were sometimes repetitive and difficult to pay attention to. Quizzes focused on such minor details that I felt like even when I had a thorough understanding of the material, it was not demonstrated though my quiz grades. Quizzes also had a very short time limit and as someone with test anxiety, I found it quite difficult to perform well on them despite my knowledge. I think quizzes could be made longer or slightly less detail-oriented and still be an accurate representation of students’ attentiveness.
—
With some of the readings (certainly a minority of them) I felt like I got most or all of the learning value out of Ken’s lecture explanations, whereas I found the readings confusing and didn’t get much out of them. I didn’t mind the amount of reading — that was manageable — but some of them felt like they could have been substituted for other readings or more lecture times. This was almost exclusively with the readings from around the Tudor era and a little later, which required cultural understanding of the I think it would be useful to have synchronous discussions with our sections to further our thoughts on topics and hear others opinions.
—
I think having some sort of review questions at the end of the lecture (sort of like iclicker questions) would be ideal. Students can pause the video, answer the question on their own, then continue with the video showing the answer. This can be a good refresher with so much content going on!
—
Lectures were sometimes repetitive and difficult to pay attention to. Quizzes focused on such minor details that I felt like even when I had a thorough understanding of the material, it was not demonstrated though my quiz grades. Quizzes also had a very short time limit and as someone with test anxiety, I found it quite difficult to perform well on them despite my knowledge. I think quizzes could be made longer or slightly less detail-oriented and still be an accurate representation of students’ attentiveness.
—
With some of the readings (certainly a minority of them) I felt like I got most or all of the learning value out of Ken’s lecture explanations, whereas I found the readings confusing and didn’t get much out of them. I didn’t mind the amount of reading — that was manageable — but some of them felt like they could have been substituted for other readings or more lecture times. This was almost exclusively with the readings from around the Tudor era and a little later, which required cultural understanding of the time that I didn’t have, and that occasionally didn’t feel relevant to the course. This is not to say I disliked the readings in general — overall, I found them helpful, interesting, and valuable.
—
The quizzes should be opened before Thursday because I felt like I had to pack my work into the last days of the week since other professors took the same approach.
—
additional detail about topics
—
More concise explanations of the information we actually need to know.
—
Maybe making the due date a better time instead of Monday 6am, other than that nothing else.
—
Some assigned texts are really hard to read and get through.
—
You have got to shorten the lectures. You seem like a great guy who is knowledgable and passionate about the subject but as a generation of students who is now stuck behind a computer screen watching lecture after lecture our attention spans are shot, anything longer than an hour is just not having the same effect, its not sinking in. There’s also the issue of a student just deciding not to watch altogether because of the length of lectures. If you want your lectures to have the most impact consolidate and only go into detail about the larger points. But besides that you were a great instructor, I’m 100% taking ENGL 23 next quarter.
—
Be more enthusiastic
—
Shorter lectures or lecture broken up into shorter segments
—
No comment
—
I honestly thought this course was structured and taught very well and can’t think of any specific ways to change it!
—
English classes should usually contain a writing component, but other than that course is perfect. —
Honestly no conmen! I could figure everything out easy!
—
Shorten the lectures to the required time.
—
I have no comments at all. This is a good class.
—
No suggestions.
—
Shorter lectures or lecture broken up into shorter segments
—
No comment
—
I honestly thought this course was structured and taught very well and can’t think of any specific ways to change it!
—
English classes should usually contain a writing component, but other than that course is perfect
—
Honestly no conmen! I could figure everything outeasy
—
Shorten the lectures to the required time.
—
I have no comments at all. This is a good class.
—
No suggestions.
—
it’s better having ppt while teaching, since students can get the main point and focus more easily.
—
Something with the mic can be improved. Ken has a great voice. But it’s deep. And the way it’s recorded constantly reminds me to take a deep breath after he finishes a sentence.
—
Maybe the time per lecture could be shorter.
—
maybe open the quiz earlier so that we can have a better flexibility to balance a week’s coursework. (Now the quiz is not available until Thursday and I think it’s a little bit late)
—
I really enjoyed the course. I felt like it was very well structured and organized.
—
I find the discussion of Buddhism is more complicated and hard to understand than the rest of the course, which I think it is because buddhism is assosiated with deep philosophy, and the long paragraphs on the prezi makes me to think about a lot of things at the same time.
—
I do think the the content can be much more organized and also, there are too much content needed to be memorized, which is a little bit difficult.
—
It would be better if the length of each lecture is about 75 mins.
—
I think making the lectures more interactive would be beneficial since they are pretty long lecture videos (and the tone of voice is sort of monotonous) which can make paying attention virtually a lot more difficult.
—
I tended to have a slight discrepancy on page numbers form the prezi and my course reader so I couldn’t always find the quotes quickly so I could highlight them.
—
I think the course was well done and does not need improvement for this online format.
—
Not doing online lectures like class sessions but do them by topic, makes digesting information much easier
—
including more of the texts important quotes in the lectures
—
more straightforward content, sometimes quite confusing with so many broad points and not a clear/distinct structure
—
The course be improved by giving at least 3 more minutes for the daily quizzes given. Those five minutes go by fast and think it should give more time for students to answer questions and be able to go through the submitting process more efficiently. Also to not assign too much texts due in a single week. Also I really think that the course texts should be free since it is digital and not be bought especially with the course reader that digital and expires in a year.
—
I tended to have a slight discrepancy on page numbers form the prezi and my course reader so I couldn’t always find the quotes quickly so I could highlight them.
—
I think the course was well done and does not need improvement for this online format.
—
Not doing online lectures like class sessions but do them by topic, makes digesting information much easier
—
Including more of the texts important quotes in the lectures
—
more straightforward content, sometimes quite confusing with so many broad points and not a clear/distinct structure
—
The course be improved by giving at least 3 more minutes for the daily quizzes given. Those five minutes go by fast and think it should give more time for students to answer questions and be able to go through the submitting process more efficiently. Also to not assign too much texts due in a single week. Also I really think that the course texts should be free since it is digital and not be bought especially with the course reader that digital and expires in a year.
—
Perhaps making the lecture videos shorter or split up into more than just 2 videos per week would be very helpful because I often found it hard to sit, stay focused, and stare at my computer screen for an entire video that was around an hour and thirty minutes. Other than that I thought you did an amazing job with this course, and thank you so much for teaching it!
—
Shorten the readings, some were not that necessary for this class.
—
Sometimes the text was hard to understand, and I wish some lectures went more into depth about what was going on in the reading.
—
Honestly, I can’t think of any suggestions for this course. I think it was done wonderfully, and that Ken has managed to make an online class even more enriching than one in person with the extensive resources he gives.
—
Shorter lectures, more to the point
—
Very useful replying to students’ comments (film youtube videos). Expand on this idea of one-on-one interaction with other students.
—
None
—
shorter lectures
—
Sometimes the lectures would drag on and get boring
—
This course could be improved by having less text on the Prezi slides. I’m sure that criticism seems trivial, but it is one of my pet peeves when professors put a giant chunk of text up on the screen and then expect us to somehow read it while also listen to them analyze it. I understand that the nature of videos means they can be stopped or replayed, but it is very frustrating to have to pause it all the time, or slow it down and have the lecture take double the time it was supposed to.
—
Quiz too fast, I often feels like I know but just can’t remember the details, but there isn’t enough time to go over my notes.
—
I think the quizzes at times could be too orientated towards specific details rather than overall ideas.
—
I think the lectures are too long and they’re also repetitive.
—
I have absolutely no complaints. The option of having both the lecture and prezi was very helpful, and everything was very organized and the course website was easy to navigate.
—
N/A
—
This course could be improved by having less text on the Prezi slides. I’m sure that criticism seems trivial, but it is one of my pet peeves when professors put a giant chunk of text up on the screen and then expect us to somehow read it while also listen to them analyze it. I understand that the nature of videos means they can be stopped or replayed, but it is very frustrating to have to pause it all the time, or slow it down and have the lecture take double the time it was supposed to.
—
Quiz too fast, I often feels like I know but just can’t remember the details, but there isn’t enough time to go over my notes.
—
I think the quizzes at times could be too orientated towards specific details rather than overall ideas.
—
I think the lectures are too long and they’re also repetitive.
—
I have absolutely no complaints. The option of having both the lecture and prezi was very helpful, and everything was very organized and the course website was easy to navigate.
—
N/A
—
Nothing, this course is perfect in my opinion!
—
there was too much info on the prezis and in the recorded lectures. This class, while interesting and valuable to me, felt quickly overwhelming with all the content. I would have appreciated a more thorough gauchospace site that had more information about that week’s content aside from just the 2 quizzes. I would have liked if the documentaries were on an every other week frequency instead of weekly.
—
n/a
—
Great Job, there is no constructive criticism I could offer.
—
I like the way we share our opinions about the movies by commenting on Youtube, but I think it would be better if we can have discussion sessions to talk about these topics.
—
Practice quizzes, more relevant and supplemental materials
—
I thought this class was very well balanced with the amount of work it had and gave adequate time to complete everything weekly.
—
Maybe putting in some more entertaining reading.
—
I felt like the course was engaging and organized and that there aren’t many ways in which it could be improved. The lectures and films were both very informative.
—
Nothing
—
The quizzes were far too restrictive in their measures against cheating. I feel as if one minute per question with the question pool would be plenty effective. I absolutely hated not being able to review your answers or go back before submitting. During my first quiz, I did not realize this fact and got a 40%, giving me some pretty bad anxiety approaching each one after that. I don’t see how this would deter any more cheating than the other measures combined. The choice of some of the documentaries was questionable. I understand he did not make them, but so many of them were obnoxiously preachy and felt more like the creators’ own ego trip. These messages would be better off presented to people who actually need to hear it, not those who are already hyperaware of their environmental impact (ie most of the people taking this course). It was just extremely difficult to find something meaningful to say that had not already been said about several of the films, especially considering most people in the comments were just parroting each other. I was not personally a fan of the youtube comment format, as I think the whole discussion post format is far less helpful than professors think it is. I understand trying to maintain some method of discussion when unable to do so in person, but I don’t think professors realize that when its written and mandatory, everyone hates it and just bullshits it for lack of a better word.
—
Take off sequential navigation from the weekly quizzes as there is no way to review or change answers despite having time still Nothing
—
The quizzes were far too restrictive in their measures against cheating. I feel as if one minute per question with the question pool would be plenty effective. I absolutely hated not being able to review your answers or go back before submitting. During my first quiz, I did not realize this fact and got a 40%, giving me some pretty bad anxiety approaching each one after that. I don’t see how this would deter any more cheating than the other measures combined. The choice of some of the documentaries was questionable. I understand he did not make them, but so many of them were obnoxiously preachy and felt more like the creators’ own ego trip. These messages would be better off presented to people who actually need to hear it, not those who are already hyperaware of their environmental impact (ie most of the people taking this course). It was just extremely difficult to find something meaningful to say that had not already been said about several of the films, especially considering most people in the comments were just parroting each other. I was not personally a fan of the youtube comment format, as I think the whole discussion post format is far less helpful than professors think it is. I understand trying to maintain some method of discussion when unable to do so in person, but I don’t think professors realize that when its written and mandatory, everyone hates it and just bullshits it for lack of a better word.
—
Take off sequential navigation from the weekly quizzes as there is no way to review or change answers despite having time still available in our allotted maximum.
—
I really don’t have any more constructive advice to give. This course is perfect in my mind!
—
Ken has been incredibly thorough and considerate about the circumstances we are under, I think he has it under control.
—
This course overall is excellent. Professor Hiltner is very organized and is a very good teacher! If I have to say something, the recorded lectures can sometimes be a little too lengthy. If each lecture can be shortened to around an hour would be ideal!
—
I think this course is pretty good right now. professor Hiltner is amazing.
—
Less opinion and he lets his personal beliefs get in the way of learning other points of view.
—
I thought the lectures were way too long and easily caused me to lose interest. The professor also seemed disconnected from the class because he told us to only reach out to the TAs, not himself.
—
nothing
—
I don’t have anything to add. I really enjoyed this course!
—
youtube comments are good
—
I think towards the end of the course, some of the lectures don’t feel very closely connected to English, but more so sociology and religious studies. Also, while I see the benefit of watching a documentary every week, it sometimes felt like just extra work that didn’t enhance the learning experience.
—
Honestly, this course is amazing.
—
The lectures were really long especially since there was a lot of texts on the slides so I often had to pause. Lectures would take me around 4 hours weekly which is a lot considering we also had reading and movie assignments.
—
N/A
—
in person
—
Prezis are a little annoying to flip through because there’s so much information in a single one, maybe more segmentation?
—
The movies are a nice resource for recognizing perspectives beyond normal literature, but they are difficult to keep up with with everything else being asked. Finding a different way to have students evaluate the films would be greatly appreciated. religious studies. Also, while I see the benefit of watching a documentary every week, it sometimes felt like just extra work that didn’t enhance the learning experience.
—
Honestly, this course is amazing.
—
The lectures were really long especially since there was a lot of texts on the slides so I often had to pause. Lectures would take me around 4 hours weekly which is a lot considering we also had reading and movie assignments.
—
N/A
—
in person
—
Prezis are a little annoying to flip through because there’s so much information in a single one, maybe more segmentation?
—
The movies are a nice resource for recognizing perspectives beyond normal literature, but they are difficult to keep up with with everything else being asked. Finding a different way to have students evaluate the films would be greatly appreciated.
—
smaller section groups could be super interesting!
—
No comment
—
It was a bit difficult to keep up with the workload during Thanksgiving Week and Midterm Week. Perhaps try to trim down those lectures to be only an hour each to give students more time to study/relax.
—
NA – I thought it was great!
—
I don’t have much suggestions about how to improve the course, but I do believe that some of the prezi’s information could be modified a bit. There would be points that would be addressed that would come up in the next slide or so that would have the same point, but worded a bit differently. I see these repeating points as a way to help reinforce memorizing those points and emphasizing their importance, but I also believe that the points don’t need to be typed in multiple times. Instead, it may be better to verbally remind the students, so making the slides wouldn’t make them seem too lengthy.
—
There was a lot of work every week, if maybe there was a way to lighten that load by showing less documentaries or shortening the lectures that would be helpful.
—
This course in its online format, could be improved with how the films are taken on. I found that the last week’s film videos being 3 videos that were much shorter, was a much more efficient way to inform us students about the topics at hand.
—
ken’s lectures are interesting, yet somewhat long and repetitive
—
I think the lectures don’t need to be almost 2 hours, a few of them has been and I think it’s sort of inconsiderate because we have other classes. If we were in physical class you would be limited to 1 hour and 15 or even 50 minutes depending if it was a 2 day or 3 day class, I just think you should still treat it as such. Other than that, you are an amazing professor, I truly appreciate the hard work you put into the class to help us.
—
I believe that the inclusion of a section part of the class would make it so each week’s material was more memorable and stood in my brain for longer. There were times where I had to go back in the material to remember what a certain term or concept meant, and I think a weekly discussion would help reinforce new ideas.
—
If anything at all, I would break up the lectures into 2 or 3 shorter videos instead of one long one because it is hard to stay focused and stare at a screen for an hour and a half at a time.
—
there was a nice change of pace when we had several youtube videos instead of a whole documentary; maybe having that for an additional week would be a nice change of pace for example when there is heavy coursework (midterm/finals week)
—
I think the lectures don’t need to be almost 2 hours, a few of them has been and I think it’s sort of inconsiderate because we have other classes. If we were in physical class you would be limited to 1 hour and 15 or even 50 minutes depending if it was a 2 day or 3 day class, I just think you should still treat it as such. Other than that, you are an amazing professor, I truly appreciate the hard work you put into the class to help us.
—
I believe that the inclusion of a section part of the class would make it so each week’s material was more memorable and stood in my brain for longer. There were times where I had to go back in the material to remember what a certain term or concept meant, and I think a weekly discussion would help reinforce new ideas
—
If anything at all, I would break up the lectures into 2 or 3 shorter videos instead of one long one because it is hard to stay focused and stare at a screen for an hour and a half at a time.
—
there was a nice change of pace when we had several youtube videos instead of a whole documentary; maybe having that for an additional week would be a nice change of pace – for example when there is heavy coursework (midterm/finals week)
—
The online Digify book was not very efficient and was a hassle to use. The comments on YouTube were somewhat of an issue because the comments did not save, so I had issues with having my work be deleted before I could submit it if I didn’t write it all in one sitting.
—
Speak faster and have shorter lectures- maybe 3 shorter lectures a week instead of 2 long lectures
—
1 or 2 question quiz on documentry of the week, to have as reference for midterm and final
—
maybe dropping the worst quiz grades?
—
The course already has a very efficient format so there’s not anything I would improve.
—
I thought the course was great, Ken was a really great instructor and I’m glad I had him as a professor. I honestly really liked how the course was set up. In my opinion, the course could be improved by adding more film assignments as they were very interesting, but other than that it was perfect.
—
it is honestly really good, no improvement needed
—
Although interesting his lectures (2 a week) were very long and took a good chunk of time to get through.
—
The one thing that was a little difficult about the class was listening to the lectures. The professor has a very soothing voice- a little too soothing. BUT if you put the lecture in a faster speed it’s VERY helpful! And it also makes the lecture a lot faster.
—
I think the timeline for taking quizzes would be helpful if it was opened at an earlier time because I’d like to finish the entire week’s worth of assignments including the quizzes before Thursday. The online reader was very helpful at an affordable price too. The quizzes were different this year, usually iclicker material, but worth a lot more. I would keep this feature though maybe worth a percentage less, or drop two quizzes at the end. But overall, very enjoyable. Maybe shorter lectures would be nice as well but there’s only so much you can cut.
—
A possible improvement would be a brief overview of the material pointing out some details that contribute to the view that is given, most likely through a pdf highlighting some of the text. This would give some more insight than what a prerecorded lecture can given and can clarify some detail of those lectures.
—
The recorded lectures need to be cut down because when they are too long they get confusing.
—
I would say shorter lectures
—
I think his lectures were way too long. he also talked really slow and would go off on long tangents. The information was good, but could easily be condensed. I think the timeline for taking quizzes would be helpful if it was opened at an earlier time because I’d like to finish the entire week’s worth of assignments including the quizzes before Thursday. The online reader was very helpful at an affordable price too. The quizzes were different this year, usually iclicker material, but worth a lot more. I would keep this feature though maybe worth a percentage less, or drop two quizzes at the end. But overall, very enjoyable. Maybe shorter lectures would be nice as well but there’s only so much you can cut.
—
A possible improvement would be a brief overview of the material pointing out some details that contribute to the view that is given, most likely through a pdf highlighting some of the text. This would give some more insight than what a prerecorded lecture can given and can clarify some detail of those lectures.
—
The recorded lectures need to be cut down because when they are too long they get confusing.
—
I would say shorter lectures
—
I think his lectures were way too long. he also talked really slow and would go off on long tangents. The information was good, but could easily be condensed.
—
This course is good currently
—
I would say making the lectures shorter could help improve this class, however I do realize that it is only twice a week so I understand why it’s set up that way.
—
Quiz questions were sometimes way too specific, I did all the readings and watched all the lectures but don’t remember every detail. Being questioned on main ideas would have been better in my opinion.
—
At times the course felt a little monotonous, so maybe implementing a more varied work load could help with that, instead of just readings every week.
—
n/a
—
The lectures were a lot to get through. They are very informative, but they usually go very long and it got difficult for me to focus. It is also hard to pay attention with so much to read on each slide, while you are speaking at the same time. I also would have loved if you could have made the quizzes due on a different day than the film comments. I know you give us a week to do them, but that is a lot to have due on one day.
—
The Greek texts were hard to read, mostly because they introduced so many Greek God characters that I have no idea who anyone is. Maybe there can be an explanation. But the lectures explained everything so it’s fine.
—
I would suggest not being repetitive in the lecture prezzis because a lot of the slides had the same things being shown over and over again.
—
Already the best 🙂
—
We cannot go back if one quiz question is done, it was a little bit worrisome.
—
maybe make the lectures more condensed because they were fairly long
—
Sequential navigation on the quizzes, midterm and final (yet to take), is a bit frustrating as we cannot go back to a prior question once we have pressed next. The way I am used to taking tests to save time, skip ahead and come back to it is definitely different from this format. Besides that major critique the class was good.
—
I wasn’t a fan of all the reading but it is an English class so it is necessary. Can’t really think of anything to be improved. Maybe try making lectures a bit shorter but that’s about it.
—
The only suggestion I have is to shorten the length of the lectures and be more concise. I personally enjoyed Ken’s teaching method over again.
—
Already the best 🙂
—
We cannot go back if one quiz question is done, it was a little bit worrisome.
—
maybe make the lectures more condensed because they were fairly long
—
Sequential navigation on the quizzes, midterm and final (yet to take), is a bit frustrating as we cannot go back to a prior question once we have pressed next. The way I am used to taking tests to save time, skip ahead and come back to it is definitely different from this format. Besides that major critique the class was good.
—
I wasn’t a fan of all the reading but it is an English class so it is necessary. Can’t really think of anything to be improved. Maybe try making lectures a bit shorter but that’s about it.
—
The only suggestion I have is to shorten the length of the lectures and be more concise. I personally enjoyed Ken’s teaching method and how he discusses the content instead of just regurgitating it but it did cause the lectures to be fairly lengthy.
—
Instead of two very long lecture videos perhaps they could be spilt up into multiple, short videos?
—
Possibly be a little more concise in the lectures. Packed with information I just feel sometimes they can go a little long.
—
Perhaps having one or two synchronous meetings would have been nice, but I understand this is very difficult with large classes.
—
I wish the lectures were shorter, I wouldn’t mind if there were more lectures a week if they all averaged around 45 minutes to a half-hour, it is so hard to maintain attention for upwards of two hours per class. Being at home and proceeding through this course was especially difficult for me, and I just wish the lectures were designed more with the lives of students in mind.
—
I feel that this course was structured very well and there is minimal improvements that can be made. I would say that the only improvement that I can think of would be discussions between students within the course.
—
Less complex lecture access.
—
Live lectures to discuss about the class
—
I think the course can include more material from the 21st century, such as news articles and other materials. There were a lot of documentaries discussing modern topics, but I’d like to see more written content. I look forward to seeing you in the Climate Crisis class!
—
Shorter video lectures
—
Only thing I would like is more reminders. I know it is not your job to, but once a week quick reminder of what is due, readings, or key topics to look for will help with the pure online experience where reminders are not verbal anymore.
—
The lectures were about an hour and a half each. It was easy to simply just pause the video and come back to it later when it seemed too long. However, I think that splitting the lectures into multiple shorter ones might give students more motivation to start them.
—
Have shorter readings with additional readings to break the primary source readings down, due to their complex nature.
—
My only problem with the course was the lectures were so long. The Prezi slides had so much information on them and Professor Hiltner also spoke about so much material in each lecture. I found it difficult to focus throughout some of the lectures especially the ones that got close to 2 hours long. I think everything he talked about was valuable but possibly making the lectures shorter or a little more condensed would spark more information retention from the students.
—
Shorter video lectures
—
Only thing I would like is more reminders. I know it is not your job to, but once a week quick reminder of what is due, readings, or key topics to look for will help with the pure online experience where reminders are not verbal anymore.
—
The lectures were about an hour and a half each. It was easy to simply just pause the video and come back to it later when it seemed too long. However, I think that splitting the lectures into multiple shorter ones might give students more motivation to start them.
—
Have shorter readings with additional readings to break the primary source readings down, due to their complex nature.
—
My only problem with the course was the lectures were so long. The Prezi slides had so much information on them and Professor Hiltner also spoke about so much material in each lecture. I found it difficult to focus throughout some of the lectures especially the ones that got close to 2 hours long. I think everything he talked about was valuable but possibly making the lectures shorter or a little more condensed would spark more information retention from the students.
—
Literally, the format is so dumb why do we have to take these quizzes every week there are 5 questions each and they have to be done in sequential order so sometimes you have to just answer a question wrong because you have to move on to possibly get the other questions right. Some people don’t need DSP accommodation but just need an extra minute. Also not dropping one of the quizzes at least sucks because gauchospace is so glitchy and sometimes wifi goes down. With the quizzes being worth 50% of our grade getting even one 60% affects you’re overall grade a lot.
—
It would be easier to understand and pay attention to the material if Professor Hiltner added more inflection into his voice while lecturing.
—
Maybe add a forum where students can discuss the topic and share their ideas
—
get rid of that noisy chicken haha! just kidding everything was great!
—
I wish there was less slander towards Christianity as a whole. As a Christian myself, it was pretty discouraging to hear such negative remarks towards my religion. I think a more sensitive way of talking about it could have replaced the word Christianity with people who called themselves Christian. A lot of what was umbrella-d under the term Christianity reflects poorly on our God, our God is unlike many people who claim to be Christian and used religion to justify unbiblical acts, and I think it is important to make that distinction.
—
Overall, I think this is a great class. I never found myself stressing about it. I think there was a good amount of work we had to do without it becoming too stressful. Everything, including the midterm, was very manageable. The only thing I would say is to make an online version of the course reader. I think that would be a big help as the physical book can be a bit of a hassle at times (even though I do tend to prefer physical books over online books). Other than that, one thing I struggled with was getting As You Like It read in time. Though it does seem to be a little shorter than some of Shakespeare’s more popular plays, it is the whole play that we are assigned to read, which ended up being a lot when we also had a few other readings that week. It would be helpful to allow students the whole week to read the play without any other readings, but I know that this may be a bit unrealistic given the amount of time that we have for the quarter. Anyhow, I very much enjoyed this course and I don’t think there is much that needs improving.
—
During the weeks that we have a midterm or a final, it would be better if the quizzes opened earlier like maybe Tuesday or Wednesday because it’s not helpful when we have to take two quizzes the night before an exam.
—
I honestly do not have any suggestions for improvement for this course as it provides very interesting and different material and Professor Hiltner makes it all very relevant to everyday life. I have thoroughly enjoyed this course and recommend keeping it just the way that it is.
—
Extend the time for quizzes.
—
Like It read in time. Though it does seem to be a little shorter than some of Shakespeare’s more popular plays, it is the whole play that we are assigned to read, which ended up being a lot when we also had a few other readings that week. It would be helpful to allow students the whole week to read the play without any other readings, but I know that this may be a bit unrealistic given the amount of time that we have for the quarter. Anyhow, I very much enjoyed this course and I don’t think there is much that need improving.
—
During the weeks that we have a midterm or a final, it would be better if the quizzes opened earlier like maybe Tuesday or Wednesday because it’s not helpful when we have to take two quizzes the night before an exam.
—
I honestly do not have any suggestions for improvement for this course as it provides very interesting and different material and Professor Hiltner makes it all very relevant to everyday life. I have thoroughly enjoyed this course and recommend keeping it just the way that it is.
—
Extend the time for quizzes.
—
shorter lectures
—
Less reading. The workload was actually alot.
—
I feel like this course was taught in.a way that was most optimal for the current situation, maybe one improvement that could be made is to allow for more opportunities for student interaction/participation, but I am unsure if that would be done easily online or in a class this large.
—
The readings are very difficult and I found myself having to read spark notes or cliff notes to even understand them at all. Sometimes the lectures felt very long. Maybe two lowest quizzes could be dropped from the quarter?
—
Perhaps shorter lectures. Also the last two, lecture 19 and 20, I found to be slightly irrelevant to the course and very hard to follow.
—
The course could be improved by Professor Hiltner refraining from stereotyping conservatives as anti-environmental when in reality they just are ill-informed.
—
perfect enough
—
I felt the course was very thorough in content, however, I felt that many of the lectures could have been summarized in about 30-45 minutes rather than over an hour.
—
None.
—
The course now is pretty good and I hope maybe the professor can add more contents of the reading.
—
I enjoyed the course and how it was taught, I’m unable to think of anything I would want to change. The lectures were a little on the long side but I also understand because of the amount of material within those lectures.
—
This class is very approachable, I love it the way it is.
—
The weekly films made the class a large time commitment in addition to the long lectures and readings. I would feel much less burnt out if the films were maybe every other week.
—
Shorter and more visual lectures. The professor was a great lecturer, but I feel that his material would be presented better if he lectured more with visuals.
—
I hope professor can have more interaction with students.
—
More organized lecture slides, needs bullet points and more concision in lecture slides. The course now is pretty good and I hope maybe the professor can add more contents of the reading.
—
I enjoyed the course and how it was taught, I’m unable to think of anything I would want to change. The lectures were a little on the long side but I also understand because of the amount of material within those lectures.
—
This class is very approachable, I love it the way it is.
—
The weekly films made the class a large time commitment in addition to the long lectures and readings. I would feel much less burnt out if the films were maybe every other week.
Are all the ratings here in their entirety? Yes, the good, the bad, and the ungrammatical, they are all here. They have not been edited in any way.
Are the ratings anonymous? Yes, students do not put their names on the evaluations. Moreover, instructors are not given access to the evaluations until after they have posted all of the grades for the course.
How do these ratings compare with RateMyProfessor? RateMyProfessor.com and UCSB are attempting similar evaluations. UCSB asks students to “rate the overall quality of the instructor’s teaching”; RateMyProfessor.com evaluates the “overall quality” of a professor based on their clarity and helpfulness. Since both use a scale of 1-5, ratings should be somewhat comparable. However, because just a handful of students post ratings on RateMyProfessor.com – often only those that feel strongly about a course (either positively or negatively) – the results can potentially be skewed. In contrast, because every student in the class is asked by UCSB for their ratings and comments, the ESCI data provides a much larger, and potentially more accurate, sampling. As noted above, there are thousands of reviews here.
How does the rating scale work? It is a five-point scale: (a) excellent, (b) very good, (c) good, (d) fair, and (e) poor. However, unlike nearly every other similar rating system in existence, at UCSB 1 is “excellent” and 5 is “poor.” To avoid confusion and bring this in line with the rest of the world, I have taken the liberty of inverting the scale, so that 5 is excellent.
Who administers the ratings & what is “ESCI”? The rating system, which is officially known as ESCI (Evaluation System for Courses and Instruction), is administered by the UCSB Office of Instructional Development. Ratings are typically refered to as “ESCI scores” or “ESCI data.”
How long has UCSB been conducting the ratings? The UCSB Office of Instructional Development began the system in the 1970s. Which leads to the next obvious question…
Why doesn’t UCSB publish these ratings? I just don’t know. Other schools, such as Harvard University, have for decades made similar material, known as their Course Unit Evaluations (CUEs) available to students, who annually published the ratings and comments in their CUE Guide. In my opinion, UCSB needs to make this data public. This leads to the next question…
Are you permitted to make this information public? According to the Office of Instructional Development in 2019, “Faculty members own their individual ESCI data. ESCI data are collected as an aid to individual faculty members for use as summative feedback on their courses and instruction. As such, individual ESCI results are the property of the faculty member.” I interpret this to mean that, as my property, ESCI data is mine to do with as I see fit – including posting online.
Do all departments ask students for ratings? Yes, the ESCI program is university-wide at UCSB.
Do you respond to the feedback? In fact, I do. Since the reviews are anonymous, I cannot respond to the student who made the comment, but I take the comments to heart and act upon them when creating and refining courses. For example, my Intro to Literature and the Environment course, which I have been teaching since the first term that I arrived at UCSB and which I have taught at least once a year on average ever since, has been much improved over the years by my responding to the feedback given to me by students. I – along with subsequent students that have taken the class – owe each of the students that provided feedback a debt of thanks, as it is in part a much better course because of them.