2.6
Quality3.4
Difficulty32%
Would Retake177
Reviews32%
Would Retake
177
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
28
4
32
3
22
2
37
1
58
What Students Say
“Don't take this class”
GCOM123 - 2.0 rating“Attendance is mandatory”
GCOM123 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
79%
Textbook Required
21%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
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Declining
-0.54 avg changeRatings by Course
GCOMUM
5.0
(1)GCOM122A
5.0
(1)POSC472
4.5
(2)COMMUNICATION
4.0
(6)SCOM122
4.0
(4)Difficulty by Course
GCOMM122
5.0
GCOMUM
4.0
SCOM280
4.0
SCOM381
4.0
SCOM353
4.0
Reviews (177)
It was all good in the beginning, he was funny, he was cool, and he was entertaining...then he gave us our first test and it was hell. His tests are insane...maybe if i had memorized the entire book i could have gotten a "A". Be prepared to do nothing during class but study ur butt off when you have a test. And yeah, attendence is expected.
Funny! Shows a lot of videos! Not to bad except for exams!!!! But his projects are not to bad.
This guy is soo weird. He makes the easiest thing soo hard to understand. He's laid back, but just a little to much. I haven't learned a thing and his exams suck, they're really hard.
He isn't a bad professor. His powerpoints are straight from the book, but attendance is still mandatory. Speeches are hard to give, but would be no matter who the teacher was. He's young so he's pretty easy going, not a bad class. funny and shows good clips.
wierd guy,hard speech,funless class,horrible test.HIGH SECRET:He likes smoking and Mt.DEW.....
He may be a bit flakey, but really nice guy. Plus, he would be willing to meet with you everyday if you wanted to, he's just cool like that. Major Drawback: He's a Pittsburg Steelers Fan
Very easy going, young, lectures are very note-intensive and boring, his tests are ridiculously hard, speech assignments aren't graded too strictly. sometimes shows movie clips and comics. spend lots of time prepping for speeches and you'll do fine
This is his first year of teaching. Still very new. He teaches straight out of the book. Speeches are easy and he is not a hard grader. The final is based off department standards and he did not teach half of that so the final was impossible. He is a nice guy and funny in class. An okay teacher
really nice guy, wants his students to do well, but doesn't make it very easy.not a hard grader on speeches.first exam was difficult-but everyone did a lot better on the second exam.sets up a lot of office hours to help you on your speeches.does teach from the book, but he uses examples that are easy to relate to in order understand material
This dude is great. As long as you keep up with the class, you'll be fine. Speeches are really emphasized, but he grades pretty fairly- if you really slack, you'll mess up. Keep the book open with you while taking notes because he goes fast through some things that appear on the tests! Great and very helpful!!
Andrew is a super prof. His assignments are challenging but fair.
good ability lots of movies
Andrew was awesome. His lectures are not boring whatsoever. His exams are very easy if you pay attention. In the speeches he expects A TON. You have to do well on both presentations in order to do well in the class, and he is very accurate in his grading--he knows what to expect, considering that he is the head coach in debate here. Great class
Hes not that bad of a prof...i have an 88 in the class and i only study for the tests an hour or so before the exam. As a person hes very cocky and Im annoyed to be around him.
This prof is very political and relates politics into everyday lectures, very unnecessary I think. His asignments are pretty fair and he gives plenty of time to do them but his grading is ridiculous, everything has to be completely perfect and to his standars (he is the president of the debate club) very hard to do.
Barnes goes by Andrew. He grades fairly presentations and is pretty flexible when it comes to getting help in his class. As long as you read out the textbook you'll be okay.
Barnes..... o god what a semester. Likes to toss his political agenda into class which is really annoying sometimes. Republicans appearantly "scare" him, which threw me through a loop. Pretty much likes to talk about everything but communication. It definitely wasnt that bad going to class, but was SEVERELY underprepared for the final.
andrew is the biggest slacker in the world and had everyone around him do his work for him while graduating from his classes (information attained from one of his friends in school) it is very humorous how much he expects
Not a bad guy but grades far too hard on presentations. Expects every student to be a perfect public speaker. Make sure you dont pick bad groups because if one of your members blows their speech you will be penalized just as much as they will. Not too fair and theres no way to control it. Misses a lot of class for debate team. Final is way too hard
Andrew is a good teacher, as long as you're willing to read the chapters on your own. He was out sick a lot, and is really committed to the debate team, but we're in college, we should be able to help ourselves out. Very fair grader of presentations, always lets you know what he expects.
AWFUL!
Andew as he likes to be called is laid back. I liked how his quizzes and tests are all online and openbook. Not to hard on his grading for speeches. You get like a 2 to 3 break before Thanksgiving. Take him, easy A.
a big slacker, mostly because he has so much going on in his life...and he gets sick eaisly...I felt like I had to self teach myself most of the class, because we never stayed on agenda...if you enjoy self teaching, he's the prof for you, other then that, good luck
Kind of a jerk. Emailed his lots of times and rarely got responses. Not very helpful which is lame since he is out of class all the time!!! Never attends class or teaches you much so good luck on the final. Grades speeches kinda hard too. Try and switch out if you have been placed here for GCOM
Great teacher!!! he's really relaxed and the class is fairly easy. The only grades you'll have are the midterm, final, and 3 speeches. The 3 speeches consist of 2 minute introduction speech about yourself, a 3-5 minute speech on research of a topic, and then a 7-9 minute persuasive speech. Over all the class was easy and fun.
This teacher definitely has experience and knows what he is talking about. He has a very specific type of speech delivery that he is looking for, however it is easy to improve and shape your speech to this. Very easy is you don't procrastinate on you speech. Also, READ the book. It isn't that much, and you need to for the tests. Recommend taking.
Very positive person and tended to make somewhat cheesy jokes, but he did make them. Your grade consists of 3 speeches, intro speech 2-3 minutes, informative speech 3-5 minutes, & persuasive speech 7-9 minutes. the only extra credit you get is attendance. Final is standardized multiple choice, and reading the book is your best bet for studying.
He is very laid back and a fun professor. Your grade is basically made up of 3 speeches (introductory, informative, & persuasive), an open note midterm online, and the final made by the department head. He is very fair on speech grading, and as long as you read the book you will do fine on the final.
Andrew rules! He seemed a little intimidating at first but he is so awesome. He really cares about his students and he wants everyone to learn. Not a hard class!
Absolutely horrible. Taught maybe a total of 5 days this whole semester. Class taught by students and then students are expected to write essays on material that wasn't fully or clearly covered. Wish I could have put 0 for helpfulness. Doesn't respond to email, put grades up, or make assignments clear. DON'T TAKE HIM FOR THIS CLASS.
Easy grader but was probably the most frustrating professor I've had at JMU. Not organized and don't expect your emails to be answered in a timely manner. Crams EVERYTHING in in the last week but would not tell us important details about the assignment. He never taught us, all information was student taught. He seemed uninterested in the class.
Probably one of the rudest people I've ever met. His guidelines for assignments are unclear, and he is incredibly unhelpful. If I had known how rude and disorganized he is, I never would have taken him.
kinda tough grader, kinda funny, kinda chill. Extra-Credit is built into attendance, if you show up to every class I think its 20 extra points or something. not terrible, but not the best.
Info is somewhat common sense. However, he makes everything much more confusing then it needs to be. Tests are online, but he usually doesn't spell check himself so you spend most of the time deciphering. Also, the final at the end of the year is solely based on info from the BOOK not from what he teaches, so READ. AND JUST DON'T TAKE GROUP!!!
Don't take group!! Tests are mostly common sense but he gets you if you are in group presentations and you get stuck with a bad group because the presentations are worth a lot and you have little individual control over your grade for that portion.
Andrew is my favorite professor to date. He is passionate, well-spoken, knowledgable, and inspiring. His lectures go beyond the textbook to give his students a more comprehensive understanding of the material. Probably the best GCOM teacher at JMU. What can screw you over is your group, so work to motivate your team members.
attendance is not mandatory in his syllabus but he threatened to fail me for skipping class too much when at the same time I maintained a B+ or better in his class all semester, he made me go to his office hours and suck up to him so hard so that he wouldn't fail me, the man is infuriating.
My group hated each other so that was hard. We thought we did really well on our presentations, but never ended up getting good grades for them. I wish I had done individual. He's funny and kind, but it wasn't easy. It really comes down to if you prefer group or individual. Online tests also. He knows his stuff though, really knowledgeable.
Andrew is a really chill guy, although sometimes a little sassy. Taking group SCOM was a challenge because I had a terrible group, so I had to work really hard to improve my grade with tests (open note) and points through attendance. He may seem intimidating but if you are struggling in the class, talk to him and he is very understanding.
Andrew comes off as a little tough at first but is actually very nice and understanding. There is very little work for this class besides presentations and all the tests are online. Keep up with the textbook readings or you won't know anything for the final. Overall a great guy, very funny and approachable. He gives bonus points for attendance, too
He has a very dry sense of humor which can be entertaining at times, but also insulting. If you are having a problem with your group he makes sure it gets solved and is there for you if you need help preparing for your speech. Overall a very good professor and I recommend taking him.
Andrew. Great guy. You have to dig his humor to enjoy having him as a teacher. The class itself is somewhat easy, but it really comes down to your groups your put into, and how much effort you put into the class. A very typical group communications class. Not a bad teacher at all, but read the chapters, take notes, and you'll be fine.
Very difficult open note tests, offended a girl with a broken leg in front of class, plays favorites (we lost several points off the outline for "minor errors" which aren't even in the outline while others didn't), and grades very, very harshly. Make sure you do well in the impromptu speech, because the opinion he carries of you after that sticks.
Don't take this class!! Grades extremely hard on presentations and has way too high of expectations. Treats it as if everyone is an scom major. Exams are online but hard!
Andrew is a really nice guy. His class is pretty straight forward. Two big presentations with a few smaller grades in between. Make sure you can actually work with your group when you're assigned to eachother. If not, speak up, or youll be screwed. Over all not a bad class
Attendance is mandatory. He can be rude and sarcastic very often. EXTREMELY tough grader for what should be an easy gen ed. The 2 online exams and final were all out of the book, we hardly ever touched the book. 10/10 would NOT recommend to a friend. DO NOT TAKE HIM UNLESS YOU HAVE TO. He typically gives around 75 on all speeches so have fun!!
He is such a great, caring guy. He cares about you, if you care about the class. He is very understanding about group issues and will work with you as best he can. We didn't really use the book so the tests were tough but they weren't much of the grade. You definitely get the grade you deserve in this class.
Andrew is a great person! I dont understand these other reviews. If you do the work and read the book, you will get through just fine. He helps out wherever he can, if you ask him to. The grade you get depends on how much effort you put in and how often you show up, but you also leave the class really learning something. Group is hard, not Andrew.
You dont have a lot of assignments in this class AT ALL. literallt 2 speeches and 2 exams plus the final. there are assigned readings... i did none of them. he really cares about his students and wants everyone to succeed. does count role. flunking an assignment doesnt kill your grade. good teacher. funny / dry sense of humer
He has imagined the way this class should be run by his ideal. As someone who used to be the associate director of debate, he has high expectations. Do not take this class lightly, because Andrew is who he is. If you fail, you really fail. Participate well with your groups! They need you probably more than you realize.
He has a great personality, but he grades presentations a lot more harshly than other SCOM professors. I enjoyed the class, but I barely pulled of a B due to his harsh grading.
Okay guy, tries to be relatable but gets pretty annoying. Horrible communicator for being a communications teacher. He failed to show up twice both times without sending us an email and do not expect and email response from him within 4 days or at all. Harsh grader on the first presentation, eases up on the second. Lecture heavy, do not expect an A
Test are open book and online, if you fail these its your fault. Harsh grader on presentations. GO TO OFFICE HOURS. If you are confused about your presentations show up to office hours and he will outline the whole thing for you. Two 20 minute presentations and two test. Become his friend and he will help you out
He is super funny, but does not provide the proper information to do well on the exams. He grades extremely harshly on the first presentation and does not show you how to organize or properly present your speech.
At first I really disliked Andrew and scom 123 Im general. But honestly as the semester progresses he does get easier the first speech you perform he grades impossibly tough but trust me it gets easier after that. He has a dry sense of humor and is not relatable but if you do the work and dont stress about his pointless tests youll be fine
He doesn't make some directions clear and he grades really tough. He gives lots of information in the lectures and tells you to study it for the test, and the information he talks about isn't even on the tests. Read the book. The last thing you do for the class besides the final is write an 800 word essay on another groups presentation, it's hard.
He makes you complete the MREST by October and if you don't, he will not let you present, meaning you get a 0 and fail. The MREST is not due until spring break. He responded to my emails very quickly but he was not good
Not a good prof at all. Extremely tough grader and not accurate. Very vague when it comes to MREST and SONA, and basically knows how he is going to grade the group before they present. Not a good communicator considering he's a communications major, and is not kind to students during lecture.
Lectures are boring. For a communications teacher his communication skills are subpar. Extremely unrelatable.
Andrew's class is bearable for being required. There are two group speeches which aren't too bad, and I hate public speaking. If you go to every class you get 120/100 for the attendance grade but you're allowed to skip 9 classes. Two online tests throughout the semester and then the final. Tests are hard, make sure you read the textbook and study.
The biggest thing I can say about this class is your group makes or breaks the class, not Andrew. Andrew can come off as a stiff, and his lectures can get a little boring but the class isn't overbearing or challenging. If you show up and he knows your name you should be good. I would say talk to him before speeches and he maps out a lot more.
Extremely picky with grades. If items are turned in with the wrong format or an error in the title you will get a zero.
The toughest grader I've ever had. Nice guy in and out of class but the exams online are from the textbook so you HAVE to read. Most boring class ever I fall asleep every time and its super long lol. Presentations are not bad if you have a good group, otherwise its hard. Boring ass person tho and grades on stupid stuff.
Very tough grader if its not exactly how he wants it. If he gives his opinion on your presentation just do that cause otherwise he'll grade it harder. Good thing is is that for each class you go to you get credit and you have the chance to get 120 attendance points and he makes it out of 100 so you could get 20 extra if you go to every class.
To sum up this class in one word: average. Content is boring, you're assigned to a group and you just have to make the best of it. Exams are hard and come straight out of the textbook. He factors in a lot of assignments into your grade though so it's easy to get an A or a B.
Andrew is a tough grader and has high standards. It's likely that you will get screwed if you get a poor group. If you do take the class be well prepared for presentations and on top of work with right formatting. I would also recommend looking at the book before the midterm exams, even though they are open note.
I really loved Andrew's class!! It's also pretty easy to get a good grade. Your grade is mainly based off of your speeches and 2 tests. He can be a bit rude at times, but overall he's an awesome guy. Hilarious and super laid-back/chill.
DO ALL THE ASSIGNMENTS!! If you miss one you're done for the whole year. didn't learn communication skills at all because he makes you read from a paper! Sometimes funny, sometimes rude. Attendance is ABSOLUTELY mandatory. Go to his office hours before each presentation for feedback.
SUPER rude. tests are extremely long. way too tough of a grader for an intro class where you are supposed to learn how to present, he makes you learn on your own. honestly, avoid at all costs because you will hate going to class. Almost done with the semester and I haven't learned anything besides that I'm not a top notch presenter like he expects
Avoid taking this class! I took several speech classes in high school, & know it's not my strong-suit, but I know I am not that bad at it. Our first presentation he have all but one group D's (including mine). Tests are on canvas (except for final) which is nice but he doesn't prepare you for them. He straight up threw a tantrum in my class one day
try to avoid taking him! he was very boring and a very tough grader. His grading criteria was never clear and I was always super confused in class. I honestly dreaded this class. Please listen when I say DON'T take him
please do not take this prof if you can... way to tough for an intro class and shows no sympathy for anything. he is ridiculous.
I think people don't give Andrew a chance. Yes, his class isn't easy, but no college course is supposed to be easy. If you work, show that you are putting in effort and he sees that, he will notice it and will help you out. I can say that he is slow to answer emails and return work, but he is a good guy. Do your work and you will be fine!
He's a stickler for rules. Also if you go to his office hours and ask him how to set up your outline he'll give you exactly what he wants. He's not that bad, but he can be intimidating at first. He's a pretty tough grader and you only have two main speeches you get graded on so definitely go to office hours so you can get those edited by him.
The most unorganized, unspecific professor I have ever had in the SCOM department here. His lectures are all over the place and hard to follow and he doesn't use powerpoints so it's easy to miss important points in class. He doesn't have a published canvas page and gives no specific direction for assignments, then grades them incredibly hard.
Professor Barnes is one of the only teaches that uses exam, he grades harshly, the exams are very difficult and only graded based on the text book. The classes are useless other than to talk with your group about presenting. He does not talk about the text books in class, rather talks about how to be professional when giving a speach.
Andrew doesn't really teach during class because he fully expects you to read the textbook and learn on your own. He is a tough grader when it comes to presentations, he's the type of professor that gives no one 100's on certain assignments because "nobody's perfect." He also comes at our generation a lot and thinks it's funny.
With COVID-19 measures, everything was virtual. Lectures are around 20 minutes each, and you have several to watch each week. Tests come straight from the textbook, which was provided on Canvas. Your grade is partially dependent on the success of your group, so if you have bad members, you will probably struggle.
Don't take him!
Dr. Barnes is the most ridiculous professor I have ever had. This guy barely ever responds to emails, and when he does they are very condescending responses. His assignments are overly hard, and it is nearly impossible to please him. Take my word for it: DO NOT TAKE HIM!!! You will regret it.
Andrew is a very nice and reasonable professor and if you ever need to reach him or are concerned about anything, he always gives a quick response. The class was difficult for me, but I blame that on having to be fully online. I would recommend this class, but get ready to take a lot of notes on all the lecture videos.
Easy class, passed with an A without much studying. Make sure to be in contact with your group if you are in 123, and then it becomes an easy A.
Barnes is open-minded and will rearrange class plans based on students' concerns. The textbook for this class is a little dry and there are weekly readings that are lengthy. Participation in group discussions is crucial in this class. Only grades are participation, midterm, final, and project. Midterm and final are short answer/essay format.
Prof. Barnes really cares about his students. The only flaw with his class and teaching is that there is a lack of structure and you are only graded on a project, participation, midterm, and final. He is great at answering questions, but its very difficult to anticipate exam material. The project is flexible.
DO NOT have this professor or his wife who is also a professor. It is ironic when a communications professor is terrible at communication, and he hardly answers emails. Terrible at giving examples and explaining things. Most work is group work, so you better hope that you have a great group, he will not be helpful if there are group issues.
I liked Barnes at first but that quickly changed as the semester continued. Don't know why the course is so politics heavy, I feel like we didn't learn anything about actual communications which made the exams a nightmare. If your group sucks, good luck getting a good grade because he won't care. He is unhelpful and condescending. Avoid at all cost
Dr. Barnes is a great guy, but this class was very unorganized and confusing. This could be because it's his first semester teaching it. I enjoyed the material and class discussions, but it's quite a lot of reading. Class structure is readings assigned ahead of time and class time is allotted to discussion. Not a bad option overall.
Andrew is a prof who genuinely wants the best for his students, he just has a confusing way of showing that. He was very fast to respond to my emails, which was nice because most of his assignments and instruction needed clarification. This was an asynchronous course with a 30 min meeting about once a week. If your group sucks, you won't do well.
Do NOT take this class, unless you wanna hear about the most off topic things surrounding Communication. He takes his tests from the communication department, so none of them have anything to do with his irrelevant lectures. He puts his personal problems with covid and the students in his class over actually doing his job (test preparation,class).
Buckle up for the most random lectures about off topic things. He does not teach the class but rather makes you watch these videos he recorded and read long paragraphs. There is no reason to come to the first two months of class other than the attendance policy, but come for the last couple because he crams everything he grades into two weeks.
Most in-person classes are pointless for the first two months. He then crams in a lengthy group presentation that he insists needs to be done in a very specific manner, however provides no extra guidance on how to be successful in said project. On top of this, he rarely holds class in person due to ridiculous personal reasons. No grades except test
He cares about his students, but he gives the most random class talks that have nothing to do with what you're learning. All of his "lectures" are videos that you have to watch outside of class and he grades for participation on those weekly. He is extremely hard to please, not the best with answering emails, and if you miss 9 classes, you fail.
While it does seem that Andrew does want you to do well he has no idea of how to get you there. The work at the beginning of the semester has nothing to do with the presentations, his feedback is sarcastic and rude yet unhelpful, criteria is extremely unclear, and he is flat lazy. Too much stress for a gen ed. Take another professor please.
His class isn't the worst but he just isn't very helpful. The test and the speeches are hard but you'll do fine with a little bit of effort. My group and I took turns taking notes on the video lectures and created a study guide which made the tests a lot easier
PLEASE take another professor if you can PLEASE. The tests are ridiculously hard, he expects you to remember EVERY SINGLE thing discussed in his lectures (which are all online). He crammed everything last minute, and does not prepare you whatsoever for ANY exams. You will struggle no matter how much you participate. Dont take SCOM with Andrew.
Take another professor. All of his lectures are videos, the only grades are basically the three tests he gives you, which he makes ridiculously hard. He crams two presentations last minute, expects them to be done on time and super specifically. Doesnt prepare you for any test including the final. Makes a Gen Ed way harder than it should be.
AVOID. THIS. PROFESSOR. The first two months are a breeze until everything hits the fan. Exams are hard to study for and the study guides don't help at all; presentations are all crammed back to back and you only have two weeks to do them while also learning HOW to do them; if your group sucks, tough luck.
Honestly, one of the worst teachers you can take. The in-class lectures are insubstantial and all of the learning is done online. He's nearly impossible to get in touch with outside of the classroom. As a communication teacher, he is ironically terrible at communication, making understanding tasks nearly impossible.
Andrew doesnt teach any concepts in class. He has lectures posted online and expects those to be watched outside of class. There really isnt too much work but the work we do get has a very unclear grading scale.
Pretty good professor overall but his lectures can be boring sometimes as they are online, and the tests are way too hard for scom but it was aight.
Grades are based on two short-answer online exams and a final project. Barnes gets a bad rep, but I really loved him. He was funny, talked to you like you were a friend, and was really understanding. Lectures could be boring, but I hated rhetoric, so it wasn't really his fault.
He doesn't care about students. He makes me and everyone else on the class uncomfortable with his comments, mostly political. He interrupts students in the middle of presentations, multiple times and is very unorganized with his lectures, canvas, and emails. He cancels class so last minute, I was sitting in class and he cancelled it one time.
Barnes is probably the worst professor I have had at JMU. He's very disorganized in class, his lectures do not make sense, and when he wants us to lecture one day per week, he constantly stops to add his own opinion. Oh, and his final paper? Yeah, good luck. It's very unclear and honestly stupid. I gave him a chance and now I'm glad it's over.
Professor Barnes' class is much harder than other SCOM classes, more work and much longer presentations, but overall is not that bad as long as you do the work. What makes him a bad teacher is that he chooses to omit the majority of topics covered on the final exam because he deems them unimportant making you have to teach yourself for the final.
Worst professor I've had at JMU by a longshot. Grading was unreasonable. For example, he gave my group a C- in a part of the project he helped us do. He always spoke in a condescending and sometimes rude way. The actual content of class is reasonable and easy for a gen ed, but he makes the class much more complicated than it needs to be.
He gave zero work until October and then we got slammed by presentations midterms and the final. Half of the questions from a textbook that he didnt give us. He goes off topic in class, highly political and makes weird comments to students and never responds to emails. Attendance is mandatory and if you are sick and email him he will not respond.
This guy is absolutely awful. He makes socially awkward remarks about students. He is very strict and his classes are very boring. Avoid him at all costs. If he is your only option, don't take the class.
i do not recommend taking him. his lectures aren't too bad but his presentations are long and confusing. he does not care about the students and could care less if you fail. if you are confused and ask him a question, his answer will confuse you even more
This guy is absolutely awful, I would not wish this class on my worst enemy. Its kind of a joke how seriously this guy takes this class. His class is by far the worst thing that has happened to me at my time at JMU and makes me wish I never came here.
Get any other professor if you can. He makes the class so much harder than it needs to be. He gives a lot of point opportunities so your grade won't suffer but it's really stressful in the process of the class. I personally didn't have the best group and even though me and one of my teammates did 90% of the work, we all got the same grade.
His class is very very easy if you do the work. He's a straight up guy. hardest part is the presentations worth a lot of your grade. Very odd comments sometimes that may come off rude but he means well. little to no work. Take online if you can.
Don't take SCOM 123 with Professor Barnes. He's a nice guy, but he's not clear with directions, tough grader, and test don't follow what he lectures about. There are barely any opportunities to get your grade up if you don't do well on your first exam or presentation. So whatever you do don't take this class with Andrew Barnes.
Really weird guy, makes strange and awkward comments, is politically biased. He waits until the end of the semester to pile everything on the class, then laughs at us because we have so much work left. Presentations are reasonably easy if everyone puts in work, tests are pretty hard but you don't need to study since they are open note. Would avoid
If you don't want to go to class, don't want to participate, or don't want to read; you shouldn't sign up. That being said, this is one of the few classes I've taken at JMU that has actually been worth my while. The class is difficult because Andrew really knows what he's talking about. Put a little effort in and he will notice that you're trying.
my least favorite professor by far, hated going to this class every day because of the way he lectured and spoke about weird topics, very different from other scom classes, little time to prepare for speeches, harsh and unfair grader. literally take any other class but this one
If you take SCOM, I reccomend yall to take someone else. Very unorganized, hard to get in contact with, grades mostly depends on 2 presentations and 3 exams.
Online asynchronous scom123. There are almost 50 modules to complete in canvas and he checks for participation. The exams are hard and ask obscure questions from his lectures. His lectures are boring and hard to follow. Group presentations are difficult but go by quickly because he gives two weeks to work on them. Responds to emails slow.
Barnes is a funny dude that explains things well enough to understand it but the final exam has so much more material then what he went over so it was a hard exam. Just make sure u take notes of everything and understand what he's saying to do well in the class. Presentations are a huge part of your grade so focus more on those
I would not take this class, get any other professor if possible. The course is very confusing to follow and is not structured well. He is a very harsh grader and does not seem to care whether students pass or fail (if you're lucky enough to pass).
awful. worst professor here. Never answers emails, always cancels office hours, never gives clear instructions, his canvas content is at least 5 years old, and he is no help. He talks off topic and just all in all a bad professor. One weekly group assignment, no guidance on anything. You are really on your own for this class.
Barnes cancels the once a week meetings, the only time you have with him, so often even though they're necessary to understand what's going on. When he decides to meet he uses most of the little time you have going on tangents and leaving only a couple minutes for questions. And his lectures are very hard to follow. Get a different professor.
can take a long time to get grades back but he gives good feedback and the class is interesting
he really cares about attendance, but if you go to class you'll be fine
Dr. Barnes wasn't a bad professor, SCOM is just a really annoying class. You're graded on two tests, two presentations, a final, and some smaller assignments. The tests are pretty difficult but he does curve. Focus on the presentations though since they're the bulk of your grade. Sometimes was weird in how he taught and talked but he was nice.
Honestly he was a really fun and professional professor. He was easy to talk to, work with, and understand when I was with him. However, I do also point out that the exam reviews that he gives out don't really match the real thing. I took this online so my experience with emails was relatively ok, but be carful and take notes on the modules.
I took his online asynchronous SCOM 122 course this summer. I'm not sure why his ratings are so bad. It's probably from people that didn't do any work. His class was super easy and no reading or buying extra stuff. His lectures weren't totally boring and even a little funny. He also didn't have a ton of assignments either and his tests were easy.
This class is very difficult because of the course load, the amount of work is required is extreme for a four week class. The lectures are extremely heavy and the wording on exam do not line up to lectures which make the exams hard. I could write a lot more and suggest solutions but this box only allows so much space.
This 4 week class seems very overwhelming at first but Professor Barnes is very helpful and if you have questions just email him. He gets back to you very quickly and will take time to help you understand the assignments.
When I signed up for SCOM 122, I expected the course to be individual presentations. Professor Barnes decided to change his course to group presentations without asking for his student's opinion. That was a bit frustrating to me, but as long as you stay on top of work you should be fine. The work load wasn't heavy and Professor gives good feedback.
Professor Barnes is a good teacher. You can tell that he cares about the subject matter, and really wants his students to learn. I will recommend that anyone taking his course not take the summer session, though. There is a LOT of work, and it is overwhelming in a four week class.
Completed SCOM122 as a "Maymester" course. Heavy course for 4 weeks. Heavy load but doable if you keep up with the pace. Lectures are long but informative. Barnes provides great feedback and willing to help. Wish he hadn't required partner work in individual course was the only negative. Awesome, passionate professor that cares for students.
Exams are fine as long as you listen to the lectures, and he grades presentations very reasonably. He also is very helpful in clearing up questions in a timely manner.
Professor Barnes is a great professor who cares about the subject and his students. For a 4wk summer class, the workload is unexpectedly heavy; DO NOT take if you are busy or working full-time. Not too difficult if you PAY ATTENTION to lectures. Most kind and understanding professor ever; will work with you and answer questions in a timely manner.
If you're not extremely lazy and assign group members who aren't useless, you'll be fine. Pay attention to lectures and jot down a few notes. All exams are online except for the final. I was terrified for the final because it wasn't a take-home exam, but I got a 96. Anyone rating him poorly was either lazy or had a bad group. Awkward dude though.
he genuinely wants you to do well. Like his assignments are set up and graded in a way to actually make you succeed. At first I was skeptical, but after taking him he actually is fair with grading and assignments and actually does things to make you do well. One of my classest with the least amount of assignments by far. i would take him.
if you want to actually learn something and improve your presentational skills then take him. you have to earn your grade but by the end of the semester everyone honestly gets the grade they work for. he is extremely responsive and helpful if you reach out to him during office hours or after class.
Prof Barnes ummm he's interesting... He moves thru slides super quickly and the class is not too hard but it's annoying bcs he crams essentially the two projects that make up your entire grade into the last few weeks. I was lucky and got a good group but I have a friend who had to do all the work in hers so consider individual too.
Andrew is quite interesting. Not even in a bad way. He is just truly a bit strange. He makes questionable jokes and seems to be awkward. Hides from office hours (and class lol). I think questions make him nervous. Class was confusing, but somehow not hard? We all passed without figuring out what he was trying to say. Honestly I recommend him lol
Maybe this is partly my hatred for online classes, but there was something about this guy that just ticked me off. He introduced the class saying he knows we don't want to be there, which sucked. Exams were so easy, but I got a really sucky group and the group projects are a huge part of your grade. Overall, kinda dull.
Andrew Barnes is an interesting guy. He definitely came off condescending when our group was just trying to understand what he wanted out of our speech. Try not to take 123 online, I didn't have the best group and did the majority of the work since we never met in person.
If you're confused don't even try to ask him for help, his answers will leave you more confused. He also contradicts himself a lot and will tell you to fix one thing in your speech then tell you it's not right after you do fix it.
The class is interesting but do not take if you plan on skipping classes or get easily stressed out by last minute instructions/assignments. Overall a very smart person who knows what he is talking about but he is completely disorganized as a professor and does not grade assignments (or even assign them) until the very last minute.
Ngl boys do not take him he is the most unsympathetic person ever. He is a super tough grader and is frankly quite OD.
I took his class over the summer and let me just say don't do it, It's a waste of time. I sent him about 4-5 emails about questions and concerns I had and he never got back to me about any of them. He's a very tough grader and his feedback just ends up making you more confused. His expectations and requirements for assignments are not really clear.
Professor Barnes leads a very intriguing and enjoyable course. He is also very caring towards his students and their success. When I needed accommodations due to an injury he was very thorough in what I needed to do and helped me complete the course.
Professor Barnes cares about his students' education and is knowledgeable in his field. He provides the resources and tools for the coursework and gives timely, productive feedback so you can make necessary improvements. He genuinely wants you to do well.
Andrew is a great professor, lecturer, readily available and above all else a caring person. He will reciprocate the amount of effort you put into the class. It is a LOT of work for a 4w class but as long as you watch the lectures closely and use the study guides you will be fine. The final exam is significantly easier than the other 2 exams.
This guy is super weird and his lectures are terrible. He makes very strange examples, and loves to mention very controversial topics that have nothing to do with this course at all. Not to mention that he provides his biased opinions. His example for person to person communication was talking about having sex with your peers. Like why that?
Not much guidance. did not give much of a notice before putting us in groups 1 day before an assignment was due with that group ONLINE that we couldn't get ahold of some group members in that short period
he is confusing, last minute, stressful, unclear, and if you need to take group presentations, take w a different professor. seriously, there are a lot of other options that will make your semester so much better and less stressful
Try your best to get a different professor. He is extremely weird. He non-stop brings up controversial topics when not needed. He showed us a picture of an asian women driving and said "what do you infere from this image." He wanted us to say asian women cannot drive. He also gives feedback that makes no sense. He thinks he is always correct.
Andrew is funny and makes class interesting. He explains things well lecture wise but his feedback on the papers is not always helpful which made improvement a bit difficult. Overall I really liked the class because of his teaching style and personality, but his grading/feeback is eh. I do reccomend him.
Professor Barnes leads an engaging course, though his teaching style can be hit-or-miss. The workload is manageable if you stay on top of things, and unstuck ai can be a helpful study tool alongside the free textbook. Overall, an interesting class if you're willing to put in the effort.
While it is an online class he rarely answers his email even though he says to reach out. Other than that, this professor is slightly strange, has lecture videos on Canvas that are extremely boring, and does not have clear directions for any assignment. DO NOT TAKE HIM. He is condescending when he does give feedback and expects us to be the best.
He encourages us to contact him via email since this is an online class however, he barely responds. His feedback is terrible at times, he'll lead you in one direction only to tell you it is the opposite of what he wanted. A free textbook is given about the test and final. the lectures are useless but watch them for credit. final is 8am on a Sat.
All of his lectures were prerecorded so the class felt very impersonal. My group took his earliest zoom meeting time and there were a couple times that he either signed in quite late or didn't show up at all.
I had a good experience with Dr. Barnes. He clearly knows the subject and it is confusing at times but if you go to class and pay attention you will be fine. Exams and two presentations make up most of your grade. The presentations seem hard but he is lenient with the grading and no one in my class got under a B. He is also pretty funny at times.
Tough grader but not a terrible class
He isn't everyone's cup of tea but i actually liked him and found him funny. I took two of his classes and got A's in both of them. it helps to go to office hours and try to build connections with your professors.
He's a nice guy but is consistently late and disorganized. He also has really high expectations for a gen-ed class, I understand we must do well but he grades so harshly for what it is. I've felt very rushed and stressed in this class so I don't recommend it.
Just not a great teacher, and overall kind of creepy. The guidelines for his project were never clear and my groupmates and I were always confused. I dreaded going to this class, and so did everyone else. Do not take any SCOM courses with him, if you can.
The final and the 2 unit tests were easy, but the group presentations were rough, free attendance points were very helpful. Talking to Mr.Barnes always left me more confused about what to do for the presentations and what we were going to be graded on. I enjoyed the lectures, but again, hard to get a straight answer or helpful idea out of.
Cool guy, makes you a better public speaker.
Literally do not take him. He barely puts in any grades and he does everything so last minute. Along with that he is such a harsh grader. The most unorganized professor ive ever had.
he is absolutely awful. gives zero instruction than criticizes the work you do and claims it is all wrong. he will send passive aggressive emails and rip you apart. dont take this, i did the online version and i want to cry
this guy is genuinely a terrible professor. he just tears you down and gives no advice on how to get better. under no circumstance should you take this class with Barnes. he picks favorites and if you're not one of them, this class will quickly become your least favorite. i know this sounds dramatic but i'm being so serious.
Honestly, the definition of mid. hes a nice guy, however this class caused me a bit of stress and anxiety. I honestly did better than i thought, but it takes a while to get grades in. He doesnt upload notes or slides onto canvas so take notes cuz u need it for the quizzes. he reminds me of my childhood hamster named cotton candy, very mighty
Andrew's cool but his humor does not reach everyone. Class is pretty simple, a few presentations, lectures, and practice days. He can come across as mean because he'll tell you everything you are doing wrong in front of everyone and if you are really nervous when public speaking you prob won't like him. Overall he's cool and its not a hard class
He was honestly not that great of a professor. He was entirely biased towards his favorite students and often did not give attention to anyone outside of that. Also had skewed views of what is considered a stereotype and applied that to “how everyone thinks”. I would recommend taking a different professor.
Class was online so it was difficult getting any feedback but when I did, it was extremely negative and almost downright sassy. He is a rude professor and also a harsh grader. Since it was online, we did not present in front of an audience and he would specifically take off points in places that would be very difficult to change due to that.
He writes very rude and passive aggressive emails. Expects a lot from the students, but doesn't provide sufficient direction and instructions for assignments. Very good at lectures though. Wouldn't recommend.
avoid at all costs I made a mistake and he threatened to treat me differently if it happened again
Overall class wasn't terrible, but we have 2 projects, and he holds them off until the last minute. We did video lectures until the last month of the semester, then we had research and persuasive papers/presentations due at the last minute. Also, if he messes up your grade, good luck getting him to fix it. I went and saw him in person, got nothing.
ABSOLUTELY NO. I assumed this class was an easy A. The people at the communication center give you better feedback. He will send sassy emails containing pretty condescending remarks. Some lectures were interesting at first. He gives terrible feedback and be prepared to be harshly graded in front of your class. Beware of CottonCandy.
His grading is a nightmare, you have to email him just to get your grade. Rubrics for assignments are almost impossible to find.
Stubborn Professor
more comedian then professor, if you arent taking his class for a gened just know you wont learn anything. super disrespectful and is very childish. idk how hes a prof tbh
Class Info
Online Classes
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Attendance Mandatory
79%
Textbook Required
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