2.3
Quality3.5
DifficultyN/A
Would Retake158
ReviewsN/A
Would Retake
158
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
29
4
14
3
20
2
40
1
55
What Students Say
“I would've learned more if I stayed at home and read Wikipedia articles on Ancient Western Civilization”
HIST01 - 1.0 rating“She showed up late on a field trip, leaving us confused and lost”
HIST1 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
100%
Textbook Required
93%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.20 avg changeRatings by Course
HIST129
5.0
(1)HIST12WC12
5.0
(1)HISTORY12
5.0
(1)HIS26SOUTASIA
5.0
(1)HST2629
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
WESTERNCIV
5.0
WC2
5.0
ENG1
5.0
HST29
5.0
WESTHISCIV1
5.0
Reviews (158)
Dr. Ness rocks. She has easy classes, but expect to work. She expects you to know material. Great and exciting discussions.
Asian History - Strays off topic a lot. Doesn't like it if she THINKS you are insulting her intelligence. Very unlcear as to when the HW was due. HW and reading time consuming. No need to go to class if you read the books ... hardly takes roll.
No Comments
really easy teacher, you dont even need to do the homework in this class and still get an A, shoot i did. went to class half the time, just know when are tests dates to show up and take em. really easy class, highly recommend.
Dr. Ness is an extremely disorganized teacher. Her class is completely unstructured; none of the students have a clue as to when the work is due. As a schollar she loads the class with unresearched, biased, unfounded,personal opinions.I don't reccommend!
caring & compassionate teacher, not difficult class. . . at times, she strays off topic, but allows students to share their thoughts. I would recommend the class.
Too much class time is spent listening to her tirades against the administration. The time she does spend in teaching is very sloppy, & disorganized, but is very exacting in her demands on tests and takes points off for things like incomplete sentences.
If you care about history, then never ever take a class with Brenda Ness. Too much class time is spent with her angy denunciations of someone or other. Not that it matters at test time, you'd better know your stuff then.
very unclear spends time on voicing her oppinins about irrelevent things ( alot) if you happen to dissagree on a topic with her you will not get the grade you deserve in other words do not take any of her classes ever and if you have enrolled i am sorry.
very unclear about what she wants
extremely unorganized, strays off topic constantly, boring and just not worth it... too much work
Doesnt agree with anyone. Thinks she is always right. Cancelled class every now and then which was cool. Juss sit in class and do the HW and dont talk unless she asks you. Quizzes and tests are easy and very easy to cheat.
She does not specify what she wants or when things are due. Aside from the first section, she does not spend enough time on the material.
No Comments
to keep it short DONT take this class
she didnt show up to class half the time, and when she did she was ALWAYS late. i wouldn't reccomend this teacher to anyone who wants to take a HISTORY CLASS, this is more of PHILOSPHY CLASS. do not take this course!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED NOT TO TAKE THIS CLASS! She is unorganized, and dont know what she is talking about.
i dont think she is that hard just has a strong personality.
Worst teacher in History. She thinks it is a philosophy class. If you are willing to kiss some butt then you might get a good grade, unless she goes on one her rants that have nothing to do with the real world.
horrible. if you want to actually learn something then do your own reading.shes bitter and will ridicule you infront of others if you disagree with her.
very antisemetic, even though she is jewish. never really answers questions relating to the course. very unhelpful to students. gives way too much homework and never asks for it until the end of the course. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS UNLESS YOU CRAVE HOMEWORK
worst history teacher at smc do not take this class you will regret it if you do
Very rude.
She is horrible!!! Like everyone says don't take this class because you will just get angry and dislike her as much as everyone else does
She gives good grades to those who write what she wants to hear. Listen to everyone here, she is a bad teacher and try to do absolutly everything you can not to have her
All she talks about is life. She only teaches history about 10% of the time. She is very unclear. I would have gotten an A if she wasn't so vague. I got a B instead. Why is she a teacher? Do not take her.
Listen to everyone on this site she is a very bad teacher. I was very frustrated with her, take our advise DON'T TAKE THIS CLASS.
boring. horrible teacher. doesn't even talk about history. she dropped me because i was absent only a few times for a valid reason. don't take her.
worst teacher ever!!! Cant teach worth crap and very rude to students. Too much hw and nothing intresting from her lectures. I cant believe she's still teaching. She should be fired by now!!!
ALWAYS late, then wastes 30 more min talking about politics. Rude, disorganized, virtually no lecture time then quizzes us on things she forgot to teach. Plus you MUST do CERTAIN off-campus activities for a chunk of your grade. The final project is a huge pain in the A$$ & wallet. Dont take her.
dude, DO NOT TAKE THIS TEACHER! she is real cool about bringin in homework late, but she grades soooo crazy...and her midterms are the hardest tests i have ever had. ever.
took her for summer school. bored to death. really strict, and doesn't really lecture. i made every effort to do well, but nothing worked. i ended up with a C which i'm happy to receive. my advice: do not take her. take someone else who really wants to lecture.
this teacher is crazy. omg!!! she gives alot of homework. she never collects it when she says she will. shes always late. shes really rude, when you ask her something she makes you feel dumb so not take her.shes mean and unorginized.can we say EVILLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!
cool person, unorganized and way too much work!
No Comments
She is always late..like everyone already mentioned. Shes rude too. I got a B in her class but that's only because I wrote stuff she'd wanna hear on the midterm and final. Theres a lot of hw and she barely collects it. Take someone else better. You'll hate this class.
horrible. teacher. i had surgery and cam in ill for the second test, IN PAIN...and she gave me a B on the test then dropped me because i missed 4 days in a row due to surgery. always late. EXTREMELY RUDE. CARELESS. MEAN. she is probabaly and old and bitter but taking it out on students sucks.waste
She is crazy!! Super CRAZY!! Do not take her.. I took her in the Fall and she gets way off the subject and expects us just to go home and keep up with the syllabus. She gives tons of homework. She is pretty psycho...
TERRIBLE!!! YOU DON'T LEARN ANYTHING!
No Comments
I took her four times, each time I got an A. Her class is simple. Buy the book skim through the text, write the simple chapter summarys and chapter question. Take test. (she gives alot of busy work)If you need a class that kind of boring but easy take her. The IMPORTANT THING is dont argue with her!
bad teacher, not clear!!
She's very nice. Give her class a chance. She isn't the BEST instructor at Santa Monica but she isn't the worst. A good teacher with liberal views but nice and fair.
I made an A but I don't feel like I learned very much history. She focuses more on documents, reading and philosophy. I liked her liberalism at first, but by the end of the class I was aching to hear a history lecture rather than a sermon. I learned a lot in this class, but not about history!
No Comments
She is a great teacher. I took her for history 29 and I enjoyed her class very much. She is open minded and easy.At the end of the semester you will love her!!!
Professor Ness has a way of making the material come to life, relating it to current events, and making a dull topics interesting. I would recomend this great teacher to anyone. She really cares about teaching and helping her students earn a good grade.
Dr. Ness is a passionate teacher that really cares about the issues she is teaching. Her strength is that she can take a topic that few college students are interested in and breathe life into it by relating it to current events and through her insightful analyses of human motivation.
Dr. Ness is the most kind, earnest, and helpful professor I've ever met. She always cares about students, willing to help them even beyond office hours so that they can get good grades or overcome their problems and concentrate on studying. It's deplorable some lazy students gave unfair evaluations.
Dr. Ness obviously likes what she teaches, but beware, she treats students as if they are professional historians. She will mention assignments just once and expect you to remember everything - READ AND FOLLOW THE SYLLABUS - this is the only way you will be aware of what is due. READ to get an A.
Not sure what's up with the bad ratings because Dr. Ness taught a really cool class. She came off as hard at first, but then allowed a lot of give and take at by the end. She offers really insightful lectures and even brought us Jewish food a few times. I would reccomend her and take her again.
This is a very cool class, even though very small. her delivery method is better than most because she has real world experience with the material. If you do all your homework, all the readings, and don't interrupt her then your fine. she is cool with you if your cool with her
She is not as bad as people say. You have to turn in all the work and read the stories and book. She doesnt explain anything and her class can seem very disorganized, but you'll survive.
This class was actually pretty cool. I struggled a bit, but if you do office hours and COMMUNICATE with her about assignments, she is still cool even when things are way late. I think that people get turned off because she is quite opinionated, but I would take her again and I hate history.
I THOUGHT SHE IS QUITE STRICT. BUT SHE IS COOL PERSON AFTERALL. I WRITE MORE IN HER CLASS THAN ANY ENGLISH CLASS AT SMC BUT I STILL GET AN A IN HERE AND C IN ENGLISH. IF YOU DO THE WORK THEN YOU WILL GET A GOOD GRADE. THE PEOPLE WHO DONT TRY ARE ONES WHO SAY MEAN THINGS FOR HER. I WANT TO CAN TAKE HER AGAIN IF I CAN. ALSO SHE IS LATE SOMETIMES.
She didnt make anything clear. we had 3 midterms and the last one was 1 week before the final. all these stupid articles to read and summerize that had hardly anything to do with the tests. wasnt even close to clear on what she was going to test on.
She was weird and strict and I never knew what she had assigned. She made me take my final and she didn't grade it because of some silly quotes. She's a good person, but a bad teacher.
only talks about religion and its history. The syllabus means nothing. her lectures have no relevence to anything. her final comes from nowhere. you will not learn anythig about history, but she will have prvocative debates, if she lets you talk. DO NOT TAKE HER!
She definitely knows her stuff, has plenty to say and makes good references. But she is a really hard grader. The best way to do it is just write what she wants to see on the paper and you will get pretty good grades.
I took this class because i was very interested in the subject. Unfortunately, she was extremely rude to anyone who didn't agree with her views. nice old christian lady got yelled at all the time, even when asking questions. spoke hebrew in class when half didnt understand. favoured jewish students. don't bother.
Lots of writing, but overall I learned a lot. Just do her writng assignments and you'll get a good grade. I have no idea why people are putting her down. Nice cool teacher
One of the best professors I've EVER had, but don't expect to ace the class if you're not willing to do the work. She is very cool, understanding AND knowledgeable. The class was also fun. IMHO, those who bash her do so out of retaliation for not getting a good grade, probably due to laziness on their part. I wish I could take her again.
My absolute favorite teacher at SMC. Her classes are interesting, and though she may not follow the syllabus, you will learn a lot both about the class and the world we live in. If you actually want to learn something and don't mind a little challenge, take her classes.
Excellent class. You are required to read a lot, and write a lot of summaries, so its an easy class if you do the work. If you just want an easy general ed. class, you probably don't want to take her. If you want to learn a lot, and gain a great foundation for deciphering documents and readings this is the class for you. Highly recommend
Take the ugliest, most wicked, most arrogant man hating snob with a moo moo on... that's her. Only she comes with brain scorching homework assignments and impossible tests... I still have nightmares about her.
No Comments
She is a terrible teacher. She is super mean, and only teaches you how to become a jew. She yelled at student for asking a relevant question, and asked him in front of the whole class if he was just asking such a dumb question to hear his own voice. I definetly do not recommend her.
Her class is tough but it really helps to take the time to talk with her outside of class.
Okay. Here's the deal. She's a VERY smart lady who knows quite a bit. She's also VERY cool as a professor. It's not difficult to do well in her class as long as you aren't a lazy-ass. Do the work that's required (average amount) and you'll do well...and LEARN! Would def take again.
The worst ever! Seeing her on campus makes me cringe. Picks favorites. Neglects her duties, doesn't return papers, expects students to complete her busy-work assignments, boring, annoying. Grrrrrrrrr! Dont take this class if you actually like history. Highschool methods of teaching like summaries and chapter questions. Not too difficult though.
If you want to actually learn something, take her class. She's a very cool professor with much to offer. Would take her again if I could. Also, on a personal note, she's a very cool person.
had i wanted to convert to being jewish... i would have gone to my neighbor. horrible teacher! does not talk about anything regarding "western Civ". seeing her on campus scares me... im waiting for someonw to drop a house on her
Professor Ness is one of my all time favorite professors. She doesn't let you just slide and makes sure you get the fundamentals of history and introduces primary source documents. I am currently a graduate student in history which was, to a very large extent, due to her encouragement and enthusiasm about the subject. she prepared me WELL!!
What can I say other than one of SMC's BEST! If you want an easy grade-go elsewhere. If you want to learn and be challenged (what college is supposed to be about) take Ness' classes. And to the insulting idiots I have one question-how did you make it to college? To those who are interested in schools like Berkeley where I ended up-take Ness!
very unorganized. no due dates. no one knows when to turn work in. takes 3 weeks to return work. loses some of it. doesn't care if you do well. class is mostly opinion, very little learning. nice outside of class, but weird in class. doesn't let you know how you're doing usnless you go to office hours, and even then, it's unclear. don't take class.
She is very challenging...if you want to expand your horizons and think critically then she's great!! A little unorganized and doesn't follow the syllabus, but a really brilliant woman. She's just a well of knowledge! Not an easy A, but highly recommended if you have an interest in historical thought!
she is a very hard professor but loved her class. If you do all of your work and come to class she will give you a C. Although it is a bit hard to say when she wants the work and stuff but once she gets going in her lectures it is so amazing how much you learn. She really does prepare you to think like a historian.
not organized, nice lady(out of class!), the info she gives u is interesting.
Prof Ness taught me so much! This is not an easy class but she is very helpful if you go to her. If you do the work, you can get an A. Take her, you won't be sorry. Even if you're not interested, by the end you will be.
i don't understand how this creature could have ever become a professor. she is really the female version of jerry springer just saying and doing things to get a rise out of students. doesnt know her ass from her elbow and incapable of finding snow in the middle of winter! oh ya, dont take her
Someone needs to hire more Jewish History teachers so we can actually learn something!
No Comments
She put almost no effort into teaching the subject, concentrating on college political issues. In her favor, the reading assignments were well chosen and she provided some pertintent material. I was bitterly disappointed by her performance even though I got an A.
Although the workload was overwhelming...to the point she cou;dn't keep up...i learned so much and truly respected her knowledge and point of view. If you are truly intersested in history and its ties to politics I highly recommend this class.
OK, can you say unorganized?! Not to mention that I have never witnessed a Professor scold a student for asking a freakin question in class. Dr. Ness has been the worst teacher/professor I have taken. her organization on HW and quizzes is horrible.
WOrst teacher ever. Unorganized. Dont ever take her!!
ill say, she is super duper disorganized, can't imagine that she graduated from UCLA! how can u hav such disorganized student!! lol however, she is super duper smart, really brilliant woman, i ever seen. lol she is full of knowledge, but she is really off track sometimes! talkin about random stuff! lol
I liked her personally. She is very interesting and has an immense amount of knowledge about history. Yet, the class wasn't as organized and clear as I would have liked it to be.
she is horrible! very unorganized, always late to class! take her if your interested in learning about the judaism. she is very moody, loves to go off subject and criticize anything or anyone. she asks for tons of HW but never hands it back, very likely to loose assignments. one of the worst professors at SMC,avoid at all cost!
This is the worst professor ever!!!!! She is extremely unorganized, doesnt know what shes talking about and grades extremely unfair. she gave one quiz, a****load of homework and one final. takes off points for ridiculous grammar mistakes and actually puts down students for asking questions. the biggest **** at smc. Avoid this ****!!
Why is she still teaching? She was late to every class, she started class talking about stuff bothering her in her life. Extremely unorganized. Didn't let us know when assignments were due. I typed my assingment, printed it out and had it all ready. I get to class and she wouldn't take it because she preffers written assingments. Stupid B****!
great teacher great class recommended to all, very caring and exciting
Believe all the hype, this teacher is BAD!!! Late to class all the time, disorganized, not clear on what's required or assignments. Oh yeah, and very tough grader. Avoid at all costs!
BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ ABOUT HER: she is by far the worst teacher that I have ever had at SMC. She does not follow the coarse outline for Western Civ, she is always late, does not tell you when homework is due, asks entirely too much, weekly summaries and is completely a disorganized mess. I dropper her....TAKE A W IF YOU ALREADY HAVE HER!
I don't get how com som ppl rate her badly! Yes i agree that she is super disorganized, however i took her class in fall 06, in the begining of the semester i didnt quite like her, but at last she gave me a really good grade! eventhough i didn't do much of her assignment! she is really smart and she knows a lot of things!
THIS TEACHER IS A TOTAL NUT CASE...she gets mad at you for asking relevant questions. so psycho...i swear if you take her class you will become psycho. i got into 2 major verbal fights with this old woman...shes crazy
Proff. Ness is an extremely knowledgable women. There is only one word that would describe her that is GREAT!!! A midterm and a final. in class essays ( allows u to take it home to redo it) Homeworks due on wednesdays ( questions from readings) A LOT OF READING!!. She changed my way of looking at the English language....she helped me conwuer my fea
Horrible teacher. Loves to put students down. One of the worst teachers ever. She won't learn your name and she will never keep track of any assignments. So be prepared for an arbitrary grade no matter how hard you work. NO WONDER SHE CANT TEACH AT A UNIVERSITY!!!
She is the worst I've met when it comes to relating to students. Simple or innocent ?'s get the harshest responses.1/2 of what she realy likes to talk about isnt on any of the tests. Workload is grueling. Her sense of humor is dated. She picks favorites and ignores anyone else. Thinks Hist is a personel friend of hers. Not polite or pofessional
Ness is an intelligent, and interesting woman. The key to getting on her good side is simply doing your homework and NOT being rude in class! I would recommend taking her class to anyone. She is funny, and makes learning fun :D
I love her...!!!well if you want to learn history...i recommend that u dont take her....but u get to learn alot.. not for history majors...she mostly discusses cultures of hist then hist itself...i love her class and i love attending it..she is sometimes strict...but be attentive and you got her class...ALWAYS DO HW..just submit anything do smthng...she is caring...try to instigate conversations with her after class...believe me you get to learn alot!!!you may get out of topic but it always helps to tie in history with present situation...
She's very disorganized, always talking about random events of her weekend, never teaching actual history, and basically teaches the History 1 as a 4 unit English class about Jewish history. Grading is the worse I've ever seen. This is the worse instructor I've encountered. I would avoid this woman at all costs. You'll regret it the first class day
COllege is filled with frusterating situations and teachers, although I did not find it too difficult to get a good grade, I was very unhappy with this teacher. She is extremely disrespectful, and makes those that want to learn suffer by always picking on those that don't. College is hard enough, don't make it harder with this spiteful woman.
BY FAR THE WORST TEACHER EVER!!!! VERY UNORGANIZED AND SHE LOST MY HOMEWORK ALONG WITH A FEW OTHER PEOPLE IN CLASS AND WAS COUNTED AGAINST MY GRADE WHICH IS REALLY RIDICULOUS!!! READING THE TEXT BOOK DOES NOT HELP U WITH EXAMS. I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS TEACHER UNLESS U PLAN TO FAIL AND FELL MISERABLE WITH UR SELF. USELESS TEACHER.
While she has garnered a reputation for being disrespectful and (yes) mean, she is really like a delicious cookie with a soft-creamy center. Seriously, just book time to meet her after class in her office and she becomes this entirely different person. I totally saved my grade by getting to know her on a personal level. Also, she is hilarious.
Without question the most pitiful excuse for a professor I have ever encountered. She is extremely disprespectful to students, but worst of all, you learn nothing. Honestly, I wasted my time and money. DON'T TAKE HER. Hopefully no people will take her classes and she will get fired! HORRIBLE!!!!
TERRIBLE!!!!! Do not take this class under any circumstances! She is absolutely awful and you will not learn one thing! She also assigns two essays for the final exams that you have to take home! Seriously, AFTER the semester is over you will be doing essays! WORST "professor" alive.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS AT ALL. She gets way off topic and doesn't go back on. her lectures are very confusing and boring. Please, save yourself
Without a doubt the worst instructor i've ever had. Doesn't explain anything, and expects you to know every single aspect on the entire human history. Extremely disrespectful, and NOT funny. I kept assuming it was only going to get better, but it never did. DO NOT TAKE HER CLASS!
Does not stay on topic. She goes off on tangents that have nothing to do with the class. We spent 6 weeks covering the Epic of Gilgamesh and we had to teach ourselves the next 3 chapters. No matter how much effort you put into an assignment she is not satisfied, and will put you down for not trying.
HORRIBLE TEACHER... Never stayed on topic, never followed her Syllabus or anything else that she handed out. I felt confused about all the lessons and tests. Half the class dropped in the first couple weeks. She is also very rude when you answer questions, even if you are correct. STAY AWAY!!!!!
Prof. Ness is a very intelligent person and there is not doubt that she knows her material. Her weakness is in the ineffective way she tries to convey it to her students. She spends a whole lot of time on tangents and we did not get as far in the class as we should have. I am a History major and now I feel like I am behind because of this class.
Oh, Dr. Ness, Dr. Ness. She is quite a character. She failed me 3 times :)Really. However, you will be fine if you keep open-minded and give her a chance.
Dr. Brenda Ness is a teacher who forces her students to think critically, and if you do the readings which she assigned and participate in class your minimum grade is a B. So, if you do not want to think for yourself I would not recommend her classes.
do not take her class...seriously, although she is a very intelligent woman, she is an awful teacher. she tends to victimize her students, calling them out for petty things like being two minutes late to class, or yawning without closing one's mouth...one class she spent over an hour bragging about her daughter..did not enjoy this class at all
I think preffesor ness is pretty cool. I hated history before this class, but she got me really into it. She definetly knows her stuff. Sometimes she might go off topic but her stories are still interesting. This class might be alot of work, but not the hardest out there.
Don't expect A's for mediocre work. Classmates had problems, mainly because they failed to do the readings or were rude in class. She recognizes personal initiative and thoughtfulness, but can be sarcastic, which many interpreted as being stubborn and ill-intended. Not the most focused of professors, but ultimately, if you want to learn, you will.
she is a great professor, though i wish she would focus on the stuff that matters most: i.e. the material rather than focus on interruptions. classes always have them, just get over it. i would take her again, but i would definitely approach it differently since she focuses on things like prepositions and idioms just as much as the history.
some comments here are way off and some are right on. she is eccentric, yes; but, extremely knowledgeable professor. most things are disarray during class, but there is always a method to her madness. students who say she picks on them are probably the lazy ones. if you want to be prepared for a university class, this is the professor to take.
Had a hard time reading her, but once I figured her out, it was cool. Her bark is louder than her bite. She lays out everything on syllabus at beginning of quarter. Participate in class and stick to that and not what she does daily in class and you can get an A.
She isn't the easiest but she is one of the best. Do your readings and participate and guaranteed A.
Whatever you do, don't take this class. She waltzes in five minutes late to class every time and to make up for it keeps us five minutes late. She rudely interrupts while students give oral presentations in front of the class, to make them feel stupid. She asks us to do excessive amounts of homework but we never know when she'll collect it. SOS.
I seriously LOVE HER! I just want to study study study and have a conversation with her because she knows everything! tips: DO NOT interrupt her and DO NOT pretend that you know everything when you speak because she will put you in your place. Just listen and ask relevant questions.
She may be smart but a crucial part of being a good teacher is coherently and respectfully teaching the class the subject at hand , not going off on crazy tangents about her personal life, politics, and other irrelevant topics so that she has no time to actually lecture us about Jewish History. A ridiculous teacher and a ridiculous class!
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS; her grading is unfair, and it's impossible to receive an A. She barely taught my class anything that pertained to the material or subject of the class, spent 5 weeks on one civilization, and rushed everything to fit it in at the end. She is very disorganized with very high expectations. Good Luck if you take this class!
Students taking any history class with Ness should follow the syllabus, even if the class is behind by four weeks. Because by the end of the semester she collects all of the homework's,a timeline which is a pain in the ass and the final which she basically makes you go to a museum to research a topic.
hardest class ever!
pretty much a waste of time. no one was ever really sure what is due or when. we would basically just stare at her while ranted for a little over an hour. doesn't allow anyone to ask questions or "interrupt" her during these times. final was based on video from first day of class. who can remember that?? make sure you bring a doodle pad- you need i
SHE HAS TO BE THE WORST TEACHER IN THE WORLD SHE REMINDS ME OF THE PRINCIPLE FROM THE MOVIE MATILDA WORST TEACHER IN THE WORLD, SHE DOESINT KNOW HOW TO TEACH, AND SHE NEVER TELLS YOU WHATS DUE AND THEN AT THE END OF THE CLASS SHES GOING TO ASK FOR ALL YOUR WORK! SHES A BITCH! SHE YELLS AT EVERYONE SHE SHOULD QUIT OR BE FIRED. I DROPPED HER CLASS
Whoever plans on taking any history courses with this professor should know that most if not all these comments are legitimate. I just took her Indian History class and I felt as if I didn't learn enough from the experience. Not only is she unorganized but she's very bland and condescends students when asking questions. I suggest you don't take her
Jewish History. You wont really learn about anything besides her useless philosophy about life. May be more difficult if you know nothing about Judaism or the bible because she doesn't go over anything. If you do all the major assignments and stay on her good side you will get an A. I failed all the surprise tests/quizzes and still got an A.
Amazing to hear some of these comments.Sound like babies.Its college.She preparing you for university.Shes awesome.
I never met such a rude person before n b humiliated in front of the whole class. I asked her if she uses the school email or if she uses a personal email b4 the 1st class started. She yelled at me and told me that I was extremely rude for generalizing her. I was so upset after that and left and drop the class straight away. =(
by far the worst teacher i have encountered throughout my college experience. she is a witch of a lady. she grades you on how much she likes you. she promotes her political views more then the material of her class. please take my warning and neverrrrrrrrrrrrrr take a class with NESS, she doesnt even deserve to be called professor.
She sees herself as a lecturer, not a teacher--she just wants to give an interesting talk, not help you with an assignment or anything. I didn't find her to be esp. rude (I've had worse), but she was absent a lot on trips and unhelpful. Cant find her for office hours or get feedback on paper. Really easy though.
Dr. Ness is a sassy one for sure but at the same time this is school and a nurturing mother figure should be found elsewhere. It was the easiest A ever received. If you are entitled, ignorant and sensitive. this is not the class for you. Do what is asked and you'll learn quite a bit. Don't argue,be respectful, know before you say and RESEARCH
My ratings were low, and for good reason. I have one word for this professor: incompetent. Our current class is 6 weeks behind on lecture, she has cancelled 4 classes, and not returned any exams at all. She does not help you, she does not teach you. She should not be teaching anyone at all. I am very disappointed, don't take her.
This woman is highly-educated and passionate. Too bad she is always late, ALWAYS. Often cancels classes. NEVER collects the work, doesn't tell you this. Tough because as a student you won't know where you stand. Her class discussions go NOwhere. Argues with students, SHUTS DOWN dialogue. Rambles. Never Googles so many of her "facts" are obsolete.
She is not organized and never sets dates of when work is due. Not really clear what is to be done in class.
Cancels class repeatedly, never collects assignments, never returns exams or quizzes so you know where you stand in the class, talks about her personal life instead of history, and to top it off she doesn't even turn in your grades by the deadline. How she hasn't been fired blows my mind. Don't take her.
what everyone says is true but you can pass this class if you show up everyday, do the work, and show some interest.
Pretty sassy, not the greatest teacher either. Goes on weird tangents.
Other posters seem to be spot on. Second day of class was cancelled. Its now the third week in and still no syllabus which means still no homework. According to her spring syllabubs we should be finished with Mesopotamia and were not even close. She constantly goes bipolar and starts yelling at people for the strangest things!---BE WARNED
She's a hot ghetto mess. She yells at people, is completely inconsistent, shows movies, goes off on tangents, is allllllllways late, RARELY collects work. Yet her classes fill up all the time and she even teaches Scholars. Tenure is amazing. She's a woman in Survival Mode, not truly a teacher now, if she ever was. IT'S NOT WORTH IT DON'T TAKE HER.
worst teacher i have ever had! And that goes back to my elementary years. She knows her stuff, yes, but she has no idea how to teach. Very unorganized. She puts you on the spot if your late and you never know where you are on the syllabus. If you have a choice, don't take her.
This teacher is terrible. She does not answer questions. Does not explain clearly what is expected. And does not follow the syllabus! It's now the week of finals and I am scrambling to figure out what to do.Take this class if you enjoy doing busy work, because that's definitely all that's on the syllabus (and I am in scholars!)
She showed up late on a field trip, leaving us confused and lost...pretty funny. Just do your assignments on time and do it early, especially the timeline.
An excellent teacher! She has a PH.D. and expects university behavior from her students. Shes EXTREMELY helpful so take advantage of her office hours! If you are a hardworking and motivated student, you will be rewarded.Ignore these other posts.She always came to class on time and only yelled at students who were clearly disrespectful and immature.
Very knowledgeable and helpful! Slightly unorganized; we never received a syllabus. But, if you are self-reliant enough to go onto her webpage, all the info you need for the class is there. Utilize her office hours as well, she's helpful. Not a class for people that expect to be handed everything by their professor.
You don't do anything in the class. My class got 2 quizzes that we never got back, made a timeline project over the whole semester and wrote essays on 100 times repeated lectures for both finals. Take. Easy A. Unless you want to learn...
No not organized, but this woman knows her history. I suggest that you go to her office hours and do all the readings... She bases alot of your grade through class participation and the final ( which was a time line presentation)
overall terrible teacher. shes a great person but shes terribly disorganized and you will be very upset at the end when you get your grade. dont take hist 29
She definitely knows a lot, but it isn't put to good use. We spent the first two months on the same material and then by the time the final came around, we hadn't finished the course but we were still held responsible for the material. Not impossible to get an A if this is your only option, still surprised I did. Though I would not recommend it.
I would've learned more if I stayed at home and read Wikipedia articles on Ancient Western Civilization.
Dr. Ness is a highly intelligent instructor who has dedicated her life to teaching. If you pay attention and act like a college student you will learn.
Brenda Ness is a brilliant woman. She teaches so much useful information that can be applied to your real life. If you act like an adult and do the work required you will learn a lot.
If you would like to learn the history of her life and get an easy "A" this class is for you. Forget about the real world history though - it ain't happening.
Awful. We spent the whole semester on the same topic. She did not stay true to the syllabus. When the end of the semester came suddenly she expected us to do the final project even though we didn't cover more than half of the material. Depended entirely on self-studying at the end just so that I could do the project & ended up with a B. I blame her
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
100%
Textbook Required
93%
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A-
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HIST129
5.0
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(1)HST2629
5.0
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