2.8
Quality3.7
Difficulty39%
Would Retake102
Reviews39%
Would Retake
102
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
18
4
21
3
23
2
19
1
21
What Students Say
“I highly recommend you avoid her classes”
WOMENSHIST - 1.0 rating“I had Professor Van Ells for the Spring of 2015 and she's the most HORRIBLE professor I've ever had”
HIST27 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
43%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.27 avg changeRatings by Course
HST17A
5.0
(1)USHISTORY
4.0
(1)HISTORY17B
4.0
(2)HIST26
4.0
(1)HISTORY17A
3.6
(5)Difficulty by Course
WMHISHIST
5.0
HISTHIST
5.0
HISTORY27
5.0
HISTO27
4.7
HIS17B
4.0
Reviews (102)
midterm/final same format as meideros. lots of quizes so be prepared. very passionate and makes you interested in the topic.
vanells is hilarious
She is very funny. Active, and tries to get you involved so you will understand what is going on. She tries to make it fun and amusing and does a good job. That class isn't a walk in the park but it isn't that hard!
Nice personality. Makes the subject interesting even if you're not a fan. All in all a great teacher.
prety funny lady, keeps the subject interesting
She is very funny, but very unclear of what she wants. Very disorganized. Don't go off of her notes on the board or you'll be lost. She doesn't like a lot of noise in her class. Make friends quickly with other people, just in case you miss something.
No Comments
she is disorganized with her notes. she jumps from date to date and her notes on the board don't really help. her grading is not bad though
she is the reincarnation of the devil
I've had a love/hate relationship with Van Ells. On one hand, she is an excellent teacher. I learned an incredible amount of information just from paying attention in class. However, she is a very tough grader, particularly on writing assignments. Very specific and will always find something wrong. No easy A, but if you want to learn, take it.
Not a pleasant learning experience, most students are not interested in her class as she is not interested in her students. She treats her class like grade school so watch out kids bathroom breaks are not tolerated here!
Do not take this class with this teacher. she is very unhelpful and grades incredibly hard. treats the class like they are stupid always. i can not stress enough how unhelpful she is. she loves blackboard so if you dont like that then avoind this class. she is the kind of teacher that maked you feel terrible when they show up to class.
gives really great lectures, but wont put up with crap
Great History Professor, intresting lectures she does make you write critcal thinking essays so if you are a moron that is only good a memorizing facts dont take this class
Not impressed with Van Ells. The class is very doable if you have a lot of time to dedicate to reading and studying, but she isn't the greatest of teachers. Lectures ALL over the place, and she teaches waay too much women's history. Tests were pretty hard as well. No paper though.
Very difficult grader but really intersting and fun lectures. I wouldn't recommend it if you don't have good writing skills. I have easily gotten A's and B's in English 1A & 1B, but she grades way harder than an engilsh teacher! I got a C in her class, but I learned tons and she was a great teacher and makes going to class fun. Read the book!!!
i was not impressed with van ells at all. she would diss students just for giving her the wrong answer, or the answer was right but it wasn't the one she was looking for. She also gives a rediculous amount of reading, it's disgusting. She also isn't very enthusiastic about teaching and she smells like cigarette smoke.
very challanging class!!!! I am an excellent writer and got my first c on a paper in college. I managed to turn it into an a in the class, but felt like i struggled. I learned an incredible amount of information because she is excellent at lecture! If you want to learn, I recommend this class, but is am extreme challenge.
Great teachr and hot as balls. I want her bad!
She is ridiculous! I got grade grades in english, and she grades so hard! She requires a discusting amount of reading in the dryest book ever. Do yourself a favor and get a different professor.
This class would not be hard if you do well in a purely lecture setting. The lectures won't bore you to death, but don't command attention. You DO need to come to class because so much of the tests are notes from the lecture. A little scatter-brained and hard to follow. If you need NO guidance from the teacer then you can take this class IfNotDont
She really jumps around in her lectures. She does show good movies & pics. Blackboard site is well done. Be prepared to write essays on the midterm & final. She gives you a list of @50 possible topice before test then on the test you pick 1 of the 3 she had narrowed the list down to. Extremly difficult to be well prepared especially with no notes.
Her lectures are really interesting. Her in-class essays are a little tought until you get used to them, but the quizzes and tests aren't bad if you study the study guide, LOVE her lectures.
VERY MEAN!!!!!! WORST TEACHER IVE EVER HAD
Teaches with an extreme bias. And comes in to class planning to wing the whole lecture. It is mandatory to read a book that she found at an airport. I was confused the whole class because you will read the text book and she will talk about something completely different.
i was never interested in history before and she definitely made me want to learn more about it. only thing is she is psycho hard on grading her essays. shes harder than my english teacher and shot down a lot of my ideas i wrote, taking off a lot of points for it. one advice though..READ THE TEXTBOOK AND LISTEN DURING LECTURE!!!
She is a very informed teacher but what i hated was her in class essays and essays on the finals. She knocks off a bunch of points for incorrectness. Her quizzes are take home and quite easy. Not a bad class...
Great teacher, but hard. She makes the lextures exciting and understandable. Be prepared to do a lot of reading and in class essays!! This is not a class to slack off in!
Do not take this class if you have any other classes! She expects way too much. there is a ton of reading hw and bs assignments. it would be fine if it was my only class but with 3 others i couldnt keep up. Shes waay too into the subject.
I came into this class open-minded, and left very irritated. The whole class is only worth around 300 points. I missed 2 days out of the entire semester, and ended up getting my first C. I tried very hard! The Midterm and exam is around 60 MC and fill in the blank with 3 in class essays in an hour and 20 minutes. It's a very difficult class.
Not a great teacher. If you want to actually learn about history take someone else. She gives a few in-class writing assignments that are impossible to get full credit on. I am an A student and got a B with a lot of effort
So unorganized & confusing you will spend half your time trying to figure out what your hw is or what you're expected to know. You will lose yourself with the massive amts of work/reading & uncertainty with where to look for assignmts.Online work/tests/readings don't correspond!! Bottom line DO NOT take her courses!(coming from an honors student).
At the beginning of class I thought this teacher was crazy. By the end of her class I now know she's insane. The inclass essays she assigns will drive you mad. You will never get an A no matter what you say because she LOVES to disagree. Write too little and she docks you for not enough analysis; 2 much and she says you went off on a tangent.beware
If this teacher is any reflection of Sierra College, then I would run in the opposite direction over attending this school. She is a black mark on this campus and I don't know where she got her credentials at. If you want to learn anything, I would suggest taking Gena Estep for history.
Words do not describe this woman. The closest would be to tell you that everything she does, every word that she speaks is all a ridiculous, over-the-top act to gain the class's attention. And boy does she gain attention. The best advise I can give you: attend class, do all of the readings, pay particular attention to the quizzes she gives, and GL!
I have never had such a rude teacher before attending this class. Van Ells is inappropriate with in class. She doesn't like to fully explain anything, doesn't even allow you to use the bathroom. One day I had my hand raised the entire class to ask a question, but she would never call on me-still don't have an answer. Tests are ridiculous as well!!!
Horrible teacher. Don't take her class, no matter what. Doesn't explain things, isn't organized, takes forever to grade things, gives impossible exams (3 essays AND 40 multiple choice questions in 1:20!), smokes which is against school rules, tests you on the most obscure things and if you don't read the hours and hours of reading you're screwed!
Mediocre teacher. way too many assignments you have to get off of black board. She teaches 17a like it was women's history. it anonoyed me greatly. i got a B in the class mainly because i love history and knew most of the subject already. I would NOT reccomend her to anyone. take Defoe instead. hes the best history teacher at sierra.
My gade is my fault and I dont blame her for that. However the class sucked. It was hardly attainable to keep up with. Especially if you have to balance a busy schedule with it. Too much reading not enough explaining.
She expects you to read a lot but does not explain everything and sometimes goes off-topic. The quizzes are fine as long as you studied the books, don't depend on the things that she tells you in class.
Taking this class is like taking a class from an attention seeking child. She is intelligent to a fault. She has a giant chip on her shoulder, but, if you attend class, take good note, and do the work, a decent grade is attainable. Do not, think this is a skate class. She should be teaching at a Uni, not a comm college.
she is ok, just get off topic very fast. she is "behing" her schedule. lectures on one thing. assigns something else. and the test is a mix. i dropped her and will try to avoid her.
She is a nice lady, but the class is rather challeging.
It was a very challenging class. There is ALOT of work, and if your not interested in history then you better take the class with a different teacher. She is really hard, but she at least teaches her subject. If your up to the challege you can pull it off, but be ready for a challege because her class is NOT easy.
Very passionate professor. Wants to teach every part of history she can weasel into her according lectures. Test/quizzes are usually postponed because she gets sidetracked. Hard grading on essay analysis and will mark ptns of assignments if she thinks you looked the answer up online. Allows 1-2 challenging extra credits(5pts ea.) angry smoker!
i got a B in this class and never opened the book, i just went to class and took good notes. she is a college level teacher so expect college level work.
Van Ells is the reason I switched my major to history. Yes, you will HAVE to read the books to pass the class. You should also have passed ENG 1A. She requires an essay for the mid term, and grades it hard. Most, including myself, sis not pass the essay. However she weighted that, and still gave the people who deserved it their A.
She is driving me nut! I've only been in her class for 2 weeks and my mind is everywhere. She assigns readings from so many different sources and A LOT of reading. It's literally almost impossible to keep up. I wish I had looked at this site before taking her:( I'll never take her again for any other class! The rest of my teachers are great!!
This teacher is very passionate about what she teaches. She kept me interested in class, even though I'm not a fan of history. There is A LOT of reading though. And you MUST do it all, because she does ask questions about the readings on tests. This class is time consuming, but if you're willing to do the work, it will be enjoyable.
She is passionate, knows her stuff and will expect you to answer questions about readings. Participate, test are fairly easy, if u use study guides and previous test. Plus her voice is hot
Passed the class without ever doing the reading. Swag
She knows her stuff and her tests and study guides line up with her lectures and the textbook almost verbatim. She's always, always behind on her schedule and can never seem to get caught up. She also makes you feel like an idiot when you get an answer wrong or you're too scared to speak up. She's definitely not my favorite, but she's not awful.
Van Ells does know her History and she makes the class interesting. If you do the reading you will do better on tests. Most of the questions on the quiz's are the same questions on the mid term and Final. The class got me interested in History. She is nice and knowledgeable.
Don't take if you're easily offended, she can be quite rude. She does know her stuff, but her rudeness to students made for an uncomfortable learning environment.
She has the best quality a teacher can have: passion. You can tell she loves what she is teaching. I never though her to be rude. She just expects her students to be responsible and to read the book. She does grade the in class essays pretty hard. Just take good notes (a recorded her lectures to study with) and read the book and you will pass.
Great professor, not for people who don't take history seriously! She is very difficult on grading written work (up until the final I missed 14 points the entire class but 9 of them were from the essays) but as long as you try harder everywhere else and maybe write up a quick two page report on a movie, you can get an A.
She is very strict and it is hard to earn a high grade but it is not impossible and the class is very interesting
I would not recommend this teacher to anyone. I am a straight A student and take college very seriously. This is the first class I will not get an A in. She is never on topic, no lecture notes, no study guides (including midterm and final) hard graded, very specific. I was lost the entire semester, even after re reading the chapters. Dont take her!
Very passionate about subject. Is a Feminist, but not throwing that out there in a negative way. Lots of reading. You will not pass the class unless you keep on top of it. She can be rude out of no where if you ask a question. But asking her after class she is really nice. She gives hints of quizzes and exams if you need help.
I wish I never signed up for this class. I wasn't expecting this to be a light loaded class though... There's a Rediculous amount of reading, from both textbook & canvas. Jumps around on topics, isn't organized, expects you to participate yet will call you out if your wrong. The book is dense and boring. The test are long and super wordy. Goodluck.
She is one of the worst teachers I've ever had. She tries to be funny but really isn't, very disorganized, hardly any class or homework, always expects us to remember every single thing we read, and forgets what we are lecturing about in class. I don't recommend her at all.
Loved Professor Van Ells. She was very nice and helpful as long as you paid attention to what she said and what was said in the syllabus. Don't miss class, and if you do make sure you have a good reason and stay in touch with her. She grades pretty hard on writing assignments but they aren't worth much. Overall I truly enjoyed her class.
History 17A with Professor Van Ells was easy. Just show up, pay attention, do the reading and be sure to chime in. If you are attending school for history, this is a great professor. If you are looking for a class to blow off, you probably won't get an A.
She was an okay professor. A bit disorganized and not the best at updating the grade book or returning assignments. Make sure you read the online materials and the texts (it's dense, but ask questions). Good luck.
Class was a challenge, but enjoyable! Prof is blunt, but honest. Maybe that rubs some people the wrong way? I came away with knowledge that will help in life, not just school, and that is because of her. A LOT of reading, and must attend class for notes. I didn't like that syllabus was always behind or not there at all, but thats about it.
Class was a challenge, but no research paper. She is a teacher that demands respect from students and will not hesitate to call someone out or make someone leave if she feels they are disrespectful or unprepared. You HAVE to read every handout. print them and bring them with you. She may pop quiz you and let you use notes if you brought them.
I love history but Van Ells made this class hell. Her tests are unclear, her lectures are boring and confusing, and her personality is pointlessly abrasive and unhelpful. She didn't get around to grading some of the assignments we did in the first week until after finals so you never knew your standing. I highly recommend you avoid her classes!
Was a really hard grader , tests are ridiculous, you really have too work hard to get a good grade.
She isn't easy, but she's fun. I like her personality, she's really tough. Have to read the books and other material she posts on Canvas to pass. Readings are interesting except main one-Evans. Not an easy grader. The atmosphere she creates can intimidate you, if you let it. Makes you more alert though.
I learned a lot being in this class but was not prepared for the amount of reading. Reading the chapters in Evans and online readings are essential to passing the tests because that is the info she puts on them. I personally like lectures better but that's only half the work because like I said, most of the tests are on the reading.
I had Professor Van Ells for the Spring of 2015 and she's the most HORRIBLE professor I've ever had! Her lecture notes were never clear and I knew more about her boyfriendchildhood then History. I wouldn't recommend taking her because she make your semester a living nightmare.
Not very good at helping you achieve higher in her course. Not very easy to talk to.
Overall Deborah was an ok teacher. Her lectures tended to ramble on off subject, and were never very clear. No powerpoint or anything. Syllabus was not close to how class was run throughout the semester. The required textbook for the class was very hard to understand and disorganized. Never had such a disorganized class, hard to learn the material.
Professor Van Ells lectures were interesting but had no powerpoints. Expect a lot of reading but really as long as you just do the canvas readings you will be okay. Virtually no homework other then reading. Often times would tell students they were wrong in class discussions. Focuses a lot on women movement and very little on wars.
She was just an okay teacher. She lectures a lot, but does not have any power points at all. She expects you to write every single thing she says down. There was a few times she canceled class. She says that she uses canvas, but only to her advantage. She isn't very approachable either. She cancels and moves a lot of things like exams and quizzes.
Shes a very nice woman and is clear on what she expects but is pretty unorganized and seems to dabble on too many things that don't pertain to much about the class at all. couldn't say the class was entertaining at all but that depends on what your interests are too. Read the canvas documents, and ask questions on the readings, those are the keys.
She makes it clear to her students that she knows so much about history yet she can't seem to demonstrate this knowledge. Avoid her if you want to have a good college experience.
Don't take this professor for a good experience in history. She is very unorganized with her lectures and doesn't use powerpoint. She puts things on her tests she never went over. Very unapproachable.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU HAVE A FULL LOAD! There is endless reading with lots of critical thought that she expects you to bring into class! You will read A LOT of articles and chapters from the text book, although none are actual assignments. This class will require a lot of outside time. You will be incriminated for not doing the readings.
The material of this class was really interesting. She is pretty clear when it comes to what's gonna be on the quizzes, however she is very opinion based when it comes to short answer question and essay grading.
Do not take this teachers class! She is very unorganized, she does not care for anyone's opinion unless it agrees with her, she gets off topic too often about her personal life and does not use canvas to the full use. She does not keep you updated about your grades, unapproachable you won't know if you failed or not until grades are posted.
Professor Van Nells lectures A LOT. There is no powerpoint to follow which makes note taking an absolute nightmare, and she would get disorganized a lot of the time. She sometimes would make inappropriate jokes and harass certain students. Overall I love history but do not take it with her.
She did not use powerpoints offered one opportunity for extra credit, and there was a lot of textbook reading as well as online canvas documents. Study guides provided for each quiz (4+ midterm & Final) and extra credit options at the end of each quiz. I wish there were more assignments to contribute to your grade other than just quizzes/mid/final
I read a lot of reviews and it seems she did too, because she worked on a lot of issues people were having with her. She is helpful during tests. She wont give you the answers but will help you get to it (during test). I struggled with the in class essays, those are hard. She will go the extra mile for you to succeed. Take her class.
In five semesters at Sierra, she was by far the worst professor I ever had. She does not respond to emails, she does not lecture on topic, and her tests are designed very poorly. You will typically get a choice of four correct answers and have to pick one based on guessing which one she feels like is the MOST right. Luck, not hard work is needed
The only poor experience I had at Sierra College. Her lectures are very brief and low quality and she has an abrasive personality. Her tests are very difficult even if you did ALL the reading, twice. There was an essay, hand written in class with no notes allowed, which she graded extremely harshly. Choose ANY other professor! No extra credit
Its possible to get an A, I did. But it was a miserable experience. Like other's have said: lectures all class but covers very little. Very tough grader on in class essays. Her tests are difficult, even of you did all the canvas and textbook reading, due to poor question format. Little extra credit, harsh grader, and takes forever. Abrasive person.
She was an excellent professor. She is one of my favorite professors at Sierra College. She is very passionate about women's history and it shows in her lectures. She can be a really fun professor but she is strict and direct with her students. Don't skip class because shes goes over the reading you were supposed to do at home.
I loved being in her class. She was really funny. She does get off topic a little bit at times. Attendance is important because she lectures every class. Also it is important to read, there is material on tests that comes from the book. Gives quizzes, tests, and one in-class essay during finals.
She was okay. I had her last spring and then the whole thing with COVID happened. We had one in class essay (3/4 of a paper only) She told us before hand the two prompts. The exams are based on in class lectures & the videos from canvas & study guide. Gives lots of feedback, if you don't know what you're doing wrong don't worry she'll tell you lol
Awful, awful, awful. Very unprofessional. There arent any assignments this week, but I reserve the right to add one! Just one of the moments I ask how shes gotten by. Very tough grader, and doesnt stick by her rubric. You could meet all parts of the rubric, and shell claim the uninformed reader criteria wasnt met. Lectures are awful.
I'm not going to go out and say she was the worst professor I've had, but she was definitely difficult. Her quizzes were graded ridiculously high. Her quizzes were also timed, and the time she gave was 30 mins for 27-30 questions. Personally, without a study guide or notes being allowed, I don't think that's enough time.
As of today. 4 quizzes, 2 exams, 4 discussion boards. That's it. Once there wasn't an assignment for 5 weeks. So, I just took a break during that time. And when something came up just crammed 2x speed through all the lectures. Overall, she's one of the better history teachers I had. Adds a bit of character. But the material can still be a bit dry.
Deborah was one of the better covid professors Ive had. She does have a lot of lectures, but almost no assignments besides the tests and quizzes which were super easy. Easy A for me and probably most people (at least online)
I have taken an Online class H17A in 2022. I may say next: - Lecture material on slides given briefly but precisely - The professor has good diction and intonation tricks. It is impossible to fall asleep during lectures. - Videos on historical topics are well immersed in the era. - Friendly to students, strict but fair, has a good sense of humor.
Her course is very confusing, some weeks there is little to nothing in terms to assignments. But other weeks there is a lot of work to be done. Quizzes are hard although open book with how the questions are asked. I've completed every other general education course at Sierra no problem, but this course is ridiculous on how its graded and organized.
If you want your grade determined by a few tests be my guest. Only course work was tests/quizzes. Your grade will be determined on one/two tests.
I think she was a little funny in her lectures and you can tell she is really passionate about history but the grades were mainly determined by tests and quizzes. She did offer some extra credit but if you aren't doing well, it most likely won't help much.
Graded by few tests and online quizzes. No real homework credit. Easy class, and good lectures, although she is strict about in class conduct. I feel like she wishes she could take all our phones away lol.
Easy A. Just read the book and take notes. Make sure to engage in class. She was a great women's history profession and shut down sexist boys in the class. Lots of your grade rides on tests so make sure to show up and study.
She is very passionate about history, and I enjoyed her lectures. Grades mostly based on tests + quizzes, and the only work is reading. Doesn't really offer a lot of extra credit work, so consistency is key. She's particular about paying attention in class, so definitely think about whether that works for you. It did for me and I loved the class.
Easy class to pass. All you need to do is pay attention to her lectures and take notes. Her textbooks for 17B could be accessed online, just search up the title of the book. 80% of midterms and finals are from quizzes and tests so if you are doing great with quizzes then it's an easy pass.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
88%
Textbook Required
43%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.27 avg changeRatings by Course
HST17A
5.0
(1)USHISTORY
4.0
(1)HISTORY17B
4.0
(2)HIST26
4.0
(1)HISTORY17A
3.6
(5)Difficulty by Course
WMHISHIST
5.0
HISTHIST
5.0
HISTORY27
5.0
HISTO27
4.7
HIS17B
4.0