New class, good prof to teach it.

Great prof. Easy to talk to and teaches well.

HE IS GREATTTTTTTTTTTTTTT JUST GREAT

i audited his class and he is great..very clear, very good slides, and explains things clearly, too bad he doesnt teach there anymore

Not a bad prof. He talked a lot out of the textbook and built his lectures around them, but it wasn't too bad. His assignments were brutally easy, but his tests were brutally hard, though. But for a course like 331, if you had the choice between him and, say, Jacobson, take Kawash or anybody else who's better.

Seems like a personable guy, must need to be to be teaching an 8am Class. His slides have on them everything you ever need to know for the Final and Midterm, wake up, have a red bull and pay attention. Time Boxed Assessments are difficult but the Take Home Assignments are Not.

He's a good guy, but I don't think he understands the average level of interest in an introductory course. The material was too dry and was covered too slowly to really get engaged with. The midterm was reasonable, the final was something else entirely. Every single question required thorough understanding, sometimes of the most minute details.

He is good.Never felt he made fun of students.Ever. Never forces, nor does he single anyone out. Assignments & quizes are brutal, but grade boosters! 2 assignments, 4 quizzes. averages are high 80s for all quizzes and assignments(except qz.4)but may depend on your T.A. p.s.there is an UNNECESSARY GRP PROJECT & PRESENTATION as well as 2 assnments

Great prof, very clear, lots of examples, helpful, structured, quizzes relate directly to what was taught, no butthole trick questions. Not condescending at all (if you're a complete idiot, lots of things smart people say must sound condescending).

Mr. Kawash is a fantastic prof. His lectures compliment the lectures very well, and if you pay attention, there's no reason to not do well on the assignments and quizzes. Super clear and concise. Assignments were a lot of work but fair. Read the textbook!

Although he is not the greatest teacher in the world, he is probably the best computer science teacher at the university by far. If you don't like him you don't need to show up as long as you read the notes that he puts out for the class.

Average prof. Nothing wrong with him. Nothing great about him.

He is innocent and fairly easy. Its easy to absorb the stuff in his class without even taking any notes. The assignments and the Alice project were pretty lengthy and useless though. And the TAs that he has hired probably need to learn the material before trying to teach it.

Since Haskayne dictates the content of the course as it is really for their students, you don't like the course don't go into Haskayne. The book is a mash up of a bunch of CPSC texts used in other classes, was not written by prof just put together by him. Not prof's fault class is hard.

I don't understand why so many people hate him. He was a fine prof (nice, knew what he was talking about etc). He wrote the textbook so his lectures are basically straight from there. Material is pretty interesting. Midterm and final are very fair. Not a bad prof at all (just don't talk loud in class he flips)

I took him for CPSC 201 & found that not going to class & just reading the txt helped me (he wrote the textbook so he just repeats a lot of it in class) the textbook has good examples too. Information is not too hard if you understand the practical application (a.k.a go to the labs) in class is just theory based while the labs are applying it. Over

his exams are right out of his text book that he wrote, goes over everything in class if you actually LISTEN, which many people do not do, good prof for CPSC during lectures and is concerned with helping his students, good prof overall

His lectures are directly from the textbook so you should go to class to understand the material. Some of his exam questions are DIRECTLY from the questions in the textbook so know them! Midterm and final were fair but the hands on computer quizzes were very difficult.

Great prof. Material isn't easy- read the text, & attend lectures!! Very approachable, & a fair marker. Exams aren't easy. Expects you to learn the Lecture material very quickly (Spring sem, so try to read chapters before hand; class is very condensed & you get quizzes each class. Teaches you problem solving and higher thinking. Great class!

You need to attend class, because of the clicker quizzes. And, you need the textbook because the midterm and final are open book. Super easy class, however material can be really boring sometimes. He's a good prof that knows what he's talking about, but he treats the students like children, threatening to kick them out and make them move seats.

Very good prof. Attendance requires because of clicker quizzes. He follows the book exactly. He's fair with his exams. Assignments and Labs are EASY if you have a good background with computer :)

Good professor, class is easy if you put a little effort into learning the material. Quizzes necessitate going to class, but don't go if you're going to talk a lot to friends.

Very hard, but very fair. If you put the work in, you will get a good grade. Attendance is a must! First half is exponentially harder than the second half and requires the most work. Semester is divided into 2 sections and each section does not rely on the other. Take Kuipers as your TA if you can. Midterm/final are open book but fairly difficult

Friendly, approachable and interested in the material. Makes mistakes and is not very exact, especially answering questions. Hard course, lots of material covered. The course had two halves and in the first half, x86 programming, the assignments took a lot of time, 5-20 hours. Exam questions were sometimes unclear, but he added bonus questions

Good prof, knows what hes talking about. People can find him intimidating but he's actually very nice. If you aren't interested in doing the work then don't take the course. Pretty simple. If you put time into the 3 assignments and pay attention in labs then you'll do great. Just study the text if you don't go to lectures.

He is a great prof. He gives clear examples, and all tests are open book. He also lets you choose whether clicker questions are bonus or not. He does review before tests as well. If you pay close attention in class, and attend all tutorials, you should do well in this course. If you don't listen, you're obviously going to fail..It's that easy!

Jalal is very passionate about computer science but I felt that this was a really hard course and ended up dropping it. His exams are difficult even though it is open book. Assignments are pretty difficult as well, but if you have good partners you should be fine. Tutorial quizzes are hard.

Open book exams. Were not difficult if you read the text and did the practice questions. Assignments were terrible, I ended up doing all of the work by myself on two of them. They were long and time consuming. TA and prof does nothing to help if you bring the issue up with them. If you want to work alone, they deduct 10% from your mark.

He's very good with his examples and his in class clicker questions are relevant and prepare you well. He's a happy guy and he often lets his students resubmit the clicker questions if they got it wrong. Which is awesome. Makes cheesy jokes too? What's not to love?

Fairly straight-forward with teaching and is friendly and funny on occasion.

Good professor. Straightforward and tries hard to get students to engage in lectures. Assignments extremely time consuming though, especially the Alice one.

I think he's making the course easier as I heard previous sections were a lot harder. Beware it's still the hardest class of 2nd year CPSC. Divided into 2 parts, 1st part slightly harder than 2nd, but that's debatable. Material is very dry but he realizes that and tries his best to deliver it as smoothly as possible. All exams are curved.

In response to the previous comment I also took it in spring. He always used the textbook as lectures were pulled DIRECTLY from the sections in there. All you need is to add notes from class and you're set. Easy course, logic is a but tough but if you study and put in any effort in you will do fine. He's a nice guy and will help. GPA booster!

Took this class in the spring, excellent teacher, able to explain any question you have in good detail. As long as you add class notes to his notes you'll be set for the exams. Easy course

I took this class because they said it was easy. It was not easy. Not a bird course at all if you're looking for one. The prof is a little boring to listen to and not too helpful for grades. Must attend the lectures and tutorials to fully understand and get an A+. Course and prof not recommended.

Not the greatest prof. Unfortunately, he is the only prof teaching this course. Not very approachable. Not very helpful. Slides are not easy to understand. He only uses text book for the last month of the course.

This material is not so hard, but you actually need to go to class to pick up on things that may be unclear if you just download lecture slides.

Prof was funny and helpful. He wrote the textbook himself and the slides are pulled directly from it. Attendance is mandatory for understanding and in-class questions. Some sections were pretty tough, others easy, most somewhere in between. The TAs and tutorials weren't very good, but necessary to go to for a high grade.

Jalal Kawash... The man with perfect hair. What a cool dude. You can tell he loves using Raspberry Pis, and he loves programming ARM assembly. Again, what a cool guy. Would recommend, but beware, he asks annoying tophat questions every class and they are worth bonus marks so you kind of have to do them if you want a good grade. Anyway, take this.

He is a good Prof, the material is sometimes dry but he tries to keep the lectures interesting. He used TopHat questions for both bonus marks and to get feedback on the course in general and he actually cares about making the course better. Expect long hours spent in the Labs for some of the assignments and avoid ANDREW AS TA, SUPER HARD MARKER.

Professor Kawash is probably one of the best profs I've had in my time at university. He knows the course very well and is really helpful. It's a hard course, but he makes it possible to do well and helps set you up for success.

He is really helpful and he tries to make it as easy as he can without putting an A on a platter. Tests are open book because the course is fairly hard - it's not him, it's the material.

Very entertaining prof. Basically gives you step-by-step instructions on how to complete assignments. Tests are open book but SO LONG that you don't really have time during the test to reference your notes, so definitely study for them.

Great lectures, wish tophat were a little tougher as the tests are very tough as he expects you to bring every single little bit of info of the class, tutorials and what he expects you to learn on the assignments. Assignments are also very lengthy, good time management skills necessary for this class. Overall not a bad prof, cheerful and will help.

Kawash is probably the best professor at U of C for machine level stuff. His lectures are clear and powerpoints are posted. The tophat actually helps you learn the content. The assignments are time consuming but not too bad. The tests are open book but contain tricks so they are not to be taken likely. I would take a class with him again.

Pretty cool fella, great taker of feedback. tophat questions are on point. Would recommend. Don't buy textbook, expect to stay in pi labs over night and also fight over seating.

Main advice is once the really long video game programming assignment is assigned, DO NOT leave it to last minute because: 1) You actually won't get it done no matter how smart you think you are 2) You won't get seating in the lab

Kawash is awesome, very clear when teaching course material and what he wants in assignments, also helpful if you visit his office. My biggest complaint is the lab doesn't have enough PCs so get started early on assignments or you might finish late. Also, I wish if we had a proper textbook for reference since all we had was had was his slides.

He was a really outstanding prof . He was really nice and kind prof . I loved him so much .

Amazing prof, funny and tries his best to keep the dry material engaging. Really knows his stuff and the division of the course into non-cumulative modules is nice, also the use of the raspberry-pi in this course is cool too. Only complaints I have are that his tests can be a bit rough and the pi lab does not have enough computers.

Really seems to care about his students. He writes very good slides and is very clear when he explains things. I also like all the top hat questions he does. This course is a ton of work though so prepare yourself. I had to take it twice.

Great professor and a great guy, however the assignments in this class are brutal. You are essentially forced to stay at the lab (yes, only one small lab) for ridiculous hours and the language used is INCREDIBLY finicky. Not a bad class, just be ready for a lot of work and remember to use your time wisely.

Although attendance isn't mandatory, it is extremely helpful. He makes the class unnecessarily hard, but still within the fair range. (You gotta work for what you earn).

Sad - gets rated harshly - lazy kids r upset cuz bomb the asgs - leave them to last minute. They expect answers handed to them. Gives way more than needed to finish the asgs and yet ppl whine about the lack of info? Quiet kids ask dumb questions that are barely audible - of course he doesn't understand. Come on kids, time to grow up. Amazing prof.!

A work heavy class but not necessarily hard; just be prepared to stay long hours in that lab crunching out code that is very finicky for assignments. Tests are not hard at all - you get to bring in any notes you want.

5 assignments, a couple of top hat questions per lecture, and a final project instead of a final exam. We had at least a week to finish each assignment, also granting some extensions when asked. Everything we needed to know for the assignments was taught in advance, but the material for the entire course was posted at the start as well.

The course started off REALLY Good in my opinion, just kinda got more and more tedious as it went on and was honestly very very time consuming towards the end. It isn't hard to pass, but expect to spend A LOT (and I mean it A LOT) of time on this course ESPECIALLY if you are trying to chase a high grade (an A needs a TON of work imo)

Expect some decent reading and pay attention in class. Project was heavy but doable. Interesting class and very applicable to industry and real life.

Overall great prof! Very accomodating to students, giving many extensions, and in general being very understanding. The assignments and projects are quite difficult, but he certainly gives all students the opportunity to succeed. Top hat kinda sucks and mandatory attendance is evil but he's a good prof!

Many students complain about your final exam determining grade. However, if you study through the semester and try the final should be relatively easy. Since everything Up to the final was group work, the final determined how much you actually knew and so it was a fair grade decider. Assignments were very helpful. Difficult GGAs.

He teaches the lectures very well in a clear manner, but leaves a lot of the material to be taught in tutorials by TA's, tutorial attendance is mandatory to pass. The assignments take time to complete, and the tests are open book so he makes them very hard. Make sure you review how pointers work.

Open book tests meant hard questions, but GGAs (basically group quizzes) were a good wake-up call. Games programming assignment was too much work for me, even though it was in C instead of assembly. Had to come to school on weekends for hours to finish it. He's a good lecturer and used Tophat questions with his slides very well.

He has to be one of the best CPSC profs! His assignments we're interesting and the knowledge I gained in class was really useful in terms of DSA unlike Eberly's 331 class. Jalal cares about his student and he passed many students who we're really close to the C- requirement for test components. Prof like Eberly really need to learn from him.

KAWASH IS THE GOAT, amazing lectures he actually explains stuff properly unlike eberly, records his lectures too in case you can't make it in person, assignments were straightforward and marked fairly, tests are still difficult but he tries to give extra marks where he can, I LOVE THIS MAN!!!

Assignments were simple but the exams were moderately difficult. He marks his exams pretty generously though so if you put in effort you should be okay. 331 is meant to be difficult. His lectures explained the topics pretty well but they usually had one or two minor errors.

Jalal Kawash is the best professor that I've ever had, his lectures are pretty good, his notes are completely understandable. He is so nice and kind. I love him from the bottom of my heart. This was the second course that I had with him, and I learn a lot from him! Teaching 331 in spring is a very hard task, but he did it pretty good!

Assignments were easy but the tests were insane! He emphasized what needed to be improved on from the midterm going into the final, and as long as you improved on the important questions, he's willing to boost grades a bit. Seemed to actually care about students doing well. Very difficult class, but he was a great instructor.

Jalal is a great professor in my opinion. His assignments are fair, though they can take a long time and sometimes have issues since he makes new ones every semester. His slides are informative and he draws things out, so it's not like reading a textbook. His tests ARE very hard though. I bombed the last one cuz I choked. Had an A+ average going in

Jalal is a good prof overall. His assignments are manageable but the exams can be quite challenging. However, he's willing to boost grades if you show improvement. I found unstuckstudy really helpful for practice and preparation.

Here's the thing. You want a good grade? Do NOT take his class. You want to genuinely learn so much about the topic, and be taught it in an accessible and well thought out way? Take this course. His tests and assignments are very hard, even with going to lecture and studying, but I learned SO much from this class, and he is great lecturer.

Prof is good, he's a nice person and the lectures are engaging, he teaches with enthusiasm and Most lectures had a good amount of tophat questions that were for bonus marks. HOWEVER, the midterm and finals ESPECIALLY the final was very difficult, probably one of the hardest tests I've ever taken.

Amazing professor. Will teach you a lot, but will definitely touch you in the final exam.

Don't let the other reviews deter you from taking the course. Jalal is a great prof, passionate about the course, and challenges your understanding of the material. If you prepare well and know your stuff the final is fine. Take note of GGA questions, they are about the same level of difficulty for the questions on the final.

His tests are definitely hard, but as long as you look over the GGA's you should be okay. He curved the final and if you were close enough to passing, he automatically passed you. I wanted to hate him so much based on the other ratings but he is genuinely the sweetest man ever and cares so much for his students. You learn a lot with him.

Jalal is a professor I respect. He really put in efforts teaching the class and truely wants students to learn. Assignments are tough soloing through, so make sure to find yourself a teammate. Exams are really tough. Be prepared to doubt yourself a million times when choosing that none of the above.