2.3
Quality2.9
Difficulty26%
Would Retake88
Reviews26%
Would Retake
88
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
12
4
11
3
13
2
20
1
32
What Students Say
“a word of advice, avoid like the plague”
AST111 - 1.0 rating“avoid like the plague”
AST111 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Attendance Mandatory
68%
Textbook Required
71%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.51 avg changeRatings by Course
CHM11CH
5.0
(1)SCIENCE
5.0
(1)PHL83
5.0
(1)ASTA2N
5.0
(1)AST112
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PHL52
5.0
BIO10
5.0
A3L
5.0
CHM90
4.5
BIO11
4.0
Reviews (88)
No Comments
he had a quiz once a week, provided intricate definitions for each questions (that were about a couple pages long), points would be deducted if definitions were not word for word. and he wasted a lot of time in pointless material.
No Comments
I took "The History and Philosophy of Science" with him. The fact that he created such a course for a community college atmosphere, is a reflection on both his vast abilities and sincere willingness to impart genuine knowledge.
He is the flakiest man i've ever met!! He is nice but he spends time talkin about nothing, however he does give you the questions on the test a few days before the test so its kinda easy.
good teacher although makes the class a little too easy for some of the students
He's one of the nicest teachers in the school, and he will really go out of his way to help you with any problem you may have. His class was way too easy and a little pointless, though. If you want to learn about chem, avoid him, but if you just want an easy A, go for it.
HIS CLASS WAS A JOKE. HE GIVES YOU THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS TO HIS QUIZES AND YOU HAVE TO SPIT BACK WORD FOR WORD WHEN YOU TAKE THE QUIZ OR ELSE THE ANSWER IS WRONG. HIGH SCHOLL CHEM WAS HARDER THEN HIS CLASS. HE IS A VERY SMART MAN BUT HE DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO TEACH WHAT HE KNOWS. THE ONLY THING I LEARNED IN HIS CLASS WAS TO MEMORIZE THE ANSWER TO A QUIZ.
nice but goes of the subject ALOT!!!!!!!
If you need chemistry because it is important to your major, then do NOT take this teacher. If you need to fill a requirement, expect to not learn and for his tests, he will give you the answers for a day or two before, word for word. He really "dumbs" it down for everyone. Was a really boring class
Very nice old man. very smart too, but he goes off the subject alot, loves to pass out flyers that have nothing to do with chem. if chem is important in your major avoid him, otherwise he is a easy A! His quizes are a joke, all memorization.
This class is a waste of money. He shows up late and keeps you later. Never taught anything useful, class consisted of going to nineplanets.org and him reading off the site for a good 2 hours. On tests he'd give u the answers the week b4 and u had to memorize and spit out word for word what he wrote. Class is a joke. Don't waste your time.
if u have achoice never take him. The class was terrible.
hes a great guy. willing to help anyone that asks. he definately knows his stuff. i have previously taken another one of Dr. Pelletier's classes and really enjoyed it. He really is a great person to get to know
Professor Pelletier definetly enjoys drifting off topic. He likes to pass around articles that have no relevance to chemistry never mind to what we're talking about. If you really want to learn about real chemistry, don't take him, but if you just need it for a prerequisite he is a nice guy.
Nice teacher but slow! You spend alot of time on each lecture and feel like you will never get to the next note. He prepares you for the quiz but it does need to be word for word or you get points off. Overall- he is fair and sometimes informative. No book required
The worst teacher ive ever had! he is completely unfair with his grading. DONT TAKE HIS CLASS!
Nice guy. Terrible teacher. Student dont learn much and are basically graded on their ability to memorize information. Gives you the answers to the test but the definitions can be a page long, and you have spit back the definition WORD FOR WORD!
horribly unfair, i never missed a class, got 4.0 on every quiz except one 3.2, got a 4.0 on the research paper... YET I RECEIVED A FINAL GRADE OF A C+!!! warning!!! DO NOT TAKE HIM!!!
He does not make any sense. He talks about things that are not even related to chemistry during lecture. He doesn't use a book and you have to attend every class or you will miss what he says.
I highly reccomend this professor for Ethics. I enjoyed the class and the discussions our class had. If you attend you will learn things about yourself that otherwise, you would have never discovered. It may be a challenging course but it is more than worth the effort. You will learn that evil or bad does not exist, merely a lack of good.
Bad teacher! You wont learn anything about chemistry! He actually gets MAD if you ask him a question he doesnt LIKE or doesnt know the answers to! UNFAIR tests,if you leave out ONE word, you get the entire question wrong. He makes up the entire curriculum as he goes, so you have nothing to reference with. HE SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO TEACH!
pelletier, is not an easy teacher to take, alot of studying is required if you want a passing grade. attendance is a must. for an introductory chemisty, this was intense..
This guy is a real nut! Lecture had nothing to do with Chemistry. He was constantly going off on a tangent. Wicked easy to cheat though practically the whole class cheated and we all passed. If you are looking for an easy A and can tolerate an old man rambling then this is the class for you!
Lots of studying, definitions are to be remembered word for word otherwise you loose points. If you miss a class you will get a C on the next two quizzes. He lectured me and another classmate more about smoking than chemistry, said that we couldn't smoke on our break or he would take breaks away from everyone.LOL I didnt listen.
This teacher does lecture more about smoking them Chemistry.lol. The class is all memorization. even though he passed me with an A, I wouldnt recommend this class to anyone who is bad at memorizing an instructor's every word.see im better at that than I am with Chem so it worked out for me.
the guy is off his rocker and should be fired...taught nothing
I spent every waking moment studying for this class. My classmates and I MEMORIZED VERBATUM all of his lectures. I did over 20 extra credit assignments. My final paper was 35 pages long. I got the highest grade in the class a B+. Don't take this guy. It's impossible.
Very nice guy, but terrible at teaching. I have not learned ONE thing in chemistry. All you do is memorize POINTLESS definitions..I would get one word wrong out of paragraph long definitions and get a 3.5 out of 4.0, OVER ONE WORD!! Accomplished NOTHING in lab. Don't take him...
this guy is unbelievable. Nice guy, smart too, but cant teach.. he is all over the place. expects way too much. Beware
Terrible to say the least. Talks and talks all class about nonsense. he should work for google cause all he does is talks about google and how its the greatest thing in the world. need to do a 17 page paper, 30 essay questions, 6 pages on essays for the final. if you want a life other then school do not take this class. not to mention itsan electiv
Horrible teacher, he expects way too much, and his assignments are not clear. I took this as an elective, and this is by far the most work iv'e had to do in any class.
Professor Pelletier is not a good teacher. DO NOT TAKE HIM!!! He is very smart and knows his subject but isn't sympathetic to those who don't have thier doctrite in chemistry. He gives the questions to the quizzes before but you have to memorize the answers WORD FOR WORD!! not kidding if you miss a "the" you will get points off.
Professor Pelletier is not a good teacher. DO NOT TAKE HIM!!! He is very smart and knows his subject but isn't sympathetic to those who don't have thier doctrite in chemistry. He gives the questions to the quizzes before but you have to memorize the answers WORD FOR WORD!! not kidding if you miss a "the" you will get points off.
talked about nothing the whole class...
he is more concearned about punctuation than he is about chemistry comprehension and retension
Extremely nice man, knows something about everything. Very scatterbrained in lecture, hard to follow, but he definitely knows the subject (and many others) extremely well. In all, extremely kind man but frustrating as a professor as he is just all over the place. Easy quizzes if you study, he gives you the questions.
Word of advice..DON'T take him. He is a very nice guy buy talks about nothing. He give you the answer to the quiz a few days before but you can forget one word like "the" or he will take points off. His final was pretty hard. Lab was really easy we basically did nothing there. I would not take him again. He was a struggle all semester long!!
I don't know what people are talking about. Pelletier is the man. If you PAY ATTENTION in class and STUDY, you are golden. The man knows his stuff. If you don't get it, ask questions, but stay on subject and don't be silly. Be involved, he likes it. Write down what he WRITES and SAYS and study it; no book. It's kind of difficult, BUT IT'S COLLEGE!
Extremely nice guy, loves cats. Swims every day from March-Nov. loves natural resources. DON'T MISS A SINGLE WORD or bit of punctuation or you will do poorly!! he grades more on punctuation and grammar than knowledge. memorize every syllable of his lectures and you will do great, miss a breath you will not. DON'T SPEND MONEY ON TEXT BOOKS,not used.
Awsome class!! He is a really cool teacher one of the best i have ever had. His class is usually just a discusion and about 5 quizes total and a final. There is usually never homework unless you do the extra credit google searches and then the research paper due the second to last week of semester. GREAT teacher would most defiantly take him again.
I will admit this class was fun and very intersting. But I didn't really learn anything. We had 2 quizes which counted for one third of our grade. A research paper which counted for one third and then the final. So if you do bad on one you basically fail. Wouldn't take again, wouldn't recommend.
This Professor is horrible he givs you 20 minites of campus commercial and goe off on tanjents than teaching the material.
he gives the questions to the quizes, and the answers (all open questions) must study everything he says in lecture and write it down. he grades on a 4.0 scale. he goes give alot of extra credit. i'm barely trying and I have a B, but I haven't done much to do better...
Dr Pelletier is a very broad professor and person. He makes people think out of the box and that may seem weird for some folks. Very fair with grading. I will definitively take another class with him.
Mr. Pelletier is a great teacher and an overall great person. One of the best classes i've taken at Bristol Community College. Highly recommend him.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. That is, of course, unless you want to talk about "space junk" and the same crap for 12 weeks in a row. Memorization is not learning. Spending 4 hours copying his notes off a chalkboard teaches nothing. Expect a weekly quiz and almost NO lab, just him rambling on. HE is a nice guy, but doesnt match course description! DONT!
Dr. Pelletier is one of the best science teachers i have ever had and I wish there were more like him. If you do the work expected of you (which is no more than what should be expected in college) and actually attend class, you'll have no problem. If you need help, he's just a phone call away. Very knowledgeable, informative and interesting!
I would not recommend this class! memorization is not learning & his expectation is the you do as I say and that's that. He is so disorganized.. He will offer extra credit but he will loose it in his office that's a huge disaray mess. The lab was only part of class that gave some substance... Do not recommend bad experience
Pelletier is awesome. When I first came into his philosophy class, I was a bit frustrated and actually considered dropping the class. He questioned everything you threw at him and it made the class very challenging. I stuck to it and was glad I did. He's been one of my favorite professors and I would highly recommend him.
If you take this class be prepared to test word for word. Scattered lecture material and long drawn out stories. You can do lots of extra credit. Better for philosophy. This class is not about concept rather to memorize
if you enjoy memorizing definitions that are equal in length to paragraphs written in research papers, then you will succeed in this class (as long as it is word for word). If you are a normal human being that has realistic expectations then this class is not for you.
Boring, doesnt teach at all reads everything to you like you are 2 years old. Annoying, not clear. You get the picture.
This is the worst class I have had so far.Lecture is spent 95% of the time with him ranting. The other 5% you are memorizing his rediculous definitions. Oh! and lab you may do two labs if your lucky.You won't use the lab manual.Lastly your extra credit will be lost so don't bother.I personally learned more about chemistry in High school.
He should not be teaching. He has no syllabus, forgets quiz dates, arrived late several times, unprepared, tells you to waste money on binoculars and you never end up using them. He also has no grading structure, its been about 10 weeks and we only had one quiz so far. Be prepared to fall asleep.
Easily the most boring class I've taken. The man teaches little about space. He does ramble on and on though. Talking from everything to languages, history, and anything you could possibly think of. We do no work , done one quiz, and he still hasn't even gone over the final with 4 weeks left in the course. Do yourself a favor don't take this course
Horrible teacher. Didnt learn one thing in his class, didnt do anything that was on the syllabus. Had one test all semester. Did the final stuff in 7 hours and got a B in thte class.
He's very old school and graded me down for spelling. Disheartening, but for every low grade I made up for it will tons of extra credit. Though his classes may seem boring, he recognized something in me and encouraged me on a path I had long closed (science). W his encouragement I decided to go for it, & he's been helpful every step of the way.
He is extremely old school. What he writes on the board is exactly what you must memorize and write down on the tests. Grades on a 4.0 scale and takes off major points for spelling. Haven't learned much about chemistry and I'm actually worried about my chem background as I am a bio major. Take a different teacher for this class if you can help it.
Dr Jim is an amazing teacher and person. Yes he's very old school he ramble's a bit, but he teaches you lessons about life as well as science. He is great. He was one of my favorites.
Worst class I have ever taken. Spends most of the class time ranting doesn't cover all the materials for the tests and grades very tough
if you like going over the syllabus for 4 weeks then you're in for a treat. miserable class, clearly smart dude but cant teach his way out of a wet paper bag. avoid like the plague.
He does more ranting than actually teach. This is an intro class and he teaches it like an advanced class. I haven't learned a thing and I love astronomy. Loses everyone's interest since astronomy isn't the actual topic spoke. He speaks about a subject than just rants about something else. Not a good class to be in and I just started!
if you enjoy reading the syllabus every class for a month then you're in for a treat. hes clearly a smart dude but cant teach his way out of a wet paper bag and spites anyone with a legitimate concern. a word of advice, avoid like the plague.
Hes a talker, goes off on tangents that have nothing to do with Astronomy. He contradict the students and himself. Hes very judgmental about everything and then claims not to make judgments. If you ask him a question, he will ask a question and never answer your question. In my class he used a computer,showing websites,and to read his spam emails
Jim's lectures are very long and many conversations current scientific events that he is very passionate about! I was probably the only one in class who was enjoyed being in class because I liked knowing our current scientific space exploration status. Jim is one of a kind, i like him, but wouldn't take another class with him.
Excellent lactures
Not a good class, had a very hard time in his class, every week you have a test no exceptions, he bases the class off the test, you don't really learn much.
This man does not care. The syllabus seems to be a mimeograph from the 80's filled with vague, outdated information, making the grading a complete mystery. There are no exams because he teaches nothing. Class is four hours of listening to him read his email to us. No science or learning takes place. Egregious waste of students' time and money.
You're stuck in 5 hours of him scrolling through NASA emails during lecture and lab. Incredibly dull and leaves you half asleep within the first half hour. I would suggest bringing homework from another class to occupy your time. Barely any homework assigned, no tests or quizzes other than the final project. Skipping classes brings down grade.
Dr Pelletier is tough. We did not use the book at all in lecture, we did use the lab book. In lecture, take notes. The stuff he writes will be on his quizzes- which will be every week. Memorize what he writes on the board word for word and you will get 100s. The final is a composition of those weekly quizzes. Take the time to study!
His classes are cake work. I have taken him twice and received A+'s both times. The man gives out 2 quizzes, 1 paper, 1 exam (which is the Final), and 0 HW. I would bring my laptop to class and just stream the internet, watch movies, and do nothing and received an A. Will take again if I can. He is easy as a stripper and thats saying something.
10 Observations of space, 2 Instructional Units (you don't present these) for students K-12 and college (like a lesson plan), Research paper. Lectures hold little value to most students, *you don't actually need the binoculars he mentions,* he doesn't help students, but assignments are easy A's because he doesn't genuinely check your work.
IF YOU WANT THE EASIEST A OF YOUR LIFE, KEEP READING. The man simply reads out of his emails for astronomy. If you show up, you get an A. Only thing he grades you on is a Final Paper, 2 instructional units that take 3-4 mins to create, and observations which take 2 mins to do. People are whining for no reason. Easy A+. Take him while he is here!
HORRIBLE. A disgusting waste of student's time and money. No respect for my own time at all. Class was supposed to start at 5 PM and last until 9 50 PM. Changed class time to 4 PM, as if every student can change their life and schedule in a snap. Says binoculars, but did not use it. If you went to college to learn, don't take this guy.
He is the embodiment of the "absent minded professor" it takes him 20 minutes to take attendance, he's always going off on non sensical tangents. SUPER BORING!!
If you take him for astronomy you're almost guaranteed an A+. Only things he requires throughout the semester is 1 paper on whatever topic you want as long as it is Astronomy related. 10 Observations which takes 1-3 minutes each observation. and finally 2 Syllabi, 1 for a high school student and 1 for a pre school student. SUPER SUER SUPER EASY!!!
James Pelletier is a very nice man however if you are interested in learning something about Astronomy, dont take this class. 5 hours of absolutely nothing of importance. Theres no quizzes, tests, homework, classwork. The only thing he grades you on is attendance, lesson plan, and observations due at end of semester. Super easy but super boring
This is said to be a lab and a lecture course. This man spent no time in the lab with us. We had to do all labs outside of class on our own with no help. He was not polite to students and didn't answer their questions respectfully. Syllabus is disorderly and could use updating. Would not take again. Also a waste of $75 DO NOT BUY BINOCULARS!
He teaches/reads out of his emails that take 10-15 minutes to get into. no lesson plan, syllabus is very outdated. RUDE. has u buy $80 binoculars that you wont even use. u think it'd be an easy a but he has you do 10observatons , research essay and 2lesson plans to show what u learned. HOW TF DO U WANT ME TO SHOW WHAT I LEARNED IF U DONT TEACH ANYT
I can understand why someone wouldn't like him, it's the most boring lecture I've had @BCC. However, all assignments are due at the end of the semester. Speak to him to understand what is wanted: 7-12pg research pape, 10 observations of the night sky with minimal detail, and 2 syllabi. Also, don't buy binoculars, they're not needed (AST 112).
don't do this to yourself RUN
He pretty much read from Nine Planets and Earth Sky. Also pushed for a subscription to earth sky every class. Aside from that the class was easy enough. 10 observations and a research paper. We used the binoculars a few times in this class.
Dont do it. RUN AWAY NOW. Received a c fought it, won got a B-
You are unlikely to learn anything about the solar system. He reads out of his email for 4 hours. Its basically a 4 hour study hall that you can just do other homework in. DO NOT BUY THE BINOCULARS. Hes going to tell you to buy 80 dollar binos, we dont use them.
If your looking for a easy grade this a decent class, if you want to learn anything about AST this is not the class for you. 4 hour lectures out his email. Outdated sylallabus. 15-20 mins late everyclass. Takes attendence at the end of classes so if you have to leave early for anyreason, even a few minutes early, you will be marked absent.
Boring teacher, doesnt teach , just reads his emails and then doesnt go over material expected of students due by the end of the semester.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS!! The professor is very nice and all but you wont learn anything about Astronomy!! You sit in class and he just reads off the internet!! There is no set objectives, you just learn whatever is on his email! The only good thing is that all your work is due at the end of the semester. STAY AWAY FROM THIS CLASS! BORING!!
Class Info
Attendance Mandatory
68%
Textbook Required
71%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.51 avg changeRatings by Course
CHM11CH
5.0
(1)SCIENCE
5.0
(1)PHL83
5.0
(1)ASTA2N
5.0
(1)AST112
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
PHL52
5.0
BIO10
5.0
A3L
5.0
CHM90
4.5
BIO11
4.0