2.6
Quality4.2
Difficulty33%
Would Retake110
Reviews33%
Would Retake
110
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
17
4
16
3
23
2
27
1
27
What Students Say
“worst teacher in the history of the world”
MATH124 - 1.0 rating“STUDY YOUR BUTT OFF FOR TESTS OR YOU WILL NOT PASS”
MATH124 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
42%
Textbook Required
82%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.18 avg changeRatings by Course
MATH636
5.0
(1)MATH541
3.7
(3)CALC121
3.5
(4)MATH337
3.1
(7)MATH121
3.1
(41)Difficulty by Course
122
5.0
MAT121
5.0
MATH121L
5.0
MA121
5.0
MATH636
5.0
Reviews (110)
He is very smart, so you should talk with him if you take his class.
Tough guy, totally helpful in office hrs. interesting to chat with too...
It is like a 5 unit course with all the computer labs.
No Comments
Hard teacher,condescending towards students.Seems like he doesn't enjoy teaching
Hard proff, you must speak to him 1 on 1
The worst teacher ever. Taking his class is more like having to teach yourself.
he cant explain the material at all but he is always there to help you out!!!!!!
unclear...Dont ever take him I promise
HE LIKES TO USE COMPUTER ASSIGNMENTS WHICH ARE NOT HELPFUL. BAD TEACHING.
Demeaning in office hours. Knows his stuff. He said his class was the toughest.
computer assignments are helpful but hard. talk to him...he is nice and helpful
He's very intelligent but he likes talking about theory more than how to do work
He is smart, but does not seem interested in teaching students!
demeaning to students, would have gotten a A with any other teacher, hard
Condescending as hell, hates students, doesn't teach - just adminsters tests and lengthy, difficult, lab assingments.
The hardest class ever, I had him for 2 calc classes. He hates everyone because he thinks that he is smarter than them. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS, get a W if you have to, get out. The labs and tests are impossible
You know what, everyone that gave him a bad rating is just plain lazy. He's such a fantastic math teacher. He made me like calculus. Super smart guy too.
No Comments
He is by far the best teacher I have ever had. He makes you work hard but is there every step of the way to help. I have had teachers who are tired and bored with teaching and give easy A's to get rid of students He is not one of those. He is perfect.
Very interesting course. Its hard stuff and there is a LOT of work. He knows his stuff well though.
He knows his stuff however he doesnt always get the idea across clearly to the class which makes it difficult. Go into his office hours if you really want to pass with a good grade.
Too smart to teach. Goes on about biology instead of math
hard as hell. take the class at a community college.
good teacher, first math class i ever got anything higher than a C in. calculus is hard regardless, but he teaches it well. labs are hard as HELL though
Class was pretty easy. Started off slow but ended up with an A in the class. The labs are really hard though.
THIS IS NOT A THREE UNIT COURSE!!! Take Calculus 150 instead, if you're a bio major it counts for both your Math121/122 requirement, in ONE semester. It's worth it!
the lecture is easy and the book he made- it has all the notes and homework. he goes over the notes in class. also all the stuff in the book is online. he was a great teacher! the lab is hard-just follow exactly what the TA does.
Extremely knowledeagble with excellent applied math skills. Excited about the material and communicates well. Very excellent instructor, worthy as a graduate advisor. Hi Joe :)
he's cocky as hell, laughs like an idiot, assignments keep you working until the weee hours..labs suck, he's in charge of everybody else so there's no luck asking for help
Absolutely the worst teacher I have ever had. He's mean and arrogant. He makes very demeaning comments to the students, and puts us down on regular basis. 2/3 of the class is getting a D or less. I'm only taking him because I need to get this sequence done, and he's the only one teaching it.
This is the worst teacher ever. I don't even think he always knew what he was teaching... at least not any of the science behind it. His examples rarely ventured from the books and when they did were based on Bio... never phys. or ast. avoid him if possible! He will also change grading pract at wim
Really cocky teach. Dont bother going to lecture, i actually did better on the tests from not going. Labs are easy but annoying when u get bad partners. Very unhelpful clarifying, normally goes off on tangents about something dumb....
I DONT LIKE HOW EXPECTS YOU TO KNOW EVERYTHING IF YOU ARE TAKING THIS CLASS I RECOMMENT YOU GETTING A TUTOR OUTSIDE OF CLASS YOU WILL NEED IT.
i like Mahaffy he's not a bad teacher like everyone says, they're trippen. He's very easy, as long as you do the HW problems you'll be fine. I got a B in the class without trying too hard. he's not cocky, he knows what he is talking about so stop hating people. He's nice, don't listen to all those other comments.If you need help go to the helproom
He knows what he is talking about and follow the class schedule. Just the lab and homework problems need a lot of time, but he is willing to explain the problems and work with students.
The department should consider change the class to 4 UNITS. It take so much time to finish the lab. However, Mahaffy is a knowledgable teacher who is willing to explain the problem and work with you thru email.
This guy was a jerk. I loved math until I had him. Arrogant, hypocriticle, and demeaning. He always talked down to the class, especially if you had a question or didnt understand him. The lab was a complete joke as well. If possible, take someone else. Like Brock.
He is a very smart person, but has no idea how to teach. Very unhelpful and very arrogant.
The class is easy, you just have to do a lot of work.
All these bad comments come from people who just got bad grades and came to blame the teacher. Mahaffy is very helpful, the homework is hard sometimes, but he answers all your questions in class, step by step. U get a cheat sheet 4 the exams too! The Labs are very hard and they do grade critically but if you do everything else, you'll be fine.
The class is hard, as well as the stupid labs, sometimes you are paired up with imbeciles that dont give a crap about their grades. Class should be worth 4 units. However, the class was pretty straightforward. Mahaffy is a brilliant professor and is willing to help/clarify problems at his office hours. Hard class, dumb lab partners, great professor
He as a human, not so bad. As a proffesor, terrible. The classroom time wasn't that bad either, but it was the labwork that made the class hell. He didn't care that his T.A.'s were allowing their friends to cheat. His lab book instead of guiding the labs, only repeated the problems (15$ down the drain). It was bothersome....
Homeworks take at least 10 hours each, plus you have take home tests and in class tests. He's not hard its just the amount of work he gives and the lack of explanation, belittles you if you ask questions & makes you feel stupid, he isn't available, oh & its your fault if you don't know anything. Acts like his is the only class worth your time.
I took the first half of this math sequence at city college, then when i go here he expected everyone to know the last semesters material. He is helpful, but also degrading, talks down to you and tries to make you feel stupid. His class was structured great , but you better know 121 before you go into 122,(know it his way).
Probably one of the worst teachers I have ever had. He puts down other teachers and seems a little bitter. He goes through examples very precisely, but still can't the message across somehow. The lab is ridiculously hard - not the concepts, but the directions are so unclear. You get assigned partners, so most of the time you're totally screwed.
Mahaffy is very condescending, like the person before who rated him he definitely talks down upon his students. He is boring in class, all he does is go over homework in class--so it's pointless to even show up. Look at his notes online, don't buy the book you won't use it. He has all his notes online, and ex probs help a lot. Labs suck but doable
Prof. Mahaffy is a smart, funny dude. I bought the text book but rarely used it because everything is on his website anyway. We did hw sets online and we got 10 tries per problem. He's very helpful in lecture and also very generous...sometimes he even gave us an extension on the hwks. Despite that, the class was difficult, but passable.
He is a horrible professor...just adding to what everyone already said, he is very degrading, i went to go talk to him to ask about a prolbem on a test and he laughed and me and said i did it wrong, he wouldn't even tell me how to do it right. He is very arrogant and if you havent already taken a calculus class, he is horrible at explaining it.
He is a horrible professor. The FIRST day of class he said, "look to your left, and now to your right. . . only one of you will pass". wow. . . great pep-talk.
Overall, u should know the class IS DOBLE. U CAN pass, but it will require u 2 put in effort 2 study. He is not good @ making things easier 2 understand, nor explaining, but he DOES go over how 2 do problems. Initially, u very well may not like him, like most people. Dont buy the book, print the online notes & webworks problems & bring it 2 class.
Mahaffy is one of the worst teachers i have ever had. this is the class you just want to get done as fast as possible.I recommend you take this class from anyone except him. he is a jerk, very arrogant , and does a great job of overwhelming you with work.
He was really boring and the homework takes to long. The labs take took long but the lab teachers are really helpful. I thought the tests were as long as you took pre calc. Don't go to class or buy a book it is pointless.
this class = waste of 15 weeks of my life. honestly the stuff in lab will never be used again. even the TAs didnt know what we were doing. mahaffy is cool though.
You can pass the class, but it takes a lot of work. Make sure you do ALL the hw because it will raise your grade a ton, so will the labs. Try to do the hw before class so you can ask questions, otherwise you'll be completely lost. He isn't great at explaining, but office hours help, and he'll tell you exactly what to study for the test!
He is a horrible teacher...I got a B in his class and I never went to lecture ever. Just do the homework and study the hw questions and study guide he gives. It's pointless to open your book or go to class because he is a mean cranky man. I can't stand him and he made math unbearable.
He's a great guy, but a terrible teacher. He constantly gets sidetracked in his explanations and lectures. And I've never received a straight answer from him when asked a question. Only way to pass is to do all the homework & do all the practice problems. Go to your Lab professor or the math help room with questions.
Mahaffy can be a great teacher, but you usually have to go to office hours to see it. The lecture is boring sometimes and the information that he gives doesn't help all the time. Make sure to keep up on the online assignments and work hard on the labs. Also make sure to make friends with the TAs, b/c they will get you through the class.
This guy is a math genius, he really knows what he's talking about. I don't know about other people, but I enjoyed his class. If you just pay attention during lecture and do the homework problems yourself, you'll really understand the material and wouldn't have problems on the tests. I aced the final and passed the class with a B.
Mahaffy is a great guy. The class is hard, no doubt about it, but he is not by any means a "horrible" teacher. If you don't have algebra down before taking this class, you're simply in the wrong class. Book isn't necessary. As long as you attend lectures and study for exams, passing this class is not a problem.
It was supposed to be an undergraduate course, but so many dropped that I think only 1 or 2 undergraduates remained and didn't do well. Extremely difficult class. Mahaffy can be somewhat helpful if you go to his office hours.
DO NOT take 122 w/ Mahaffy if you didnt take 121 with him! 121 learns how to code excel & maple. 122 your out of luck if you didnt take 121 w/ him! take 122 at CC!!! whole class is pretty much learning how to code stupid computer program! nothing about the actual math! the rare times he DOES talk about the math he over complicates it & is confusing
One of the best college professor at SDSU hands down. The amount of time he puts into the class is remarkable and it pays off. The material is well thought out and highly applicable to science majors. The class takes work but if you take the time to work at it you will learn some really interesting useful things. Take the class & put in the effort!
He is not a horrible professor. He is actually very clear about what he wants. The homework problems take a while, but if you do them all, the exams are a piece of cake. If you don't understand something, he is extremely helpful in office hours and he goes over as many HW questions during lecture as possible.
Though he does cover more about how to code math rather than actual math, this course wasn't too challenging and he actually does spend the time to help the students learn. WebWorks' insane accuracy is annoying, however, so always remember to take extra sigfigs into account when using Excel.
Really not a good professor, the only thing he does during lecture is read the info he has on his website. You can read it yourself and it'll be to the same effect, you won't really learn anything either way. Went to office hours with both him and the TA's but all of them just answer your question with another one and question your intelligence.
He is a great teacher. He spends a lot of time into making the assignments and grading them. The assignments and tests may be hard, but its because he has a lot of expectation for you. You will eventually learn many skills from his class, some of them are actually useful for higher math classes. A little bit arrogant, but that's justifiable
HARDEST CLASS EVER! im in salamon now with an A!
hardest teacher ever! im in salamon right now and have an A+ that should say something bout mahaffys teachings because i got a straight F in his class last semester! avoid this guy at all costs and take salamon best guy ever
All I can say is that HE IS A SUPER HARD GRADER. Go to lecture or you will be lost. Homework is tedious & Labs are very long and difficult. This class will be your life for the semester. He is awkward. If you take him go to Math tutoring in PS-100. It helped me out. Class is curved. a 63% is a C-. GOOD LUCK! :'(
Very hard class. Make sure you do all your labs, and homeworks, and STUDY AHEAD OF TIME for those exams.
Took Mahaffy for Math 121 and 122. Sometimes his lectures can be vague but ask questions and if that doesn't help, go to office hours-he's super helpful. I went maybe once a week to clarify hw problems, no one is ever there and you will walk out understanding the material. negative: sometimes he'll talk down to you/make you feel stupid
One of the best professors I've ever had. People saying he is hard just didnt keep up with the class. Definitely takes work but if you really try you will get a lot out of it. I learned more from this guy than any other teacher at state.
One of the worst teachers I've ever had. Mahaffy is NOT helpful in the least bit, actually he likes to tell students they need to get tested for dyslexia. I would go into his help hours, when i asked questions he would laugh sarcastically and treat me like i was stupid. I wasn't the only person this happened to, many people were treated the same.
3 WORDS: DONT TAKE HIM!!!! I will elaborate, he just points at the notes as if all the students have known caculus for 100 years like him. Beware of asking questions, he gets mad he once yelled at student for 3 mins cuz she sat in the wrong seat, tests are too long for 50 mins, i have a 3.88 GPA so im definitely not the fail type!!!
Mahaffy is an interesing teacher... I will tell you that I hate calc. but passed his class with an A. He is difficult and a bit harsh at times, but that was kind of entertaining. His class is not for the sensitive type. Follow his power points (you don't actually have to attend lecture)and do the homework and practice tests and you should pass.
Worst teacher ive ever had in my life, do not take his class. He yelled at a student to her face telling her he wants to shoot her because she sat in the wrong seat......hes a complete idiot and needs to get a life. I had a B in the class but because i didnt get a certain grade on the final he gave me a c-. AWFUL TEACHER!
I took him for Math 121. His exams are just like the practice exams but do not memorize how to do it because he prefers to know that you understand the concept. He can be pretty harsh sometime. He yelled at a girl in our class for asking a clarification question. He is a hard grader.
I honestly don't know where all these bad review are coming from. I've always been horrible at math, but he was very patient and understanding with me. He's not the world's best lecturer, but you can always go to his office hours for clarification. He's a bit of a geek, but that makes it fun. Take his class, work hard, and you'll learn a lot.
I personally like Mahaffy... he's very enthusiastic when it comes to incorporating biological trends into calculus. Because of his enthusiasm, I was able to ask him questions and he'd be happy to answer them clearly. Just FYI, don't ask him questions that could easily be answered by your friend... he can get impatient and annoyed.
I really enjoyed taking Calculus 121. Though some students didn't like his method of grading lab reports, but his clarity and approach in helping students in need was worth to be appreciated. If you want to get an A, study, do the homework on time and YES, use only a small white sheet and calculator to solve WebWork problems.
WARNING: DO NO TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU DIDN'T TAKE 121 WITH HIM!I took 121 in a community college, really understood the concepts, final did great, i got a 95% as my final grade. Then took 122 with Mahaffy, and i just completely failed. The math itself is not hard, but his labs and the program maple kill you if you do not know how to use em.
3 tests (hard!) no study guides, cumulative final is mandatory, but not bad because it's basically just the same problems as the tests. Got B's & C's on the tests & 97 ave on homework, ended up with a B+. TA ran the class, saw the prof on last day, seemed nice, but I hated this class, disorganized.paid to have videos teach me..absurd!
Do not take this professor! He is NOT helpful and is very unclear on what he expects from you. The online class is difficult as is because you have to teach yourself, but having him as a professor is completely useless!
Don't even bother with this guy. His lecture is more like a slideshow with questions. goes through it like nothing. and when you ask to work something out or have a question he smirks and laughs and thats it. EXPECTS WAY TOO MUCH and has really no pity on students. Doesn't care. So good luck
Horrible, just horrible. Puts lectures online for us to see, doesn't make any sense. Puts examples that doesn't go with the homework. Horrible teacher, horrible person. I asked one small question and he laughed at me at saying, "well why don't you know this, this is easy math." well if i was a math major maybe, but no. EXPECTS WAY TOO MUCH.
Since i saw someone on this, might as well put one about Mahaffy. just don't take this class if you want to retake it again. Become friends with the retakers, they will help you. Everyone and I mean EVERYONE feels the same about him. He is in it for the money so make YOUR money worthwhile.
He does all power points and every single person in that class string dislikes him because of his arrogance. Hard to focus in class with so many assignment. Get ready to spend your semester in the library doing calculus!
He was extremely condescending. The only reason I got an A- in the class is because I came in with prior calculus experience. He could be more effective if he took the time to explain things people didn't understand, rather than spend that time telling the class that they're all dumb. He is super picky with labs (make graphs at least a half pg).
good luck. half of the class did not pass and it was the first semester offered at sdsu. you MUST work with your classmates to be able to manage the work load. understand that the rest of your classes will suffer due to the amount of work required to tread water in his class. lecture material is dry and not helpful. the power points do NOT help.
Mahaffy is obviously a math genius. However he expects the same from students . He feel that everything he teaches is simple. His Class is very time consuming which will affect other classes. Tests are all very hard... The only person who can help is the lab TA kimmy. I went to every single office hour
constant online homework assignments, condescending teacher, i felt discouraged in this class. tests are so hard, lab reports are time consuming. too much work and you never get a break. didn't like his class website either - too cluttered. do well on the hw and put effort into the labs because they are good portion of grade. study haaard for tests
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS!!! Math 124 is the most time consuming most brutal class I have ever taken. His lectures rarely have anything to do with the lab. He "clarifies" things from lecture in a you-should-already-know-this manner. His TA Kimmy is your best bet to get any clarification. PLEASE save yourself from restless nights & stupid lab partners!
HAHAHA! Is all I have to say about this class. This class is the most difficult thing and DON'T TAKE IT! They tell bio majors that they have to take 124, but you can take CALC 1 instead. Even if you have to do precalc and then calc 1, it will save you so much work and time. This class is horrible and too much work, and Mahaffy isn't the kindest.
DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. They tell Biology majors that they have to take math 124 but that is a lie, do not take this class. Take pre-calcCalc 1. The tests are impossible. Quizzes every week, make sure you do well on those. Actually try on the homework maybe to get more practice? I have to retake along with half the class.
worst teacher in the history of the world. his soul purpose is to be a portentous a hole who does not care about his students and gets joy at watching young professionals fail. he will not answer any of your questions with out being a D about it.
He is a great teacher, his explanations in class are very clear, lots of examples, always takes time to answer any kinds of questions in class. He provides great lecture slides. I never had to use the textbook once. He sets homewok on webwork, easy to get full marks since you get multible attempts. Porgramming homework can be more time consuming.
This was more difficult than the Bio 204 lecture class by a long shot. I spent many hours a week doing the online homework, lab work, and getting tutoring by the TAs. I went to tutoring at least once a week for 2 hours and sometimes twice a week for 2 hours, depending on my work schedule. STUDY YOUR BUTT OFF FOR TESTS OR YOU WILL NOT PASS!
I have been dreading taking this class because of all the nasty reviews of Mahaffy. I finally took his course as a senior, and loved it! Please be aware, the workload is comparable to my upper division classes, so freshmen may want to hold off on this one. In a smaller or one on one setting, he is great. Passionate about teaching. You CAN get an A.
This was my second time taking this class, and I only passed because I didn't have to retake the lab portion. This class is not a joke, and it WILL be your most demanding. He's incredibly sarcastic and can be very rude, but has gotten better over the years. If you have homework questions get them answered in class, beware he will be snarky.
Professor Mahaffy is Rigorous, and will challenge you. You will have expectations in this class; You will be challenged like never before. Though, if you are up for it, It might be the best experience of your life. Consider your workload beforehand, you can see his website here: (simply look up jmahaffy, because I cannot post a URL)
One of the most difficult yet rewarding classes I've ever taken. Lectures are super fast and not very helpful, you'll have to catch him during office hours or barrage him with emails to have any hope of figuring stuff out. Doesn't work through examples, only teaches concepts. You will struggle, but you will become a master at MatLab.
Great Class. Homework and Tests can be difficult, but overall class is curved. Be prepared to spend a considerable amount of time on this class. That said Dr. Mahaffy is the best professor with whom to take this class. Very applied math oriented with many domain-diverse examples.
i thought he was a good professor and was definitely very knowledgeable. he does expect you to understand (and remember) the material from previous courses and pre-reqs, even though most of us needed refreshers. his class is pretty straightforward and he does curve. do the homework and show up as much as you can and youll be fine.
PDEs are very challenging/long, and hws all have so many questions, all of them took me hours to do. Tests don't look like his examples/homework. When we switched to online learning, he gave us double the amount of work. This is finals week and he has 9 assignments to grade. The final's due in 5 days and he just gave us 3 more assignments to do.
Expects you to already know Matlab, uses Maple to solve parts of hard lecture problems, which you have to pay for if you also want to use. Assigns lots of long homeworks, says the book is optional but definitely needed to use it.
Avoid this class with Mahaffy at all costs. If I were to combine all my work from my other classes this semester, it wouldnt even come close to the amount of work Mahaffy gave us. You really have to put hours into the class everyday if you want to pass. Definitely consider taking other classes before 531. This should be a last resort class.
The workload of this class was just insane. I took this class at the same time as taking 3 other upper division math courses and I still spent more time on just this class than my other 3 combined. I did learn a lot and made it out with a B+ but I would not reccomend taking this class if you have a lot on your plate already.
Easiest recommendation for a successful math career is to avoid taking any course with this man. Disproportionate amount of work for any grade, even if it's an A. Also, if you go to office hours to ask a question, he ends up roping you in for hours. Recommendation: Stay away.
Without any doubt in my mind, the absolute worst professor or teacher I had. Even the second worst teacher I had is like Jaime Escalante compared to this guy.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
42%
Textbook Required
82%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
+0.18 avg changeRatings by Course
MATH636
5.0
(1)MATH541
3.7
(3)CALC121
3.5
(4)MATH337
3.1
(7)MATH121
3.1
(41)Difficulty by Course
122
5.0
MAT121
5.0
MATH121L
5.0
MA121
5.0
MATH636
5.0