2.9
Quality4.2
Difficulty32%
Would Retake90
Reviews32%
Would Retake
90
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
25
4
9
3
15
2
24
1
17
What Students Say
“I took him online and it was the worst”
AST103 - 1.0 rating“Likes to put down students”
AST103 - 1.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
59%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
C+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.12 avg changeRatings by Course
AST104GALAXIES
5.0
(2)AST103104
5.0
(1)AST
3.7
(3)AST105
3.5
(2)AST103
3.1
(47)Difficulty by Course
103
5.0
AST102D
5.0
AST105
4.5
AST101
4.4
AST
4.3
Reviews (90)
Very helpful, encourages questions, keeps office hours
Provided many visual images for the online course and very actively involved in students questions via distance education
No Comments
He is pretty funny and the class is quite enjoyable.
Amazing teacher! Encourages questions and has an ability to make complex concepts easy to understand. Take his class!
Everything seems easy and clear but when test time comes 60% or more fails. He uses trick questions and questions that were not taught. Not recommended.
He is not a good teacher, he teaches everything opposite to the book. The tests are for the most part not in the book and if they are it's not the same info he thinks the book is always wrong and he is correct.Do not take class
These people are nuts! He is a great teacher but God forbid you actually have to work for your grade. It's not high school - it's college. Take notes, study, and pay attention in class and you'll pull an A no problem.
Great class to take online. He is very knowledgeable.
I'd recommend him to others.
I was very interested in this subject until I had this class. He is tedious and does not stay focused or on track in discussions. Unless you have had other science classes and are knowledgeable yourself, take someone else! He is constantly correcting himself and disagreeing with the book...Nice person; but lousy teacher!
Great class to attend, very clear with difficult subjects and he is always available to ask questions. Recomend going to veiwing sessions. Good personality and extremely knowlegeable.
I took this class online. He's a cool teacher and has optional field trips during his semesters. I wish I would have gone to one, they seemed like fun. He's friendly and respectful, and strongly encourages people to stop by his office so he can help with any problems. He's great. The beginning of the class is hard, but it get's easier.
Nice guy but doesn't seem to have a great grasp of the subject material. he's also very weird, he wears a kilt to class (and his legs aren't all that good.....).
He disagrees with the book b/c science is always changing. New theories come out every day. An astronomy textbook that I bought 5 years ago is now wrong in some places. He just keeps up with the new informaion, God forbid you'd want to know what's really going on instead of what the textbook says. OPEN YOUR MIND! GREAT TEACHER!
Exam material is worded to confuse you. Much of it wasn't emphasized in class (or even in the book for that matter). Doesn't allow you to make-up quizzes if you miss them (even if you're an avid student and have valid reason for missing class) and a limited number of assignments will kill your grade if you don't perform exceptionally well.
I'm an A student, and I'd spend hours trying to prepare for his exams. I'd STILL score reasonably low if I was lucky - or worse, fail. I've been incredibly discouraged and frustrated with this Professor and his tricky exams (that make up most of your grade). I wouldn't be so upset if I hadn't been studying as hard as I have. NOT RECOMMENDED!
Do not take him if you want to ruin your GPA. His quisses and exam are worded so you fail. His avg mean sorce in his classes is 60. He wear a Kilt to class and the same black jeans everyday. Can not make up quizzes and exam even if you study you will fail them. Do not go over the material so you understand it. On his exams he put question that were
The comments about not following the book is because the subject is always changing. People GROW UP and realize you are in college and have to work at your classes. He is always there for office hour unlike most teachers. His lectures/notes are right on IF YOU USE THEM. Comments on clothing have nothing to do with teaching skill. Kilts are cool!
I don't know who everyone else is talking about, but I thought this course was great and Prof. Batchelor was always helpful and funny! There was a lot of work & he didn't allow you much time to do the quizzes or exams, but if you study beforehand you'll be okay! (they weren't confusing)
He really knows his stuff when it comes to chemistry and astronomy, but I will say his class is a bit difficult if you don't keep up with reading and reviewing your notes. You can't fall behind on anything! There are some questions on homeworks/exams that haven't been clarified and he assumes everyone knows their math. Take if you want a challenge!
taking online class. overall, this class was okay. YOU WILL LEARN A LOT if you keep up, read and STUDY. if you are lazy and expect to just WHIZ through this course, DO NOT take him. 1-2 quizzes every week, 3 exams.
DONT DO IT! HES HORRIBLE!!! by far the most rude, annoying, and careless professor ever. You dont know how to stufy for the test which ends up making you fail and his whole class is based on simply your exam grades. SAVE YOURSELF. Take another teacher!
Dr. Batchelor is a good teacher, however if you are a moron do not take his class, he will not hold your hand through the tests. He is however very helpful one on one. It can be a lot of material and he really does not give you any idea of what could be on the tests, so you need to be prepared for it all,like any normal professor at a real college.
His test are all based on SOLELY the notes. Dont buy the text book, just study the notes that you take in class and you will do fine. I got a B in the class studying 2 hours before every test. All the quizzes are pop, but are really easy and he doesnt round your grade up.
He was a great professor, very knowledgeable and very accommodating when you have ACTUAL question and not a question because you weren't paying attention or didn't show up on time. He's available outside of class for questions too. I'd recommend him!
Dr.Batchelor is knowledgeable in his field from what i can tell. He has a good sense of humor at times, but also is pretty strict. Study your notes, read the book as much as possible. He doesn't have a Grade curve like so many other professors at CSN, so you need to do well on the quizzes and especially on the Exams. Otherwise you will be a failure
I thought he was kind of square until he mentioned They Might Be Giants in class while lecturing about the sun. Be knowledgeable of high school math and read the chapters twice. Everything I've read on here about his testing/grading methods are extremely accurate. I'm going to take his 103. he gives free answers during office hours. make a visit!
As my experience online, each chapter you take a quiz. You have to read the chapter and course notes which is a lot of reading and a lot of information to absorb. The question on the quiz are mostly hard and very hard to pass. Not Recommend.
No. If you want to read a lot take it online. If not it will be very hard.
He doesn't teach, he just talks about his college days in class. Does not give a test review, and the online study guide material is about 20% of whats on the test. If you don't want to spend all day reading the book, dont take this class.
This was the first professor, considering I will be graduating soon, that claimed that extra credit is illegal in the state of NV. Never heard of that. He is misleading, close to incomprehensible and goes way to fast on his lectures.Don't bother unless AST is your passion and you like reading the book all day. Take if you r a science nerd!!!
Difficult online class. Difficult quizzes but you must realize most questions come from study notes. Read chapters at least 4 times to let material sink in, or do poorly. You must work in this class to do well. Very interesting however. You must be able to understand concepts. Study, study, study.
His class is difficult. The lectures don't match up with the study guides. It's just confusing unless you LOVE astronomy.
This is the hardest class I have ever taken and this is my 3rd year in college. He expects you to literally know everything about the subject& memorize everything like its your major. His tests are extremely difficult. Study guides aren't very helpful they are very vague. I studied all weekend for our recent test and still got a 59%. DONT TAKE HIM!
Loved this class; why someone would get a bad grade is not taking good notes, not listening, not reading the chapter, or not coming to class. He explains pretty crystal clear on most topics and wants to help you. Read and take good notes. I loved Astronomy.
This class is hard! I took the class online. There was just so much material to learn and up to two quizzes a week. You have to read chapters and course notes.I did all the work and still have not done well. It's alot especially if you have a full time life.
HARD! Text book is a must. You will have a test every week, sometimes twice a week. Chapters range from 12-35 pages. No papers or projects. Just Quizzes and exams...a lot of them. I took this as an online course. Takes about 2-3 days to respond back to your messages. Very nice person, but very hard class.
Professor Batchelor is a very knowlegable guy, but his class is tough! Don't think it's going to be easy. You WILL work for your grade. LOTS of quizzes. Will not let you go before the sceduled time of release. He encourages all of his students to see him in office hours for help. Read the book! It helps a lot! Take good notes! Makes flash cards!
YOU MUST READ ALL OF YOUR BOOK! Read every little part of it to include the side notes on the pages. Read all the notes in detail and you will do fine. He is very quick to respond to questions online. This class is very time consuming when it comes to reading. About 30 pages per chapter on average. 18 chapters total in the book.
Extremely challenging. Boring. Don't take his class. Trust me
Terrible teacher. Super hard class. Likes to put down students.
Find another teacher. You will not enjoy taking a class from him.
I've never studied so hard in my life to receive a D-. Knowledgeable but doesn't care about his students at all. Would never recommend this class to anyone, not even my worst enemy.
Focuses more on trying to showcase his own intelligence rather than helping the student learn. Totally self-absorbed and very bad at conveying information.
DON'T TAKE THIS CLASS he will give you quizes 15 q 15 min. Only if you know already about AST otherwise you will suffer!!!! No extra credit. I got a C and. I consider myself a very good student I graduate with honors before this is the lowest grade in my life.
If you are looking for a professor who laughs at you when you ask questions, does not tell you what to read for tests or quizzes, and always gives different answers to the same question, you found him! Worst professor I have ever had in my college career. The class average was an F, whether you want that to be you or not, the choice is yours.
Not a helpful teacher. He wants all of his students to see him after hours to go over what was covered in class. If you go into his office he will ask you what you don't understand but will never tell you what material to study. His answer will be, "everything in the book". Batchelor will leave rude comments on the answers you get wrong on tests.
He teaches fairly well, and wants all his students to pass, and gives the class studying advice all the time. You have to work for the grade, but so long as you study the amount you need to, you are guaranteed a good grade.
I would like to say that I have never gave a review, but this professor is so awful that I had to do it. I took him online and it was the worst. He didn't have full lectures or PowerPoint only very short course notes for each chapter. I had to read the whole textbook thoroughly just to get a low B. if your smart take my warn.
This is the hardest class/professor I have had in my life. Lecture is very scattered. There are quizzes every week, sometimes twice a week. 4 big exams and 1 cumulative exam. Test questions are written to intentionally confuse you so don't expect a good grade on anything regardless of the amount you study. Need strong science background to do well.
This is by far the worst professor I've ever had! I dropped as soon as I can. Beware, do not take this professor! He's the most boring person, constantly spits when he talks and is so confusing. If you are majoring in astronomy and can understand gibberish, be my guest.
He didn't show up the first day,the second day he said the students he has had before should have gone to get him. Tells you to please ask questions or come to his office for help,but then makes you feel dumb for doing so. He decided to talk about his girlfriend after passing out an exam,very distracting. Won't tell you the chapt. you should be on.
Tough class, quizzes almost every class covering the lecture before and the reading. They are super easy if you just review your notes. He is a great lecturer, kind of funny. He has office hours and is available for help. He writes the exams so if you need help, GO TO HIM! Great class, would take him again.
Week 2 review: I've been attending CSN for 4 years now and this guy's a special kind of teacher. Every teacher I've had here is usually very passionate about teaching the students. I think his speech impediment has caused him to have a disgust in all those around him. Laughs at students questions, quizzes on very little of the "required" textbook.
Absolutely killed any desire I had to learn about astronomy. Expects all chapters to be read before class discussions, and gives a pop quiz every class based on the readings you were supposed to have done. Strict grading--will mark you off for things like grammar and spelling. Only grades are the 5 tests and daily quizzes.
Very boring lectures. Knows his material although I am not an Astrology major.
Unless you're SERIOUSLY into astronomy, DONT take his class. UNLESS YOU WANT TO READ READ READ READ READ THE ENTIRE TEXTBOOK--- find someone else. He doesn't give homework other than the reading but he lectures down to the last minute of class, be sure to take notes, that's what quizzes are on. It A LOT of reading, quiz EVERY DAY -VERY HARD CLASS!
You will have a test everyday including the very first day of the semester. These small tests are a huge chunk of your grade. There is a textbook and you have to read it or youll fail. This class is the most expensive nap youll take. Do not regiment in person. Id try online.
It was the most interesting class I have ever taken. Professor is challenging but he shares all the knowledge he has even from chemistry and geology. Received my first B but not disappointed at all. Would come take him again as soon as I'm done with requirements for my major. This guy knows a lot! If you want to work for NASA, he's a perfect mentor
The worst professor I have encountered. He is rude & makes you feel you are dumb when you get the wrong answer. His arrogance is about as irritating as when he spits when he talks. No sympathy for his students. HEAVY readings. LOTS of quizzes. DONT TAKE THIS CLASS!
On the first day of class he expected us to had bought the text book and threatened to quiz us on the first chapter. Quizzes literally every class on very specific information. Rambles during lectures so its hard to know what he's teaching and what he's just blabbering about. Threatened to penalize students for using the bathroom. Take geology.
I hadn't been in school since 2013, so I was really scared of going back again, but this teacher has made it supremely easy to get back into learning! Yes you do have to read the text before hand and theres lots of quizzes. He does an excellent job elaborating on the material however and encourages you to ask questions always. Very easy to approach
the time limit on the quizzes is unacceptable. the majority of the class passed with low grades.
There will be quizzes every day of class. The quizzes are based on the book and the lecture. The quizzes are 30% of your grade. You are expected to read a new chapter every class, but it may take more than one class to cover a chapter, so it's stated that the quizzes are based on the lecture, not the book but you HAVE to read too. spelling import.
I did not pass his class. Professor gives quizzes beginning of each class, if you are more than three minutes late you cannot even take it. His notes just don't give much correlation to the quizzes, I did so much studying but could not figure out why I was not successful in his class. I truly believe he needs to change his teaching style needs chge
Quizzes most days. May have questions on topics that haven't been covered. Requires reading ahead; must read every week. Must go to class.
Had this class 2x a wk & would take a quiz EVERY time. Definitely not enough study time for someone who works full time & takes night classes. ALL you're being graded on is quizzes and exams, no participation pts, no xtra credit, no hwk to at least practice. & If you're not a good test taker like myself then you're doomed.
Don't. Quizzes every single class and not enough time to study. The information in his course notes, textbook and in-class lectures are never the same so you never know what information is correct. I wouldn't recommend.
Read, read, study, study, quiz, study, study, exam, repeat. You MUST study and understand the course notes, textbook material, and attend the lectures to get a solid grasp of the material. There are daily quizzes that cover lectures and textbook material. This class is pretty straight forward but requires dedication and time.
Quizzes every class that make up 30% of your grade. If you dont study, you wont pass
Amazing teacher, super informative and helpful anytime. His exams and quizzes aren't hard but you have to make sure to put the time to read and make your own notes after class. Taking notes during class is also mandatory as things he says in class can be in the quizzes too. I liked him as a teacher, but i wish i didn't slack i could've gotten an A.
Dr. Batchelor is very helpful. During his office hours, he was able to answer my questions, check flashcards, and even drew telescopes on the board for me. He would go over the test questions as well. I did pass the class with a D, and as time went on my test scores improved. I found the quizzes to be the most challenging.
So you want to learn about Astronomy? Don't take Dr. B. Hes arrogant, condescending and wants to know why our class had a 54% GPA, but is not willing to take any of the blame. Quizzes are a huge part of your grade (worth more than your final test). If you do take his class make sure you read the book before the first day of class!
He has 5 grades for the semester- 4 exams and a final exam. Most of them are not found in the textbook that is not even necessary for the class, they're found in the notes he leaves in the modules. Exams are a ton of questions with less than one minute to spend on each answer. Wouldn't recommend to someone who has test anxiety like me.
Hardest class, you will actually walk about with some knowledge.
Well. Test heavy with no projects is pretty brutal, but I ended up with a B. Shouldve gotten an A, but dragged my feet on studying for the final. Absolutely take his quizzes and if you miss one, you will not receive the answers for it, which are vital to passing the exams. Study the quizzes and youll be fine.
One of the hardest classes ever, most information that i have ever learned from a single week class
There is a quiz for every few chapters, the quizzes do not count toward your grade. I would say there are 2 quizzes on average each week. 4 exams that DO count towards your grade and 1 final exam. It is in your benefit to study the course notes and use the quizzes as a study guide. I like the pace of this class. The professor is caring.
I wish I would’ve read his rating before taking his class.
Bought the $150 textbook, barely opened it. The tests really only pull from the course notes that he posts in the module. There is a LOT of reading, but you will learn quite a bit if you work at it. Don't put stuff off to the last minute. Take the quizzes and study. He docks partial points for grammatical errors, so be aware of that.
I gave him such a low rating because things are just due randomly. I used to have a B but then I missed one exam which lowered my grade down to a D trust me he makes stuff due at such random times. It's not like most professors where things are due at on Sunday at 11:59 pm no. Things will be due randomly with no consistency .-. really annoying
You will learn a lot. And you will read a lot. Pretty tough class but if you learn how to study the guided notes for the quiz and then study the quiz for the exams you will be fine. loved the class but it was harder than average.
Arrive Early!! Quizes every class that are a large part of your grade, and he will not give quizzes to late students. Make sure you hand him your quiz directly to him or he'll make up some 'technicality' on why he can't accept it too. Read the book before taking the class as the class moves very fast and grades are determined by quizzes/exams.
I took astronomy with this professor, and the class had lots of reading, and big tests every week. I found astronomy to be a hard subject for me, and the information was very confusing. This class took me a long time every week, and there was lots of work every week. At least there was no textbook!
Only 2 quizzes a week, so not super hard! He puts long lectures on, so I couldn't stay focused and read through the whole thing, but still did okay in this class. Also, make sure you get everything turned in on time, he doesn't open anything early, or leave it open for longer, so make sure you are on top of all the work. An easy class!
Its not the professor thats difficult its the class its self. Everthing is on canvas weekly quizzes and exams.100 points on each thing. Lots of reading I dont recommend if taking other classes I barely passed with a B. Plus you have to download a browser in order to do everything. Doesn't unlock anything early til the following week.
I took the summer class that was 4 weeks. It involved reading his class notes that he has up on Canvas for over 12 hours a day so I could take my own outlined notes. I understand it was a fast class so that wasnt the issue. Just be prepared for that if you are telling a 4 wk. It was his "????" responses as feedback. Not helpful and seemed rude imo.
I recently finished Dr. B.'s class. He is very pleasant, as is the nature of the class; read a section or so of notes, take a quiz, and then complete a compiled exam after every few sections. Dr. B. is clearly very passionate about his field; I finished the course feeling much more informed about the cosmos!
The class is really interesting and all of the readings are pages he wrote. You can get the textbook but it is not necessary which is nice. He is super duper strict about deadlines and if you have ADHD I would recommend to not take his class. all of the tests and quizzes are taken through a lockdown browser which is pretty inconvenient.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
59%
Textbook Required
40%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
C+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.12 avg changeRatings by Course
AST104GALAXIES
5.0
(2)AST103104
5.0
(1)AST
3.7
(3)AST105
3.5
(2)AST103
3.1
(47)Difficulty by Course
103
5.0
AST102D
5.0
AST105
4.5
AST101
4.4
AST
4.3