2.6
Quality3.3
Difficulty23%
Would Retake102
Reviews23%
Would Retake
102
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
21
4
14
3
11
2
22
1
34
What Students Say
“I would never take any course with him ever again”
ENG100 - 1.0 rating“Easy A or B in the class if you do the bare minimum”
ENG100 - 2.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
92%
Textbook Required
38%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.38 avg changeRatings by Course
ENGLISH100
5.0
(1)ENG103
5.0
(1)COMP100
4.0
(1)ENGL100
3.5
(15)ENG100
3.0
(35)Difficulty by Course
ENGL100B
4.5
ENGL102
4.3
ENG102
4.0
ENGLISH102
4.0
ENGL317
4.0
Reviews (102)
looks like a bald, tall norm mcdonald; pretty cool
he is fun, cool and easy. he's one of those teachers that cuss and let you call them by their first name. i love that
Fun ass class, ull talk about anything the whole time, so it goes by real fast, he always talks about movies and is a good teacher. grades pretty easy, and essays are not too hard, not even long at all.
Awesome teacher, especially for incoming freshmen, makes you feel comfortable. Not hard at all, just do the writings and you will be fine. Looks like the guy from ER, Dr. Green (without the glasses). Highly recommened
way nice, easy going, talks about movies and weekends and stuff. interesting and fun. if you want a cool teacher get him! always at office hours too
He's a good teacher that is really easy to talk to. He tries to talk to all students and doesn't really play favorites. Great class, not too much reading... and just 3 major papers. If you take this class- don't even stress it!
He is definetly a fun guy who is willing to work with students one on one, and help them if they are having any problems. If you do all the major assignments you will have no problem in his class.
okay class. hes a pretty laid back guy, good for an english teacher because he doesnt work you too hard. fair amount of homework and a good grading system. helpful if u need it
He's really laid back & easy going. Kinda funny in a weird sort of way. He assigns a few papers during the semester but they're all fairly easy to write. He also assigns 3 novels but you'll have plenty of time to read them.. as long as you keep up with the reading you'll do fine in his class. He's also really friendly & easy to talk to.
No Comments
This teacher is a really cool guy, funny as hell however he really isn't a good teacher. He's easy in the sense that he only assigns a couple of papers, but a good english teacher requires good feedback, which is something he lacks. He cancels class all the time because we never do anything productive in class.
He shows up late a lot, and class gets cancelled frequently, which i didnt mind.He is pretty laid back, but a little akward. The work load is average, and there a few papers.
He isn't very strict. There are no pop quizzes or tests really other than the final. If you show up, you'll get a good grade. He's very understanding so if you talk to him he'll be lenient on due dates. Very laid back and chill. I recommend him for this class!
he's awesome!
Great teacher! His papers are not too difficult as long as you back up your examples with facts. He makes what could be very boring topics interesting.
Oh Stavast. I have many things to say. He was always late, rambled on and on about "off-topic" ideas he had. Always went to the movies. The feedback he gives you is similar every time. It's as if he writes the same thing on everyone's paper.
I have to say his class has been an unpleasant experience. John always had this smirk on his face and he often spoke condescendingly as if he felt superior to the class. A student attempted to answer one of his questions and he felt the need to say how wrong that person was. Says people watch the History Channel only for war. Way too Judgemental.
Talk about arrogant! When Stavast talks to you he really tries to make you feel stupid! I hated going to class, so glad I'm done and will never have to go to his class again! DO NOT TAKE HIM!!!!
only 2 major papers, a few other minor ones, midterm and final is an in class essay he gives you the prompt and you can write notes on the first page of the blue book! great class
This class was a joke! Only english 1 teacher that makes you take a final! I did not enjoy this class what so ever.
I didn't turn in 2 important essays and still got a B. The papers that you do are soooo easy. I didn't do it because I was lazy. Over all, the class is a cinch. He's really cool, and if you turn in late work you will most likely get credit for it anyway. I also like the topics we write about and discuss.
3 major papers, 1 final. There are minor response papers, in-class or take home. His instructions for the papers are pretty straight forward. Follow directions and you will get an A on your paper. I don't think I really learned much in class though. But going to class will give you ideas for your papers.
Very chill professor. 3 major papers (a lit response, research paper, & Isearh paper) & a couple of minor reponse papers. He's a nice guy, and lenient on due dates. Cancels class alot, but always extends office hours in case you need help with anything. Very easy A. & he loves movies!
Very chill professor. He's a nice guy, lenient on due dates. Cancels class ALOT, but always extends office hours in case you need help with anything. Very easy A. & he loves movies! Try to incorporate films in your writing and try to have small talk with him and he'll like you.
This man is intelligent, I can tell. Does he use his intelligence? Not at all. You will never witness him accept an opinion that he does not agree with, regardless of the evidence you provide. He grades not by your performance but by whether he likes what you have to say. I learned nothing from him but that professors can be disrespectful and rude.
He's really sarcastic and really rude when he teaches. He will pull the worst paper out of the bunch and talk about why it is so bad in front of the whole class. He also didn't really teach anything he mainly just told you to go home and write.
Honestly I learned nothing in this class. He is a nice professor and all but can be rude at times. Attendance is a must the first few weeks of class. Easy A! All you will do in this class is go home and write essays. Class time was useless most of the time.
He is a cool teacher but very hard to understand what his expectations are. There's quite a lot of writing, because it is a writing class, but there is literally a paper due every other week. Easy A or B in the class if you do the bare minimum.
During the 1st day of the semester, I was thinking to drop out of his class because he looked kind of strict and hard. I'm glad I didnt do that. This class was so easy. He is so nice if you get the chance to talk to him. Basically, you'll have an essay topic every other week. Attendance is mandantory. Overall, a very easy A class if you even try.
Highly Recommend!
a lot of writing. 7 page papers or more from time to time but with citations and peer reviews included. attendance is critical because thats when you get the most help for your writing. midterms are easy, you get to basically do it at home and just take notes and bring the notes to class. he adds extra office hours during the week and weekend!
Has good sense of humor. There are bits of homework that are doable. Essays assigned often. There were about 3-4 major papers. Midterm and final are both in class essays. Thorough criteria. Due dates often are extended. Sometimes he makes essays turned in on Friday, when no one has class. Good feedback on papers and easy to talk to.
Although very cynical and sarcastic, he pushes students to become better writers. I did not know what I was capable of writing lengthy essays until I took this class. His writing style and expectations are rather unorthodox, but it is overall beneficial because it allows you become comfortable with different styles. I recommend taking his class.
This dude is awesome. I was going through some tough circumstances outside of school which led to absences and missing assignments but I still managed to pass thanks to him. Open-minded, helpful, funny, down-to-earth, and assigned us awesome essay topics (if taken seriously). Truly helps students unleash their potential for writing research papers
A couple of summaries, 3 essays, a midterm and a final. The workload isn't bad as long as you don't procrastinate. He likes group discussions and peer reviews. You need the book Money for your summariesoutlines. I survived without buying RW by taking pics of the assignment off someone else who had it. Put in SOME effort and you should be fine.
He is always saying that his goal is to be a better teacher. To do that, he needs to work on some stuff. Yes, he extends office hours to help students and extends due dates. Yes, topics are interesting to write about but he's not an easy grader. He is confusing on what we need to fix on our essays. His class is also boring, sometime pointless.
Stavast is by far the MOST disorganized& lazy teacher I've ever had. It's the end of the semester& I still do not know my grade because he hasn't finished gradingANY of our work from the past month. Class is boring, time is used inefficiently. He assigns an 8 page essay 4 days before it's due. He's impractical and unreasonable. Not an easy grader
Stavast is lazy. Completed an essay and midterm over a month ago and it is still not graded yet. Class time is pointless. He rambles on. U will dread class. He does not respond to emails, so don't bother. He does not even deserve the 3.7 rating. I feel like I've learned nothing valuable from him. Better off reading a txtbook. Not easy on essays
he makes you do a lot of in-class writing on random topics (most of the time, i feel it's because he doesn't know how to utilize class time efficiently). and then the feedback we get on our papers aren't that great or very vague. it takes him a long time to return back work too. hes not the most terrible, but for sure not good enough to recommend
stavast takes at least one month or more to grade essays/midterms. he makes you write essays about what interests himself, such as politics. u will be doing a lot of ethos research in ur papers as well. so if that bores you, i highly recommend taking someone else. almost every class day, u will be doing in-class writing. he assigns hw frequently
he can be blunt. will check your essay and state out loud to class what is wrong with your paper. he is interested in recent news, so a lot of your writing assignments will be based on that. you may find yourself extremely bored in class, or find that your time is wasted. he assigns hw often from the books, but forgets to collect homework a lot
His class was extremely boring and most of the topics that were discussed weren't relevant to what we were working on. He enjoys to ramble and go off topic. On top of this, he takes forever to grade papers. The semester is over and all of us still don't know our grades. I suggest that you don't take him. But sadly, he does take role.
This critical thinking english class was more of a political science class than an english class. If you're not into politics, I suggests another professor. Class time was not used very efficiently. Go into his office hours, as he is a very harsh grader. If he doesn't like your answer in class, he will call you out on it. he's a very slow grader.
do not take him. goes off topic during class and is very forgetful. not organized. often times he forgets what hw he assigns us too. you will dread waiting for your papers to be graded&returned back to you because he takes a long time. Very unprofessional. calls out on students immaturely. in the end, he's the one making the fool out of himself.
Assigns 3-4 essays. Not great on feedback. Still wondering if he knows how to teach. Felt like class time was pointless. Talks nonstop about irrelevant things. Just bring hw from other classes& work on it in there if you want to stay productive with ur time. Or actually, just take a different professor. At least maybe you'll learn something.
not a great professor. wastes time and takes forever grading essays and assignments. there are many other eng professors that will suit you and your learning better. also is not lenient on grading and NOT CLEAR on grading criteria either. u will spend most of the semester wondering what grade u have in class... avoid if at all possible!!
tough grader. class time is pointless. not organized at all. DONT TAKE HIM
starts is not clear on expectations. so don't be surprise to receive the grade you get on your essay. he is not an easy grader. very picky. takes entirely way too long to grade and return essays/assignments. assigns random hw and is condescending with his words. he rambles a lot, so class time was pretty unproductive. very boring
Class is rough to sit through. Takes attendance every class. He often goes off on tangents. 3 essays, 2 smaller papers, a handful of other written assignments. Midterm and final are in class essays you can prep outlines for. You can revise a couple of assignments which is nice. He's cool and cares a lot about the class, it can just be pretty boring
If he does not like your topic he will not give you a good grade. Coming to lecture is pointless but mandatory since he takes attendance. One lecture he played a video of a fat man playing flappy bird the entire lecture. You will have something due every week.
best bet is to avoid & take another professor. felt like i was wasting my time taking this class. didn't learn much and it's NOT easy A either. I don't recall anyone in my class that I sat next to receiving an A. pretty difficult to get an A on his essays and he always assigns work that is due. takes awhile to complete all the busy work he gives
If possible, take another professor! He is very unclear on all essay prompts. His lectures are off topic and very unorganized. His assignments are mostly 3-5 page essays on topics that make no sense. He is a very tough grader. However, he does not put any grades in the grade book making it impossible to know what your final grade will be.
To be honest, I have no idea what the purpose of the class was. His tangents lasted forever about movies and articles that really had nothing to do with the class. I thought I was doing great in the class because I got positive feedback on each assignmen, but by the end of the course when I checked my grade I was shocked to receive only a C.
Fall 2011 - never forget. For a particular assigned essay, we had individual time slots to meet with him for critique. He accused me of plagiarizing and using an old essay from high school. I was taken aback by this remark. Although I was a freshman, he shouldn't have undermined my ability to write. Got A'S on all assignments. I can write, dude.
Do not take English 100 with his course. Class is mandatory, yet absolutely pointless. He is a hypocritical grader on papers and will ask for unnecessary subjects. I would never take any course with him ever again.
Rudest person ever hands down. We are in college and deserve to be treated like adults. He thinks he knows everything. Far too many teachers at CSULB to be stuck with him.
Summer session. Goes on tangents a lot. Brought book recommendations every class, which was cool. Gives good feedback and papers req'd 3+ student readings each. 1 group project. Don't let him catch you on your phone. I honestly thought he was good and the class was easy, but other students were struggling with the amount of writing.
I only learned how to appeal to his stylistic preferences. Rare lectures but his assignments are based on chapters from the expensive book.. There are 6-7 large assignments due with peer reviews, and he also has in-class work. He's big on tearing down someone's idea/work in front of class. Stops class so we listen to him go off topic. Harsh grader.
lots of writing, both hw assignments and in-class essays/evaluations. he tried to make the assignments interesting to us when possible. a couple required more than just writing (extra research/footwork and photos), longest was about 5 pages long. high standards, but not unfair. if you can write decently, youll be fine.
Worse professor on campus! Avoid this class if you can, he is very unclear on essay promps and so rude when you ask for clarification, He assumes you know what to do so He isnt very helpful. I learned NOTHING in this course. He doesnt input grades so you never know how youre doing. Theres way to many Eng. professors at CSULB to end up with him
Prof. Stavast was very boring. He is also unclear when it came to assigning work, made it sound more complicated than it actually was. Pretty easy grader though, so if you dont mind having a boring lecture and a pretty easy grader than this professor is for you.
Definitely has a preference about writing style: he prefers conversational writing. Very tough grader. Attendance is mandatory but he spends most of class going off on random tangents. Very rude and unprofessional, don't count on him being there during office hours. If you have a choice, do not take him.
Rudest teacher/professor I've ever had. Whistled at me like a dog to get my attention... Literally refuses to give an A. If he doesn't like your writing style, then you're screwed for the whole class.
Professor Stavast is very fair when it comes to grading. People who complain are most likely not strong writers. He does get off topic and rant most of the time.
The grading criteria is unclear and he doesnt put grades on beachboard, so you wont know your grade until the semester is over. Got an A on most assignments, but somehow ended with a B. Not hard to get a B/C, but if youre looking for an A its nearly impossible. Easily the worst and most disorganized teacher. Too many essays, all pointless.
I have never had a more unorganized professor. When assigning a paper, he does not explain what he wants from you until it is too late to change it. You will have to read lots of very long articles so be ready for that. Takes very long to grade papers and you will not be able to find out what your grade in the class is until the end of semester.
Worst English professor you can take! Never clear on what he wants; says one thing then changes it completely. don't buy the books, you don't do anything in them. If he does not like your writing style, you'll definitely struggle. He is also rude, and is super vague. Does NOT grade on time so you'll never know ur grade. Wish I could give a ZERO
Worst class ever! He was rude and unprofessional from day 1. Never stays focused on one subject and gets off topic. DONT TAKE THIS CLASS UNLESS ITS YOUR LAST RESORT!!!!!!
Don't take it if you aren't the best at writing. He has mood swings, boring lectures and goes off tangents. Don't ask many questions, he gets angry. This class has like 3 main essays (one was 9-11pg, others 5-7pg). There are "friday journals" and add. evaluation articles. Unclear guidelines and due dates. Post grades at end of semester. Good luck:)
Prof Stavast's class is boring!! He gives a lot of papers and it takes forever for him to put in your grade... I literally only have one assignment graded and it's almost the end of the semester. Like I said he isn't that bad but not good either.
I understand why a lot of people dont/didnt like him. He wasnt an easy grader and his grading criteria wasnt super clear, but I still respect him. I think the pandemic hit him harder as a prof, so he isnt that organized. I advise to only take him if its your last resort, because I'm just luck that i enjoy writing so i ended up with an A.
The professor was very unorganized and would never give specific due dates for his assignments. He would assign one assignment whether it was during class or for homework, and by the next lecture, he would forget about it. On top of that, it was hard to get a hold of him during specific times he provided for "student hours."
Thought provoking class discussions. Makes you interested in Critical thinking/argument. Chooses interesting and diverse articles. He works with you to learn and excel so do not give up. We used the textbooks but not much at all. This was a remote class because of Covid. This course was taken at LBCC, not CSULB.
This is an incredibly insecure teacher. I would definitely not recommend taking any classes with him. Unclear rubrics and doesn't know what he's talking about. Frequently asked the students for help with things that he was supposed to be teaching us. Though he graded harshly, his rubrics made no sense and would be inconsistent with how he graded.
rude and unprofessional. not prepared for classes and graded harshly. his rubrics were confusing.
was mean to students and not clear with his assignments. very indecisive with assignment requirements, due dates, and what we would be doing. his assignments were not helpful to learn the course outcomes
He would change his mind constantly about assignments & due dates depending on how he was feeling that day. No clear communication and he would nitpick our assignments based on criteria that he did not have in the assignment description. He also assigned busy work that he would never end up grading. Don't take this teacher, save yourself the money
He is a very harsh grader, to the point where he will give nobody an A on an assignment without any reason given. Also assigns lots of busy work throughout the semester that he never ends up grading. That being said, he is flexible on deadlines and doesn't often give out failing scores on assignments. Do not take if getting an A is your goal.
Disorganized, goes on tangents, unclear assignments, changes due dates and what he wants for assignments. Some assignments were very interesting, but seemed better suited to lit/film/philosophy and like he was trying to force a technical/corporate assignment out of them, so it was confusing. If you like writing and put in effort you should be fine.
After looking at his ratings here on the first day of class I expected him to be a bit of a rude professor, but honestly he was pretty chill this semester. While he is a slow talker and can be a bit disorganized, he gives pretty helpful advice to essays and he was really flexible with due dates.
Very unclear directions and a difficult grader. He would just talk for hours and it was hard to follow along with what he was saying. Often got side tracked.
One thing Prof Stavast liked was participation. He liked the interaction between students. If you need help all you have to do is reach out and he'd give you the best advice he could. I took this class because it was required, but I actually would take it again. There's a lot of writing and essays but some were actually enjoyable.
He does talk a lot in class which can be seen as a good or bad thing. There were a lot of unclear instructions when assigning homework and does make up dates off the top of his head. Be sure to talk to him after class in case you have any questions. He does care about his students but needs to work on his organization. Be ready to write a lot.
Listen, okay? I am in my fourth year of college and this is BY FAR the worst professor (or teacher of any kind) I have ever had. He assigns too much work, he rambles, he gives unclear instructions, he is inconsistent with deadlines, he grades arbitrarily (feelings>rubric), and worst of all, he will dispute facts if contrary to his opinions.
Stavast was a great professor. He does assign weekly quick writes of about 300 words, but overall if you get your assignments in on time and get the essay's done you'll easily pass the class. He also lets you revise your essay after you've submitted it. If there is anything going on in your life make sure to communicate with him about deadlines.
This professor was by far the WORST professor I have ever had. He was rude, unpredictable, and graded based on his mood, not the work or rubric. Assignments and due dates were always a mess, and class time was wasted with pointless activities. He has absolutely 0 structure when it comes to his class and you should NOT select him as your professor.
Take this class one if you're CONFIDENT in writing! Professor Stavast isn't the worst professor, but he is a very picky grader when it comes to grammar, word usage,& structure in essays. Additionally, his class wasn't very organize, however, if you keep up & do well on assignments such as weekly discussions and big essays, an A is very possible.
Overall, Professor Stavast was a good professor. The course itself is not as difficult, as we mostly do group work or solo work in class. Its not impossible to get an A, just depends on hard work and some luck.
Can be a cool person sometimes and will bring doughnuts if his phone rings in class but he's not a good teacher. Grades based on opinions, mood and discusses politics in class. Assigns a LOT of work, never clear on the instructions, and nit picks at everything. Rants for 45 minutes and gives no time to do anything and leaves you confused.
This class was way harder than it should've been. The biggest issue I had was with his grading, he subtracts points on the tiniest of things. He was quite moody at times. It felt that he was only nice/helpful to the people who are naturally gifted in writing. Please jus do yourself the favor and AVOID this class at all costs.
Overall, this class was TERRIBLE. There was a lot of homework/classwork, the teacher yapped practically all class leaving no time to do anything, and he was sometimes moody. I had an altercation where he was super rude and disrespectful towards me in front of my other peers. AVOID this class if you can, it's not worth the headache.
Stavast is a crazy tough grader. He is really nit-picky, and I lost points in my essays for using words he didn't like. For a GE class, it's too much. Almost all the time, no one in class receives a full mark for simple assignments because he will find something to mark you down for. Stay alert during class because he will call you out.
Would assign essays and forget about them making the due date weeks later he was never specific when the essay was due so you would either luck out of have It due in a couple days. Was super picky when grading if you used a work you didn't like he would take so many points off.Yapped so much never learned anything in class Clearly had favorites.
Avoid this class... That's all I have to say... Too much work for a lower division class.
He is alright. Sometimes he makes you feel dumb based off of his attitude and responses to questions. He can never be wrong and almost always is raging at something. 3 essays, a lot of discussion posts, had a textbook but I never read it. attendance mandatory; it does affect ur grade. Do what he says (to a T) and u'll pass.
Probably the worst course I've taken this past semester. The class itself is easy lots of discussions, quick writes, a total of four major essays, I believe, a midterm, and a final. The assignments allow you to get a better grade; however, he takes a GE class too seriously. Talks a lot about nothing during lectures, doesn't reply to emails well.
Listen to the other ratings, they are not lying; he makes the semester so difficult.
I cannot explain the stress this professor has put me through. He is unclear what he is looking for and unorganized. He believes the way he teaches is the correct way to learn in an English class. He can't tell when a students work is from AI or not. He gives way too much course work for a GE class. I cannot stress this enough. DO. NOT. TAKE!!!
Talks about politics in class occasionally. He runs the class awkwardly, doesn't specify on assignments if you have the option to take other ENGL 102 Professors DO THAT INSTEAD.
John is a quirky professor, who knows his stuff. However, he is a little disorganized, but at the same time entertaining. Never a dull moment in class. He has pushed me to work harder on my English papers on my own. Despite what the reviews say, I would take him again because he is human an imperfect like the rest of us.
Honestly gave me such a headache. Doesn't give the clearest of instructions, disorganized and the others are right: he is nitpicky. He's a bit passive aggressive, doesn't give the best energy for an educational setting. He's lenient towards assignments, most likely will let you re-do it for a better grade. not the worst, but precaution is advised
English is my 2nd language and I got an A in his class! You just need to write a proper college essay. Write what people want to read! Yeah, he's a harsh grader but he gives very good feedback and allows resubmit for better grade. He's sometimes sassy but he's a very kind prof. Just don't expect an A with a writing like the OU girl.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
92%
Textbook Required
38%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-1.38 avg changeRatings by Course
ENGLISH100
5.0
(1)ENG103
5.0
(1)COMP100
4.0
(1)ENGL100
3.5
(15)ENG100
3.0
(35)Difficulty by Course
ENGL100B
4.5
ENGL102
4.3
ENG102
4.0
ENGLISH102
4.0
ENGL317
4.0