3.4
Quality3.1
Difficulty63%
Would Retake96
Reviews63%
Would Retake
96
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
29
4
22
3
19
2
11
1
15
What Students Say
“A really great and inspiring class--sometimes there were moments in the lectures that were hard to follow, but Prof Clamen did a nice job keeping us all engaged”
PHL614 - 4.0 rating“I felt this prof was fair and marked accordingly”
CPHL612 - 4.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
46%
Textbook Required
16%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.46 avg changeRatings by Course
CPHL400
5.0
(2)PHL406
5.0
(1)PHL606
4.3
(4)PHL612
4.2
(6)CPHL612
3.8
(18)Difficulty by Course
PHL201
5.0
CPHL400
3.5
CPHL612
3.2
PHL400
3.2
PHL614
3.1
Reviews (96)
Professor Clamen is extremely helpful even though it is an online class. He responds promptly to e-mails and truly does help considering the material isn't the easiest. Discussion Board participation is vital and can really boost your mark. Would take another class with Professor Clamen for sure.
He explained the theories and concepts perfectly, making the hardest ideas so easy to understand. He is also very, very funny and cute!
Most difficult professor ever. He failed me because my final paper was not related to the course material. He himself is the worst teacher ever. Always gets sidetracked and rambles about stuff unrelated to course. Didn't learn anything, the whole class got bad marks(highest mark was a C+)It's probably because the material isn't being taught well.
A really great and inspiring class--sometimes there were moments in the lectures that were hard to follow, but Prof Clamen did a nice job keeping us all engaged. He was always available at office hours, which was really really useful. The reading material is hard but pretty cool!
Talks in circles. Doing well in the class but that is based off of one assignment so far. It was worth 20%. My final exam is in 5 days and only that one assignment has been returned so 80% is up in the air which is unfair to the students. Nice man, and passionate on the material but seriously needs a grading assistant or just mark faster!!
Cannot teach for the life of him. His lectures feel really long cause he literally talks for the full 3 hours and his slides are just quotes from the readings that no one does cause they're too long. Also, he sucks at giving back marks; my exam is in 2 days and I don't know what I'm getting.
His lectures were dry, long and confusing. The topics are very interesting unfortunately his delivery was not. He read his "lectures" aka Essays on the topic. Felt like he liked the sound of his own voice. Syllabus says participation worth 10% but didn't engage in discussion. Often avoided answering student questions. I would never take him again.
I like Professor. Clamen. I though he engaged with the material, which made the lectures incredibly interesting. He has a tendency to trail off the material. Also, going into the exam we have only received 30% of our mark( I am being generous and including 10%participation which is unclear how that will be marked) which is incredibly bothersome.
During lectures often goes off topic. Doesn't provide feedback on assignments in timely manner. Had 1 assignment graded before exam & it was worth 20% so had no clue what was going into the exam with. Final grades suppose to be posted December 22 its now Jan 1 & I don't know if I passed - he hasn't posted them. Nice guy but don't like his teaching.
Took Chang because none of the regular sections fit my schedule. Pretty cool dude who really knows what he's talking about. He relates the material to currentrecent cases to make it more relevant. This semester we were assigned two papers (1100 words, and 2300 words), plus a final, no midterrm.
He knows his stuff, you can't deny him that, but he lectures in a way that assumes that all the students in class are philosophy majors. (Some of us are actually clueless about philosophy). He goes off topic very often which is confusing and often leaves you questioning what was it that he was trying to get across. Takes forever to mark!
He is very passionate about the material but I think he assumes that everyone in the class has a good working knowledge of philosophy - I know I didn't and so I found him confusing at times. When you ask questions sometimes he laughs at you or the answer takes him off on a tangent. He does give a good review for tests and is a very fair marker.
He is a good professor, however, you really need to do the readings before class to know what he is talking about. Fast talker and moves through material fairly quickly. Sometimes feels intimidating to ask him questions. His exams and assignments were not hard at all. Attend lectures and do the readings, and you will do great.
Amazing prof. He explains the material very clearly. You need to attend class and read the material before hand. He is always willing to answer your questions and he cares that you understand the topic. Just make sure you submit all the required weekly responses and read the material carefully.
Lots of readings to do but as long as you put in work mark recognizes that. Although the essays are lengthy mark is not a difficult marker. For the final exam as long as you understand the concepts you will be okay.
I felt this prof was fair and marked accordingly.
I would recommend speaking to him during office hours before each midterm or final, we will brief you how to correctly answer questions, so you will not end up studying a bunch of nonsense and be more focused. Lectures are long, three hours is used entirely, on a positive note he repeats important concepts numerous time until you memorise it.
He would post announcements and not respond to any emails. I emailed him and he didn't answer yet posted 3 or 4 announcements after. Talks a lot and goes on and on and on about nothing
When asked how hard he marks, I wasn't even sure what to put because I haven't done many assignments for him (except my midterm (20%)- I guess he was fair) and I'm about to write the final. Haven't received my final essay mark yet, so I only know 35% of my mark going into the exam...
I only have 35% of my grade going into the final exam tomorrow and to be honest I'm not prepared. the exam has so much content to know and i don't even know what I'm getting in the class. his lectures are confusing and he rambles and i get lost.
Sure some of the week's readings were long, some were short-- but all were directly taken up in lecture. The material was interesting, and I definitely recommend speaking with the prof after class or during office hours. He will spend a full hour with you if you show up, and he offers pretty direct guidance if you ask for it. Great prof and class.
Clamen is an amazing professor! I took him twice, and would take him for every PHL course if possible. He is extremely knowledgable, funny, and dedicated to teaching in a way that allows you to understand PHL. His lectures are not boring, filled w great examples, and enjoyable. I left the class w an A & I feel lucky to have been his student :)
Mark Clamen professor the best professor ever I took a course with him and I would love to take another course with him. He explains very well and he's very helpful. His class was very interesting.
He made me feel stupid when he talked and Im actually smart. RAMBLER. Slide shows are 15 quotes he talks about for 30 min. Uses full 3 hrs guarenteed. Readings are complex and LONG. Final exam had so much info on it with few guidelines. He is passionate though and is knowledgeable. Although, he is an easy grader going into the final now with 30%..
Such a good prof. Very approachable and is passionate about course material. Lectures and readings are interesting and relevant to the course material. Assignments and exams are fair.
At first i didn't find a connection with him, but over time I really started to enjoy his class. He is super knowledgeable and passionate about what he teaches which is really good to find in a prof. He DOES tend to ramble on a lot, but do the readings and he does provide a good understanding!
Mark is very passionate about Philosophy, but it can get confusing if you're a person who has trouble focusing. Take very detailed notes it will save you for the essay. It's not a lot of work but you have to put a lot of thought into your work .Most lectures felt like an endless stream of consciousness, which felt like I was in another universe
Power point slides are pretty useless on their own- take detailed notes during class and do the readings. Talks the ENTIRE lecture but if you pay attention/ are actually interested in the material it's not bad. Overall: good prof & fair grader. Enjoyed the class
Lots of assigned reading. He will talk for the entire lecture without pause. I attended all his lectures and they were pretty confusing, but his powerpoints were good for highlighting the important points/quotes. I additionally read lots of online summaries of the content because I found him so confusing, but I ended up doing well.
I was so confused for this entire course, his lectures are long, monotonous, & boring, he rambles on about nothing in particular, his ppt don't help, they're 3 words for a half hour of rambling, must take detailed notes read all the assigned reading or won't pass, is a fair marker and easy going guy you just gotta be focused & determined and read
Super heavy lectures but he explains the readings thoroughly in each one so you aren't confused. Basically gives you the questions for the midterm and exam so its super easy to study for. Very passionate about philosophy and does a good job explaining the concepts
It is an easy A as long as you attend the lectures and do most of the readings. He tells you what questions to expect on the midterm and final exam. He may be slow at marking but he marks easy and gives 15% for writing responses to 7 of the readings. Some lectures were boring but I enjoyed a lot of them
Prf. Clamen is really knowledgable about the materials. Lectures are always interesting and engaging! He is the best!
Prof. Clamen is one of the best professors I had at Ryerson University!
Work is not a burden, and concepts were eye opening. Hoping to talk about theories connected to human rights issues in real life, and it was a lot more just theory based. His lectures have the potential for good discussion and he tries to make it engaging. Could just go to class and get all content/knowledge, really explains. Says ought a lot...
Professor Clamen was great. Honestly such a nice guy, he cares about his students understanding the material and explains concepts thoroughly. Lots of opportunities to get easy marks. His assessments are a fair reflection of what is taught in class and evaluates them accordingly. Course books were super cheap. Would 100% take another class with him
The course is reading heavy but he explains them really well in lecture. Lecture slides are just outlines so, coming to class is mandatory. The reading responses are just really for completion marks. His grading criteria is so detailed (tells you what is on exams and what to write for essays) so pay attention in lectures and you'll get a good grade
Mark was a very easy going prof, he allows you to write your assignments with a lot of freedom so long as youre within the scope of the course material!
He doesn't give breaks.
Not too bad of a professor, though he is very lecture heavy and doesn't give breaks during the 2 hour lecture. I would NOT recommend phl333 with him if you have a heavy course load! As an engineering student, with reading and reflections due every week on top of the term essays, it'll be very difficult to balance your course load! (2nd yr mec eng)
He can't explain concepts simply. It takes him 3 paragraphs to describe and introduce 1 basic idea or theory. Verbose, his lecture notes seem to take wild turns introducing random concepts between other concepts leaving you wondering if it's important or not. AVOID CPHL612 WITH HIM IF YOU DON'T LIKE TO READ. ALL HIS LECTURES ARE BLOCKS OF TEXT!
Fair marker and very helpful when consulted. A little hefty on the readings but nothing too burdening. Would definitely take again.
This was an online course which I believe was pre-written by the Chang School, but it was still extremely wordy and difficult to decipher. He was a very hands off prof but did try to help if you emailed him and responded quickly. He is a fair marker though.
Gave lots of liberty for the essays and the final exam was extremely fair, which I appreciated. Very dense lectures. Likes to go on tangents a lot which can get annoying. Whenever I'd ask a question I never knew when he was done answering haha. Takes forever to respond to emails and marks took the entire semester to receive. Interesting class tho.
His lectures are a pain to go through. I wish he didn't pre-record them and had them as scheduled so it would be easier to complete. He speaks too fast in getting down his points and it takes double the time the actual length of the audio recording is to finish it. Extremely time consuming. Also it's been a month since I submitted an essay -nomark
Go to class, listen, take notes you're golden!
I loved this class. Sometimes he can be confusing and jump from one thing to another but i think it was just because he was passionate about what he was teaching. Keeps you on your toes haha. He was a good teacher, fair marker, and overall nice guy. Go to lecture, do the readings, and you'll do good.
Mark is the best professor I had. Very articulate. Incredibly knowledgeable. Passionate about content. Compassionate. I can listen to him speak forever, some lectures I have listened to twice, just for fun. Clearly an expert on law. Cares more about you actually learnin than proving it through needlessly hard assignments. Available for office hours
Prof Clamen is a great prof. This was my first time taking a PHL course and it was a great experience. His lectures are interesting and though at times the content can be challenging to understand he will explain in such a way that you can understand everything you need to know for the papers and exam.
Speaks quite fast in his (recorded) lectures but only because he has so much knowledge he wants to share with his students. Amazing prof. 10/10 recommend.
Mark is engaging and passionate about the subject. I consider this class to be useful regardless of what program you are on. There are some heavy readings; however, Mark is a fair grader, and you will do well if you stay on top of things.
He is great prof and I recommend him. His lectures were really interesting and he truly cares about his students. He is very interactive and helpful. Takes him time to write solid feedback on your essay to help you succeed in the future rather than just giving you the grade without an explanation. Great prof!
Professor Clamen is expertly knowledgeable in the fields of law and philosophy, and that translates to his lectures seamlessly. He tends to ramble on at times during lecture, but they are extremely vital as he explains in depth all the convoluted philosophical ideologies. He is a fair grader who gives good feedback and gives easy participation.
Professor Clamen is a very, very fair grader, and sets expectations quite clearly at the beginning of the course. Here's your warning: If you aren't interested in the subject, drop this class asap because you'll be reading A LOT. Get ready to read.... let me repeat that.... get. ready. to. read. I'm talking hundreds and hundreds of pages.
Not the best when it comes to responding to emails which is really difficult because you don't know if you are doing a good job throughout the course. I didn't get the mark that I expected and contacted for feedback so I can improve. However, I did not get anything back. It is hard because I am trying to maintain my GPA for MEd.
He is a solid choice of a PHL prof. He respects students time and try's to answer all questions in class to help clear up any misunderstandings of the papers you read. note: You have to read a lot! so many readings each week and they can be heavy but he goes over them to help you understand them. fair grader so just try your best and you be be fine
Pretty decent class, as long as you do the readings and listen to the lectures, you will do great and do well. The exam and midterm was very fair, if you complete the weekly discussion questions, it will help you a ton, so do them! Not very responsive through email, but if you remind him to check it during the class discussion period, he will reply
Attending class, doing readings and discussion posts are a must. I was very stressed during this class but I approached him before the midterm and final and managed to get As. He tells you the questions to expect so there are no surprises. As challenging as this class was, Prof Clamen makes sure you succeed.
CPHL 612 with Mark has been one of my favourite classes thus far as a fourth year student. I've taken a couple of his courses, and he is hands down one of my favourite profs. Material is super interesting, so much so that I actually enjoyed doing the assignments. Would definitely recommend Mark and this class to anyone! (just be prepared to read)
Takes tangents and teaches material that's not really related to the course, but a solid prof with fair essays/exams and a clear passion for the subjects he teaches. You can get by without doing the readings as he goes over them in lectures. Sometimes confusing, but that's expected with philosophy classes.
Mark is super nice and his course was structured amazingly. I am not the philosophy type and chose this course out of desperation and I loved it! Content may be hard to understand at times but he is always there to help.
I really liked Prof. Clamen! There wasn't a lot of assignments just two essays and an exam, which if you do the readings responses you'll do well on. I will say sometimes lectures were kinda boring and taking notes were hard sometimes because of the way he speaks, like he spoke like he was reading poetry lol. But its easy to do well in his class.
Professor Clamen is awesome!!!
Interesting material; however, the delivery was awful. Lectures are long and tedious. He loves to hear himself talk and doesn't seem to care if anyone is following along or understanding the material. The ppts are no help at all; just a random dump of text on each slide. He's a fair marker, but the course is simply not structured or delivered well.
I really liked Prof Clamen. One of the most interesting philosophy professors I've ever had. Explained things really clearly, provided good, critical responses to student comments during lectures. Don't really agree with others saying he didn't structure content well. I thought he was great.
So far it's been absolutely delightful. He's a really interesting lecturer, and even though the class is really long, he keeps it engaging and leaves time for questions. He responds quickly to emails. You don't want to skip; slides will have key quotes, but him explaining them gives the bulk of the information. Few readings needed for assignments.
I have had Professor Clamen twice now and this class is a good class if you are looking for an A. Philosophy can be a tricky topic if it is not something you are interested in, however, the professor does an amazing job of explaining and summarizing the concepts. (psst if you go to class you wont have to do the reading)
Dr. Clamen was not the best prof but he marked easy. GO TO LECTURES!!!! this course is very heavy on readings, you'll have to do weekly reading responses but most likely wont have to do the readings if you go to class and take notes. Slides are mostly visuals and quotes, all of the information is spoken.
Overall seems like such a nice human. The grading was very fair. If you don't want to read or attend class, Mark is not for you. I really enjoyed the class even when I was a bit confused - he really just wants you to try your best. Would 100% take again.
He knows his stuff, but his delivery of the course material was not the greatest. It was very hard to follow what his point was. His powerpoints do not help either. Just copied and pasted parts of the reading and bolded some words he thought were important. Fair marker, but be prepared to basically teach yourself.
Lectures were hard to follow because of the way he lectured about the course material. It made taking notes next to impossible. I was enthusiastic to learn about existentialism but by the end of the course, I wanted absolutely nothing to do with philosophy.
Reading Responses 10% Midterm 20% Essay 1750 words 35% Final Exam 35%. Exam & MT online. Lots of reading. Nice professor. Kind of a hard grader.
He is not the easiest marker. He also gives vague feedback and you don't know your mark in the class until like a day before the final exam so it's hard to gauge how you're doing. Best way to describe him is a very "hands off" professor. Honestly, this wasn't the worst class but it sucks that I got an A- in an elective while getting A+ elsewhere :/
He is not good at making. He must improve a lot in the way he teaches his class. I wasted my time and energy on his course. As a professor, he must explain the issues of the assignment to the student, but he does not, without any explanation or informing the student he just gives 000, which is very unprofessional of him.
I will not take any classes with this prof because he is too careless. I did not find him helpful, and he did not give any explanation.
please please please only take this class if you are ready for him to talk about nothing for two hours and just love the sound of his own voice. he is immensely lecture heavy, but everything he talks about is almost irrelevant to the course. Mandatory, weekly questions plus heavy reading. I found it useless to go to class
this guy could listen to himself talk for hours if three wasn't enough. every lecture would stray into something else that was completely irrelevant and I stopping going to lectures because id rather teach the work to myself. I thought this class wouldve been more about human rights but we went on about plato forever. I would never take him again
OMG Where do I begin. This guy is very inaccessible he takes forever to release grades back and doesn't really engage with students when they try to send him emails. He is also vague with his assignments. Overall Please avoid if you want to save your mental health and GPA. Awful.
Course was unstructured and consisted of hour long yapping sessions, which many students found hard to follow, especially the 2 hour lectures with no breaks. He's a nice guy, and passionate about the content, but isn't the best teacher. Very lecture and reading heavy, and we barely receive any grades until near the very end of the course.
I liked Prof. Clamen. I think he is very charming and funny, although, some lectures were quite slow/boring at times. make sure you write down every word that comes out of his mouth or you will regret it. if you take enough notes and put effort into your essays you'll be fine.
He has a tendency to ramble and can get a bit repetitive and monotonous, but he's very knowledgeable and answers questions pretty clearly. He is a very fair grader and overall a good person.
I like Prof. Clamen. Hes a nice guy, and he definitely knows his stuff. Really hard to follow if you don't know what's going on, and one thing is that he gets really quiet at the end of his sentences and its hard for me to hear what he is saying sometimes... Be sure to take lots of notes on what he's saying it'll really help in the course overall.
It goes without saying but only take this course if you're interested in reading existentialist philosophy. If you're just looking for an elective to fill your schedule and want to put minimal effort, you will likely have a bad time and a bad grade. Mark Clamen is a great prof if you properly engage with the material he asks you to read.
YES he is lecture and reading heavy BUT he is extremely accommodating, kind, and takes the time to ensure you fully comprehend the material. I was going through a tough time and he took time out his family trip to have sessions with me to prepare me for an assignment i was very late on. just take notes, communicate, & read/listen. he grades fair
I've never written a review before but professor clamen is an Awful communicator, never replied to any of my emails. The semester ends next week and we haven't received a single grade back. Couldn't even drop the class if I wanted to now. Don't know where I stand in the class. Do not take this class with this professor
Decent Prof, marks things pretty late in the semester. Did not get first grade until like 2 weeks before the final exam. He outlines expectations for the paper pretty well, so it's not hard to get a good grade if you are a good writer and follow the guidelines. Participation is just the discussion board, so it's free marks if you do it every week.
I dropped the class within the first 2 weeks because its very obvious that it is not a beginner class. I would not recommend this class if you're new to philosophy, its more of an intermediate level class. Overall he seemed like a nice guy, but a bit confusing and starts rambling. Grading was 60% essays, 30% final, and 10% reading responses.
very disorganised, havent recived a single grade back and we are on week 8. rambles through lectures and doesnt make much sense even if you are familiar with philosophy. lectures not engaging. overall made an intersting course kinda boring and would appreciate to know how im doing atp
the most painful class i've had. took this online and immediately regretted it. insane amounts of reading, feel like I didn't learn anything by the end of it. no engagement just straight up boring. not for the weak. if you can power through readings then consider this course otherwise you're better off protecting your mental health.
Prof Clamen is exactly the kind of person you'd want as a professor. He knows his stuff, teaches concepts above and beyond his slides, making his lectures actually worth attending. He will happily take time outside of lectures to further explain concepts. He grades fairly and truly wants his students to succeed. Great guy.
Mark is a really nice prof in lectures and he isn't a tough grader aside from written feedback. For the two essays, both of which I knew I knew I did alright on, he ripped to absolute shreds. He didn't have one nice thing to say about them and his feedback was very passive aggressive, but still gave me a 75, which should warrant SOME positivity?
He didn't release a single grade until AFTER the exam. As for the lectures, they were rather boring, which is disappointing because the material sounded so promising.
i would not recommend this class, it is week 9 - I have gotten no marks back except for term test 1, which was a horrible mark. he also sucks at teaching - there's barely anything on his slides and the readings, he rambles like crazy, and you can barely understand him (majority of the stuff you'd have to study for the midterm is outside research)
Not a bad prof. It would be nice to get 'some' grades back during the sem. There are also not a lot of assignments - which is good and bad. Less work to do but not a lot of opportunity to recover if you've done poorly. very smart, very knowledgeable in PHL. Lectures are long and lots of rambling, can be hard for non PHL students.
overall nice guy, I missed the dropbox for a weekly assignment like 3 or 4 times and he let me email it to him every single time. In class his point gets across but he does get side tracked sometimes. Grades pretty leniently overall i'd give him a 7.5/10
this guy is awesome. easy marker. prepares students well for midterms. really nice guy great teacher smart.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
46%
Textbook Required
16%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.46 avg changeRatings by Course
CPHL400
5.0
(2)PHL406
5.0
(1)PHL606
4.3
(4)PHL612
4.2
(6)CPHL612
3.8
(18)Difficulty by Course
PHL201
5.0
CPHL400
3.5
CPHL612
3.2
PHL400
3.2
PHL614
3.1