3.9
Quality3.0
Difficulty69%
Would Retake88
Reviews69%
Would Retake
88
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
41
4
21
3
16
2
9
1
1
What Students Say
“BUT of all the profs for English 110 she is the best (in my opinion) as we didn't go over any Shakespeare”
ENGL110 - 3.0 rating“James is a good teacher, even though she can be very confusing when you need her help”
ENG112 - 3.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
85%
Textbook Required
15%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.51 avg changeRatings by Course
ENGLISH112
5.0
(1)ENG227
5.0
(1)ENGL474G
5.0
(1)ENG474
5.0
(1)ENGL07
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
ENGL200
3.7
ENGL227
3.5
ENG112
3.3
ENGL397
3.3
ENGL468A
3.3
Reviews (88)
Shes a really nice teacher. She is very knowledgable not only in English, but in other subjects as well, which helps give a better background for the selections read. Most classes she'll get off topic, but I always find her interesting.
marks very hard. eng 112 is first year eng and shouldnt be that bad of a course but she ruins it by marking hard. she has a good enthusiasm and all. i had taken eng 110 before which is supposed to be harder and if i handed in one of my essays to my eng 110 prof that i handed in to her, i wouldve atleast gotten a mark 1 letter grade higher
hard marker. Not clear on what she wants for the inclass essays. Helpful but unclear.
She's an awesome teacher. Honest and direct in her teaching style, if you like a vibrant, flexible, friendly prof, she's a great choice. Highly recommended, she's pretty easy-going on marking and attendence, as long as you're a reasonable responsibly student, you'll find her to be a fun prof.
Fair marker, really nice person overall, very approachable. Classes are pretty interetsing and if you attend most of them you should be fine. Very funny an vibrant person. Recommended.
very clear speaking voice. hard marker but once you get the hang of what she's looking for, you'll be able to write according to what she likes. ask questions to clarify assignments.
No Comments
Really sweet prof, give you a background on Africa and really goes beyond the books. Taking her class was a really pleasant surprise and would love to do it again!
Although most discussions were interesting (some were obscure), her voice acts as a ceiling for your interest. She is not an easy marker, but if she reads what she wants to read, she will grade favourably. Hint: examine her interests and write about it in your essays.
Class based on discussion, very easy to get through~ Fair marker!!
This was an interesting English class. It was very much open to discussion. I really felt quite comfortable writing her in-class papers. Her marking is not as tough as people make it out to be. I highly recommend this class to those who want to read some contemporary and easy Canadian writing. Very enjoyable and relaxing.
ROOOIIGGHHHHHT!
I took her Canadian lit. course with focus on queer literature. We did a lot of group work/discussion in our class. Went through quite a few books, but not in too much depth. She's very friendly and energetic. She's easy-going on her tests and grading. Attendance is mandatory- she takes attendence.
Prof. James is extremely interested in the subject matter she teaches. (South African Lit.) I really liked how she encorporated poetry, film, and novels into her course. Really nice lady, I would definitely recommend her.
Nice professor. Her course allows one to appreciate Canadian literature. There are lectures, group discussions and the like. Coming to class is mandatory as she takes attendance. You'll be writing a bunch of essays!
I took her distance eduaction for term 1. There were a lot of works to do, but we didn't have midterm exam. However, the mark she gave is not very high even though I followed her guidline... Thus, I still do not know how to get high mark form her..
very knowledgeable. one of my favorite classes. fair grader. extremely approachable and flexible. very receptive to needs/concerns of students. overall a very good prof.
Taken summer 2008 (African Lit). Very knowledgeable and passionate about subject. Puts all texts (mostly short stories) into fully realized political and social contexts. In-class essays and heavy reading load. 1 oral presentation. I had no interest in African Lit before her class; I'd now consider taking it as a minor.
You will love her class as long as you dont see you mark she gives you
Dr. James is a refreshing prof who is down-to-earth and receptive of students' needs & opinions. Her teaching is clear-cut and her lectures project concrete themes & ideas - a nice change from the abstract (read: uselessness) of most UBC ENGL lectures. Her exams are a breeze & the readings are excellent. Only issue: she is a VERY hard marker.
Best. Teacher. Ever. I loved her class. Fair Marker and easy to approach and talk to.
One of the best professors EVER. TAKE THE CLASS!!
Very enthusiastic and passionate teacher! I learned so much. She is very clear about expectations and is always available for extra help. Dr. James is thoughtful and she really listens to her students.
She assigns interesting essays to read. A great teacher and a good sense of humor! Loved this class.
She's very understanding and reasonable. Even though I asked for extensions on every single assignment, she was still willing to help me and follow my progress. Of course, she gave me the extensions, too. This is a distance course, but I can tell that she's very friendly! i guess it's because she used to teach in HS. GREAT PROF! interesting texts!
Really great prof. Straightforward and clear in her instructions. Her assignments are not tricky, just simply follow her instructions, do readings and preparation and you'll do well. GPA booster for me.
An interesting lecturer, I suppose, but her attitude and grading are absurd. Sarcastic, almost mocking comments are left on students' work, and an inverse relationship appears to exist between quality of writing and grade: the worse your English abilities are, the better you'll do in her class. Strong writers beware. GPA destroyer for me.
This was by far my favorite course of the year. She is a dream English teacher, choosing dynamic work to read and mixing novels with short stories and poetry. She explains the context and political relevance of the texts, and her grading is completely fair. I love being in her class and hearing her commentary. Take her classes!
Nice person, but most of class spent is on almost useless presentations (often way too long)and summarizing the reading while making comments on a couple analyses or things of notes. Often vague. Hard to figure out how you`re doing in the class since no specific marks are assigned on work.
Amazing prof. I've taken 2 classes with her and she's been nothing less of a great lecturer. Very approachable, kind, and extremely fair. Definitely ask her for help with whatever you need, she is wonderful!
I'm conflicted: on the one hand, she's an engaging lecturer who clearly holds a strong grasp of the subject she teaches but, on the other, she's a difficult grader for no apparent reason -- she caps her highest grades in the low to mid 80s and the vast majority of the class is stuff in the mediocre 70s. Somewhat frustrating trying to do well.
I took Canadian lit this past term, I am also conflicted. She's a nice person, picks interesting material yet it is hard to know exactly what she is looking for. A lot of class work. Attend class and you'll do okay, yet she is a little vague on her expectations and rambles a lot.
She recognized that nobody would probably take this course if we did not have to and taught the course so that you did not have to be extremely passionate about writing to understand and use the material. Her lectures were fairly engaging, considering the material, and her assignments and marking was clear and fair.
She is a passionate professor & lecturer. Posts clear and organized PPT slides on time. Course/readings can get a bit boring/long at times. Straight forward marker, but she has standards that students can still achieve. Highlights grammatical errors in your papers, but not a English course & not reflected in your grade. Lots of group activities.
doctor james is way into her work and is so suave and cool in class in a really relatable way that makes you mourn if you miss class, she's an awesome lecturer and is an actual teacher working hard for her students, the material was standard first yr but she spiced it up - i'm planning on taking her other two under grad class. go suzanne.
doctor james is way into her work and is so suave and cool in class in a really relatable way that makes you mourn if you miss class, she's an awesome lecturer and is an actual teacher working hard for her students, the material was standard first yr but she spiced it
She does a great job of making material you may not otherwise be interested in, interesting. She puts a lot of emphasis on class participation and discussion. The reading amount is reasonable, and she makes it very clear what she expects from you on papers and exams. It's amusing to see her get so passionate about literature.
She is such a helpful teacherT
Did not learn a single thing in the class. She's a good teacher, interesting, and helpful but you don't learn much as you don't do much.
A required course, so wasn't really looking forward to taking the English requirement for my degree. BUT of all the profs for English 110 she is the best (in my opinion) as we didn't go over any Shakespeare. Show up to tutorial sessions and do all the assignments - should be easy if you care to put in a bit of work.
Nice prof who made the course easy to get through. She's really helpful during office hours and also through emails.
I really dislike English but if I had to take it again I would choose Dr. James. She is a great teacher who speaks clearly and with enthusiasm. She does not assign much homework at all and in-class essays are really easy compared to what I took in high school.
I enjoy her lectures but I am not a fan of her assignment grading. She can be very confusing. I really never knew what she was looking for ie. receive a bad mark but the commentary is praising me for my work. If you are an english major or minor, I think you will do well because she seems to favor those.
Dr. James is a good teacher, even though she can be very confusing when you need her help. Her grading ways are very tough as she expects you to write the way she would do it.
Dr. James' instructions are clear and she genuinely wants her students to do well. Her lectures are engaging and the readings are always interesting!
Very helpful and patient professor. I started the semester with a C- but ended up with B+ your effort will eventually payoff.
Suzanne James means well. However, there are some fundamental issues with her teaching. While most teachers spends some time after class answering questions, Dr James leaves right away of even early. The course is very dry ( partly due to the curriculum). Her grading on assignments is difficult to understand making it hard to improve.
Suzanne James was clearly a passionate teacher, however this specific course seemed a bit boring for me as an English Major. Also she takes a long time to do things, it was a three hour class that could easily have been cut down to two hours with less faffing.
She is a very hard grader for no specific reasons. If she just simply doesn't like your topic she will probaly doc you points. She rambles when she lectures and for me the further she explained a topic the more confusing she made it seem. Grading Criteria was very unclear and some assignments were fairly vague.
She was a great person and had few homework assignments for us. However, her criteria for marking our papers are not really clear and the feedback she gave us is not always useful.
Incredibly easy marker. Lots of material to read, though, up to eight or nine novels and many additional readings. She is very understanding of illness or reasons for handing in assignments late, so long as your reasons are legitimate.
Grading criteria isn't too clear, so it might be difficult to get a good grade in her class. Very interesting booklist.
Suzanne did care about her students but is a super tough grader based on only 3 assignments throughout the course. She wants you to above and beyond and think outside the box for most of the material. The in-class essays and the final were open book but the final was super hard.
Nice professor who knows her subject well, but can be condescending at times. Her criteria isn't super clear and her feedback isn't great. She tends to ramble in lectures. Her marking is tough - she is very specific with regards to what she wants, but in the end, she truly does help you to become a better writer. I enjoyed taking ENGL 112 with her.
Dr. James was my favorite prof of the term. She's caring and funny. She is understanding and willing to give extensions. She is a bit of a tough marker, but I liked how she was very upfront about what she expects in her papers. She doesn't care about word count which is really nice and refreshing. She does ramble a bit in office hours and class.
I took childrens literature with Dr. James and I cannot emphasize how boring the books she assigned were. I would have found these books boring as a kid never mind as an adult. Her classes are also painful because instead of directing discussions, she waits in silence for people to participate and then is passive aggressive when they don't.
One of the best English professors I've ever had! I really enjoyed being one of her students. She conducts engaging lectures and is a super nice person. Plus, she is open to hearing all student perspectives during class discussions. In addition, it's very easy to engage with her (inside and outside of class) once you put yourself out there. :))
Dont be afraid to speak up in her class! She really encourages and appreciates everyones input during class discussions. As long as you send her an email, she is also really good about giving out extensions to those who need it. I took her class a while ago in first year but I definitely enjoyed this one more due to the small class size.
Overall, Dr. James was a great prof. She seemed understanding and flexible in terms of assignment weightings and extensions. Mandatory attendance was a little annoying, as I had to take the course well into midnight as a person living outside Vancouver.
Dr James seems like an excellent person to chat with, she is very knowledgable, and open to dialogue. I liked the reading list. Ultimately I think that the quality of discussion in lecture was limited by the paywall that is academia. I suggest you choose a section for this course based on reading list, and find a TA you like for tutorial group.
Dr. James has so much teaching experience under her belt from grade school to post-secondary. She takes attendance very seriously and is a tough marker. Having said that, she also gives detailed feedback and is generous with extensions.
Dr. James was really nice but marks felt kind of random. The exam was two essays in 2.5 hours; participation was worth 5% despite how much we did. Lots of texts but pretty quick reads. You'll probably walk out with an 80. I think she's more interested in your ideas than fancy writing, so a quick but intuitive paper will get you that A.
Super caring and the kindest. TA's are also super kind, lectures are engaging and course material is not particularly tough to understand. If you are taking a 1st year English this is a great course.
Dr James is clearly passionate in what she teaches and encourages class discussion, making the class. The books and short stories we had to read for this course were not super lengthy nor difficult to comprehend. However, the course is graded on a few things and for a first year english course, the TAs do mark remarkably harder than necessary.
Super sweet and very knowledgeable! Also very manageable course load, I highly recommend this class with this prof.
Professor James is great, she's super kind and caring, and very passionate. She's always ready to give feedback and is very easy to reach outside of class (really responsive to emails). I honestly had a hard term and missed many classes even though attendance was mandatory, but I read the books and still did really well.
Will give lots of feedback if you need it. 2 in-class essays, a term paper, and a final. She checks attendance. Lots and lots of reading, sometimes would find it hard to finish a 1/3 of the book within 2 days with my other courses. Open book exams :) Lectures are important, but rarely, so it's hit or miss.
The lectures were fine, if a bit boring. The TAs (at least the one I got) mark hard and sometimes they feel kinda nitpicky. Only 3 assignments throughout the course plus a final means there is little feedback and opportunity to grow.
Best English Prof at UBC by far!!
Dr. James is an engaging and caring prof. Her lectures are entertaining, but her slides aren't as informative. Her discussion classes have mandatory attendance, but her lectures do not. I really appreciate how well Dr. James communicates with her TAs, and she is super clear about her expectations for the in-class essays, term paper, and the final.
Great prof, you can tell she cares about her students and their learning. She gives rly good, detailed feedback and is super accommodating (esp if she can tell you care and are a good student). Graded on 2 in-class essays (open book), a paper, and a final. She takes attendance and participation matters.
Professor James created a really structured online classroom environment for ENGL377, with detailed weekly modules giving us background information on our readings and making expectations of our participation that week very clear. There was a lot of reading and quite a few assignments, but it was an organized and interesting course.
suzanne is kind and helpful. she is flexible with due dates and is usually willing to extend them. pretty great prof BUT she's a tough grader🥲 hard to please. there are many readings and we only focus on each piece for a week or two. theres a few individual assignments and in-class group discussions + submissions. no final.
Suzanne is great and I would highly recommend incoming first years to take her ENGL100 for Arts writing requirement! Super accommodating with extensions, and very willing to meet students personally and give feedback. Very easy to pass, but hard to get over an 80. She chose thought provoking texts and her lectures are interesting
Loved english with Suzanne! Would definitely recommend incoming first years to choose her for ENGL100. She's very accommodating and understanding with extensions, and it's easy to succeed. She's also really accessible if you ever want to discuss anything. In my opinion, the texts she chose for us to study were genuinely interesting, too.
Great english prof, so flexible and I loved all of the texts that were assigned. The class would have benefited from a bit more organization. Really wants clever/unique ideas, and you need to be really intentional with your word choice/description otherwise you will lose points! Plan essays thoroughly and you'll do well :)
2023W2 not interested in lit at all (taking this for communication req), Suzanne made it bearable. The TAs are nice. We don't have much homework to do, and there were 2 books to read for whole term. Not sure whether we still have the “textbook list” thing in Workday now, if you know the book title in advance, start earlier, it will definitely help!
Dr. James was easy to contact and very flexible with her office hours, deadlines etc. However, her marking was very tough and instructions for projects were inconsistent, making her grading hard to comprehend based on criteria. Her comments and suggestions seemed unfit for an online setting as they could come across as passive-aggressive or cold.
She picks interesting (in a good way!) critical articles for the class to analyze and is very understanding regarding extensions
Don't take the course with Suzanne if you're a person who likes immediate feedback. It takes her months to get essays back to us!!!!!
TOUGH GRADER!!!!It is not easy to get a high grade in her class. She is supportive but sometimes too demanding.
Professor James is a very caring prof. Her lectures are interesting and involve a lot of small group work. She really encourages new and unique ideas and, though she is a tough grader at times, will push you to think outside the box. There were quite a few readings, but not more than an average english course and they were all interesting.
Looks for unique, insightful analysis in essays and homework. Relatively tough marker, but is responsive to emails and is very helpful in office hours. Very understanding and flexible with deadlines. Attendance is counted for marks.
Even when the readings were challenging, James was flexible with the amount we had to read and incredibly open to hearing our thoughts. Homework load and participation is reasonable. Gave great feedback on essays and well organized. Overall, a respected, genuine, kind, and funny professor. Recommend!
She is so sweet! You can tell she really cares about her students and what she's teaching. It's my first English lecture at UBC (English 100), and she was very accommodating and respectful. Readings can be heavy, but she's open to discussing things, providing feedback, etc.
Suzanne is a great prof! Lectures fall into more of a discussion style rather than just having a bunch of information thrown at you, so easy to stay engaged. I really like her "no wrong answer" attitude when discussing/analyzing texts. A lot of good feedback on papers, and she makes it clear on how to improve on future assignments.
She gives good feedback and grades reasonably. Attendance is mandatory(we pass around a paper since its a small class), and classes are discussion style but she doesn't necessarily make us engaged at all times. She's very lenient with deadlines, as long as you ask her a day or two before she would give an extension. She's accessible outside class
Dr. James was incredibly kind to my section, and took time to give clear and direct feedback. I never felt like I received an unfair grade, as everything was justified. The course material was very interesting and projects/papers were engaging. Attendance is mandatory and she gives extensions within reason!
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
85%
Textbook Required
15%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
A-
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Declining
-0.51 avg changeRatings by Course
ENGLISH112
5.0
(1)ENG227
5.0
(1)ENGL474G
5.0
(1)ENG474
5.0
(1)ENGL07
5.0
(1)Difficulty by Course
ENGL200
3.7
ENGL227
3.5
ENG112
3.3
ENGL397
3.3
ENGL468A
3.3