2.6
Quality3.5
Difficulty39%
Would Retake97
Reviews39%
Would Retake
97
Reviews
Rating DistributionOfficial
5
19
4
13
3
13
2
20
1
32
What Students Say
“But Todd is a great prof and very helpful and knowledgable”
HIST334 - 5.0 rating“He is a great lecturer and marks very fairly”
HIST - 5.0 ratingClass Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
55%
Textbook Required
63%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.05 avg changeRatings by Course
HIST495C
5.0
(1)HISTORY
5.0
(2)HIST305429
5.0
(1)HIST3400LEVE
5.0
(1)HIS305
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
HISTORY145
5.0
HIST151
5.0
HISTORY312
5.0
HIST473
4.5
HST145
4.0
Reviews (97)
A good teacher but can be very dry if you take a long night class with him.
Good guy but a very dry lecture. Early classes are tough to take with him, but I would take another class with him.
great guy, very helpful, and marks average, but it's hard to stay awake in his early morning classes.
Really good professor, and maybe a bit dry if you aren't interested, but I took another class with him and I don't regret it.
No Comments
To all mankind, stay away. I will probably never take another History class let alone a class with him. Imagine the most boring and monotone 1.5 hours you'll ever spend. 2 times a week! And instead of constructive critisism on my papers, he just straight mean talked me. Bof.
boring boring boring stay far far away
Very boring person to listen to. His lectures are poorly organized and vague. He grades his papers REALLY hard. Do not take his class unless you're desperate.
He is a sorry excuse not only as a professor but as a person. He does not want to TEACH, he only wants to hear himself talk in the most boring way. He is mean-spirited and spiteful. Do not take this class, tell everybody. He is the worst Professor in all of Arts and is an embarassment to the History department at UBC-O.
Nice guy, his lectures are a little on the boring side, but he's a very easy marker and approachable. The class was easy as it was only two essays and one final (made of two essays).
His classes are NOT good! i could not even sit thru the entire class, always walked out early! do yourself a favour, dont sign up for his classes!
Dr. Campbell, despite the rantings of some people here, is a very good professor. HIs lectures are a bit dry, but then many professors have dry lectures. I actualy found certain lectures of his to be very interesting. He is an easy marker and if you got a bad mark on a essay he gave, then you didn't work very hard. I will take him again!!!!!!!!
Great classes, great professor, *really* knows his stuff. A bit dry if all you want in a professor is a voice to listen to, otherwise actually interesting if you listen to what he says. Good marker and a really nice person
I came as a visiting student from another University and I found this class/teacher to be a very distinct contrast to the quality of education I'm used to having. Although he was clear and helpful, his lectures were VERY dry, and he didn't even include a formal seminar component in an upper year history class! No apparent passion either.
Evil, evil, self-centred, arrogan, and extreamly unhelpful. Looks down upon how his fellow colleagues structre their courses and classes. Doesn't genuinly care what anyone else has to say. To absorbed in his own monotone voice. Never has a structred, cohesive lecture. Exepect to pretty much teach this course to yourself.
Wikipedia has taught me more for this course. And honestly, I would rather have a fellow classmate teach me than him. At least they have some compassion.
He was a fair makers, and as flexible as far as possible.
One of the worst professors I've ever encountered. Here's why: All papers and tests were returned with no comments and low grades, He is vague and unable to communicate his expectations. Therefore his expectations are never met Additionally he never held a single lecture...ever. Utilizing Wikipedia and the text YOU will have to teach yourself.
Terrifying to think that he is responsible for the education of a new generation of history students. The man is a monster! He is the most boring teacher I have ever had the misfortune of listening to. his essay marking is hard which is fine but his comments are mean and nonconstructive. do yourself a favor and avoid his class like the plague!
Worst professor I have had to date. He came to class totally unprepared. Grading was random and arbitrary - I stopped trying a few weeks into the course and did better than some who put an actual effort in, just because I guessed better. Not to mention he was mean-spirited to students who were going out of their way to be helpful and polite to him.
I took Dr. Campbell's history of western civ as a summer course.I found Dr. Campbell to be exceptionally engaging and diverse in many historical topics. His understanding of the subject matter is astounding, and he is a great person. I certainly hope I will have the pleasure if taking one of his classes again someday. Good luck Dr. Campbell!
He was AWFUL!!! I took it as as a summer course and the lectures were 3 hours of mumbling and rambling. He made us do two huge papers and was vague about the requirements. He purposely marks your first paper low so you will put more effort into the second one. His comments are unhelpful. He made us do a group presentation every week that no one paid attention to. All he really cared about was sources. I did my studying from the final off Wikipedia! Avoid him at all costs!
He is an easy grader. If you hand him anything worth while you are most guaranteed an A or a high B. His lectures are boring, would be much better if he moved around to liven up the class or had videos on the rare of occasion. He is a shy individual, but out of class he is really nice and helpful. It worth taking to his class cause its self taught.
Boring, does not respond to emails, and does not even attempt to engage the class in any kind of discussion, despite the fact that 25 percent of the grade was participation. I took this class as one of my upper level electives, and going into the exam, have NO idea what we've learned in the class, despite having attended nearly all of the classes.
Dr. Campbell is a genuinely nice guy, however his teaching performance is seriously marred by a number of issues. This includes terrible course disorganization, a lack of clarity for grading expectations, and complete inaccessibility outside of class. This includes never answering emails. If you want to scrape in an A-, be prepared to fight for it.
Learn from my mistakes and AVOID THIS GUY. I liked 100% of my UBCO profs throughout my degree but this guy is a DUD. His 100 lvl hist exam was easily the toughest final exam I did in my undergrad. No guidelines were given, it was outrageous. Many ppl did terribly yet he blamed the class. Hard marker, BORING lectures. Also unhelpful outside class.
This is an awful professor for several reasons. His lectures are unorganized and difficult to follow and he is extremely monotoned. When he marks your papers, he leaves little comments on how to improve and he is difficult to get in contact with about your grades. Our final exam resembled nothing like the outline shown. Avoid this man!
His class may be somewhat more challenging than others, but Campbell is perhaps the smartest professor I have ever had. He answers all questions meticulously and in detail. If you focus, take good notes, and actually do the required readings, you will do fine.
STAY. AWAY. I couldn't even stay awake in this class, his voice is so monotone and boring. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!!
Campbell is an awkward humanoid, but a really helpful if you need clarification in class. If you put effort into your essays and presentations you'll do good in the class. If you don't, then you'll fail...which should make sense to people who say they fail his classes. I liked his lectures; he's very knowledgeable on the subject.
Make sure you have coffee if you get his 8AM history class, however, once you're awake, he's a very well spoken, knowledgeable person who knows what he's teaching.Marks are fair. Final is challenging, but okay.
He does know what he is talking about but beware his class is the most boring thing I have ever encountered. He is VERY unclear about what he wants for his essays. Does not respond to e-mails however, he well talk to you if you go to office hours. Helped a lot with the finale test, but VERY hard essay grader. And always grades the first one harder
I found his lectures very good, as he is very knowledgeable about what he teaches. Incredibly unclear on expectations when it comes to assignments, although he gave us the topics for the final which was nice.
Nice guy, but a horrible lecturer. Tried incredibly hard to pay attention, just couldn't make it happen. His lectures are out of chronological order, making it very confusing. Hard essay marker. Course content interesting, prof, not so much. WOULD NOT RECCOMEND
One of the worst professors I've ever had. He was a nice guy and obviously very knowledgeable but he was a very monotone teacher who very rarely seemed to care that the students couldn't or weren't listening. He was extremely unclear about expectations for essays and was unnecessarily rude to students who asked questions. AVOID! Ruined history.
This guy makes a Great subject boring as all hell. He makes you want to skip every class but then marks so hard you can't. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.
Don't do it! Campbell is monotone, boring as you know what, and super unclear. There are easier/better ways to learn about the world than this! Take the class with anyone but Campbell, don't waste your time/money with him.
He's a good prof. The course consists of 2 essays, a final, and a group presentation. It's really easy to do well!! The only downsides were his occasionally boring voice and hard to follow notes, but other than that he's great. Super nice and a fair marker. It's a fun class and you get to meet people through group presentations!! :)
He was fairly monotone throughout lectures, but I found that the way that he structured the class really worked and helped the information settle in. He's a fair marker and will give good feedback for essays. He's kind and passionate about the subject, but his powerpoint notes are useless so listen and take notes instead of copying his.
Really passionate about the subject matter, but they can get long after awhile. He is clearly very knowledgeable about the course and is definitely an expert. There is limited course work, we were assigned 3 pretty short papers (700 words) and 1 longer one(2000 words)
Lectures are very boring and unclear, with very little visual aid. He is very monotoned, making the class more dreadful. Hard on marking papers and assignment. If not necessary, don't take this class.
He is very monotone. I think he likes to talk about weapons that were used during the war, but they were not asked on the exams. I would recommend if you are able to stay awake in his class. If not don't take it.
One of the worst professors I've ever had. He knows his stuff which is great. However, he so hard to follow, he is NOT clear on what he wants in presentations or the essay. I wish I had never taken this class.
Todd is a very nice man and accommodating when it comes to assignments, but his lectures are very dull and kind of hard to follow. I don't usually have a problem with a prof just lecturing and me taking notes, but he was especially difficult to take notes from. The class I took was a year long, and it was too much. Assignments aren't hard though.
His lectures are boring and unclear. He goes on tangents that are irrelevant to the course material. wants to foster discussion in class but the questions he asks are vague and obvious
Todd is a very nice man and very helpful- if you ask! It is hard sometimes to follow the lecture but it is because he just reads. If you go to class and put in the effort to get a good mark you will do fine. His upper level courses usually consist of 2 papers (25% each) or two midterms, 10% participation and a final work from 30-40%.
He's a wonderful man and if he likes you you're bound to do well. His lectures are a little lacklustre and difficult to follow. He doesn't use connect or post any information online at all so I highly recommend going in to his office hours to get an idea as to what it is he actually expects from us. Very low effort class and he is really nice.
WARNING: The most boring lectures I have ever been in. His voice is monotone, dreary, so dull. Lectures are confusing, powerpoints make no sense. Textbook is useful but not necessary. Final paper topics are straightforward and easy to do well on with your own outside research. Would avoid taking any class with him unless required. Nice guy, boring
I always look forward to take classes with Todd. He is a great lecturer and marks very fairly. I have never gotten better feedback on my assignments tests essays. Just like any other class, you have to put the work in to get the grade. He is very friendly and helpful if you take the initiative to visit his office hours.
Campbell is definitely the worst History prof I've had at UBCO. His lectures are incredibly boring and all over the place. I never skip class and I gave up attending halfway through. Mark is entirely based on papers and the final, plus a weird group project that was really just a class discussion with unclear expectations. Avoid at all costs.
A lot of people don't like Todd, probably because his teaching style is pretty old school. But Todd is a great prof and very helpful and knowledgable. Students who are used to being spoon fed their notes without really needing to pay attention don't like him, but if you're a half decent student, he's great. The most understanding prof at ubco.
Todd Campbell was a really great prof! The class was a bit dry, but he actually made it quite a bit more bearable. Frankly, Western Civilization from 1789-1989 isn't the most glamorous class, but it did give a good overview of the period. Prof. Campbell has a good sense of humour and is willing to answer/discuss any questions in-class.
Dr Campbell's class was well structured and interesting. The lectures provided everything you needed to know for the tests
I have never been so bored in a class...
Very boring lecturer, no two ways about it. The papers are not hard, and the final is very straight-forward. The group project was a poorly executed exercise, as the instructions were not clear, and people were clearly not taking it seriously.
His slides are text heavy, would recommend attending class due to amount of information he provides. He is very fair with the tests, gives you an idea of what to expect. Make sure you use books for papers.
Nice enough guy, but really dry lectures. Also, he has no idea how to work technology and therefore I knew exactly 10% of my grade during the whole semester before my final grade was released on the SSC. Literally did not return any papers or specific grade on group project despite saying he would. Not super easy or really hard, just boring.
He is a really good prof I cant understand why people keep judging his way of teaching. You cant expect all ur teachers to be the way u want. But Todd definitely try to make sense for all. And his final exam is totally, review the questions and you will get good results.
Todd gets a bad reputation for being lecture heavy, but that's true of most History Profs. He is good at distilling a lot of information simply in lectures, and if you pay an ounce of attention or just ask, he'll tell you exactly what he wants from you in essays and exams. He's a very fair grader.
Campbell is a really nice guy and seems to care about his students, with that being said I would never take one of his classes willingly again. I'm not normally one to have a hard time understanding lectures but he jumped around to much and focused on really dry material. To do well in his class requires outside readings on historical events.
I've had Todd a lot and he's a super nice guy but his lectures can be really hard to follow and boring. The group project always sucks. As long as you study hard for the final you'll be fine. Not a super hard class but its also not a fun one.
Dr. Campbell is one of my favourite history teachers, his lectures cover exactly what will be on his final exam. His class has two papers and he marks them generously.
Completely unwilling to provide any sort of support to students outside of class, also provides zero description or specifics on what he wants with assignments. Feedback timing and clarity is terrible. Least favorite class of my whole degree.
He's not as bad as the ratings say, especially online. He posts his recorded lectures and they are pretty dry to listen to but the course isn't super hard if you try. He's a really fair marker, and that good grade matters more than how monotone he can sound. Really nice guy from what I can tell, his instructions could be more clear though.
Professor Campbell's history classes are all the same, they follow the same format of two papers, a group PowerPoint, and a final. His lectures are extremely boring, and like any history class, the textbook isn't completely necessary when you have the internet. Overall, very nice professor and marks very fair and easy, just put some work in.
Online course due to Covid - horrible delivery. All lectures recordings from previous years ( while still in class - hearing other students and movement) that did not match up with slides. Super confusing to follow the course, and not interactive at all. I would not recommend Todd as a professor.
Reused old recordings of lectures from previous years to teach during COVID, had an almost entirely hands-off approach to teaching us. Unclear marking criteria for assignments worth 50% of our grade, feedback given way late, and a lack of returned marks for said assignments. I couldn't recommend him. Offline he was OK, but online was a travesty.
He's absolutely unstructured even w graded assignments, uses age-old recordings, only teaches White men economic imperial history despite it being a Global history course, & refuses to take students' feedback when provided (said this is how he's been teaching all these while so if students can't stand it maybe they're not suited for the course).
Uploads a PDF and a mp3 recording from years ago and expects us to listen. Speaks in a single tone. Refuses to use the "Modules" section to organise his things better. He doesn't know how to attend to students' needs during this pandemic times - students should really give honest feedback on student evaluation and ask him to retire.
I think that Professor Campbell gets some heat for how he teaches but honestly he does his job well! there is readings and lectures (podcasts) that you have to listen through, which can get boring, it is a history class so this is expected. As long as you back your reasoning up and do your work, you will be fine!
This class is honestly so hard online and a joke. Professor Campbell just uses his lectures from the last time the class was in person so they are extremely hard to follow. He also gives an unreasonable time length for exams based on what he is asking you to do. The assignments during the course have no descriptions of what's supposed to be done.
Little info for class essays and does not answer emails.
Has a limited understanding of technology in a time when this is very necessary. Will post 80+ minute audio-only lectures for a class that is 50 minutes in person. Gives insufficient time to write exams even if youre knowledgeable. Does a poor job of explaining expectations of assignments, especially exams.
Todd puts really clear expectations from what he wants from you and makes it easy for you to do well as long as you understand the material. He's also super passionate about the material which makes it easy to learn. Make sure you attend his lectures (or listen to them) or read the assigned books; doing either will make you get an easy A.
Doesn't reply to emails. Doesn't post lecture slides. Need to take notes on what he says in the lecture or you will have nothing. Unorganized Canvas page. Very old-school lecture-style, puts no effort into using the online tools that make students' lives so much easier. If you miss a class, you will never find out what happened.
Todd is a really nice guy but it is true that his lectures can be a bit dry and hard to follow. To succeed, I would say attend most lectures (esp. if participation is graded), work hard on the essays (go to office hours!) and at least skim the books for the authors main ideas. His class isn't impossible, just requires effort!
Lectures can be a little dry but overall great prof
AVOID! Todd is one of the worst profs I have ever had if not the absolute worst. He doesn't post his lecture slides and if you cannot type fast enough in class to get his notes, you will have nothing to study with. He also doesn't respond to email at all. Fortunately this class isn't mandatory for me and I dropped it after one and half week.
He is an outstanding professor because of his sincerity, high-quality lecture and grading, and presentation by students. He gives detailed feedback on exam materials and assignments. He takes care of students' issues seriously.
He really isn't that bad!! It is important to attend lectures, especially bc he doesn't upload slides. But overall he gives clear instructions and expectations for assignments. However, he is sort of a tough grader especially for the papers.
I took this class as an elective because I really enjoyed history all throughout high school. Campbell's lectures are heavy, and boring Most importantly, he does not post the lecture slides or gives any additional information about tests or papers, just the bare minimum. For an introductory level 100 ELECTIVE history class it was unnecessarily hard
Going into my fourth year in arts so I have taken some pretty bland classes in my educational career, although this one is by far the worst. He stands at the front and talks for 3.5 hours, there is no enthusiasm or intent to teach, other than reading off a screen. The grading is harsh and unfair for a first year course.
No idea how to use Canvas, gives feedback on assignments late, does not post lecture slides, MONOTONE for 3.5 hours, refuses to take students' requests into account. The entire course is based on the 20th-century economy and is completely taught through a white Western perspective despite being a global history course.
His lectures are nearly impossible to get through. HIST 115 feels more like an economics course than history. He's a nice enough guy but doesn't really answer questions well. When I leave class it's a sigh of relief that it's over
don't take this class if you don't need to. monotone for the most of time. overall very boring
Professor Campbell is a nice guy who is usually available to help students with whatever questions they may have. My main issue with HIST 115 is that the course became frustrating due to unclear assignment and test criteria, along with some truly dry lectures. As the course went on I was convinced that I had taken an ECON course by mistake.
Dr. Campbell is old school. He provides stimulating lectures, delivered with a touch of humour. He has a balanced approach to topics, avoiding the pitfalls of leftist ideology that prevails at UBC. He encourages diverse viewpoints in a welcoming and supportive environment. He was always willing meet me outside of class, and he returned all emails.
Testament of tenure not a teacher or professor does nothing for his students lectures at you and grades according to his ego a genuinely awful person
Perfectly fine professor who does not deserve the bad rating he gets. Very open to others' opinions during lectures and marked relatively easily. There were 2 midterms, a group presentation, short final essay and final exam. He didn't emphasize date/name memorization but instead wanted you to grasp events and their economic/ historical importance.
Very disappointed, went into this class so excited to learn, instead faced with confusing lectures that he speeds through with little to no in depth information on the topics, were given headlines in class then directed to tons of readings that are just as shallow as his classes
Drones on and on, while 75% off the class scrolls their phones. Used the same monotone voice through the entire semester, made for the most boring lectures ever. Didn't ever properly cover a topic, just glossed through things quickly. Directed us to readings that were just as unhelpful as his lectures. Lots of material to cover, none conveyed well.
Lectures are dull, the reading is complicated but you have to read it or teach yourself the content to even imagine doing well. Prepare to fall asleep to his pointless slides that he doesn't even give enough time to copy. Don't take this class if you want to be happy
He's passionate and funny at times, but the lecture was often too monotonous. Grading was unclear or unfair at times. Course was primarily focused on the economy. One of the books was awful to get through, other was ok. Better historian than professor.
Dr. Campbell is the best professor I have ever had. If you're at university just to get a degree, don't take him. If you genuinely want to learn history, I haven't met a more knowledgeable or passionate individual in my life. Of course he is going to focus on economics he's literally an economic historian in an age of many social historians.
Todd's great. Lectures can feel dry but that's mainly due to the broad material. Super knowledgeable and happy to dive deeper when asked. A first-year course, the marking is more than fair- study and you'll get an A (with solid feedback). If you're considering history, take this class. Great way to ease into academia with a little bit of economics!
Good sense of humour and interesting lectures, although he talked way too much about economy. The workload was insane, and his instructions for assignments were unclear, as well as his feedback, which made it feel impossible to improve in his class. If you are not a history major who can perform well regardless of the prof, definitely avoid.
Campbell is a very underrated professor. He is very knowledgeable and personable, and easy to ask questions. As long as you show up and do the readings, which are light, you should be good. The start of the class can be boring when discussing economics, but it gets much better.
Class Info
Online Classes
100%
Attendance Mandatory
55%
Textbook Required
63%
Grade Predictor
Your expected effort level
Predicted Grade
B+
Grade Distribution
Common Tags
Rating Trend
Stable
-0.05 avg changeRatings by Course
HIST495C
5.0
(1)HISTORY
5.0
(2)HIST305429
5.0
(1)HIST3400LEVE
5.0
(1)HIS305
5.0
(2)Difficulty by Course
HISTORY145
5.0
HIST151
5.0
HISTORY312
5.0
HIST473
4.5
HST145
4.0