John Higginson - University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA

Professor: John Higginson

Department: History

College: University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

Prof Higginson is a complex character. He's a kind and smart man who has so much wisdom. He is so passionate about this topic. Yes, there is a lot of reading and the essays are grading pretty toughly, but he only wants you to become a better writer because of it. I learned so much in this class and am so glad I took it. But beware, it is difficult!

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: Yes
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

He's tough but fair, and you gotta respect the wisdom he's bringing

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

While Higginson knows a lot about what he's teaching, he uses unhelpful powerpoints and spends all class reading random quotes from readings. Hundreds of pages of reading every week. BE PREPARED TO TEACH YOURSELF EVERYTHING!! My TA said she wouldn't take this class.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

The most reading-heavy gen ed I've taken (I'm a senior). Lectures are boring and you don't learn much. Prof reads random quotes from the readings. 3 textbooks, avg. about 200 pages of reading a week. 2 5-7 page essays and one take home final (5-7 pg paper and 4 additional pages of identifications). Would not recommend, TA said he'd drop if he took!

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

Prof. Higginson clearly knows what he's talking about, but his PowerPoints aren't super helpful and the reading can quickly get overwhelming, so I did find this class to be rather difficult--not impossible, but get ready to get a little lost. I know a lot of people who dropped after the first couple of weeks.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: Yes
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: No
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

This class has an interesting subject but unless you have background or are prepared to teach yourself you will have a very difficult time. Higginson spends all of his time leaned over the desk reading off a paper. It's very hard to follow along or understand what he's saying and the slides offer no help. You will have to do all your own teaching.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: VIOLENCEINSA
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Not Mandatory

Comment:

A professor who is highly intellectual. He can be difficult to follow due to how intelligent he is. My TA (Ph.D student) admitted she was also thrown for a loop sometimes. Read the books and do it carefully. Learn the material and know it intimately. You will leave with some valuable knowledge and insight. One of the few classes whose content I use

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: Mandatory

Comment:

A learned man who can't effectively share that learning with others. He's a very tough grader, and I felt like I was always behind despite being ahead in our readings. I learned nothing from lecture, and instead had to essentially teach myself the course material from the assigned books and my previous knowledge of the historical context. F-, John.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: HIST260
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He is extremely intellectual, which does not pay off for a student without a strong prior knowledge of not only South African history, but of world history. He is extremely hard to comprehend and also does not give support for struggling students. I would not recommend this class to undergrad students - and I am even a history MAJOR.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: HIST393
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

He is very intellectual and sometimes talks above the heads of the students. He really knows what he is talking about, though. If history interests you, he has some interesting personal stories, too. If History is not your strong point or you don't feel ambitious then stay out of this class. It is a lot of work and reading, but you'll learn a lot.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

i disagree with the negative stuff about higginson. he was tough to understand at first, but ultimately, he got lucid. the textbooks, frankly, were a huge part of the course from my experience. he had a great TA in Justin Shatwell; able to elucidate where need be. A real intellectual. His lectures were well composed, even though they were typed.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: HIST111
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

An obviously lazy, disorganized and condescending idiot. Worse history instructor ever. His lectures were utterly boring and non understandable. He literally read his notes as if it were a speech. ALSO beware: his assignments have nothing to do with his lectures, so you have to read the textbook and figure it out by yourself.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Nobody ever said that college was supposed to be easy and served in fun-sized easily digestible little pieces. This professor goes deep, and I do in fact believe it takes as many words as he uses. Lift the iron or don't, UMass. Prof. Higginson is an intellectual giant.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: HISTO160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: Yes
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Higginson's class wasn't easy at first. He's not always clear (i.e. synoptic essays), but regardless, if you work hard and attend discussion section, a person can benefit from it. Unlike other professors, he seemed to know the material very well and have a passion for the subject. The textbooks were not superfluous, but enhanced the lecture.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Although Prof Higginson is very nice outside the classroom, as a Professor he is unbarable. His lectures are long, boring and read directly from his notes. Textbooks are rarely used instead he uses poorly copied handouts and e-reserves that are difficult to read. Bottom line don't take his class.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: No
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

This man is an absolutely awful lecturer. Don't even bother signing up for any of his classes since I expect he does the same in all of them, writes out his lectures and reads them. Buying the books was a waste of my money, since we hardly use them. He tends to read from a book and has a very "old school" style of teaching that is ineffective.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: N/A
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

His lectures are UNBEARABLE. If you can manage to stay awake through the monotonous tangents and actually find something to take notes on, you'll probably just end up watching the sweat roll down his face. There was a lot of repetitive reading, the syllabus was impossible to understand - the weekly synopses were difficult to write becuase of this

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: HIST160
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: N/A
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

If you are signed up this class just drop it now. It is not worth your time and stress. Tests are take-homes but a big headache since you have to look everything up yrself. Synoptic essays are annoying. Grading seems completely arbitrary and he still uses the "A/B" grade which is just so useless. Oh and he reads his disorganized lectures too.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: HIS160A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: N/A
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

Smart Guy but is not the clearest teacher. Rambles mostly and his tests questions are not clear. The readings are jumbled all over the place and the synoptic essays get to you after a while

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY111
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

• For Credit: N/A
• Textbook Used: N/A
• Would Take Again: N/A
• Attendance: N/A

Comment:

An intelligent professor who does not convey his thoughts well to students. Rambles in class and never follows a strict timeline. You do not have to go to every lecture in this class just make sure you do the WEEKLY papers and attend discussion. I would not recommend this class it is more work for the poor education you recieve from it.