Steven Hoeltzel - James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA

Professor: Steven Hoeltzel

Department: Philosophy

College: James Madison University, Harrisonburg, VA

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: PHIL101
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Prof. Hoeltzel is a nice guy and cares about his students. Funny but sometimes I had a hard time understanding. I love philosophy but this class is mostly learning about philosophers and their theories, so it was kind of boring for me. 3 tests and 4 quizzes, prompts/study guides given but quizzes are still pretty hard. We didn't have pop quizzes

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: PHIL101
• Grade Received: B-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He is a really funny guy. His lectures are interesting. If you don't go to the lectures YOU WILL NOT PASS. He post lecture supplements online but they aren't filled in. There are 4 quizzes and they are really hard. 4 tests that he give you the questions to beforehand but they are essay q's and he grades really hard. The class is confusing.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: Not sure yet
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I love professor Hoeltzel! He had to leave halfway through the semester but I wish I could have had him the whole time. He gives you lecture supplements to follow with lectures and his quizzes and tests are based off the material directly from the lecture supplements. He makes it really easy to follow and he is very interesting and passionate.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Such a hard class and Hoeltzel is a very tough grader. Quizzes are straight from study guide and exams are essay prompts that are really long and you basically have to memorize word for word. They took me days to memorize. Chance of a quiz every class and nothing is posted online so you HAVE to show up to every class.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Hoeltzel is an amazing teacher. He prepares you quite well for exams, but is a very tough grader because they are essay based. He's really funny and cracks jokes, which lightens the lecture a bit. He flips a coin in class every day to see if you will have a reading-based pop quiz, but they're super simple and out of 5 points. Take this class!!!!

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL120
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

awesome teacher!! his classes are interesting, he has great power point presentations, guided notes and easy readings. you definitely have to study for the essay tests but it really isn't bad. he's super passionate about the topic and so willing to help you do well! honestly one of my favorite teachers i've had here.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

He tries to learn everyone's name & definitely knows what he's talking about, but he doesn't have much patience with the teaching portion. He uploads lecture supplements which makes it really easy to follow. A few short answer tests (he gives you the exact prompt in advance) and quizzes (he gives you detailed study guides.) Do them & you'll be fine

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He made me want to double Major in Phil. Take him if you are so lucky.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Such a great guy. He really cares about if his students are understanding the lectures and will always stop to answer any questions. He gives you the tests before you take them so you already know exactly what will be on it. If you have to take this class definitely take it with him.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: PHIL468
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Hoeltzel is a really smart guy, but he does not have much patience for teaching. He gives out note handouts, which sounds great, but you have to fill in the blanks (flash back to middle school note taking) and I often was too busy writing those in that I couldn't write my own notes. He is not a fan of discussion based learning.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

IF you like thinking about stuff the way a normal human wouldn't this is the class for you! Personally, I am not a fan of it. Class gets very boring and none of the topics are interesting. However he does give you the test before you take it, so its impossible to fail unless you're a moron.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

He's a very intelligent guy and prefers when he's having a discussion about morally controversial situations with students over actually lecturing. Very funny.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL101
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

My FAVORITE professor in three years here. The class isn't too tough if you put in the time to understand the material. I really respected his ability to not add bias to controversial subjects like religion and creation/evolution. Just take notes and put in a little time and it's pretty easy.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

This class is easy if you take the time to study! There are 5 quizzes which are straight from the study guide. If you do the study guide you will pass no problem. There are 3 exams and he gives you the prompts before hand so those are easy to pass as well. Hoeltzel is super funny and is always there to answer questions. Take this class!

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

5 quizzes (gives study guides that make it impossible to fail), 3 exams (gives prompts beforehand, impossible to fail); hilarious during lecture, even for the dry topics. flips a coin to determine if you'll have a pop quiz on the homework (and he drops the lowest grade), but we didn't have a single one. Super interesting and easy. TAKE HIM

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Very interesting class and professor. A little dry on lectures, kinds of puts you to sleep. Great guy, does his best to learn everyones names even in a class with over 100 students. Would recommend

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A-
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Hoeltzel is great! He's a quirky funny awesome guy and makes lectures always interesting. Personally, I am not interested in philosophy, but because of him, I never minded going to class. His quizzes come directly from his lecture supplements and he gives study guides for all of his quizzes and exams.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

I love Hoeltzel! He's kind of a quirky guy and his jokes lighten up the class. He flips a coin to decide whether or not you'll have a quiz on the assigned readings, but it's not as scary as you'd think. The quizzes rarely happen. Go to class, print the supplements, study for the tests as they're all essays. Not a super easy A, but still not too bad

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

This class can be dry but it's structured very well & he provides you with everything you need to do well. The study guides for the quizzes are very helpful. Quizzes are easy if you study; Tests are essays but you get the possible prompts ahead of time. Pop quizzes on the readings are actually rare. Cool guy. Most organized teacher I've ever had.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: GPHIL150
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

His quizzes were much harder than the tests even though they're multiple choice. The assigned reading must be done every class because he flips a coin to decide if there is a pop quiz or not. Overall, a good professor but some of the lectures got a little long. He is there to help though and loves what he teaches which is sometimes hard to find.