Harvey Blau - Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

Professor: Harvey Blau

Department: Mathematics

College: Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Good professor! He explained the content well because he knows the content well. He grades homework for accuracy, so if you don't understand something on the homework, you will get a grade reflecting that. Does give partial credit though! Nice guy, tough class content-wise, easy to follow during lecture.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

At first, Dr. Blau seemed quite abrasive. When I would go in for office hours, it seemed like he was angry when I couldn't grasp concepts. However, as the semester went on, I found him to be an excellent professor. He offered a weekly help session and provided study guides for exams. He gave extensive feedback on all assignments.

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: GEOM353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Blau was great! He showed passion for the material and knew what he was talking about in class. Although he graded brutally in the homework, he would give you homework hints that could help you succeed. He also would show you what to expect on the text. Just memorize the axioms word-for-word and you will be fine.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: MATH240
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Highly knowledgeable person, not a very good teacher. Always faces the board and hardly ever answers questions. Using one of the worst-rated textbooks didn't help either. If there is a plus, he does curve the homework and tests. However, overall, I wouldn't recommend him.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Professor Blau is really great. He gives you hints on the homework and the mandatory attendance quizzes are a grade booster in the end since they are relatively easy. He has a review before each test and basically spells out for you what you need to know. His grading is tough, but that is normal considering it is an upper level math class.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

He wrote the textbook, and he knows his stuff. I liked the daily quizzes, easy points. He explains everything very clear. He's also got a dry sense of humor, and I think he's hilarious.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

If you take 353, you HAVE to have Blau!! He's very clear, methodical, and organized. His book (that he wrote) is super easy to read! Homework can be tough if you don't know how to write proofs, but he lays out the exams really well! Mandatory attendance-quiz & hmwk due every class meeting, but it's good because he give your hints on how to do hmwk!

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

You could easily teach yourself the material just by reading the book, but he has a mandatory attendance policy. All he does in class is regurgitate theorems, their proofs, and definitions directly from the book, so I'm not quite sure why he requires attendance. Fair exams, but you can receive 0 credit on HW for perfectly valid solutions.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: MTH420
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Excellent professor. He is very helpful and explains things thoroughly. Has a mandatory attendance policy and daily quizzes, but this is to your benefit as he teaches well and the quizzes are easy points.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: MATH230H
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

This class was hard, but Blau did a good job teaching it. There are daily quizzes and attendance is expected, but the class isn't that bad as long as you do the work and study. He is a great teacher.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: MATH229H
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

The class was horribly difficult, but he did his best to teach it well. The tests were always fair and the quizzes were a good grade booster. There wasn't a lot of homework, but it took a long time.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: MATH229H
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Professor was good. Mandatory attendence because of daily quizzes. Quizzes were easy. Tests are harder, but if you study you should be fine. Class was great...learned a lot.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Great teacher, really knows the stuff (he wrote the book). Also, the book is well writen and the daily quizes and semi daily homeworks really help you understand the material.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: MATH229
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

he is very knowledgeable about calculus. has daily quizzes/homework that add up to pretty easy points. his tests are pretty easy because he gives study guides that directly resemble the exams. the final is tough because it isnt written by him so it's not his style. good teacher though.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: MATH230232
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

He is a good teacher, vary structured. The daily quizes aren't hard, but are almost free points, so...

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: MATH232
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Blau seemed to come unprepared, make a lot of mistakes during examples, and often ended up running class late. he had mini quizzes every day(usually extremely easy, but still a hassle). With that being said, he was nice and had a fair grading policy.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: MATH353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Prof. Blau is a really good teacher. The matereal is kind of hard to grasp sometimes but he is more than willing help anyone who asks. I highly reccomend him for anyone.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: MATH230
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He gave clear examples that helped learn the basic concepts. It was a tough class, but he made it tolerable.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: GEOM353
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

Helpful, clear speaker; a lot of work, but easy to understand and get good grade