Robert Ashmore - University of California Berkeley

Professor: Robert Ashmore

Department: Chinese

College: University of California Berkeley

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: CHINESE7A
• 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:

Don't take this class

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: CHIN155
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I've had three classes with him: Chinese 155, 110A, and 110B. A lot of students take his classes thinking they are going to be easy As. Guess what? They're not and that is ok! If you learn and respect the material, it is an easy A, if you don't show up or disrespect the material, you fail, simple. Truly a knowledgeable and funny guy, no regrets!

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: CHIN155
• Grade Received: F
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He doesn't care about students at all, I mean at all. He never responded to my emails, and whenever I try to talk to him before or after class, he just says he doesn't have time and just walks away. Also, he is often not there for his office hours. He does not allow us to use pdf textbooks, so everyone has to purchase their own expensive textbooks.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: CHIN7A
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

This class is hard. Professor Ashmore indeed doesn't have slides and you have to take notes from his speech. He will not spoon feed you information. He will give you just enough guidance for you to read and figure stuff on your own. You will have to do the readings on time and more than once, and think critically.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: CHIN110A
• Grade Received: C-
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

Hard grader, attendance in class is necessary. If he doesn't like you, you rae likely to get a low score even if you got correct answers.

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: CHIN110A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

Don't let this guy ruin your college life. He shows no caring to students.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: EALC108
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

very sweet, knowledgeable far outside his subject field.

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: CHIN110B
• 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:

This is actually only slightly harder than 110A, as the texts get longer and more complicated. As far as teaching/learning Classical Chinese from him, he's still awesome. Very knowledgeable and actively makes sure you understand how to parse the text.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: CHIN110A
• 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:

You can tell he's very passionate and knowledgeable about Classical Chinese. When I sat in the first day I knew I had to take this course. He's very talkative but he stays on topic and is very easy to approach in and out of class. The work is only hard if you don't put effort into it. Hopefully I'll be able to take 110B.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: CHINE7B
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Hard grader, attendance in class is necessary. Must do a lot of work for this class to be able to get a good grade, especially essays. Lots of readings and lectures and discussions are mainly regarded to the readings you must do every few days. To succeed, attend lectures and office hours regularly and be prepared for the readings.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: CHIN110A
• 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:

I really really like Professor Ashmore. He sometimes spends too much time explaining basic concepts in Literary Chinese, but you can tell that he is genuinely interested and wants everybody to do well. He is super genuine, and I feel like he is a fair grader. Take this class with him if you can!

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: CHIN155
• 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:

Don't expect any clarity out of this one-he starts topics without finishing them, focuses a lot of time on irrelevant topics, and, while he talks ALOT and sounds good, he actually says very little. He knows his stuff, but I feel that that he's so into his academic world that it's hard for him to relate to students or clearly express his thoughts.

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: CHN134
• 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:

He knows a lot and very approachable. Material may be hard, but it is worthy.

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: CH134
• 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:

Very engaged and knowledgeable. But he knows so much that he gets frustrated with beginners, and his reactions can be arbitrarily harsh. Assignments are very poorly explained.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: CHI2A100B
• Grade Received: C+
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

He has the tendency to start a topic and without even finishing it, move on to the next. Yet he really tries. Although he doesn't teach too well, he is really kind. Just keep up with the class and be able to translate when he calls on you. By doing so he'll have a good impression of you and will be more lenient on you when giving out grades.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: CHINESE134
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

If you are a non-native speaker of Chinese, then this class will not be easy. A lot of the course you spend time translating, and people who grew up reading this stuff will have a clear advantage. He's also not clear about what or how he wants you write.

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: CHIN7A
• 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:

This man is an amazing reservoir of Chinese history and literary knowledge. His glib of speech never fails to impress. I love him! He does not explain essay writing too well and expects you to cut the crap before your write it. Also, you have to be pretty interested in the material to do well.

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: CHINESE7A
• 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:

What the hell does "imaginative" mean when he uses it? It's kind of unclear, confusing, frusterating. You have to be really interested in the literature aspect to enjoy this class.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: CHINESE7A
• 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:

I loved this class. Prof. Ashmore really has an extensive knowledge of Chinese literature and he was always so lively.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: CHINESE2A
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 4.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

I loved Prof. Ashmore! Not only does he have vast knowledge of Chinese Lit & Language, the guy's got great jokes, can talk about Sesame Street and Classical Chinese Grammar in a single sentence, is incredibly approchable, does great squash moves in class.