James Rawls - Diablo Valley College

Professor: James Rawls

Department: TBD

College: Diablo Valley College

Rating # 1

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• 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:

This is only an 8 week online class. If you do the reading and listen to the lectures it isn't too hard of a class, tests are tough. You can get guaranteed points by just doing the papers that are only a max of 250 words each. Lots of reading and lectures but easy to listen to in the car. Recommend the class if you enjoy history.

Rating # 2

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: WD
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I took this class as an 8-week fall term class and the grading was solely based on reaction papers and tests so there was no way to give your grade a foundation. Another thing is that you could only take the tests on certain days at a certain time and he was insightful, but I think he thought he was cool because he wrote the textbook for the class

Rating # 3

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY124
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

It was an 8-week online class, It had four reaction paper, 3 exams( first midterm, second midterm, and final)The online lectures were great and interesting, he is very good for the homework. Only exams were hard and confusing questions, the questions are mixed from reading and an online lecture. He is hard for grading. rather than that he is great.

Rating # 4

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY124
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

He is great. Very accessible. His test and lectures are hard and many. Tests on the weekend. Make 4 short response papers.

Rating # 5

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

3 online exams (100 questions for 100 mins) 4 response papers!

Rating # 6

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Dr. James Rawls course is at the level of Stanford or UC Berkeley, you will learn alot. His 8 weeks long online class was interesting but EXTREMELY stressful. We had 3 text books (must read all 1100 pages), with 3 exams and 4 short essays. Good students can easily get a C but very hard to get an A. Expect about 3 hours of reading Each Day.

Rating # 7

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY124
• Grade Received: C
• Overall Rating: 2.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

If you are a History major, you will probably love this class. He is extremely talented In what he teaches. However I took this class for a general Ed requirement and I was miserable! I studied for hours on tests and the best I received was a C! I'm an A student and I received a C in the class. Tests are nearly impossible and are on weekends. Run!

Rating # 8

Overview:

• Course: HISTORY124
• Grade Received: B+
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 3.0

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

Comment:

If you're looking for a gen Ed credit, go elsewhere. If you are interested in the subject and seek a real passionate and extremely knowledgeable professor, this is a great class. I was in several of his classes over two decades ago and Dr. Rawls stands out as one of my best professors.

Rating # 9

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

One of the most influential professors I had at DVC (circa 1990). It's 2017 now and I continue to refer to the books on his reading lists. Make the time to meet at office hours, he is a gift. Could have been a Cal or Stanford level Professor but he is comfortable at DVC. You don't know what you have learned or why it's important until much later.

Rating # 10

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• 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:

He's really nice and understanding, tests are tough and you can share your book with your friends so that the book will be cheap.

Rating # 11

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 1.5
• Course Difficulty: 2.0

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

Comment:

He is an easy grader and gives students lots of chances to make up their mistakes on previous tests or essays except the last week of the class when he becomes a harsh professor.

Rating # 12

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

I took this class online short-term, worst decision ever. There's so much material in a short-term class that it's nearly impossible to finish all the reading and online lectures. There are 4 Reaction Papers and three online exams which are 100 minutes for 100 questions. I got C's on all the tests after hours of studying. VERY HARD DO NOT RECOMMEND

Rating # 13

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 3.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

In my entire learning career I've received only A grades in history classes. This professor is extremely rigid and does not need to be teaching online courses. He schedules exams on FRIDAY and SATURDAY NIGHTS. They are 100 minutes for 100 questions, which gave me no time to review answers, or even finish (1st exam I got a D & I was very prepared).

Rating # 14

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: B
• Overall Rating: 1.0
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

DO NOT take this class online! The work load is more than an average in-class semester long course, and this course is 8 weeks and online. You will be stressed, overwhelmed, and you will not have enough time to finish all the assigned reading/lectures which ARE necessary. This class is ridiculous, I would not recommend it to anyone.

Rating # 15

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 2.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

Unless you are good at history or want to spend hours and hours studying for exams, do yourself a favor and don't take this class. Not a bad teacher but the workload and stress that come with the class is ridiculous.

Rating # 16

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: A+
• Overall Rating: 3.5
• Course Difficulty: 5.0

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

Comment:

NOT an easy A class.Takes a lot of time and effort to get a good grade. Studying for tests was brutal and takes seemingly endless hours if you want to do well- hundreds of q's to answer.Would have been an interesting class for history if it weren't so stressful due to the short term time crunch. Don't recommend for those who aren't self disciplined

Rating # 17

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 1.0

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

Comment:

One of the best instructors I have had at DVC to date. Not only did he write the book on California History, he is an excellent instructor. Prepares you for each exam and has a few writing responses required for the online section. Learned a lot in 8 weeks!

Rating # 18

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• 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:

I took his class online. It was a pretty easy course as long as you spend lots of time studying for the tests before hand. He gives you a stdyguide that has all the q's that are on the tests. I just skimmed the books for the answers. Didn't even read it. All multiple choice questions Got an A.

Rating # 19

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• 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:

Took Raul's online Hist of Calif, not an easy but very clear course, interesting lectures, heavy use of 3 of his books to prepare for tests, test questions provided ahead, no discussion entries, little extra credit, pretty time consuming but you will learn a lot.

Rating # 20

Overview:

• Course: HIST124
• Grade Received: N/A
• Overall Rating: 5.0
• Course Difficulty: 4.0

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

Comment:

I am not usually one who enjoys or is even interested in History, but Prof. Rawls made it interesting, even for me - enough so that I actually enjoyed his class. It's not even close to being an easy class, but it's well worth taking as you undoubtedly learn and remember what was learned.