<p>Remember that you can go to the math lab if you have help. As of this Fall, only grad students will be working in the math lab (budget cuts to the undergrad TAs). Most of the PhD students should be able to answer any Cal II question you may have.</p>
<p>Thanks, i will keep that in mind if I need help with something.</p>
<p>I had Wesdickenburg. My average score on a test was about a 55 and I made a 40 something on the final exam. Needless to say, I actually made a C in the class. I’m pretty sure at least half of the class failed and he’s not teaching anymore.</p>
<p>^
actually, my friend has him :(.
I told her to get out. It’s not his wife, I checked.</p>
<p>so will Mitkovski be good, you guys think? I have him so far, and you all said he’s new… but will it be too risky?</p>
<p>I got loss!
I woke up an hour early before the my time ticket and immediately kept renewing math 1502 class page. And when there was 1 spot left, I took it! I love the time, I love the professor’s review!
Hard for freshmen to get the exact schedule they want, but I guess I was lucky. I really didn’t want morley… too easy and I think I won’t learn anything.
Definitely worth agonizing it over for a whole week.</p>
<p>P.S. first day in Towers hall, and I love it!</p>
<p>Can anyone supply more information about Bellissard for Calc II, 1502, at Ga Tech? From the grade distribution there appear to be major differences between Bellisard and Geronimo versus Loss, Morley, etc… Does anyone know about Westdickenberg (I think that is the name) for Math 1502?</p>
<p>Bellisard, Geronimo, and Westdickenberg are all very difficult professors. Working your hardest in those classes will not ensure an A, although an A is certainly possible, especially if the student is exceptional at math. Most students should be capable of a B.</p>
<p>If possible, I would switch out of the above professors classes. The professors themselves are not particularly bad at teaching, but the grades will be lower. However, since it is probably not possible to change MATH 1502 classes, I advise you (your child?) to just buckle down, form a study group, get tutoring when needed, and expect a tough semester of Calc that may not result in an A.</p>
<p>It gets better after Calc 2! =)</p>
<p>Thank you fpr the input. You are right, it looks like he can not change professors. It just seem unfortunate that there is such disparity in course difficulty and grading based on the professors. (The average grades for Morley are more than a letter grade higher than these three). It seems like the administrators at Tech would notice and try to level it out…</p>
<p>The administration does try to keep scores somewhat consistent, but it varies by department. For example, intro Biology and Physics classes use the same exams, and Chemistry is pretty standardized as well. The Math department uses a probation system which put professors on probation for giving too high or too low of GPA’s but this only lasts for one semester and there is a wide “acceptable” range of average GPA’s. While students in Morley’s class do get better grades they do not learn much, so that could actually hurt them down the road.</p>
<p>Re: Bellisard</p>
<p>A good friend of mine TA’d for Bellisard one semester. He showed me one of Bellisard’s Cal II midterms, and some of the questions are indeed tricky. But they are not impossible; the tricky questions simply test whether you know how to calm down and apply what you should have learned from doing the homework and paying attention in lecture / recitation.</p>
<p>Would you all happen to suggest taking Calc 2 honors with Andrews over calc 2 with geronimo? I know Calc 2 honors is harder than just calc 2 but I’ve heard geronimo is a pretty tough teacher.</p>
<p>Honors will be harder than any regular class, even Geronimo.</p>
<p>Dr. Andrews is good. I TA’d for one of his regular Cal II sections once. He likes to meet his TAs once a week and does all regrading requests with his TAs at the same time and place, so he syncs his lecture with the TAs’ recitations quite well. Additionally, regrading is done pretty consistently.</p>
<p>Note, however, that Honors Cal II is proof-based. If that’s your thing, then it isn’t necessarily “hard,” but if it isn’t, be aware.</p>
<p>I would agree with fabrizio if you have experienced a proof-based class before. And I don’t mean you geometry class… If you have not, even if you are inclined towards Math proofs, I feel confident in saying honors will be harder for you than regular Calc II. You will also be competing against some very strong math students. But there are some benefits of honors. You will likely have a close nit study group (and you will use it a LOT), a smaller class, and a lenient curve, but just like Geronimo’s class an A is scarce. By scarce I mean that although honors will, as a percentage, have many more A’s, a good chuck of those go to math geniuses… If you like Math, a B is very doable. I would also agree that Andrews is a good professor. If you are still considering honors I suggest sitting in on the class this week and see if you would prefer it before just switching.</p>
<p>i feel so bad for people who have geronimo and have not had BC calc…like, i understood ihis lesson yesterday because i had done it before, but if i just had been coming from calc 1 with no series or sequences, it would have been impossible</p>
<p>I’m pretty sure many people feel that regardless of their teacher. I was surprised how fast calculus moved and the depth it was covered when I took it here.</p>
<p>For future calc 2 students, don’t take Geronimo at all cost if you don’t want to teach all the material to yourself. He is horrible, and explains it un necessarily hard. It is hard to understand his messy handwriting, and all his i’s,n’s,t’s,!'s and 1’s look the same.If you can teach the material yourself by either going to the tutors underneath the freshman buildings, going to one on one tutoring in the instructional center, or going to Geronimo himself, the test are not hard at all.</p>
<p>for those who look at this for ideas for next semester or what not, my two cents:</p>
<p>I had one of the horsemen (Bellisard), and to be honest he is a good teacher. Hard? most deffinately. You do learn it however, and I suppose that is the most important thing. The one warning I give, though, is work. I unfortunately did not work very hard at it and came out with a C, but I mean this goes to show you that you do not have to work hard to pass. I guess if you are going to Tech a C is not exactly enticing, but hard work could probably give you a B (you have to actually try it seems like to get a D or F in this class).</p>
<p>Btw, for those on here who know, is it true Bellisard is teaching calc 3 next semester?</p>
<p>^Calc 3 teachers are up BTW on registration. I had Geronimo, and I made an A. I worked very hard, went to office hours,and went to almost all of the classes. the grades ending up being</p>
<p>89-100-A
79-88-B
60-79-C
50-60-D</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>i made a 90.9 and was ranked 17/163 students. For future calc 2 students. His class is not impossible, but you have to do the work. Try to read the book, and ask him questions on his lecture after class, he is very nice and willing to help. You do not have
to be a math genius to do well, for I know I am not. </p>
<p>The averages for his tests were
79,62,80,70,54 and the average for the final was a 70. </p>
<p>To bring up the grade so he has to curve less, you get to replace your lowest test
score with your quiz average ( for most people it is 100) and you get 2 points for going to recitation and turning in your homework added to your test average that makes up 70% of your grade.</p>
<p>But even with this, the GPA is still a low 2. something. Since bellisard curves his class tremedously, there GPA is normally the same even though Bellisards tests are harder. Geronimo is hard to understand in lecture but gives ok tests. While Bellisard is a good teacher, but gives hard tests, but ends up curving it. So, which ever one you get, the class GPA will be low.</p>