Alright, let me get this straight. This man is so mad that students at UCLA are doing better on his weekly quizzes than the other community college he teaches at that he PURPOSEFULLY makes the midterm exam more difficult. (BTW, he changed his midterm the night before giving it out, so there were numerous typos that made it difficult to understand questions, and had a few questions that had multiple answers that were correct when only 1 was marked as the correct answer). Also, he REFUSES to accommodate other students when we simply asked for a little bit more time than 5 minutes on weekly quizzes (he eventually FINALLY caved halfway through the quarter and gave us 1 extra minute to answer even more vague questions he puts on his quizzes). He instructed his TAs to grade our final paper on a strict grading rubric that was EXTREMELY vague since the beginning as it was supposed to give us "creative freedom," yet he enforces a strict grading policy???

Let's talk about the final I just took. He claims that due to his fears of students cheating during online teaching, that he puts in place sequential testing (where you can't go back to check answers after you click to go to the next question, and you can't skip ahead to another question). This was an okay policy, personally; I can deal with that. Yet while he says he's afraid of students cheating, he puts a question on the final that requires you to look at your notes for the graph or just straight up guess because it's such a random detail from one of his lectures. There is also no graph to go alongside the question to help you answer it, so you either guess, or quickly look through your notes on a closed-book exam. I guessed and probably got it wrong.

The interesting topics that this course goes over were completely ruined by this professor's weird test-taking policies and strange stubbornness to accommodate students DURING A PANDEMIC. I actually really like sociology, but it is not my major and I took this class as a GE. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS FOR A GE. It's not worth it unless you take P/NP.

I would actually rather write 5 papers like the other sociology professor does than take this class again with Villarreal. This class was STUPIDLY hard for no reason when the topics were actually interesting. I know the core concepts for this course (as stated by the learning objectives in the rubric), yet what is actually tested are random, fleeting details from lecture. Awful all around.

Class grade breakdown:
Midterm: 25%
Final: 25%
Weekly quizzes (lowest 2 dropped): 20%
Essay: 20%
Participation: 10%

This class was definitely really stressful but it's kind of offset by the fact that the workload is so light. Lectures were asynchronous (about an hour and a half total for each week) and were based straight off the textbook with a little extra information thrown in. Weekly textbook reading is recommended and it is helpful to skim just because not all the vocab makes it into the lecture. There's a weekly discussion question that's due every Friday and sometimes a discussion memo written in a breakout room during discussion (I believe we had a total of 4-5 memos throughout the quarter, so it's not every week). Quizzes (5 questions; 6 minutes total given; no going back) worth 20% of our grade (lowest two scores dropped) were also due Friday and were quite simple MC based on the lecture material.

Midterm and final (each 25% of your grade) were both 35 minutes for 25 MC questions, with no going back after moving to the next question. Essay (20% of your grade) was due later on in the quarter.

Quizzes were simple reading comprehension (if you watched the lecture and took good notes then you're totally good to go) and you get full points on the memos if you just take the time to analyze the topic + write a full paragraph. The discussion questions were graded on participation, so that was an easy 30% of your grade secured right there.

I do agree that the midterm was overly punitive given the scope of the class + the format of the midterm. The exam was closed notes/book and we didn't have the option of going back to check your answer, which sucked majorly since the exam was timed. I ended up making the mistake of rushing and didn't do so well. The prof ended up giving back points for some of the questions with ambiguous wording (I think 3-4 questions total), so the average did go up to 85 according to one of the TAs. As someone else mentioned, apparently the midterm was made to be easier but was then changed because of how high our quiz averages were. There were definitely confusing wording/questions, but he did give back points so I believe it evens out.

My TA mentioned that the prof asked them to grade the essay down to a B average, so if you take this class, try to organize an office hour with your TA or the prof to discuss the prompt and the direction of your essay. A lot of the comments/feedback I got were extra topics I could have discussed (not really covered by the prompt). I wasn't too happy with my score but it ended up curved up by two points at the very end.

The final was a lot, lot better. I rewatched all of the lecture videos and redid all the readings (final wasn't cumulative so it was only about five weeks of lectures) and scored really well. While we still weren't allowed to go back and check answers (Prof said this was the alternative to Respondus), none of the questions had ambiguous wording and they were all answerable based on what we learned in the class. Average was around 85 again (no adjustments).

All in all, I don't actually think this was a bad class to take at all. There isn't a lot of cushioning if you screw up on one of the big portions of your grade (midterm/essay/final) and there isn't extra credit, but I think it's definitely doable if you really work to understand the details and themes of the course. Prof. Villarreal did try to accommodate us based on our feedback (increased quiz times by one minute; final was less confusing) but I understand why people are a little frustrated with this class. Taking it in-person would probably be better as you wouldn't have to deal with the no going back policy on quizzes/exams, but if you put a little more time in, I think this was definitely manageable as an online class.

Due to COVID, class was asynchronous, a huge hit especially for such a discussion based class. Villarreal really tries his best and I also took his honors seminar to get some sort of live class, but it really just isn’t the same watching lectures and reading the textbook alone. Not a hard class by any means, very simply structured with weekly quizzes, an essay, participation (group memos in discussion), and the two exams. I wish there was a bit more padding in the grade because some exam questions are quite tricky (pay attention to lecture and the book!) and the essay was pretty vague, so I’d suggest to try your best with the weekly quizzes. Villarreal is a sweet and kind professor and I wish I could have taken this class in person!

Overall I'd say that this class was fairly easy. Weekly quizzes were straight to the point and covered exactly what was in the previous week's chapter and lecture, each containing 5 mc questions and being timed for 5, but soon 6, minutes. As for discussions, we would be put into different breakout rooms where we worked together to write a memo also based on the previous week's topic. Additionally we were required to write a 5 page paper, and my TA did a great job of specifying what we needed to include in order to get a good grade as well as clearing up any further questions in her office hours. Lastly, we had a midterm and a final, both 25 mc questions and timed for 35 minutes. Although the professor’s lectures, the discussion sections, and assigned readings provided great insight into various sociological topics, it became somewhat difficult to fully enjoy due to the constant complaining of slight inconveniences by other students. One of the main things fellow peers would love to complain about is the timing of the quizzes and exams, which I would like to point out had been clearly set by the professor in the syllabus. Many believed that five minutes for five questions wasn't enough time, but as stated before, the quizzes were fairly easy and we're literally based off of stuff directly stated in the textbook. Had the student just came prepared by simply reading the chapter or even just bothered to look over the slides put up by the professor, there would be no reason for them to take up all of the time given for the quizzes. Due to the lingering entitlement, the professor was bombarded with emails asking for additional time which he eventually came through with, but students still found a way to complain even though he wasn't even obligated to give more time. As harsh as it is to say, many have failed to realize that college classes and professors won't always accommodate your wants, this is the real world afterall, and not everything is going to go your way. Another problem many people had was with the actual questions in the weekly quizzes, midterm, and final exam. Many believed they were hard to understand because of the wording, however many also failed to accept that had they read the answers more carefully, one could note the slight variation between the right answer and those that were wrong, therefore allowing them to pick the correct answer and getting the points. With this out of the way, I would recommend this class, as the workload is highly manageable and easy to complete and the topics discussed by Professor Villarreal and the textbook are clear, fascinating, and eye opening.

A pretty easy class, but felt pretty disconnected since it was async. Workload was very minimal, just watch the lectures, take the weekly quiz, and write a short group paragraph during discussion. Tests were easy if you just make a study guide with terms and concepts that he put on the slides.

My lectures were online recorded, so I did not interact much with the professor. There was two multiple choice midterms (no final), one 5- paged essay, and each week there was a group memo and a discussion. Instead of just knowing the definition of the vocabulary, you have to properly apply the terms.

I took this class asynchronously with an in-person discussion. Honestly, it was pretty easy. The class is based on a textbook and the professor's lectures basically repeated everything from the readings. I found the tests to be fairly easy by taking detailed notes on the readings and reviewing them the night before, as well as going through the TA's practice questions. There were 2 midterms and no final, and the midterms were not cumulative! The midterms themselves were pretty simple, just multiple choice asking about concepts from the readings on a somewhat basic level. The readings though were a bit long and could take me a long time to get through, but given that it was just 1 chapter a week and a few lecture videos, the workload was really low and I could knock everything out in a day. My TA was Roxanne and she was super nice! Really lenient with the discussion assignments and very approachable.

This quarter was Prof. Villarreal's first quarter here, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I went in thinking that there would be a lot of reading, but pretty easy tests and essays, but it actually turned out to be almost the opposite. The only homework was reading the textbook chapter for the week, watching the async lectures, answering an embedded lecture question, and taking a quiz. Overall, very light workload. Since this was my first async lecture, I wasn't sure what to expect. However, I felt that there was an overall lack of communication from the professor; he basically only sent emails for the midterm, essay, and final. As others have stated, there wasn't really a rubric that the TAs graded the essay on, which was unfair. I think prof will benefit to provide a TA for them to use next time to grade essays so students have a clearer understanding of what he wants. If he does not, make sure to attend TA office hours and figure out what your TA wants.
The weekly quizzes were fairly simple, although the midterm did not necessarily reflect those weekly quizzes. There were quite a few confusing questions (either worded strangely or otherwise), and some that you would not have known if you did not read the textbook thoroughly. I didn't think that the rule that you couldn't go back to your previous questions was too bad, although it did add some additional stress. Honestly, I think I stressed out about this GE more than needed, but he wasn't a terrible professor. If you can time manage for quizzes/tests and read the textbook thoroughly, it shouldn't be too bad.

Villarreal will definitely get some mixed and contradicting reviews, but they're all completely valid! I'll try to elaborate.

If this is way too long, here's the abridged version: Workload is light. Asynchronous lectures. Weekly quizzes are simple. The 2 weekly assignments count towards participation–please do them. Exams can be difficult and can make or break your grade. Run your essay ideas and thesis by your TA to gauge what they want/how they're gonna grade. Or else things will get confusing. EVERYTHING COUNTS.

I think the workload was pretty light. Lectures were asynchronous, so you had an entire week to watch them. Villarreal's mic kinda sucks, though, so it was a little difficult to understand him at times. Something that I didn't like was that he gave lectures nearly word for word out of the textbook. I took detailed notes on the text, so lectures could drag on for me. If I took this class again, I wouldn't rely so heavily on the text and wouldn't treat the lectures as supplementary.

There was a question posed in each of the recorded lectures, and we had to write a discussion post that was at least 4-5 sentences. (Students often wrote more just to make their point clear). Additionally, there was a group memo that we completed in groups of 3-4 during discussion section. Most of the time was spent on discussing the question and possible answers. These two assignments count towards your participation grade, so do them to get some free points!

Then there were also the weekly quizzes, which I found pretty simple. The questions were multiple choice and strongly vocabulary based. I think a quick skim through the text is enough to do well.

The midterm was definitely a little out of left field after the fairly simple quizzes. Others here mentioned that Villarreal purposely made it more difficult last minute. (But he did give back points on a few questions—these points helped my grade tremendously.) With the final, students knew what to expect, so some kind people shared some great study guides with the class! I thought the final was written so much more clearly and with less desire to throw students off. However, some students didn't share my opinion. I think the fact that we couldn't go back to look over our previous questions and had 35 mins for 25 questions took a toll on people.

If you aren't a strong test taker or don't do too well under pressure (especially if you're in an environment where it's hard to focus), I think you can find a GE that's a better fit for you. If you need this class as a Soc major, try not to take it with Villarreal if you can. Or at least don't take it online as this was his first time teaching a course at UCLA, so we don't know how he runs an in-person class.

We also had to write a 4.5-5 page essay, and the prompt was quite vague. Again, Villarreal wanted TAs to grade harshly, so the average was a B. (But from a poll conducted, many got higher grades!! Don't be too scared.) Due to the vagueness of the prompt, many students were lost during the writing process. I don't think the TAs had a standard grading system for the essays either, so asking clarifying questions to people with a different TA probably wasn't the best idea. Regardless of your writing ability, take advantage of office hours, so you can talk to your TA about your thesis and ideas and get a feel of exactly what THEY are looking for. I think anyone can do well on the essay as long as they don't go in completely blind. (I and many others decided to wing it. Don't make the same mistake.)

I don't think my grade was even near an A, but I aced the final and got a great participation grade. This class is definitely one of those where literally EVERYTHING COUNTS! Not doing too well in one area can hurt you a lot. But if you do "okay" on the midterm and essay, the final and how well you keep up with assignments can give you can extra push.

I'm not a Sociology major, but I'm very interested in the subject. I enjoyed what I learned and a lot connected to another one of my GEs. Someone else said that students were complaining too much, but I think it built community. And even with the complaining, we were always cheering each other on and helping each other out with the material. So the kinds of people in the class/chat will also affect your overall experience.