Professor
Gail Lenhoff
3 of 3
Most Helpful Review
By far and hands down the worst professor I've had at UCLA. Instead of considering student questions as a mark of intellectual curiosity and engagement, Professor Lenhoff regards them as a challenge to her lecture and an implication that her initial explanation was sub-standard. Her lectures are sparse, and she does nothing to try to engage the listener. She's defensive, self-conscious of her own teaching ability, and will arbitrarily mark you down on your responses if they're not phrased in the exact verbiage she delivered in the classroom. Instead of engaging you in Russian History, she kills your spirit and makes you want to shoot yourself in the face. Steer clear if you care about your GPA or psychological well being.
By far and hands down the worst professor I've had at UCLA. Instead of considering student questions as a mark of intellectual curiosity and engagement, Professor Lenhoff regards them as a challenge to her lecture and an implication that her initial explanation was sub-standard. Her lectures are sparse, and she does nothing to try to engage the listener. She's defensive, self-conscious of her own teaching ability, and will arbitrarily mark you down on your responses if they're not phrased in the exact verbiage she delivered in the classroom. Instead of engaging you in Russian History, she kills your spirit and makes you want to shoot yourself in the face. Steer clear if you care about your GPA or psychological well being.
Most Helpful Review
I took Russian 25 with this professor fall quarter of my freshman year. The flip side to her is that she is a caring and concerned professor that is readily available. The down side is that she believes her lectures carry the absolute truth and anything that says otherwise is just heresy. Also she gives the MOST VAGUE essay prompts ever and if you do want to get an A you basically need to regurgitate her lecture notes verbatim. Think about it if you really want to take a class with this professor.
I took Russian 25 with this professor fall quarter of my freshman year. The flip side to her is that she is a caring and concerned professor that is readily available. The down side is that she believes her lectures carry the absolute truth and anything that says otherwise is just heresy. Also she gives the MOST VAGUE essay prompts ever and if you do want to get an A you basically need to regurgitate her lecture notes verbatim. Think about it if you really want to take a class with this professor.
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Most Helpful Review
Course Taken: History M127A Lectures were very dry and fragmented. Exam were rather difficult. Her study guide should say, memorize entire text book, making note of page numbers. I have created a page(s) Lecture Notes for Hist M127A. You can check out the document by going to http://www.notehall.com/docs/213760. Hope this helps you out on the exam.
Course Taken: History M127A Lectures were very dry and fragmented. Exam were rather difficult. Her study guide should say, memorize entire text book, making note of page numbers. I have created a page(s) Lecture Notes for Hist M127A. You can check out the document by going to http://www.notehall.com/docs/213760. Hope this helps you out on the exam.
Most Helpful Review
I actually am taking History M127A, or Russian M118, it didn't let me submit the review without selecting Slavic 599 for some reason. For the most part, I disagree with the bad reviews below. First of all, I have taken lots of notes and done all the readings, and I easily got an A on the midterm with very little studying. Furthermore, I COULD HAVE easily gotten an A on it if I had done NONE of the readings, but just gone to lecture. She basically tells you that everything in the textbook is false, and she gives detailed lectures that are hard to keep up with, but she emphasises the most important stuff for the tests over, and over, and over. Any difficult names or dates she wants you to remember, she writes on the board, and it's really not that much...especially after taking Russian 90 (intro to Russ civilization) with the nightmare Professor Klenin, this class is a piece of cake, and it's actually interesting if you care about Russia at all. She tries to relate stuff from medieval Russia to both the Soviet historians and current events in Russia. Professor Lenhoff absolutely DOES take questions in the middle of her lectures, even in the middle of her sentences usually if she sees you. She will learn your name quickly if you ask questions, and she will like you as long as you do ask something here or there. She answers emails. She doesn't give study guides anymore, but you REALLY don't need them if you've listened to her lectures. If you know anything about the period, you have an advantage, so I guess I'm biased in that sense. Either way, although she tends to speak too quietly and it's not always enthralling if you don't like Russian History, an A is definitely within reach. All you need to do is read the primary sources, which seems hard but they're really short, and you can easily just skip the long textbook info if you go to class and don't sleep while you're there.
I actually am taking History M127A, or Russian M118, it didn't let me submit the review without selecting Slavic 599 for some reason. For the most part, I disagree with the bad reviews below. First of all, I have taken lots of notes and done all the readings, and I easily got an A on the midterm with very little studying. Furthermore, I COULD HAVE easily gotten an A on it if I had done NONE of the readings, but just gone to lecture. She basically tells you that everything in the textbook is false, and she gives detailed lectures that are hard to keep up with, but she emphasises the most important stuff for the tests over, and over, and over. Any difficult names or dates she wants you to remember, she writes on the board, and it's really not that much...especially after taking Russian 90 (intro to Russ civilization) with the nightmare Professor Klenin, this class is a piece of cake, and it's actually interesting if you care about Russia at all. She tries to relate stuff from medieval Russia to both the Soviet historians and current events in Russia. Professor Lenhoff absolutely DOES take questions in the middle of her lectures, even in the middle of her sentences usually if she sees you. She will learn your name quickly if you ask questions, and she will like you as long as you do ask something here or there. She answers emails. She doesn't give study guides anymore, but you REALLY don't need them if you've listened to her lectures. If you know anything about the period, you have an advantage, so I guess I'm biased in that sense. Either way, although she tends to speak too quietly and it's not always enthralling if you don't like Russian History, an A is definitely within reach. All you need to do is read the primary sources, which seems hard but they're really short, and you can easily just skip the long textbook info if you go to class and don't sleep while you're there.
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