POL SCI 40
Introduction to American Politics
Description: Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour. Basic institutions and processes of democratic politics. Treatment of themes such as constitutionalism, representation, participation, and leadership coupled with particular emphasis on the American case. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
3 of 5
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2024 - Professor Payson is a great speaker, and I really enjoyed her lectures. The workload was light, and assignments were very straightforward. I took AP Gov in high school, and this course was extremely similar. That being said, even though I took AP Gov and lectures were super easy to understand, somehow the exam multiple choice questions were surprisingly difficult given that exams were open-note. Maybe it was just me, but I recommend studying a little harder than you think you should for the exams.
Spring 2024 - Professor Payson is a great speaker, and I really enjoyed her lectures. The workload was light, and assignments were very straightforward. I took AP Gov in high school, and this course was extremely similar. That being said, even though I took AP Gov and lectures were super easy to understand, somehow the exam multiple choice questions were surprisingly difficult given that exams were open-note. Maybe it was just me, but I recommend studying a little harder than you think you should for the exams.
Most Helpful Review
Spring 2020 - I took this during spring COVID quarter (online), so just keep that in mind. Peris seems like a really nice guy, and was super accomodating through all the craziness going on in the world. He lessened our workload, and the midterm was really fair considering all the content we went over. He made the final optional and eased the grading scale a bunch, too. His lectures were engaging and funny at times, and he even connected his lectures to some current events, which was interesting. I really enjoyed his approach to the class. PS he did get in trouble for saying the n-word while reading MLK's Birmingham letter during the George Floyd protests. He obviously shouldn't have done it, and it was hurtful people (esp BIPOC) even though he emphasized that he was saying it for historical context, and not to be malicious. His apology seemed genuine, and if it wasn't for that, I think he would really represent UCLA well as a full time prof.
Spring 2020 - I took this during spring COVID quarter (online), so just keep that in mind. Peris seems like a really nice guy, and was super accomodating through all the craziness going on in the world. He lessened our workload, and the midterm was really fair considering all the content we went over. He made the final optional and eased the grading scale a bunch, too. His lectures were engaging and funny at times, and he even connected his lectures to some current events, which was interesting. I really enjoyed his approach to the class. PS he did get in trouble for saying the n-word while reading MLK's Birmingham letter during the George Floyd protests. He obviously shouldn't have done it, and it was hurtful people (esp BIPOC) even though he emphasized that he was saying it for historical context, and not to be malicious. His apology seemed genuine, and if it wasn't for that, I think he would really represent UCLA well as a full time prof.
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3 of 5
