POL SCI 6
Introduction to Data Analysis
Description: Lecture, three or four hours; discussion, one hour (when scheduled). Not open for credit to students with credit for course 6R. Introduction to collection and analysis of political data, with emphasis on application of statistical reasoning to study of relationships among political variables. Use of computer as aid in analyzing data from various fields of political science, among them comparative politics, international relations, American politics, and public administration. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2017 - Hartman was nice but she seemed pretty inexperienced. Her class setup was focused on peer learning so she and the TAs put us in groups that we stayed in for the entire quarter. Everything was done with our groups: the homework, the classwork, and our final project. There was also an enormous amount of coding in the R language which I found pretty hard because she didn't really teach it to us; she just sent us R files with instructions on how to do certain things. A normal lecture would consist of Hartman talking about what we'd be doing that day and then we'd work with our groups on a worksheet. Her lectures weren't effective for me because I felt like she wasn't really teaching. She was just giving us basic information about whatever stats topic and then we would have to put it to work in R and on our worksheets. I understand what she was trying to do with the whole group learning thing but I feel like it actually hindered my learning. I think the group situation allows people to slide by and not actually learn the material because we can just rely on others in our group to keep us afloat. I wasn't the only one who was lost in my group but we all sort of did what we could to get the work done. I think the class was curved at the end of it all because people were struggling. She also offered extra credit. If I remember correctly, I think it was .5% for reading an entire book and writing a 3 page summary or reflection on it. I definitely didn't think that was worth it. Overall, I had a bad time in this class but I survived. Unless Hartman changes the way she runs her class, I'd recommend a different professor.
Winter 2017 - Hartman was nice but she seemed pretty inexperienced. Her class setup was focused on peer learning so she and the TAs put us in groups that we stayed in for the entire quarter. Everything was done with our groups: the homework, the classwork, and our final project. There was also an enormous amount of coding in the R language which I found pretty hard because she didn't really teach it to us; she just sent us R files with instructions on how to do certain things. A normal lecture would consist of Hartman talking about what we'd be doing that day and then we'd work with our groups on a worksheet. Her lectures weren't effective for me because I felt like she wasn't really teaching. She was just giving us basic information about whatever stats topic and then we would have to put it to work in R and on our worksheets. I understand what she was trying to do with the whole group learning thing but I feel like it actually hindered my learning. I think the group situation allows people to slide by and not actually learn the material because we can just rely on others in our group to keep us afloat. I wasn't the only one who was lost in my group but we all sort of did what we could to get the work done. I think the class was curved at the end of it all because people were struggling. She also offered extra credit. If I remember correctly, I think it was .5% for reading an entire book and writing a 3 page summary or reflection on it. I definitely didn't think that was worth it. Overall, I had a bad time in this class but I survived. Unless Hartman changes the way she runs her class, I'd recommend a different professor.
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2022 - Honestly, not sure whats up with all the bad reviews for professor Hazlett, the man is an absolute legend. Sure, the class is mostly self taught, but the CourseKata textbook we use is very clear at explaining material, and all the homework gets graded on completion. The Jupytr Notebooks can be difficult at times, but prof Hazlett goes through them all during lecture and pretty much walks you through them. The midterms and final were a bit tough, but extra credit was offered with both making it a lot more manageable. I ended up finishing one of the quizes with over 100% even though I got a few questions wrong. The stats itself wasn't that bad, easier than AP Stats, and the coding was pretty elementary and you are given a cheatsheet to help you if you get stuck with a command. Jenny was an incredible TA as well, answering all questions and explaining all the material very thoroughly in section. I'd definitely take this course again and it was a great alternative to stats 10.
Winter 2022 - Honestly, not sure whats up with all the bad reviews for professor Hazlett, the man is an absolute legend. Sure, the class is mostly self taught, but the CourseKata textbook we use is very clear at explaining material, and all the homework gets graded on completion. The Jupytr Notebooks can be difficult at times, but prof Hazlett goes through them all during lecture and pretty much walks you through them. The midterms and final were a bit tough, but extra credit was offered with both making it a lot more manageable. I ended up finishing one of the quizes with over 100% even though I got a few questions wrong. The stats itself wasn't that bad, easier than AP Stats, and the coding was pretty elementary and you are given a cheatsheet to help you if you get stuck with a command. Jenny was an incredible TA as well, answering all questions and explaining all the material very thoroughly in section. I'd definitely take this course again and it was a great alternative to stats 10.
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Most Helpful Review
Spring 2017 - I had a extremely negative experience with this Professor. After class I asked her if the class required previous knowledge, and she asked me where I was from. I could not believe she meant country of origin, so I told her my academic background. But she asked me the question again because she meant country of origin. I answered her and then she said: "Well, here (U.S), we start from the beginning". I was so apalled by this interaction that I mentioned it to an authority within the department. Next time I went to office hours she was extremely hostile and unfriendly. I really look forward to taking the class with someone more profesional and more versed on pedagogy.
Spring 2017 - I had a extremely negative experience with this Professor. After class I asked her if the class required previous knowledge, and she asked me where I was from. I could not believe she meant country of origin, so I told her my academic background. But she asked me the question again because she meant country of origin. I answered her and then she said: "Well, here (U.S), we start from the beginning". I was so apalled by this interaction that I mentioned it to an authority within the department. Next time I went to office hours she was extremely hostile and unfriendly. I really look forward to taking the class with someone more profesional and more versed on pedagogy.
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