The harsh reviews you have probably read might be right. Although the Professor was kind and helpful, I thought the exams were tricky and usually had a mean score in the C range. I would recommend taking this class if you are not taking more than 15 units because the readings are pretty long and there is quite many of them. You are expected to read these and be assigned a random reading by the Professor, which you will then complete a reading response in the form of slides. You do two reading responses (one reading of your choice), a methodology report, and two exams. Since there is so few assignments, it is important to try to get as high a grade as you can because the exams are tricky, as mentioned. Also, attendance is graded and the week he chooses to check attendance can be RANDOM. I attended every lecture and didn't see the clipboard until week 6 or 7 so for those who get comfortable and believe attendance will never be checked, it will. It's just random. The exams are multiple choice and free response. The free response look for specific cases, which is why it is difficult. I took this class as an elective for HBS and enjoyed the content.

if you are not an anthro major and do not care about anthro, do yourself a favor and avoid this class. it was just so BORING. as many others have said, it was far too difficult for a beginner anthro class with students who will most likely never take anthro courses again. he told us he would not take attendance and then whips out an attendance sheet on Halloween?? and took attendance from that day forward? he is not good at replying to emails. he speaks quietly, i think his own lectures bore him too.

I was scared to take this class based on bad reviews, but honestly I don't think it was that bad if you have to take it like I did for my major. (If it's just for a GE...look elsewhere for something easier).

Like others have said, most of the weight was on the midterm (in class) and final, which were a mix of multiple choice and a couple short answer. This was the breakdown: 35% midterm, 35% final, homework 15%, discussion 15%. Homework uses Inquizitive has unlimited attempts to get 100% and is very easy, and discussion grade is answering 1-2 questions from the end of the chapters as assigned, graded on completion. Lecture attendance isn't mandatory, but I think being there to hear the notes irl is helpful. Also, the class is graded on a curve based on 100 minus the 98th percentile, with the difference added to everyone's grade and the minimum for an A being 88%, which I think compensates for the weight of the exams.

To do well, I would say def read up on the textbook and give yourself enough time to study the monkeys and fossils. There will be questions that are straight up "what species is this", and that's free points if you commit the study guides he sends out to memory.

Avoid Brian Wood at all costs, he is not good at all. His lectures are extremely unclear, tests do not reflect the material at all. I studied for days on end for the midterm and final and failed both tests. He has lots of assignments that can bring your grade up which is a benefit, but it's just overall not worth it. Takes attendance, doesn't know how to answer questions - gets super off topic when trying to answer, doesn't know the material well enough for himself because there are major inconsistencies in his teachings. Super confusing teacher.

If you're interested in human evolution at all, definitely take this class as a GE. All the lectures are recorded with both video and audio so if you have to miss a class, you can just watch it later. There were a couple chapters of the textbook to read each week, accompanied with short asynchronous quizzes where you can just keep answering questions until you get 100%. The only other weekly homework is a 10 minute response to a textbook question or two (for section). So, in my opinion, the workload was pretty light, and if you're genuinely interested in the course material, the readings are really interesting. As for the midterm and final, yeah, they're worth a lot of the grade but honestly if you just actually do the short readings, and then rewatch the lectures and go over the detailed study guide he gives you before the tests, you will be fine. Also, Prof Wood has a good sense of humor and seemed extremely passionate about the topic. I feel like other reviewers interpreted his kinda monotone vocals as a lack of interest in the subject, but I don't think that's the case. So, moral of the story is don't let the other reviews scare you - take this class if you're interested and you will get a good grade if you just do what is required of you tbh

I honestly wouldn't recommend this class; it initially sounded like an interesting course but not only is the content kinda dry, the professor is also SUPER monotone and speaks pretty quietly which makes it impossible to focus without nearly falling asleep. The midterm and final are each about a third of your grade, they aren't insanely difficult but some of the questions are structured weirdly. The only pro to this class is that the homework assignments are ridiculously easy, though there's only 5 of them and they're only worth a combined total of 35% of your grade.