He's an okay professor. Lectures are fun because he has an interesting, catchy voice and shows lots of pictures. The subject material of the class and what he chose to focus on was very interesting. "Labs" involve going to a classroom, writing down what the TA says, and turning it in. SO EASY. My TA was horrible so I found the "labs" to be completely pointless but hey, at least they were easy. I was very annoyed when I got a C on the midterm and a B in the class because this should not have been such a hard class--it's Geography! He's apparently a very hard grader and must not give out many As, which is annoying. Take Geography 5 for sure (great GE), try to avoid him--but if you can't, just take him. He's okay.

Sivak was an ok lecturer, but you could definitely tell that it was his first time teaching because the course in general was pretty disorganized, and he and the TA's did not communicate well. The format of the final was changed about 3 times in the last 4 days before the test was given, which was extremely frustrating. However, his lectures were pretty straight forward and the material was interesting. I think he just needs a little more practice and experience, and then he will be fine. On the other hand, i heard terrible things about every single one of the TA's in this class, including my own; none of them knew what they were talking about, and were absolutely no help at all.

Good professor and lecturer. Geo. 5 started-off with a few chuckles at Sivak's awkwardness the fist day of class, but he became more comfortable as the quarter progressed. This is a relatively easy class that is an easy Lab requirement (Labs are really just discussions). Reading helped with the course but wasn't too overwhelming; the Midterm and Final were very straightforward. I enjoyed Sivak and would be happy to take a class with him in the future.

Lectures and readings are helpful. Review them for 15 minutes daily and do the study guides and you can get an A. He is an awkward lecture which is great since it makes class funnier. Though a little awkward, you can still understand him, making the class pretty simple.

Nice guy who seems to be very genuine, but it's obvious that he hasn't had very much experience as a teacher. He gets really nervous sometimes, and he stumbles a lot. There is a lot of note taking, and sometimes they're hard to follow because he goes through it very quickly. The course itself isn't too difficult, but don't expect to be amazed or anything. The reading was annoying because it gave too much unnecessary information. The labs were a joke. If you want an easy GE, take it. Unfortunately, you'll have to pay the price of bored all the time.