Professor
Xiang Zhang
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Most Helpful Review
Took Math 31B with Prof. Xiang. Professor Xiang knows his material. However, he does not know how to convey the material to others. Taking notes during class won't help - I copied the whole board and still had no clue what he did/how he did it. He rushes through problems, giving us barely enough time to copy it down. It becomes mindless transcription, and looking at my notes after lecture I realized nothing he said sank into my brain. Also, he has a very, very strong Chinese accent which makes it difficult to keep up with the material or even understand what he's saying. Even worse? His voice is very monotone, and he clears his throat loudly about once every two minutes. So sitting through lecture is very, very, VERY tedious. Take anyone else. ANYONE!
Took Math 31B with Prof. Xiang. Professor Xiang knows his material. However, he does not know how to convey the material to others. Taking notes during class won't help - I copied the whole board and still had no clue what he did/how he did it. He rushes through problems, giving us barely enough time to copy it down. It becomes mindless transcription, and looking at my notes after lecture I realized nothing he said sank into my brain. Also, he has a very, very strong Chinese accent which makes it difficult to keep up with the material or even understand what he's saying. Even worse? His voice is very monotone, and he clears his throat loudly about once every two minutes. So sitting through lecture is very, very, VERY tedious. Take anyone else. ANYONE!
Most Helpful Review
I took Math 3B with this professor. Already from the start, you can decide whether you want to take his math class or not solely based on his accent. His most distinguishing characteristic, which turns off most students, is his heavy Asian accent. After a class or two, it honestly isn't hard to understand at all. Just don't be like the other students who constantly complain about it. Actually try to listen and you won't be left behind. The pace of the class is up to your discretion. If you're a fast learner then this won't be a problem. If you like to take it step by step, then I suggest to go to the TAs office hours or make the extra effort to study yourself. While his accent and fast talking may be a downside, the upside is that he gives out sample midterms/final through email. The midterms consist of around 5 problems (some with a, b, c, parts to them) while the final has 10 problems. The samples he hands out are NEARLY EXACTLY like the actual midterms/final. In this case, it makes studying much easier since you know everything that will be on the exams. Plus, the TAs go over the problems during section. Master the problems, master the exams. Overall, don't be put off by the professor himself since the course material on the exams aren't very difficult to comprehend. Lastly, his grading scheme of the class categorizes the top 15% students with an A, the next 35% with a B, or something of that nature. So if you don't like competing with other students and would rather want a grading scheme dedicated solely to how you perform rather than one that considers how you AND the other students score, I suggest switching to another professor.
I took Math 3B with this professor. Already from the start, you can decide whether you want to take his math class or not solely based on his accent. His most distinguishing characteristic, which turns off most students, is his heavy Asian accent. After a class or two, it honestly isn't hard to understand at all. Just don't be like the other students who constantly complain about it. Actually try to listen and you won't be left behind. The pace of the class is up to your discretion. If you're a fast learner then this won't be a problem. If you like to take it step by step, then I suggest to go to the TAs office hours or make the extra effort to study yourself. While his accent and fast talking may be a downside, the upside is that he gives out sample midterms/final through email. The midterms consist of around 5 problems (some with a, b, c, parts to them) while the final has 10 problems. The samples he hands out are NEARLY EXACTLY like the actual midterms/final. In this case, it makes studying much easier since you know everything that will be on the exams. Plus, the TAs go over the problems during section. Master the problems, master the exams. Overall, don't be put off by the professor himself since the course material on the exams aren't very difficult to comprehend. Lastly, his grading scheme of the class categorizes the top 15% students with an A, the next 35% with a B, or something of that nature. So if you don't like competing with other students and would rather want a grading scheme dedicated solely to how you perform rather than one that considers how you AND the other students score, I suggest switching to another professor.
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