PSYC 2005

While this class is extremely easy, it was probably the most boring class I have ever taken. The class is essentially an introduction to statistics with a little bit of research analysis techniques sprinkled in. It’s almost exclusively z-tests, t-tests, confidence intervals, ANOVA, correlation analysis, and regression. There are three midterms, one of which can be replaced by clicker point percentage from questions during each class. So as long as you do the readings for every class and attend, you could get at least an 85% test grade replacement. The final exam is cumulative. He provides so many review questions for the math portions of the tests. The other parts of the test can be somewhat difficult as he will ask you to recall a sentence from a twenty minute video he assigned us to watch. There’s also a fair bit of vocabulary to memorize as well. As a warning, the lectures are extremely dry and repetitive. Very hard to sit 75 minutes for, but as long as you did the reading you don’t really have to pay attention. He also has a no laptops policy, but as long as you sit in a certain section of the room he allows them. I took this class for a cog-sci psychology requirement and would recommend only because it’s so easy. #tCFF23

This class is exactly what the course description says. You will get an introduction to research methods and statistics. Professor Smyth is very kind, and seems to genuinely enjoy teaching the material. However, be prepared to fight off sleep during lectures. They seem to go on forever, with an amount of content that could be thoroughly explained in half an hour. His tests are fair, and very doable if you prepare by doing the optional homework posted on Canvas. There is a fair amount of reading (up to four chapters a week in the textbook), but it is absolutely essential to do the assigned reading. The clicker quizzes in lectures are based off of assigned reading for that class period, and Smyth will sometimes even include direct quotations from the reading that you have to complete to answer a clicker question. You also only get to drop one clicker quiz, so attendance is vital to doing well. Overall, this course isn't terribly hard, nor it it super easy and exciting, but you will learn what you need to in order to do well. #tCFF23

Smyth's lectures don't change over the semester, so his flow in lecturing is very smooth. However, it was hard to gauge what lectures were supposed to be teaching what portions of the exam (that were important). He did engage the class in every way he could for a bigger lecture hall and gave bonus credit to those who spoke up. Read the studies, pay attention in class, be sharp for the clicker questions, and run through the exam prep questions 5x over and you'll do great.