CHIN 2010

the class is fine but the professor is kind of borderline. Having him as a professor can be so freaking intimidating because he's so intense during class. I understand that he has a young child and that stresses him out, but it clearly has a negative effect on him. Being in his class was almost scary because he'll call on you completely randomly to answer a question and then gets so impatient when you don't understand a concept or speak slowly. Also, his mood is all over the place. He tries to be upbeat and energetic during class but that persona is so fake that it's kind of weird. Sometimes I wonder if he even enjoys teaching Chinese. Oh and if you ask him questions about literally anything he's super impatient. Sometimes when he responds to questions he'll respond in a manner that makes you feel stupid, as if whatever you're asking him is a dumb question. College professors need to be able to deal with dumb questions, and objectively he can't. Tingxie is tough but I'm pretty sure that that's consistent across all the different CHIN 2010 instructors. Overall, I'd say that being in his class is just too stressful to be worthwhile. Learning Chinese should be enjoyable and not as intimidating as it could be. Honestly taking a class with him made me think that only female professors can teach Chinese well, especially since I was blessed with Ran Zhao my first two semesters of Chinese. Kou Laoshi made me feel stupid, slow, or behind a lot more frequently than Zhao Laoshi.

Kou Laoshi is very kind and clearly cares about the quality of his lectures. There are always opportunities to correct homework and tests. The class is fast paced but enjoyable. The only issue is how confusing the different homework requirements are, but I expect that will be improved with time. I have had three different professors in the Chinese department here at UVA and Kou Laoshi's class is definitely the best mix of friendly atmosphere & engagement while still making students learn the content.

This was my first time taking a Chinese class at UVA, so I don't really have any other Chinese professors to compare Kou laoshi to. However, I thought the class was fine and enjoyable at times. Kou laoshi does seem to care about his students, but he can come across as somewhat intimidating at first. There is homework due almost everyday, and it was confusing at first to remember the whole schedule of homework. But, the workload is manageable if you put the work in, and there are corrections! Kou laoshi teaches by the book, so that can be either positive or negative depending on your perspective. Overall, I thought this class was decent and would recommend if you are willing to put some effort into the work.