ANTH 3630

Monotone. lots of "um's
took forever to finish a sentence
reading not necessary
you can base essays off lectures

He is not good at explainning. The class is not fun at all. DO NOT BUY THE TEXTBOOKS.

He was alright. The books were not necessary. All of the stuff comes from the lectures. The books are only useful for citing at the end of the midterm and final essays.

Books are prescribed but not necessary. Just go to class and take notes and prepare for the three major papers. Easy grader. Recommended.

Very nice professor. He is willing to help students outside of the class. Go to class, write 3 papers, and you will be fine. Not a hard grader.

Professor is a really nice person. I learned a lot of new things in this class. It was enjoyable, fun, and quite relaxing. Take this class!

The professor has a rather monotone, soft voice so its hard to keep focus during lectures. Also, sit closer to the front -- he sometimes writes outlines on the board, but his handwriting isn't the easiest to interpret. In terms of content, I found the material quite interesting. Professor Shepherd is very knowledgeable and often brings little trinkets, documents, and photographs to class. There are only 3 assignments: one where you are given 4 prompts and choose 2 to do (3-page max); a 12-page (minimum) term paper on a topic of your choice; and an assignment with 6 prompts in which you choose 2 (4-page max). Overall not a very work-intensive class, just attend class take notes and you'll be fine on content for your papers.

I am not an anthro major, but I had to have a class that met the second writing requirement and this was a pretty decent one. Professor Shepherd is the..most..BORING..Professor I have had at UVA so it was absolute torture to pay attention. You DO NOT need to buy the books because you can pretty much use lecture to write your midterm/final essays (all open notes!)and then the 12 page term paper is on a topic of your choice, which should be somewhat interesting. If you need a class for the 2nd writing requirement, take this class..otherwise I would find one that is more interesting and where the Professor actually cares!

I find the class interesting and how he would bring the props to class. The books are available on reserve at Clemons, although I could not find one specific book that I wanted. Be sure to ask questions, it will make your class a lot more interesting.

I thought the course sounded interesting, but unfortunately the material is presented mostly through powerpoint.
Classes consist of copying down powerpoint slides, and the occasional movie. Luckily, you don't really have to do the readings, except to write your midterm and final, because the same info is presented in class.
Professor's lecturing style is kind of dry, but if you sit in the front and try to engage a bit it is better.