PLPT 1010

This was a very difficultly graded intro class. I liked Professor Bird, but he says the whole goal of the class is to confuse you politically, which it did. There were two essays and one extremely hard multiple-choice take-home exam, which didn't matter because the essays were taken more into account (despite the grade breakup on the rubric). There are nightly readings (You don't need to do them, he completely regurgitates the important parts in class) and the TA sections were not the most helpful. My TA, Diego, was very nice and a good grader, but the sections were slightly repetitive and not very engaging. There wasn't a ton of feedback on the essays (and they were only 1 month apart from each other along with the final right in the middle), which I would've appreciated, but they were graded pretty well. Bird says A's are rare in the class, but this is just to scare people. WHile the course was very entertaining (Bird is an amazing lecturer), the class could've been structured a lot differently to benefit the class.

This is a great course for getting the PLPT requirement out of the way. Prof. Bird is a great lecturer and very approachable. He did his best to add humour to class, but I found myself struggling to pay attention. I am not interested in political theory so it went a bit over my head, but class definitely helped explain the readings and concepts. I ended up never doing the readings after the first few lectures and did perfectly fine in the class and also feel like I have a good idea of different theories simply from attending lecture. Grades are determined on two papers worth 30% each and an open note take home final worth 40% that was curved quite generously. The syllabus can be daunting as it is noted that A's should not be expected, but I and others I talked to did very well on the papers and in the class. TA's determine grades for the two papers and my TA, Diego, was great. Diego was extremely responsive through email and office hours and would provide help preparing for the paper. He was also a very understanding and generous grader so if you can, definitely get him as a TA as they can make or break your grade. Overall this wasn't the most engaging but it wasn't the worst class you could take. As long as you have a good TA and put forth effort, you will do great.

Professor Bird gave interesting and engaging lectures that summarized the texts well. His slideshows were hard to keep up with when taking notes, and it's practically impossible to take paper notes (as he prefers) since there is so much to write. Both papers were fair and interesting but the exam was unnecessarily confusing and will bring down your grade. He can sometimes make thoughtless comments (especially on American politics) but he is pretty humorous most of the time. The consensus of my discussion group was that it was much harder than your average intro class, but it was interesting.

If you're looking for an easy class to fulfill the PLPT requirement, I wouldn't take this class. The class and the papers were relatively easy, but the final exam (open-book) was extremely tough. The final exam grade will definitely bring your grade down, and it's not easy to get better than a B+ in the class, even if you pay close attention in lecture. The readings were okay, but Professor Bird does discuss them in detail during lecture. Professor Bird also packs the slides with content, and you have to listen carefully for the main points. Professor Bird is a good lecturer and likes to tell jokes to keep people entertained. I will say though, that he has a sort of "that's your problem" energy to American politics whenever the subject is brought up (he is a British expat but tenured at UVA). Most professors make occasional comments that don't land well, but he made one remark that was pretty bad and came off pretty insensitive. Overall, I would only take the class if you have to.

The grading breakdown is 2 papers and a final exam, and I really appreciated that the prompts were given at the beginning of the semester for the papers on the syllabus. Bird’s a fantastic lecturer (even though it was virtual this semester) and always makes the information more simple to process. The final exam was tough since it was choose all of the following but the curve must have been generous considering my final class grade. The papers are intimidating but I highly recommend creating outlines and chatting with your TA for guidance (I had A. Teleb who I would highly recommend). Overall, it was a super interesting class that I’d recommend to anyone (I took it as a first year and ended up with an A. So if you put forth the effort it definitely pays off).

Class time was decent. Bird is a good lecturer. The readings are all over the place. Most are bad, some are decent, and few are enjoyable. Your grade is based on two papers and an insanely tough open note online final. The average for the final exam was 58% but the curve was generous, so no complaints. Papers are subjective to your TA. Overall, probably the best way to get the political theory requirement.

Two papers and an online, open book final. The first paper was harshly graded for an intro course but, although I never saw my second paper grade, I know it had to have been a good grade considering my final grade in the class. The final is extremely tough but the curve is pretty generous (a 20 was a C-). Bird is funny but you don't have to pay attention in lecture.

If you're a politics major this is probably the simplest way to get your Political Theory requirement. Two papers and an insanely tough open note final. Readings are pretty dense but they're not super necessary to do if you go to lecture since Bird will lay out what you need to take away from them. Brittany Leach was a great TA, her discussions were helpful and she gave good feedback on papers.

2 papers (harshly graded) and an open book, online final. Bird is a nice guy and very energetic about his class. Unfortunately, that does not transfer into the class/lecture vibes. While he is very into his material and excited about it, the lectures are very dry and boring. Hard to get above a B+.

Bird seems like he could be pretty funny and cool, but I took this course at 9am so I was never really in the mood to laugh or I just skipped. There are two papers and an in class final. The final is super easy though as you get to use your notes and readings. I never did the readings and ended up with a B.

As a 2nd year politics major, this class was a requirement and I went in very close minded. I did none of the readings, attended the 9am lecture maybe six times all semester, barely participated in discussions, and ended up with a B+. So take that as you may.

Tough class overall. As a requirement for politics majors it is a necessary evil as far as GPA, but as far as course material and lecture goes it is really very interesting. Bird is a very approachable professor and has some truly outstanding lectures. Class consists of two graded papers and a final. Learning how to write for this particular class is the key to success. I would recommend just because I enjoyed the material so much.

Very hard to get an A, but such a worthwhile class. Bird is amazing and so intelligent and the class really forces you to think and open your mind. Topics and discussions were fantastic and I learned so much. Ross is great, a tough grader, but very helpful and knowledgeable

First off, only take this class if you are a politics major and need the three credits of PLPT to fulfill your major requirements. Bird makes it almost impossible to get an A unless you are a gift from god. Grade based off 2 papers and an open note, short answer final. Doing the reading is completely unncessary because Bird's powerpoints (which he posts online) tell you everything you should have gotten out of the reading. An A- is definitely possible if you are great at bsing and know enough about politics to pull your bsing material from. Sadly, this is honestly a GPA killer despite being a 1010 class. If you're looking for an easy politics 1010 class, take any of the other 3, just not this one.

Porfessor Bird is awesome. I took the class as a 9am my first year and really enjoyed coming to class (attendance is necessary for an A becuase he asks questions about random stuff in the class during TA sessions). The class has 2 papers and an open note final. He puts up all his powerpoints after every week so you can use those when taking the final as well. Your grading is based entirely on your TA. I had Andrew Gates and he was amazing! I heard Ross Mittiga and Harrison Frye are good too. If you are thinking of applying to the PPL major TAKE THIS CLASS! Professor Bird is the PPL director so if you do not enjoy the material covered in this class PPL is not for you.

Prof. Bird is a really cool dude. He is easy to listen to; however, he typically just reads off the power points and goes so fast that it's impossible to copy, even a summary, down. Two papers and a final is a very typical grading scheme. The final was much easier than the papers because it was open-notes and he provides sample questions beforehand. Lectures gave me a good grasp of the information. I had William Sbach as my TA and I would not, under any circumstances, recommend him. His grading was extremely arbitrary and he was not clear in his expectations. On my second paper, I went to him, multiple times, for guidance and each time I went back, he complimented my paper more and more, eventually saying that my paper saw huge improvement and he expected to give it a good grade. When I got it back, it was covered in red, with most of his critiques stemming from things that he initially told me were good points. I will never take another class with him again and I would strongly urge others to not do so as well.

Professor Bird is a great teacher, this course is a lot of fun. However i did not like that there were only three assignments. Two papers and a final. The first paper was extremely difficult. The final is open note and open book. Your grade depends on your TA. I had Ross. He is a nice guy and knows his stuff, but grades very very harshly, especially for an intro course. Would not recommend him.

Going into this class, I was thinking that it would just be a necessary evil of getting a degree in the Politics department. However, I ended up really enjoying this class! Two papers and an open note final. I thought that the first paper was extremely difficult but they other two assignments made up for it easily. The beginning of the course included a lot of dense readings that were hard to get through, but toward the middle and end of the class, we covered much more relevant ideas that you can easily apply to the world you see around you now. I ended up coming out of this class with more knowledge than I ever imagined and really enjoying what I had learned! It definitely opens up your mind to other points of view. HIGHLY recommend and Bird is a ridiculously great professor, he never lacked energy or a good sense of humor. You will not regret it if you go in with the right attitude and put in the work necessary!

This class is not worth your time. Do not take it. Seriously don't do it. You will regret it come end of the semester. Your grade is based entirely on two papers and a final. So basically if you have a bad TA, you get a bad grade. Even though Professor Bird is a nice guy and gives engaging lectures, the overall class is not great. So much reading each week that it becomes impossible to do. Take my advice and stay away from this class.

Professor Bird is a very enthusiastic lecturer, which is especially enjoyable considering his British accent. He did a good job of covering all the material. I liked how he would systematically tear apart every single position/idea we learned about. Even if you are not really a "politics" person, I wouldn't let that stop you from taking the course. I definitely feel better informed about important political issues. The one frustrating aspect of any philosophy-based class is that you just kind of end up going in a circle. Bird is really reasonable about readings, most are quite short. My least favorite part of the course was that there were only 3 grades (2 ~5 page papers and the final).

Great class. Bird is entertaining, informative, and challenging to your personal views. I took Chelsea- wouldn't recommend her.

The class was very heavy on dense reading, but Bird covers the reading so well in lecture that if you come to every class and pay attention in discussion you should be fine with only skimming. Overall I enjoyed the class and ended up doing very well, but it is a survey class; we didn't go into too much depth on anything in particular. I'd recommend it to anyone interested in thinking about how people govern themselves and looking for a relatively easy grade, but you need to be willing to either do all of the reading or pay a lot of attention in class or discussion.

Professor Bird is awesome! I really hope to take another class with him! That being said, a lot of the reading assigned was really dense and difficult to get through but it wasn't exactly necessary since Bird is pretty thorough in lectures. If you are any kind of politics major this class is worth your time

I would definitely recommend Professor Bird. Not only is he engaging but he's really approachable and he'll talk to you for hours because he's interested in the subject and his students! One of the best classes I've taken so far

Bird makes this course fun! The lecture slides are clear and he's a straightforward lecturer. The reading isn't that important, but at least skim it. Don't take Charlee Tidrick as a TA, her grading is too subject and a bit all over the place. She doesn't seem to have a good idea of what her students can do in the given time.

Prof. Bird is an entertaining lecturer but he mostly reads from his powerpoints which are subsequently posted on collab. The ppts are pretty comprehensive but you need to at least skim the readings, which come from books and pdfs on collab. Some find the material interesting, but it really is all about theory - the material is no way, shape, or form practical knowledge. Therefore, I found it incredibly boring. Two five page papers and a mid term and a final. Open notes.

Professor Bird is absolutely amazing and funny; however, going to class isn't exactly necessary because he reads straight from his PowerPoints which go straight to Collab. But his lectures are great. However, if there was less reading and I had a better TA then I would have liked the class a lot better.

Professor Bird is a fantastic professor. He’s extremely passionate and will hold your attention for most of the class, especially if you enjoy philosophy, debate, and/or politics. The class does not entail much reading. I’d say it’s about 50-60 pages a week, composed of books and pdf files from Collab. I would not recommend buying any of the assigned books since you’ll literally be reading only 100 pages from some of them (for example Rawls’ Theory of Justice is about 600 or so pages and you’ll only end up reading about 70 pages). The readings, like most political philosophy, are dense and sometimes hard to extrapolate what is being said. Don’t worry, however, Bird’s slides are extremely comprehensive and tell you all you need to know about what comes from the readings. Not to mention the midterm and final are open note, so you can just have your computer open with the slides from Collab. The class, however, is not an easy A. The two papers are graded harshly and I feel like there’s a large divide between B+ and A-. You’ll have to put a decent amount of original thought into your essays and tests to get an A.

Bird is hyper but his British accent makes lectures bearable. Not an easy A if you don't have a good TA. A lot of readings but never did them cause PPTs summarized them and midterm and finals were open notes. But you still have to study because the tests are essays.

Personally, I thought this class quite easy; everything you need to know is on the powerpoints, tests are open note, and the TA's are more than willing to help you work out paper topics and arguments. Which reminds me, GO TO YOUR TA BEFORE YOU TURN IN PAPERS. It's not that the papers are hard, but there is a direct correlation between doing really well and seeing your TA. I thought the reading was minuscule, but that might be because I am a history major and am just used to it. Overall the class had a good atmosphere, but not the most fulfilling. I know that once I realized Bird would just say what's on the powerpoints and post them online, I stopped taking notes. But, he is quite funny and the discussion Democracy at the end of the semester will make you think. Good class for first years if you make use of your TA's office hours.

Readings are tough and PDFs of lectures can be daunting as well. To get the most out of this course, you really need to go to class. Bird is truly one of the best professors at UVA.

Great professor! Definitely recommend to people

very thought-provoking. the material was often difficult for a 101 course but bird and the ta's made it much more digestable

This course was surprisingly difficult for a 101... Bird is interesting and super quirky- which can sometimes get annoying, especially at 9am... Ana was just as hyper as Bird, but she was definitely helpful as a TA. The readings are interesting for the most part, but not really necessary as the information is on the Powerpoint slides which Bird puts up right after lecture. The Midterm and Final are open note, which is great, but are still graded fairly difficultly. The papers are interesting and doable.

Professor Bird is a very charismatic lecturer. I enjoyed the course & I really recommend Callum as a TA.

Bird is an extremely energetic and engaging professor. There is a decent amount of reading but you don't have to finish it since he summarizes it in lecture. He tends to read directly off his powerpoints which he posts on collab so lecture isnt necessary anyway. Overall, Bird is a great professor and his class is definitely worth taking.

The material is rather dense but you have to get a good TA-makes the class great

Bird is a funny guy. Lectures were great, and you learn a lot about distributive justice and democracy. Definitely recommend it.

Just get to the powerpoints, intresting clas though