Favorite Classes (so far), What has been your best class?

[JHU_Esther]

I waited to take a political theory class until senior year. As an IR major I need one to graduate. I was just never that interested in theory. So I was pleasantly surprised when my class "The political theory of gender and sexuality" turned out to be so much fun. The class is amazing. The professor is just amazing, his ability to synthesize complex arguments and present them to us clearly is essential in a class on political theory. I highly recommend this class!!

[JHU_Daniel]

My favorite class thus far is Making America with Professor Toby Ditz. The class is wonderful, and Professor Ditz manages not to put students to sleep during her lectures. Overall, it's a good scenario. I'm also writing a good review of this class *after* a midterm, so that should say something .

The class covers colonial US History. Right now, we're focusing on the differences between MA and VA colonial life c. 1700 with a focus on differences in gender roles. It's what I like to do, and it's taught quite well. Professor Ditz has a very organized style of teaching, which I appreciate.

It's also noteworthy that we don't use a textbook for this class. Most of the readings are primary sources that are discussed/interpreted in class...

[JHU_Wafa]

I never have just one favorite class per semester:

I'm taking a class entitled Bodyworks: Body, Medicine and Technology in the 21st Century that basically is under various different umbrellas including History of Science and Technology, Women's Studies and Sexuality, French Literature, Philosophy etc. Basically, we get to explore what is it like to be embodied and being aware of one's own body and all the forces (psychoanalytic and otherwise) that influence our perceptions. It is an amazing class taught by a brilliant professor, Dr. Bernadette Wegenstein, who is not only a linguist but also a film maker (we got to see one of her documentaries during class).

Another class that I am enjoying immensely is Nervous Systems I. This is a required class for all Nervous System majors that covers all of the basics of the nervous system in order to prepare us to take higher-level and more specialized classes of Neuroscience. It is taught by Dr. Steward Hendry, who is, as has been stated over and over in these forums, a spectacular professor and scientist.

[JHU_Sarah]

I think my Expository Writing class on humor analysis is officially starting to surpass Spanish as my favorite class. So far, we've been watching a lot of cartoons, and I just wrote an eight page paper on an animated pony that appeared in an episode of Bugs Bunny. A lot of people complain about the Expository Writing courses because they are a ton of work, but even after just seven weeks in this class, I already feel like my writing has improved tremendously. Our professor gives us very clear instructions on what does and doesn't make a good paper instead of just "throwing us to the wolves" as she likes to say. I'm sure that by the end of the semester, this course is going to have given me a lot of confidence in my writing for any future writing intensive courses that I decide to take. Even as a science major, I absolutely love the Expository Writing Program so far.

[JHU_Becca]

So far, I am loving my French Conversation & Composition I class and Studio Drawing I! I'm reading French literature (Rousseau, Sartre, etc.) in Convo & Comp right now, which I think has been strengthening my comprehension skills. Studio Drawing has been a really neat course-- it has actually complemented my art history class that I'm taking, and it's nice to have a class that is more creative/expressive.

[JHU_Keith]

My favorite class this semester is definitely Intro to Psychology. The format of the class if very standard: big lecture hall and a Powerpoint; but Professor Drigotas does such an amazing job of dissecting the concepts and making them genuinely interesting that I can't help but be engrossed. Unlike some other classes I've taken, I can actually apply what I've learned in Psych to my everyday life, which really makes the course captivating. Moreover, there is no homework and the exams are very fair, which is certainly a plus. Overall, a quality course taught by one of the funniest and most engaging professors at Hopkins.

[JHU_Miranda]

I think my favorite class (like Sarah) is expository writing. There are lots of different topics (about 20, I think), and the one I signed up for is called "Education and the American Dream," and it's about American education policy. We've looked at various sources (like Noah Webster, WEB Du Bois, and Grutter v. Bollinger), and have written two papers (and are currently in the process of the third). Something really nice about the expos classes is that there is a TON of feedback about your writing - all of the prewriting assignments get read and commented on, and for each paper we have an individual conference about the paper. I know my writing has definitely improved as a result of this class.