STUDENT OPINIONS FROM PROFESSOR KEELING'S
FALL 2003 GEOGRAPHY COURSES

GEOSCIENCE RESEARCH AND LITERACY - GEO 500

** That was the most intellectually demanding and fulfilling class that I've ever taken. I enjoyed it [Professor's response: Glad you enjoyed it!].
** Great course. Sound background to the scientific "big picture."
** Enjoyable because it was challenging. It is goods to get stretched as a scientist.

Grade Distribution: A = 7; B = 2; F = 1.

Quantitative Responses:
"Overall, my instructor is effective" = 100% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.
"My instructor displays enthusiasm" = 100% Strongly Agreed.
"My Instructor is well prepared" = 100% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.

INTRODUCTION TO LATIN AMERICAN STUDIES - GEOG 200, HIST 200, GOVT 200, SPAN 200

NOTE: This is a team-taught course with three instructors. The comments below may refer to any of the three instructors.

** Please, Please, Please, Let Dr. Keeling teach all of the class. I do not like switching professors.
** Excellent course and presentation. Thanks for the opportunity to participate.
** Keeling is very enthusiastic. I like his sarcasm and teaching style.
** Dr. Keeling is an insightful, experienced instructor. I will take [him] again if possible.
** WOW. What great fun this is.
** The first part of the class (geography) was well-organized and the 2nd and 3rd teachers seem to not be very prepared or interested [in] the rest of the class. Test in 2nd section was not based on lecture.
** This class has been very interesting. Changing instructors keeps it fresh but adds difficulty to anticipating test structure. Overall I've greatly enjoyed the course.
** In Dr. Keeling's class, I had a great time learning about an "unknown" part of the world. However, for the history section, I would recommend someone else doing it from now on.
** What class is this again? History?! Politics?! Geography?! UH, whatever! [Professor's response: Did you miss the point? It's an interdisciplinary introduction to the region - so it's all those disciplines!].
** I enjoyed this class - however, I do not feel adequately prepared for the exams [Professor's response: Why not? Didn't you study, reread the material, use the study guides, and use the examples provided by the professors is class?]. The history section needs to be presented differently - but otherwise I learned a great deal.
** Given the limited time and the depth of the material I feel that Prof. Keeling has done a great job of making [the] test fair. On the other hand, the professor from [the] history department didn't seem to care enough to show up several times which made the material harder to digest.
** Get rid of [the history professor]!! He is horrible. How can you learn from a man pacing the floor looking down at his notes and jumping subj. to subj. Then looks up 40 min. later and says Questions. Well, here is the question I wanted to ask: did you all steal this teacher from the sandwich-making class in the CDC department at Warren East?

[From www.profeval.com online evaluations]** I absolutely hated this class. This guy was a complete jerk to me. He singled me out to yell at me on two occasions. Once was for looking at my watch. It was extremely embarrassing and uncalled for. This class was hard for me b/c I was not interested in it at all. I found it hard to follow his lectures. All you do is take notes. There are 3 parts of this course and a diff. guy teaches it each time. Keeling was the jerk though. It seemed like an upperlevel class and he acted like you should be a genius when it comes to Latin America. I would not tell anyone to take this class b/c it was miserable [Professor's response: I remember this student - she was the worst kind to have in a class - completely disinterested, rude to the point of distraction, never took any notes, and performed poorly on all quizzes and exams! Why are you even in the university if you have no desire to learn? The class was hard for you because you completely failed to engage your brain in any meaningful way - you mentally slept through most of the semester! Your comment "all you do is take notes" reflects the totally pathetic attitude you have towards your education. You were completely ignorant about this region and its subject matter at the beginning of the semester, including a complete lack of awareness about any geography, history, or current political events. How were you going to learn without taking notes to build a fact base? By osmosis? Put the textbook under your pillow at night and hope the material seeps into your brain? Students like this represent the worse possible aspect of the teaching profession!]

Grade Distribution: A = 6; B = 16; C = 20; D = 8; F = 3.

Quantitative Responses:
"Overall, the instructors were effective" = 75% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.
"My instructors display interest in teaching this course" = 91% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.
"My Instructors were well prepared" = 98% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.

WORLD REGIONAL GEOGRAPHY - GEOG 110

** I think Dr. Keeling is awesome and not only knows his subject material but has practical experience in the field that adds a dimension to his teaching. I would love to take a more in-depth study of any of these areas with Dr. Keeling. Three thumbs up!
** The instructor is too hard. The textbook is too hard. The assignments are too hard. The exams are too hard. The class is too hard. [Professor's response: Welcome to university! I hope you learn how to cope with challenge, because it's only going to get harder!!].
** The instructor worked well with the students and helped me get a better perspective on geography.
** Sometimes seems more political than geographical - enjoyed the slides.
** Dr. Keeling is an awesome teacher!
** Dr. Keeling is one intelligent man.
** I have enjoyed being in this class, as well as the slides have been interesting.
** Good job!
** I love this class.

[From www.profeval.com online evaluations]** Dr. Keeling is an excellent professor. His lectures are VERY important if you want to do well on the tests, but reading the book is the only way to ensure a good grade. He gives out study guides for tests, which aren't that difficult. Overall, I think it's an awesome class, and I am exceedingly glad that he taught my course [Professor's response: Compare this response to the complainer above in LAS200 and you can see the difference in the level of engagement by the student. Thank you for taking the class and for putting in the effort to engage with and learn the material.]

Grade Distribution: A = 7; B = 8; C = 8; D = 7; F = 1.

Quantitative Responses:
"Overall, the instructor was effective" = 89% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.
"My instructor displays interest in teaching this course" = 96% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.
"My Instructor was well prepared" = 96% Strongly Agreed or Agreed.

   If you have any comments, you can email the professor directly at: david.keeling@wku.edu

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Last updated on 2/7/04