Boyle, Eric  

Taking this instructor is like being in a Twilight Zone episode. You just can

Boyle's lectures dragged on and on without any real purpose. He claimed to emphasize class discussion, but then rarely asked for any comments. When he did, he tended to ask some dumb thing with a one word answer. Everybody was so out of it that nobody would say anything. Halfway through the quarter, he asked us all to write an evaluation of his teaching ability. I tore into him, and I'm sure others did too, and he improved for the next couple of lectures before sliding back down into Boringville. Ultimately, I read hardly anything, spent all of thiry-four minutes on the final, and squeaked out a D-. "D" for "done," as they say. If Boyle teaches here again, he'll probably be listed as "STAFF," but watch out anyway.

hey, i think the last person who rated boyle would probably be pissed off at any teacher who teaches 322. the class itself requires A CRAP LOAD of reading but this is true for all the teachers. boyle is a good guy who really tries hard at teaching and tries to make it intresting. he uses powerpoint, videos and other multi-media stuff. i liked the class because i like history. if you dont like history, dont take the class. boyle was willing to change his teaching style and make the class easier for his students. he involves the students through his "oral history assignments" and tries to make the class as intresting as possible. so in conclusion, the guy who wrote the last rating is full of crap. boyle is a good guy and a good teacher(although a bit liberal), but dont take the class if you are not in to history or if you wont have time to do lots of reading.

This class required so much work. We had to read about 100 pages for every class period, plus do two oral histories and a current event. The lectures were sometimes interesting, but he moved through the material really fast. The midterm and final were pretty demanding if you wanted to get an A in the class. They had both essays and IDs, which were basically mini-essays. There wasn't as much class discussion as I would have liked. However, all this is most likely just the nature of this class, and whoever you take would be the same way. So just don't take this class if you don't have a lot of time to devote to it.

I agree with the other students-Professor Boyle's class did require A LOT of reading, and the lecture period was kind of long, so it was easy to doze off once in a while. But for the most part this class contained very interesting material (from a liberal point of view that surfaced frequently). Everyone should be interested in learning about our country's history and this class brings to light some "fun facts" about what went on behind the scenes. His tests are a little intense, but he grades fairly (plus if you have a good arguement he may raise your grade). I was getting an A all along and I must have slipped on the final because he gave me a B+ so that ticked me off a little. But in all take the class, you'll be a better person for it.

Boyle is pretty cool. He likes to talk so be prepared to sit on your butt for the entire time... we got out after the bell was dinging every time but twice, once for the evaluations and the first day. The oral history assignments are cool but make sure you know who you're going to talk to before hand. You have to do one for the 1950s and one for the 1960s, I liked them and they were easy because I just did the interviews over the phone and typed as the person was talking (I type fast so I got pretty much everything they said so I didn't have to record it and type it later) then went over them and edited it so it was shorter and in order of what Boyle had on the syllabus. He also counts participation and has you do a current event which is boring. I read the books for the first two weeks. I would say take the class with a friend and buy the books between the two of you so you don't have to buy them all because it's mad money and I really didn't use them that much after the first two weeks besides references for the current event. If you listen and take good notes in class and study those, you should be able to regurgitate enough for the midterm and final. Hope that helps, this class was pretty hard, I think if I had paid attention in class I could have gotten an A even without reading.

Boyle has high expectation in terms of work load but if you put in the time you can get a solid grade. He kept things interesting in lecture with music and video clips and there are a variety of assignments that you can use to make up for the difficult exams. I'd definitely recommend taking his class.

Ok, i'm not gonna lie, Eric's pretty hot. The class is really interesting, but has a lot of reading. There's more than 1000 pages of reading throughout the quarter, but he gives you study questions and tells you what you'll need to know for tests right from the beginning. His lectures are long and sometimes boring, but if you're interested in history, it really won't kill you.The class focuses on disenfranchised groups and nationalism and is fairly subjective, so its not your ordinary history, straight from the text class. I learned a lot in this class and didn't hate getting to watch Eric for four hours a week. All these polyratings make him seem old and crabby, but he's really young and totally chill. so take him if you somewhat like history, reading, and hot professors.

Boyle is very intelligent, and his lectures are interesting. He mixes in video and music to give a real feel for the time period. His quizes are straight forward. (Don't make my mistake- keep up with the reading.)

Lectures without a clear agenda and doesn't allow for the class to respond or answer. Hard grader and doesn't explain what he expects of you. Horrible teacher

I'm kind of surprised to see such a variety of reviews on Boyle. He loves talking about history, makes a huge effort to mix up his class with music and videos, and I think he genuinely cares about his students. And his class isn't really all that difficult if you do the reading every week. Sure, it's a lot more reading than most other classes, but the vast majority of it isn't the type of reading you have to commit to memory, there are a lot of books about people's exeriences and viewpoints. Sure Boyle's a liberal, but he doesn't cram in down your throat. In fact, I had a running debate with my friend in another class about whether he was a liberal for most of the quarter and didn't really know for sure until I asked him flat out. He was surprisingly candid, and I also learned that if you take the time to ask questions and talk with Boyle after class he's even more personable and helpful. I'd definitely recommend him for students who are interested in learning and are not afraid of putting the time and effort in to make that possible.

I've had Eric for 2 classes and he's one of the most thoughtful and organized professors I've had at Cal Poly. You can tell he puts a lot of time into his lectures and there's always something interesting to think about. I actually looked forward to going to his class, even though one quarter it was an 8 o'clock class and the other quarter I had 20 units. I'd definitely recommend Eric for any class he teaches.

To be honest Eric Boyle is by far the hottest professor I have ever had. I go to class because he is there. The work load is hefty, and the reading is substantial, but he is hot so it dosen't matter. Eric if you read this come find me. Really.

Eric presented an insightful 20th century American history class, supported by a great number of primary sources. He focuses on the downtrodden of America: immigrants, women, minorities, laborers. If you already know the history of mainstream, middle class America, Eric's class provides a good complement. However, if you don't know about your own country, Eric might make you think America is about the most evil country ever. For example, his lecture on WW2 was called "Contradictions in the Good War" and ignored all the numerous honorable acts America did. I pretended the class was called "The Dark Side of 20th Century America" and then proceeded to enjoy its depth and rigor. I think any student, even those like me who are addicted to American history, will learn quite a bit. However, if you worry more about your GPA than learning, do not take this class. It is ridiculously hard and time consuming. Others have already commented on the reading. His essay prompts have too many parts to answer in the timed period. On the final, 1 of the 2 essays had over 15 points needing to be addressed. Moreover, it is impossible to disagree with his bias towards the downtrodden and still get a good grade on the essays. This is because he accepts a regurgitation of his own viewpoint with light evidence, while requiring copious evidence for viewpoints he disagrees with. This would be fine except that there simply isn't enough time during the test period to write the substantial amounts of evidence required to support an alternate viewpoint. This forces you to regurgitate a far left of center opinion in order to finish the essays in time and get a good grade. Being moderate in my politics, I suffered. A conservative would probably go positively crazy. If you feel like you are sacrificing your morality by arguing against your beliefs in order to get a better grade, try pretending you are just playing devil's advocate with yourself. His viewpoint is quite accurate, after all, only incomplete.

You should only take this course if you have A LOT of spare time...this would be your "hard" class for the quarter. Boyle knew his information, but tends to think his knowledge on things is the right knowledge on things. Very LIBERAL! Wouldn't recommend to take this for a GE, better for majors or minors.

Eric was the most helpful history professor I've had in my four years as a history major. The class itself was fun because it wasn't overly structured and he allowed the students to make contributions. Tests were fair but challenging. The paper was a major challenge for me to write but I went in for help half a dozen different times and Eric gave me great advice and helped me finish. He is one of the most giving and thoughtful professors I've had while at Cal Poly. Thank you Eric!