Keller, John  

Physics

3.36/4.00

25 evaluations


PSC 101


Sophomore
A
Required (Support)
Dec 2010
I loved having Dr. Keller. He is very enthusiastic about teaching. He is very particular in his grading and what he expects you to include in your answer on the tests and this was fairly frustrating so be detailed in your answers and make sure you label things. This particular class is set up in a way that the students teach one another, this works well for some people and not so well for others. I found it to be very helpful and Dr. Keller is always ready to answer your questions, or help guide you to figure out the answer. Sometimes he will do these teaching strategies that seem very \"high school or jr. high like\" but it is his way of trying to explain the concept to the people who are not grasping it yet and solidify the concept in the people that do. Keller is a teacher who you can tell enjoys teaching.

ASTR 102


Freshman
N/A
General Ed
Jan 2007
He is very excited about what he teaches! It is very refreshing to have a teacher that us so enthusiastic about what he teaches! He really cares about his students success and does things like have "Tail Gate" Parties to help his students study for midterms and final exams! It is almost cute to see how much he loves his subject! It makes you interested in the class!


Sophomore
B
Elective
May 2008
Amazing teacher. Super into getting the class involved and is constantly taking polls in class with iclickers so he knows exactly where students are struggling. Exptremely approachable in office hours and frankly is positively adorable. He LOVES what he is teaching and is extremely knowledgble. and his lectures are never boring. He is quarking and seriously amusing. very clearly presets the information too. but his tests were reallllly hard. Loved his class. wish i could do nothing but stalk keller's classes, go back in time, then make him 15 years younger so i could marry him and have the smartest babies in the world.


Senior
A
General Ed
May 2008
Tried, fairly successfully, to memorize everyone's name in a 60 person class. I highly recommend going to his office hours, He is very helpful and easy to approach. Sometimes he didn't label or mislabeled his charts in class which annoyed me, since he rarely uses them anyway. My one major complaint of the course is his planet observation assignment. It was a massive waste of time and energy, I ended up using a computer program for most of the assignment. We were not taught how to find planets using star charts and it was difficult for me to complete the assignment logistically. Tests weren't particularly difficult. If you go over homeworks / tutorials / go to his out of class "tail gater" study sessions it won't be that bad. Although during class material can seem difficult it generally clicks and becomes simple fairly quickly. All in all an upbeat, geeky, and knowledgeable professor.


Freshman
B
General Ed
Jun 2008
Dr. Keller is great. He is really awkwardly funny at times and is the biggest science dork ever, but his passion for astronomy makes his class interesting. If you have questions he'll totally answer them and if you are still confused he'll set up a private office hour just to help you out. And for me, it made a world of a difference. If you don't do well on the 2 midterms or the final your grade can still be saved because there are some fairly easy homework assignments and one mini project that you can do well on to pull it up. I would definately recommend taking his class.


Freshman
B
General Ed
May 2016
Keller is a great teacher that made class very interesting. It was definitely not an easy class and you have to spend a lot of time studying just to comprehend the information. His office hours are very helpful. Keller loves this subject and it shows. I would definitely recommend taking this class if you are willing to work hard.

PHYS 103


Freshman
N/A
Required (Major)
May 2010
Dr. Keller is a really funny teacher and he makes the class really fun. Sometimes the 2 hour lecture/lab goes by fast and fun, if you are doing a lab, and other times the class goes by slow because it is mostly discussion. So far in 203, there has been too much hypothesizing so the class gets confused on whats the correct answer and what is the hypothesis. Tests seem to be easy when you take them, but they turn out harder than you thought. You have to explain everything you know and study really hard/understand everything. The only time you have homework is the activity homework in the book, but its not that much. The worst part of 203 compared to 202 and 201 is that there are so many \"little\" projects. Theres a sunset and lunar project, a geography fieldtrip (which may be hard if you dont have a car), and a trip to the campus observatory. It seems to take up a lot more time.

PSC 103


Junior
N/A
Required (Major)
Jun 2013
Dr. Keller, I like this guy. Take this class with him! He's koo


Freshman
N/A
Required (Support)
May 2014
Keller is AWESOME! He's friendly, knowledgable, approachable, and funny. He's great about recognizing student difficulties and encouraging those who are struggling without making them feel dumb. If you get to take any class with Keller, DO IT!


Freshman
N/A
Required (Major)
May 2014
Dr. Keller is quite a funny guy and super nice. He really cares and wants you to succeed. He is kind of hard to follow on class, but super helpful during office hours. I DO recommend him.


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Nov 2014
Dr. Keller is AMAZING! I absolutely loved having him as a professor. He is very personable, kind, hard work, and truly cares about his students and how they do in the class. He makes an effort to learn everyones name in the class. Before taking this class I didn't think I would like Earth science, but he made me love the subject and really want to learn more about it. IF YOU HAVE THE CHANCE TO TAKE DR. KELLER FOR ANY CLASS DO IT!!!!!


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Jun 2016
TAKE KELLER IF YOU CAN!!! He is such a great professor and person in general. He really cares about his students and wants everyone to succeed. He goes above and beyond and is such an awesome teacher. 10/10 recommend.


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Jun 2016
I LOVE KELLER!!! He is honestly the cutest person ever. He tries his best to have you enjoy the course. He's the biggest homie and he even brought chocolate on the last day of class for everyone.


Junior
A
Required (Major)
Oct 2016
Dr. Keller was such an AMAZING professor! I honestly LOVED going to class everyday because I knew I was actually going to enjoy it and actually learn something. He was always ready to help and made sure that students were understanding the material. He always had a smile on his face and his great attitude influenced the outcome of the class. He's a great teacher and the best option for PSC 103.

PHYS 133


Sophomore
B
Required (Support)
Nov 2007
Keller is a good teacher. He goes slow and makes sure you understand the material. It isn't the easiest of the Physics classes, so do the homework and go to his office hours (which he has plenty). He has a fair grading scale in the end that will help bring your grade up. His only downside is that he loves the workbook problems, which confused me more than helped. He collects the workbook and mastering physics hw, so be prepared to spend some serious hw hours on physics.


Sophomore
B
Required (Support)
Dec 2007
Keller is very enthusiastic about trying to "bond" with his students, he reminds me very much of Allan from 2 and a half Men though in that he tries really hard and just doesn't seem to get it. He never gave very many reasonable example problems, just reiterated what was on the powerpoints. He is very helpful in office hours though, if you don't get something I definitely reccomend going. He basically worked through a replica of a final problem (this was the day of the final). Hopefully he'll do quizzes in the future, he gave 2 then abandoned it for some reason, but it made the midterms really hard because it was hard to prepare for the type of questions. Unfortunately, this course is basically taught the same by all of the professors so no matter what teacher you get, it is unlikely for you to avoid the wrath of the powerpoints. I know some teachers didn't collect the homework, but Keller did. My advice is to use the solutins manual before submitting an answer to Mastering Physics otherwise you are going to be hard pressed getting the exact right answer because of strict submission rules.


Sophomore
B
Required (Support)
Jan 2008
Keller works hard for his students. He would hold 20 office hours if you asked him to. Phys 133 didn't make sense to me, honestly it still doesn't, but if you want someone who will do his best to help you understand the class - take Keller. I didn't regret it


Sophomore
C
Required (Major)
Feb 2008
never know the answer to any questions you asked of him always had to refer to notes for solutions in lecture. read straigth off the powerpoints, wasnt that great at explaining

PHYS 203


Freshman
N/A
Required (Major)
May 2010
Dr. Keller is a really funny teacher and he makes the class really fun. Sometimes the 2 hour lecture/lab goes by fast and fun, if you are doing a lab, and other times the class goes by slow because it is mostly discussion. So far in 203, there has been too much hypothesizing so the class gets confused on whats the correct answer and what is the hypothesis. Tests seem to be easy when you take them, but they turn out harder than you thought. You have to explain everything you know and study really hard/understand everything. The only time you have homework is the activity homework in the book, but its not that much. The worst part of 203 compared to 202 and 201 is that there are so many \"little\" projects. Theres a sunset and lunar project, a geography fieldtrip (which may be hard if you dont have a car), and a trip to the campus observatory. It seems to take up a lot more time.


Freshman
N/A
Required (Major)
May 2010
Dr. Keller is a really funny teacher and he makes the class really fun. Sometimes the 2 hour lecture/lab goes by fast and fun, if you are doing a lab, and other times the class goes by slow because it is mostly discussion. So far in 203, there has been too much hypothesizing so the class gets confused on whats the correct answer and what is the hypothesis. Tests seem to be easy when you take them, but they turn out harder than you thought. You have to explain everything you know and study really hard/understand everything. The only time you have homework is the activity homework in the book, but its not that much. The worst part of 203 compared to 202 and 201 is that there are so many \"little\" projects. Theres a sunset and lunar project, a geography fieldtrip (which may be hard if you dont have a car), and a trip to the campus observatory. It seems to take up a lot more time.

ASTR 301


Junior
B
Required (Major)
Nov 2010
What a boss. Few people are as dedicated to teaching as Dr. Keller (the science feller). If every teacher at this school was like Dr. Keller, Cal Poly would be the best university in the nation. One of the 1st things you will notice about this guy is his commitment to his students. He goes far out of his way to help you such that you feel bad about it. I agree with pervious posts: be sure to be extra complete in your explanations. Grading is as fair as it gets. His teaching: abnormally enthusiastic (he clearly enjoys the material). On rare occasions, when he is having a bad day, he is not very good at explaining concepts. Fortunately, this almost never happens, and usually his explanations are stellar (no pun intended). Despite being VERY busy, he still makes himself available. He also has lots of experience teaching youth science, so if you really need something dumbed down he can do it. Sometimes, he will sing science songs that he wrote. Conclusion: Dr. Keller is a good model for other teachers to try to be like.


Sophomore
A
Elective
Jan 2011
I had him for ASTR 301 and it was by far my most favorite class of the quarter. He was extremely knowledgeable and could present the material clearly. Very good at making material interesting and often uses interactive activities to illustrate concepts and ideas. Amazing professor


Sophomore
A
Elective
May 2012
What a great professor! He is very personable, knows the class by name, and really cares about the subject matter. In my opinion you couldn't ask for more. Tough midterm and final, but that should be expected for a level 300 class. When I missed class he made a time for me to see him(not even office hours) so I could catch up. If you don't do well on the midterms he has many projects that are pretty easy, but still useful for understanding the solar system. Homework was time consuming, but important information to know not busy work. Highly recommended!


Senior
B
Elective
May 2012
One of the best teachers I've had at Calpoly. Does an excellent job at covering a wide variety of material but tying it all together. Realize that you will definitely need to have some time to commit to this class because you will have a couple projects. They aren't too difficult and he's a fair grader, but this isn't just a blow-off course.

ECON 808


Junior
B
Required (Major)
Nov 2016
I learned that if I were to take up hunting, I should shoot deer, not bears, because a bear will hunt me back if I successfully wound it. Fascinating! I didnt know that the key to production and operations management was so brutally simple!