Howell, Alan  

He likes to take his time when talking and always goes past the hour. The course content was a little to difficult for an Engl 134 class and it didn't really pertain to it. The assignments deal more with critical thinking than with praticing writing skills. He was very good about being available for office hours and adding additional office hours when needed.

Wow does this guy suck ass! If you are a free and creative thinker, don't take him. He makes you think inside his box! He taught this class as if it were a great books class when it was supposed to be english composition. The he asks you to be insightful and interpret the reading, but if you don't say exactly what he sees, then you are wrong wrong wrong. He is the most closed minded professor I have ever come accross. I took this class 4 years ago and I still remember!

This class was the most boring and pointless lecture to go to. This guy would ramble on about what a specific piece meant, and he would keep going off on tangents. By the end of the two hour lecture if someone were to ask me what i had learned, i would have nothing to say. He is also a horrible grader. I usually get A's on all my essays and papers, but i could barely get a B- from this guy. AVOID THIS CLASS AT ALL COSTS!

Dr. Howell was all over the place in lectures. I often slept through his class and got poor grades on the essays before I realized that you could get great grades by just quoting him in your essays. Makes him think that you paid attention in class and boosts his ego too. The last few essays I had no idea what to put but I wrote down random thoughts that he said during class and linked them together for a "fantastic!" A on the damn papers. The essays are almost all open notes and open book so don't freak about writing essays for this guy.

Ok, so he is a little weird, but not a bad guy. If you go to class and write down the stuff he says in the 5 minuites of his lecture that mean something, you'll be good. Write down what he says when you write you in-class, open book and note essays. Go to office hours a few times, because i learned once he got to know me and that I cared about my grade, he started giving me better grades.

Howell's lectures go all over the place and it is difficult to figure out what is important and what are rambles. I took some notes but had no clue what in the world they meant. He really cares about his students, but he has very little ability to teach. Luckily British literature interests me. (This course is a little heavy in poetry for my tastes.) Tips to succeed in his class: Show up when he passes out papers (because that's the only time he takes attendance), show up to his office hours (he is a better help there and really can improve your writing ability), write essays that reflect his views on the literature (regardless of your own interpretations), and get used to his odd lecturing style as fast as possible (he becomes friendly after a week or two of class). Interesting note: On the first day of class, several people were trying to crash this course; on the second day of class, there were less students enrolled and no one was trying to crash. If you take Howell, be ready for a roller coaster ride through English...

BORING. No structure to class and hard to stay awake. He's a nice guy, it's just that its dry material and it doesnt help that he's so boring. He doesnt grade that hard on the in-class essays, just make sure that you take notes when he talks. For HW, its just reading. About 5 in-class essays, midterm and final. He gets off track a lot in his lectures, so you dont know what whether to write things down. I would recommend this teacher if you are good at in-class essays and you like literature. He knows his stuff, just bad at communicating it with the class.

Prof Howell is quite slow in lecture, but if you have a class that did the reading and understands the material, it can be one of the better classes at Cal Poly. He is passionate about romantic literature, and as a result has a very specific interpretation of the readings. If you're not able to see things from his point of view and write what he wants to hear, you'll be out of luck in this class. He's VERY helpful in office hours also. He cares about his students if you're respectful and try. If you take his class, go to office hours and your grade will be higher (because you know the material better, and because he will know who you are). I'd recomment him to anyone that still needs to take an english class taught in an old-fashioned style.

Howell's lectures are hard to follow because he goes off on tangents. The lectures are also boring, but you must go to class to get the participation grade. He grades the essays fairly, but I would strongly recommend not taking any class he teaches

While Howell is very passionate about the subject and the course material, he is unclear and hard to understand. He spends most class periods ranting and raving about some theme while you jot down random notes to regurgetate later on the inclass essays. He's a really nice guy and his grading is pretty easy, there's 1 midterm in essay form and a handful of other in class essays plus a reading log. At first the material is pretty dry, unless you enjoy reading the journals of the Puritan pilgrims. Overall, an easy B but nothing too thrilling.

Good man. I really learned how to write good essays in his class. The material is really interesting and he really tries to help his students. He really honestly cares about his students. Hes very helpful on his office hours and he will basically tell you what he wants to hear on your essays, so go to his office hours. Hes definately an odd man, he really babbles and i don't think he has a life outside of golf and greek and roman literature but he loves his job and hes a great teacher.

I took professor Howell in the second quarter of my first quarter at Poly. It was my first college level literature class, and I recall how he would come into class slowly, as if in great pain everyday, sipping a cup of tea from Julians as if he was in great pain. It was the same way with his words, which he said with such anguish that I imagined them trudging forth from the depths of his soul, tearing the flesh on their way out. As a warning, and as you've probably read in many of his other ratings, I would say that a majority of the students in the class hated Howell as a teacher. But I like to think that this is more because he was so enigmatic and elusive. For me, his lecture style was absolutely riveting, how he would take a thought that probably occured to him as he entered this classroom, and visibly and audibly labour his way through the maze that thought created, inviting us deeper into the text by way of the infamous rabbit trail. But if you don't want to invest your heart and imagination in an exploration of literature, I wouldn't recommend Howell in the least. You will hate every minute.

So, first of all.. Howell is a great guy. He appreciates humour, has accessible office hours at the Campus Market (rather than the Maze), has open note essays, and actually does bring the course material to life. The Iliad and the Odyssey have SO much more depth for me after taking this class. HOWEVER.. As the others say, you must attend every class for the participation points, and the lectures are hideously, mind-numbingly boring. It's suggested that you write down everything he says, and that's a good tip--but good luck being able to decipher much of it and getting him to make a point instead of wandering off on some other tangent. I must admit, I took to reading Catullus instead of listening to him talk, and it was time well spent. I heartily recommend his poetry.. Anyway, despite the horrible lectures, and the subjective grading system (did I mention that?), I came out of this class a better person. I believe I could have gotten an A (instead of a B+) if I had put more effort into the make-up essays (he lets you redo every essay for a potentially higher grade, which is nice). Just the same, I cannot recommend this professor.

Dr. Howell is a dreadfully boring professor, which makes it all the more painful that attendence is 25% of your grade. That said, he knows his material thoroughly and has a real passion for the literature. If you write down everything he says after the first 10 minute of the class, patterns will begin to emerge and you will start to understand what he's talking about. I didn't do most of the reading, and I managed a B by paying attention to what he said. I regret not reading the material because it's actually pretty interesting, but it's hard to keep up with the hefty assignments and even harder to catch up once you fall behind. If all else fails, talk about the failure of men to change in your essays and you'll do fine.

Howell is definitely a tough one. Don't take his class if you want an "easy" Lit class. His lectures can be a bit (OK very) boring but, pay attention nonetheless--some truly inspiring things come out of this guy's mouth on occassion. My experience with the writing was quite a bit different than many of the previous reviewers. I found I could express a unique approach to the works--not just regurgitation--and it was rewarded with a decent grade and good feedback. Grading policy could stand to be a bit clearer. Overall good class.

Please, for the love of god, do not take this teacher! If you have any respect for literature, or learning in general, you will find another teacher for this class. If you must, drop it and take it another quarter, I'm serious. Everything on this site about him is true!

Inductive and deductive essays are what he is all about, they are all open note so TRY to take notes if you can. He does jump around some with his lecture but if you can piece together his train of thought he makes sense. Just be prepared to go into character development in all your essays since that is what almost every one of them was on. Overall he is a hard teacher but you will learn a lot about the subject form a guy that really likes it. If you want an easy class take some one else if you want to actually learn about the material take him

Boring, Boring, boring. Do not take him for 2 hour class you will not be able to stay and you can't leave or he says something to embarrass you when you try to leave. Everyday he tells you that you will have to write an in class essay next time and then when you get there you don't have to its his only way to get people to go to class. All you do is write essays on stuff that is really boring!! Not much homework and grades not too bad.

Professor Howell's lectures are quite confusing most of the time. Half the time I was thinking what the heck is this guy talking about (I asked other students in the class and it wasn't just me either). I found that the trick was to go to his office hours. He was much more helpful there. His whole class is based on writing essays. Most of them are pretty short. I ended up BS-ing most of my essays. I had between an A and a B before the final, but since I took the class for CR/NC I'm not sure what my final grade would've been. If you can make it through his horrendously drawn out lectures, I'd recommend taking Howell for an easy GE class.

This was a class that should be taken by everyone. I learned so much about myself as a person in this class, it even helped me with my love life. All the other posters are right, his lectures are like "what the hell is he talking about", but he gives you all the answeres. If you take notes in class and regurgitate them back to him in your essays you will get a good grade. TAKE THIS ADVICE: Go to his office hours. Not only is he a real kind man who wants to help you, but he practically tells you exactly what to write. I went to his office hours every week and took mad notes when he talked. One thing thats cool about this class is that after you write an essay and get it back you can then revise it and turn it back in for a better grade. I did this on every assignment even if I got a B+ on it. Im out of his class not but will still go back to his office hours to hear him speak his romanic wisdom. Ever read "Tuesdays with Morrie"? He kinda reminds me of him.

Prof Howell is the most boring teacher i have ever had. The guy put me to sleep every period, because for the full 2 hours i had no idea what the hell he was talking about. I wanted to raise my hand every 5 min. and ask him why he is a teacher. Overall he is a pretty fair grader but you have to go to class because he gives in class essays and surpise midterms. Believe me you wont want to go to class after the 2nd lecture. I recomend not taking this teacher cause he doesnt know how to teach. you wont learn a damn thing and the best grade you might get in his class is a B.

I agree with some of the other statements; Howell rambles alot, but most of it is useful and can really help if you just pay attention. And some of it is just relevant to society and can be interesting when the class gets going on a topic, plus it provides a little break from lecture. This class covered alot of literature that really asks you to think a little bit and try to figure out what is going on. It really helped me think of things in life a little differently and I was up for the experience. Howell is really mellow, but he appreciates a good joke and likes to see his students involved. The essays are not tough at all and are all open note and open book. If you keep up on the reading, which for the most part is pretty short and rather interesting, you will be fine. But pay attention to what he says in class...here is where you get all of your ammo for your essays! You can opt out of the final if you take the midterm and then decide you want no higher than a C in the class. He is not a tough grader, and you can use his comments and advice in future essays and revisions. One cool thing is that he lets you revise essays as much as you want till you get an A. He may seem a little strange at first, but once you get used to his system and then give a genuine effort to the class, it is not hard to do well. I'd recommend him for this class.

In all honesty, professor Howell was one of the best teachers I've had at Cal Poly - yes he does talk too quietly and can be hard to follow, but if you come to class everyday willing to try to pay attention, he is very fascinating. This is one of the few classes where I have been really able to make a connection with a teacher, and that is because he really takes interest in his students - he is always excited to discuss the papers with and he knows off the top of his head everything you wrote about. He is very passionate about writing classes for this exact reason - it allows the teacher and the student to connect in a way where the student actually learns something valuable. That being said, there are a few things you should know before taking the class: the grade is based entirely on papers - 5 in class essays, one take home midterm and one in class final. You can revise your essays as much as you want to get another grade - the first grade remains and you get another grade - you can opt out of the final and accept a C in the class, you can make the final worth double, etc..he gives you a lot of options to do well in the class. The most important thing you can do to get a good grade, however is show up to class and to his office hours - 20 percent of the grade is participation and if you listen to what he has to say in class and in the office hours, you will have what you need to write a good essay. If you don't want an english class that you will have to devote yourself to and take a special interest in, don't take this class - do take it if you want to actually learn something, however.

This class was probably the best class I've ever taken anywhere. It improved the quality of my life and helped me to admit to myself that I hate my major and even though I've spent 4 years of my life and $20,000 on it, it is better to start over than to live a life that you hate. Though sometimes it was a little boring, I really enjoyed this class. Probably because I took it credit/no credit. When you don't have to worry about your grade, you can spend a lot more time having fun and not caring about how good your writing is. As a teacher, I found Howell to be pretty unorganized and unstructured, and he never really came out and said things straight out. Like when he was talking about assignments his talking would kind of wander around, then he'd say something important like the due date or how to do something in the middle of a bunch of garbage, so if you don't pay attention it's easy to miss stuff and get confused. I'd say if you just want to get an A in another bullshit English class, take something else, but if you want to learn some interesting stuff about life try this one out.

Crackhead. No...seriously

I am not one to fall asleep in class, but this class had my head bobbing and eyes shutting everyday. This professeur talks so slowly that it took him 20 minutes just to take role everyday! That's right he takes role everyday - it sucks. The book you have to get is huge, but luckily there actually isn't that much reading because most of it is poems which will be at most 5 pages or so. Pay attention to what he says about the poems and their meanings because that is all he wants to hear on your essays - his own opinions about the poems put into your own words and regurgitated back to him on paper. If you can do that you will be fine, although you might want to bring coffee to class.

I'm not usually one quick to judge a professors ability on the first day but I new I was in trouble the second he walked in. By the second day, 15, 15 people dropped! Not only is this the most annoying professor I have ever had, I have never seen someone so unprepared. The guy took a half an hour of class just drawing out a seating chart. The way he speaks is like Ben Stein on depressants. He blames it on his Romantic thinking and told our class how none of his students ever understand him. Ironically he is the most closed minded individual I have ever met. His essays are easy if you say what he wants to hear but it's just not worth wasting your life sleeping through his class. How does he still work here!

Got an A- but didn't understand a single thing this excuse of a teacher said. Just make sure to write down everything he says and ralph it on your essays.

I agree with the last comment. Just write down every word he says plus all in class essays are open notes. Make sure you go into office hours and at least look like you are paying attention during class. He's big on participation.

Dr. Howell is an excellent teacher. He knows his material and works with his students to improve thier writing. He is a pretty fun lecturer with his random thoughts, but I found his office hours to be th emost helpful. In his office, is where he really can concentrate on the students problems. He is not the toughest grader, but don't be as concerned with the grade as the material you learn.

worst teacher i ever had. he runs his office hours in the campus market. so while your trying to understand something, he got to hear everything in the campus market. worst class ever. hard to stay awake and couldn't hear him from four rows back. speaks way too quietly. there are better teachers to take, so take them.

This was the most boring class I've ever had. I did ok but only because I tried my hardest to repeat what I heard him say in class even when I didn't understand it (which was always!). He mumbles during lectures and right when the whole class is falling asleep he'll yell out 'the archetype is!' or some phrase of his and jolt us awake- in a bad way. I really really tried to follow his lectures but they would just go in circles and be totally hypocrisies! The one thing our class did to help make the time go by was try to interrupt him and hold class discussions. But usually he'd take the stage and ramble on about nonsense. This was the worst teacher I've ever had. And he always has to be right!

howell has you read these stories that are kindof twisted. then he talks on some random tanget aobut the subject. he likes it that way. he likes when you restate his off the wall conclusions and perceptions in your weekly in class essays. i hardly read and hardly paid any attention in class, put minimal effort into the essays and still got a b+. it was a really easy class overall.

What the guy/gal below said. Amen. I too took this class and have long since graduated from Poly, but I was cruising Poly Ratings for a kick and thought that I should pipe in and let you know how much of a joke this prof is.