Rummell, Kathryn  

i hear allot of students find her condescending but personally i just think her enthusiastic and foward character just intimidates them. she is higly polite and slightly manic so she might seem a little concieted. her workload it heavy. in my womens lit class we had weekly online discussions, a presentation, a research paper, essays, and 7 books to read. to me this makes her class an annoyance because it becomes to obssesive.

I love Dr. Rummell. She presents her course material in an engaging, relevant way. There is very little plot summary (which can bog down lectures) and lots of textual analysis which she relates to the author's state of mind and the culture, history, politics, etc of the time period in which a piece was written. Not only is she an excellent orator, Dr. Rummell is extremely kind and willing to provide her students with plenty of office hour help. The main portion of our grade consisted of our midterm, final, and a paper. There were 4 required paragraphs due throughout the quarter- but they were fairly easy to write and count for about 5% of the total grade. You can succeed in this class if you do your reading and show up for lecture- you will learn everything you need to know for your tests this way. Rummell is an awesome prof. and her effervescent personality and enthusiasm rub off on the whole class. She is definitely on my Top 5 list of Profs. at Cal Poly!!!

I learned early on in class that Dr. Rummell is not really interested in how creative a writer you are...she is all about following the MLA handbook to the letter. She is not particularly interested in your unique insight into the characer of one of the authors being studied either, or their literary works--just memorize and repeat what she said in the lecture and you'll do fine. She is a grammer teacher first and foremost so make sure you dot your "I's" and cross your "T's." She is knowledgable about her subject and has a very warm, bubbly personality that belies her tendency to grade harshly--unless she likes you, then you might be able to get away with murder. In that case, ignore my advice and have fun, 'cause you're gonna get a good grade, no matter what! Cheers!

Boring, boring, boring ... the core series was a chore to get through, but Rummell's 205 was the driest and most pithy of them all. I noticed many non-English majors like her and I think that's because her syllabus is not very abstract. Show up, read Pope, hear Rummell tell you what Pope was getting at, pass test in which you repeat what Rummell told you Pope was getting at. Not too much higher-level thinking going on. Compared to, say, Prof. Hampsey, who can and will relate anythink to the Greeks, William Blake, or his personal dislike of G.W. Bush, Rummell is very didactic. You will transcribe the mind and works of Dryden and Pope, but there's very little correlation to things that, well, actually matter in past or current events. Do what she says (and her lecture style is very clear) and you will do well. If not, you can pass the time by pondering the vagarities of a Rummell/Fitzhenry love tryst.

Core with Rummell was very enjoyable. Her lectures were pretty straightforward, and it was easy for me to grasp what she had to say and how themes related to the literature. She's helpful in office hours as well. I enjoyed not only her teaching style but her as a person (her Oprah obsession was always entertaining).

Dr. Rummell is very friendly and helpful to students, but only sometimes. Other times, she can be condescending and nit-picky, not only as an advisor, but also as a professor. The material for this class, was, at best, dry. To her credit, Dr. Rummell was very enthusiastic and managed to keep the attention of her students during the quarter. Her exams are nightmares and lead to hand cramping-- so write down and study every single thing if you want at least a B on her tests. Don't sweat the papers, just start them early to get them out of the way.

One of the best English instructors at Poly, no doubt. Articulate, funny, caring and, dare I say, hot. If I were a guy, I'd be all over her. Take her if you can.

Okay, I love Dr. Rummell's class. Rarely did I zone out like I often have in other classes. She is so upbeat and positive that the 8 AM class didn't bother me at all. The reading journals are easy and help you to keep up on your reading, which is really difficult for me to do, but they are only worth 10% of the grade. Her tests are pretty fair and cover a lot of material. My one gripe about this class was that 40% of the final grade was based on two analysis papers about the very first work we read in the class. We did not do any other activity with this work, and there were no papers assigned on any other work in the class. I received a C- on my first paper and when I went to her to see how I could improve on my second paper, she was very helpful and gave me a lot of pointers. I followed these and only received a C+ on the second paper, with no comments to explain why. These papers totally brought down my grade, even though I had done everything else assigned, participated in class, and did decently on the midterm and final. My point? If you're going to take her class, go to office hours with specific questions on how to improve your paper until she tells you it's perfect, or suffer the consequences of a grade that is less than what you deserve.

Rummell cares about students. She keeps the class funny and informative. She knows what she's doing. She is a challenge to take, but her dedication and passion make you willing to go the extra mile for her. Plus she's good to look at...if you know what I mean

It would be lying to say that Dr. Rummell is an easy A kind of professor. She certainly requires her students to work very hard. However, she will do whatever she can to make sure a student succeeds. She isn\'t one of those professors that makes her class difficult on purpose so that her grade distribution can fit a bell curve. She genuinely wants all of her students to do well; all you need to do is show her that you are willing to work. Regarding the midterm and final, as another reviewer said, they are not easy. The best strategy for them is to take good notes during lecture and commit them to memory as best you can. Many test questions mirror discussion questions she brings up in class. Overall, Dr. Rummell is a very nice lady who is a wonderful professor, but do not take her if you are not willing to work.

This class consisted of two papers, a creative project, in-class writings, a midterm, and a final. The midterm and final were killer-hard, so it kind of soured me on the material, even though looking back, the reading was really interesting. Dr. Rummell is AWESOME. She\'s unbelievably energetic and interesting, and super-helpful in office hours. It\'s worth taking the class just to hear her lecture, but if you\'re not a very good writer or heavy thinker, I\'d steer clear.

If you are a liberal arts or english major, Dr. Rummell is great. She is sweet and happy. Her knowledge of the subject is good. The class is discussion oriented and she demands interaction. The material, all african-american in this case, is comprehensive although she omits many of the more militant works. If you are a not a liberal arts major, stay away from Dr. Rummell. She clearly segregated the class according to major. At one point she was raving about how engineers make more than she does immediately following graduation, then she had the engineers raise their hands and identify themselves. Another of Dr. Rummell's policies is that students can not dicuss their grades with one another. Many factors point to favoritism in her class. Since all the grading is highly subjective...

Dr. Rummel was a very knowledgeable teacher who made class very interesting. I especially liked her selection of novels: Beloved and Mama Day, as well as the short stories. Her lectures were informative, although she sometimes went a little fast. She was very approachable though and would go back for students who had missed something. We had 185 students in our class, therefore no term papers ( Yeah). Write down everything she says and do all the readings. You'll do fine if you read and review occassionally. Her tests are quite fair.

I would say English is my worst subject. I was totally afraid to take an upper division English clas! But Professor Rummel was amazing! The class was actually very intresting! Most of the readings were good and it was nice because we talked about them in class! But there was a lot of reading!....or maybe I'm just a slow reader!!!!!!!! Her test were fair and were mostly off of lecture. If you go to class and take notes you should get a B!

Dr Rummell rocks! I really enjoyed this class (African American literature). I had been afraid to take English for my USCP requirement, but took 347 because nothing else was available. The readings were enjoyable, and lectures were very stimulating. Dr. Rummell really gets you to think, to dig deeper in analyzing the material. The course is presented in a historical and thematic context that gave us a feel for the struggle of an oppressed people in this country. Dr. Rummell values everybody's input even when she happens to disagree and never makes you feel dumb. Fascinating class taught by an excellent professor. Take 347 with Rummell if you can.

Dr. Rummell is amazing. Her lectures are not boring and she explains the information very clearly. She is very willing to listen to and answer questions. She is funny as well. The readings are very interesting, and the novels I couldn't put down, I even had my family read them. Tests are tough, but very fair. She goes over them afterwards and lets you know what to study for. Dr. Rummell is one of the best teachers I have had here.

Dr. Rummell provides a very interesting and compelling lecture! But- I do not recommend this professor to anyone trying to fulfill GWR and/or GE who is NOT an English major. Dr. Rummell expects English major work and if you don't provide, you will not acheive anything better than a C.

Course consists of a midterm, final, and essay each worth 30% of the grade. Participation is the other 10, and who knows what that is based on. She gives a lecture in the beginning that it isn't a given A, but doesn't give you any clue how you are doing. The midterm had 5 quotes and 5 short essay questions. The quotes you had to identify the work they are from, author, speaker, situation, and the significance of each. The short essays were just on stuff talked about in class. The final is the same as the midterm, but with a full GWR essay thrown in. The class can give you GWR credit, but you have to take the final even if you already have credit. She grades the essay harsh, so get her help as much as possible. There is a lot of reading and the course moves fast. Don't miss class as it is impossible to guess what she is going to pull out of the literature to talk about. Class requires a very strong skill in writing and ability to memorize lots of titles and authors. If you are trying to crash, she gives priority to english majors, most others will not get in. Overall, a tough teacher who will test what you know and how well you can write, but not teach much.

This was the hardest class I have ever taken in my life! Attendence is required which bites, if you don't go to even one class you will be left behind. She will put what ever she wants to put on her exams, you must know every damn quote she says in class just to be safe. She grades exams and papers like if you were a Dr. of Lit. Do not take this class if you want to pass the GWR or you will be in deep shit if you're not very good at English classes.

I think that Dr. Rummell is the best teacher I have ever had. As an Engineering student, English has always been one of my least favorite subjects. I was apprehensive about taking an upper-division english class for GE, but she really got intereseted in the subject. I enjoyed the readings as well as the class discusions. She has very high stadards for the paper assignment, but she presents them in rubric format when she gave the assignment, so that you knew her grading criteria while writing your paper. I would highly recommend underlining the quotes that she reads aloud in class, to help you study for her tests, since a major protion is quote identification. I would say that her class is easy to pass if you show up, but difficult to get an "A" in unless you can write flawlessly. I learned alot and enjoyed myself in the process.

This teacher was the worst teacher i had at cal poly. don't take her. she tells you the first week of class that engineering students will be making more than her when they grandaute. she was HORRIBLE. She has you read african american literature which i thought at first was very interesting. She then goes into sick sexual detail about parts of the book. NONSENSE. I have always been a straight A in English courses until this class. She's not good please take my advice unless you want to take the GWR test after you take this class. I passed the class but she didn't pass my GWR. I would say no no no...please no

I really don't understand why everyone is complaining. Dr. Rummell is one of the best teachers I've had at Cal Poly. English literature has never been one of my strong subjects, but she really inspired my interest in the material, and I didn't have any trouble with the papers or the exams. If you read all the assigned material and take notes in class, it will be blatantly obvious which piece of literature the quotes come from on the exams; it is not as difficult as others say! She is extremely willing to help her students and will always answer questions after class and during office hours.

African American lit. with Rummell was very interesting. Before the exams and quizes she always was open to answer any questions (which gave out a lot of answers). In this class, you can take the GWR... An easy pass. Expect to write three papers, take a shit load of quizes, and about two to three exams. Interesting reads, but biased none the less. The focus of this class was African American contemporary female authors so if you like these writers and their style take the class. Otherwise, you'll be bored.

Rummell needs to recognize that no all of the students who take this course are Engl majors. I hadn't taken any english courses in a few years, so the essays were rough. She never gave me constructive criticism, it was vague and unspecific. The book Beloved was horrid and gave me nightmares, if your not into strange, confusing literature, I don't recommend this professor.

She is a nice instructor who tries to help students. She is a fairly hard grader on papers. You have to read 3 books(Mama Day, Beloved, and The Narrative of Frederick Douglass) and a collection of various essays/poems. Class consist of a midterm, final and two papers. The reading is time consuming, but classes go by quickly as she does a good job facilitating discussion. The class won

Rummell is a nice lady. However her Midterms are ridiculously hard. Unles you immerse your entire life into what you are reading for her class (memorizing hundreds of pages word for word) then you are likely to not super good in her class. I\'ve always gotten A\'s and B\'s in English and writing, but I currently have a D in her class. The in class writings are piece of cake but they are only worth something like 10% of your grade.

I loved this class and loved the teacher. There is alot of reading but she explainings things so well that it makes it interesting. For the first midterm i read everything assigned and got an A, but for the second i didn\'t read alot of it but still got an A. SO as long as you go to class and take good notes, you can get a good grade. As for the teacher... she is patient and loves the subject. She puts alot of time into her class and she grade really fare. I really liked her!

She is very knowledgable on the subject, as well as a good conveyor of the material, and if there were no tests, I would highly recommend her. HOWEVER, she grades the tests extremely hard. Some questions involve quotes from the readings and if you get even part of the answer wrong, no (or very little) credit. Only reason I even got a C was that i studied my ass off for the final (got a B).

Doesn\'t know how to use Google and insults people by denegrating their reputation based on misinformation.

The most pretentious person I have ever met. She acts like she is in a TV show in her own class .. maybe she is just very awkward idk. She writes you an essay when she gives back your work explaining everything you did wrong- but with opinions about what you said, not the style or how you wrote it!! She doesn't TEACH you how to be a writer, she simply shits on you. Her english lectures consisted of subliminal preposterous liberal political ethical opinions she has with no actual guidelines or foundations to a lecture. Her lecture consisted mainly of listening to her; she would attempt to make discussions, but always re-directed them back to the way she felt about a topic (it was her way or the highway). If you disagree with her, she will lower your grade. Give it up lady!!! Go get a new hobby. Do not take her unless you want a shitty quarter. (the only good things about this class was the actual literature). Sorry if you have to take her.. be prepared to kiss her ass.

Dr. Rummell is a fabulous professor. I also had her for ENGL 332. She does make jokes in class, but they are not meant to offend anyone. She is young, energetic, and always smiles. You will not get a free ride in her class. She expects her students to do quality work; however, the work load is manageable, often consisting of a presentation, a paper, a midterm, and a final. If you need to take any English class, Dr. Rummell is an excellent choice.

Dr. Rummell is one of the nicest, smartest, and sincerest teachers I've had here at Poly. I honestly can't understand how some people could say that she's unfair or insincere! They must have just had serious personal differences with her. I've had her twice and both times were very enjoyable, AND I even learned stuff!!! Definitely don't let her appearance fool you. . . she seems like she's real mild and meek and whatever, but she's not. She definitely stands her ground and she's not quickly persuaded to go "easy" on you. Her standards are high, but she does everything in her power to help you meet them. On a one-on-one basis, she'll meet you where you're at. She's willing to give extensions and revisions if need be, and she REALLY REALLY cares about her students. I highly recommend getting to know her at her office hours. One time she stayed over an hour after her office hours should have ended b/c a couple of us were confused and wanted to talk an assignment over with her. I have never seen a teacher as selfless as Rummell. And I am constantly amazed by how smart she is! I admire her so much, and I definitely recommend her as a teacher. Her grading is fair and tests are very consistent with what we're learning in class. Discussions are important, so don't miss class--but they're fun too. Take Rummell's class. . .it won't be a piece of cake, but it'll taste just as good!

Dr. Rummell is friendly, extremely intellegent, an expert in her field, and will help you if you have a problem. Notice the overall grade I gave her. That being said, unless you really, Really, REALY like Alexander Pope, Swift, Dryden...DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS! It is basically the same as her core class, but much more intense. The reading and workload is extreme. If you take the class, be prepared to write three long papers on the same people, same subject--it gets redundant. This quarter, for example, we did a take-home exam essay on Pope and Swift, an annotation on The Dunciad: Book Four (sound familiar?), and finaly, an essay on The Dunciad: Book Four. Are you getting my point, yet? I thought so. Please don't let the title of the course, Ancients vs Moderns, fool you. We're not talking classical texts, here. If, however, you actually LIKE the neoclassicists, then this is the class for you, definately. Speaking for myself, instead of feeling illuminated by the class, I was annoyed and exhausted. Anyway, that's my two cents worth.

Dr. Rummell is like a walking textbook on 18th Century literature. I took her Ancients vs. Moderns class, and even though her lectures are intense, she makes them enjoyable with her extensive knowledge and openness to questions. She's a tough grader on papers, and her tests are pretty challenging. She definitely expects you to put a lot of work into the class, but there's not a ton of reading and she's super helpful in office hours. Most of the work in this class is crammed into the last couple of weeks, so be prepared, but Dr. Rummell's fun, quirky personality makes the effort worthwhile.