Sze, Lawrence  

Makes it really easy to succeed if you put in the time. Go to his office hours, he is extremely helpful. His exams can be difficult, but if you write everything down he usually will give you partial credit even if you get the final answer incorrect.

Dr. Sze's class is extremely rigorous, and at times can test your sanity. Especially noting the concepts and value of proofs in his class, Sze expects a very high level of competence from his students. A very nice person however, just a little hard to get used to.

I took Calculus in high school before I took Sze's class. I have to honestly say I pity anyone who takes his class without any previous calculus experience. His lecture's were very hard to understand and they did not pertain to the homework as well as the tests. Once, the entire class failed a test so he gave the same one the next week so we could do better. Take this class if you feel like teaching yourself but if not, go somewhere else! A supplementary class is essential with Sze's class.

Dr. Sze was a nice guy but demanded a lot. You really had to pay attention during his lectures because of how fast he went. Fortunately, he was pretty funny. His was one of the hardest B's I've had to work for. I didn't fully appreciate it then, but the rigorousness of his 141 class has made 142 a breeze. If you don't like proofs or if you need to be spoonfed every step, then Dr. Sze's class is not for you. But, if you want to really understand calculus and be ready for the next class he's your guy.

Sze was a great teacher however it took a week or two until I understood him, but after that it was a matter of focusing on the material. He prepared you well for the tests, but don't just use the practice test or you be sorry. He curves the tests so the class average is at 75 or above and you can throw out your lowest test. I would recommend having him 2 quarters in a row, it made it much easier

I had taken calc in high school before I had Sze as a teacher, so throughout all his confusing lectures I could grasp a good understanding. Unfortunately, my friend who had not taken calc was in the d/f range. Taking calc a 2nd time cleared everything up, and I could almost always follow him. The tests are hard, but he curves the hell out of them (the highest was a 22 percent curve). The homework load was moderate; what you would expect from any calc 141 class. His grading system is pretty fair: 3 tests @ 50 pts each homework @ 50 pts total quizes @ 50 pts total (regardless of how many quizes) final @ 150 pts = 400 pts total

Grades on curve. Very understanding teacher, entertaining. must understand stuff 2 pass class, but helps alot to go to office hours. one of the best math teachers i've had.. by far the best at CP so far.

Sze is tight stuff. I took classes from him a few quarters ago and he's -still- one of the best teachers I've had here. It's obvious that he really cares about how his students are doing - and I think his forgetfulness and occasional mistakes on the board are endearing. I put some serious work into the class, though; don't expect to skate. P.S.: I think there should be a disclaimer on Polyratings that these evaluations are not an indicator of what -your- experience in the class will be like. I would've missed out on some really tight teachers if I'd treated polyratings like the gospel. The only real way to tell if you're going to like a teacher or not is to sit in on the class and talk to the professor. Try Sze!

Sze is a pretty good teacher. The major problem was with the material. I don't know what guidelines he has, so it may not be his fault. I took the AP test, so I was familar with calculus. However, there is a large concentration on proofs. I feel that it is unnecessary to go that deep unless you are a math major. Most people just need a practical knowledge of calculus, not a theoretical one. His grading was okay, but I never knew what type of questions were going to be on the tests. At least he's way better than Jimenez.

I thought he was one of the best math teachers I have had... as long as I did the homework the tests were pretty easy... I took him again for 142 because I enjoyed 141 with him so much...I would suggest him but oyu do have to know the material in order to do well on the tests.

He was an interesting guy. He did a pretty good job explaining the material. He uses the computer for a lot of things in the class. Also his tests are very hard, but he usually gives a lot of partial credit and curves the tests a lot. He curved one of our tests 20 points out of 100. I took the workshop along with the class so i didnt do much studying outside of that, but as long as you do the homework you should be fine.

Sze is a great teacher. He loves to use the computer to demonstrate important math concepts, which worked really well for me. He also helps you out tremendously in his office hours. His tests are very hard but very fair. If you know the concepts and come to every class, you will get good grades. If you listen, he will practically give you the test problems in class. Old tests are posted on his website. There were a few quizzes on Fridays before 3-day weekends, and they were really easy (One was "write down your favorite baby name"), right out of the lecture that day.

This guy rocks. You are actually able to sort of comprehend calculus with his lectures. He uses a lot of computer stuff in his class which is good. If you are willing to put in the time, he is capable and willing to teach you calc. Oh yeah, if you suck at math, take workshop with this class.

Professor Sze tries really hard to be a good teacher. It's not his fault he is a huge dork. The first five weeks of class, I was miserable due to his hard assignments and constant focus on completely unneccesary proofs. Things got better when I first experienced his curves. My midterm went from a 67% to a 90%. The average final is curved around 15-20%. Although Sze is very difficult and seems impossible, his curve definitely makes up for that. It is really hard not to pass his class as long as you make an effort.

Professor Sze is a down to earth guy. This was my second time taking Calc 141 (the first time i stopped going completely about 5 weeks in), and it didn't get any easier for my personally. However, his teaching style was comprehensive to all students so that those who haven't taken calc in high school (like myself) could have a chance to really understand what it means. He doesn't fly through it and always takes the time to answer any questions or side tangents. Not only that, but he has a sense of humor which helps the class to be bearable. He is a huge dork but that's probably what makes him approachable. I would recommend this professor for first years who have not taken caclulus before. I never really experienced his curve all that much (almost pushed a c to a b-, but not quite) but he's very fair on grading tests and will give partial credit when you show a fair amount of work.

Sze is a good teacher, although he does go off topic from time to time, he goes throught the problems step by step without skipping around like other teachers. He is actually the first REAL math teacher I have had in years since my junior high. I would recommend this teacher, although I did slack off a little but I still passed.

Sze is not as easy or great people say he is. He doesn't collect homework everyday... more like once in two weeks.... and he announces when he will collect it in the future so it's so easy to get behind assignments... why do it if you don't have to hand it in tommorrow? That's what I did... and I couldn't catch up. So do your homework!!! What's great about him is he will take the time to answer all questions completely even if one problem takes up the whole class... he does'nt really teach... he just kind of copies pictures from the book onto his MAPLE program. His little math program on the computer is not helpful at all! It's the equivalent of reading out of the book... he doesn't teach he reads. Don't ask too much questions in class... because you'll still have to do homework assignments for the next day on new material... not that he teaches well anyway. But this short little mad scientist does have a lot of passion for math... sometimes I feel like when he does problems on the board it's more for him than us. If you get an A on the final, the lowest score you can get is a B for the overall grade.... and so on... that's his best feature I think. Do your homework everyday and read chapters ahead of time.... purchase a solutions manual

Not a very good teacher. Very educated, but many times he would stop in the middle of a problem, and instead of figuring it out, he would forget about it and assume we'd figure it out on our own. Then he'd put the same problem on the test. And of course we didn't know it, because he couldn't teach us how to do it. Avoid him if possible.

First of all, I took Calc BC in high school and this class was mostly a review for me. His not bad of a teacher, but very boring. He starts off teaching a lesson, than he goes off a tangent and never completes the lesson. You have to usually read the section after the lecture to understand how to finish complete the problems. He dosen't grade homework, but the questions from the homework appear on tests and quizzes.

If you've never taken Calc before, this is the wrong professor. I took Calc in high school, so the class was a breeze. He's not very good at presenting the material in a way for beginners to understand. He doesn't collect homework, which was nice for me. I never opened my book the entire quarter.

Mr. Sze was a decent math teacher. He is not always completely clear but tries his best to explain things with examples. His tests were pretty hard in comparison to the quizzes. It was important to know the proofs. Sze assigns hw but doesn't collect it. It took him till halfway through the quarter to figure out that we needed to go over some of the problems to understand them better. I would reccomend sze if you mostly know calc already and are able to find good people to study with or can understand the books examples. He also curves tests which helps a ton. I was averaging around a B- and ended up with an A- in the class.

Professor Sze is the worst teacher I have ever had. He is awkward and makes mistakes when he teaches the material and often times skips steps during problems. The actual curriculum is not hard, but listening to him teach honestly made understanding the concepts more difficult than it really was. The homework is all on online through webassign and takes forever. Many of the problems have instructors steps and tutorials to help which is nice; however Sze rarely reviews homework and moves from section to section way too fast. This was my first year having calculus (I didn\'t take it in high school) but even those who did, did poorly on his tests. There are two midterms and a final. My class did horrible on both midterms and had to retake them, when even still we did badly. Sze is a nice man but he\'s much too scattered and disorganized. I hightly advise people to avoid taking his class.

From what the reviews say about Sze, it seems as though he has changed his teaching methods dramatically. One thing that I enjoyed about being taught by him was that he is leaninent on many things. He tries to be fair to his students as much as possible. He\'ll ask if anyone needs help on problems and go over them if someone asks, he\'ll give extensions if needed, and he\'ll even provide make up tests if a class doesn\'t do to well on the midterms. He has two midterms and on final. His homework is online but if help is needed, it provides tutorials and steps. I was able to understand the material from what he taught, but its also a good idea to read the book. It was one of my easiest classes.

Avoid this teacher at all costs. He is so unclear in lecture to the point that I just completely gave up on myself. If you ask a question in class, he will lecture for 15 minutes on the answer in complete jibberish in a way that he hasn't even taught you, then realize he did the problem wrong and the gives up. He is no help in office hours either. I have heard however that he is not so hard to understand if you have taken calculus before, but for someone who had never taken calc it was horrible. I failed because I was just so lost, and had to retake the class the next quarter.

Best teacher hands down. Everybody whining about his teaching are dumbasses.

Sze sticks to his schedule making it easy to stay on track. He knows the material, presents it well and is very helpful at office hours. His quizes and tests reflect the homework and problems he covers in class. He grades homework which is very helpful feedback. I learned alot in a short time from this teacher and I would take any class from him. Really a great guy.

Sze is very nice and his tests are fair. If the whole class didn't do that great on a test he will curve it. The whole class is graded on quizzes, two midterms, and the final. There is homework but he never checks to see if you're doing it but if you do it it will help on the tests. He isn't the best at actually teaching, if I hadn't already taken calculus in high school I would be completely lost! That being said, he is pretty average. I wouldn't recommend him to anyone but I also wouldn't be bad if you got him.

dude is chill

Very fair grader on quizzes and midterms. Quiz questions and midterms are very similar to examples in class and on assigned problems. When lecturing, he fairly average and doesn't really know how to teach to a whole class. But go to his office hours and he is great for 1 on 1 instruction. Overall, he is nice approachable guy and he is unintentionally hilarious. Solid prof. would recommend

Sze was chill. Almost a little too chill though, to the point where I felt like I wasn't able to learn anything in the class. A great guy, but not so much a great teacher. Doesn't check homework and his quizzes are open notes, so the class is fairly easy. But his second midterm is what will screw your grade up. Overall, decent teacher. Wish I could learn more though.

He's chill af and knows his stuff. there will be times where he will write a problem on the board and just stare at for a good 2-3 minutes and then change it. If you ask him what his office hours are he never knows because he changes them each week.

he's funny af. not purposefully though. quizzes are open note. the class is out of 400 points. 50 in quizzes 100(midterm 1), 100(midterm 2), 150(final)

He is an awesome and funny guy. He occasionally gets lost in his work but I'd recommend him anyway. He's a quality guy and I really enjoyed having him as my professor.

You may learn calculus in Sze's class, but your grades won't show it. Exams went above and beyond the homework and in-class examples. He's good at pointing out weaknesses in the exams, because most problems have some sort of trick to them that maybe you memorized or maybe you didn't. Overall, not a bad teacher, not a good professor.

Professor Sze had a little problem presenting himself in class, but he compromised very well. He does expect his students to know their previous experiences in Math. He however does care about the students. He does a very good job during office hours and answers students questions throughly. His tests are a little tough, but he covers what is going to be on the exam. With a little time and more preparation Sze could be one of the top Math teachers at Cal Poly.

Sze is an exceptional professor with the ability to present material in a way that allow students to understand. His enthusiasm with teaching makes the students enthusiastic about learning. If I had to bet, I'd say he is the best Math professor at CalPoly.

If you have no previous calc experience dont plan on spending too much time in Sze's class. He expects alot from each student, many of times he expects an unreasonable amount. Sze is easy to approach but doesnt seem to really care how you do. Unless you like flirting with your grade, I'd say go with someone else.

Sze is a horrible professor, DO NOT TAKE HIM. All he did every day was answer questions about the previous section. We were left to learn every section by ourselves, without him even mentioning what it was about. You basically teach yourself in the class, and on top of it you get the shaft when he sticks the class with ridiculous tests. The class average for the first midterm was a D-, that tells you how fucked up the class is. Take someone else, maybe they'll know how to teach.

Mr. Sze is a very challenging teacher. To receive high marks in the class you have to work your ass off. He is a very fair teacher and understands the students difficulties pretty well. His tests are some of the hardest that I have ever taken but he gets you prepared for future classes. I have taken him for 141 and I am in his 142 class. I really like the guy as a person and I would highly reccomend him for 141. Mr. Sze is the man.

Professor Sze was an awesome prof. He sincerely cares about his students and tries very hard to help clarify difficulties. He makes time to see students that aren't able to make his regular office hours, and will spend time explaining until the student understands the material. His tests are curved and the homework is graded fairly. He expects a lot, but we're the ones paying to get a good education and to understand the material; we should expect a lot too. Overall, I would highly recommend him.

I haven't had much experience with math professors here, but I must say that Dr. Sze is by far the most fair prfessor in the math department. His lectures are very clear, but his tests are a bit tough. However he does teach you the "tricks" usually needed to get the problem going. His grading scale is fairly standard but is great at giving partial credit and actually shows you the correct way to do a problem when grading the tests. The homework policy is a little lame because he grades three problems at a time, but it's better than looking at every problem assigned and having the graders give you 40% of the total points. I would reccomend this professor and if you get him, have "fun."

Dr. Sze is the best professor I have had at this school. His lectures are organized and easy to follow. Homework is not too hard or easy and is collected about twice a week. He is a very friendly and helpful person who wants his students to learn and do well. I HIGHLY recommend this professor.

Dr. Sze is a good professor who does all he can to help students understand the material. He is happy to help outside of his office hours. He is a nice guy, very easy going and humorous. Exams are hard, but he curves them. Sometimes he seemed a little unorganized. My only problem with him is that he allowed four people in the back of the classroom to talk during class throughout the quarter, something I found very distracting, especially since this is such a hard subject. He's too good natured to say "shut up," even after I complained to him. If you're a math whiz and don't even need to pay attention, take Sze. If you're bothered by what I described above, don't. Overall, though, I think Dr. Sze is pretty good

Dr. Sze is very very smart....no one is questioning that.......but in terms of teaching i think he could improve.......if you are an audio learner like i am than please don't take his class, that is unless you already know all the material in the first place.....everyday he would walk in and ask if there were any questions from the homework.....he would get stuck an aweful lot and ask the class for help......his tests look nothing like the homework or any problems he gives you for that matter.......and the last thing.......i never understood why a teacher would spend 20 min showing us the wrong way to do a problem and spend 3 min on the right way..........maybe he knows something i don't.......

Dr. Sze is a journey into the real meaning of calculus. The emphasis of MATH 142 (Calculus II) is techniques of integration. Dr. Sze takes a detailed trip down that road by first introducing integration as the Riemann Sum. Dr. Sze not only introduces the sum, but also has the students perform a few simple integration problems using the sums (something that most professors avoid). Dr. Sze does demonstrate and hold his students accountable for knowing how certain formulas are derived. Dr. Sze is very specific and does introduce certain "tricks" of calculus. These tricks consist of problems that seem hard, but require knowledge of a simple method to solve them. Dr. Sze can communicate well in the language of mathematics. He does choose his words carefully. Lastly, Dr. Sze is a friendly professor. If you see him around school, he might even buy you a soda! If you are the type of student that wants to see the guts of calculus and want a good foundation for future math classes, then Dr. Sze is the professor for you. Otherwise, if you simply want to be shown a formula, then you should probably look elsewhere.

Sze is an excellent teacher. His tests are a little on the tough side but his generous grading makes up for it. He pretty much grades on 3 midterms and a final. He drops the lowest midterm grade. My midterm grades were 67,75,75 and I pulled off an A- in the class because of the curve on each test

Kinda disorganized, makes hard tests. I wouldn't recommend him.

If you are willing to work hard to learn, take this teacher. He is a nice guy and will try hard to answer ANY question you may have. He will even help explain simple things that you may not have understood from previous math classes. His tests are pretty hard, and the final was tough, but I worked hard and got an A. Anyone can work hard and pass this class. But more importantly you come out with a knowledge of what you are doing.

Sze is a little disorganized, and has difficulty in solving problems on the board. But he is really good at explaining concepts. Tests were fair (after the curve). Three midterms (lowest dropped), homework (worth half a test) and a final (worth a test and a half) make up your final grade. The final had 5 questions (out of 12) which were taught in the last two weeks of class. He's very generous with final grades, because I had a C before the final, and got at most a C on the final, yet recieved a B- in the class. Bottom line, average/good teacher, I'd take him again.

Dr. Sze is one of the best math professors I've had here at Poly. He is great at explaining in lectures and is always willing to answer questions before, during, and after class. I think that he sincerely wants students to succeed, and unlike a lot of other professers, he can still understand what it's like for us as students and the problems we run into. He keeps his committment to being there in class - even through the root canal and having a baby, he always tried his best to make it to teach us. Exams are fairly difficult, but like anything else, if you put the time and effort into studying, you'll do fine. I recomment this professor...

The homework load is managable, and he is a nice guy. is fault is that he fails to communicate the material to the students in a way that is easily understandable. If you have no prior knowlage concerning calculus, then it is relitivly certain that you will not do well in his class. he assumes that you know what you are doing, and has an annoying tendency of only explaining things halfway. I DONT RECOMEND HIM.

This guy's class was pretty darn easy. You received credit for your homework and you got to throw out one of your midterms. He would even have fat curves. I don't know what some of these other people were talking about. The homework was almost like the test. I remember some problems were the exact same. If you do your homework you should be fine. If you have trouble he loves it when you come to his office hours. Though he may have difficulty explaining things he really wants to help you learn. It may not be the best to take him if you are going past 142. He actually is sometimes entertaining during lecture. If you take him you will know what I mean.

The first thing you should know about Dr. Sze is that he really, really loves calculus. This much is obvious from the start, and he is actually serious when he tells the class that he envies all of you who are going to be taking Differential Equations for the first time later on. The good news is that even if you don't love calculus, you can make it in his class. Note that I said 'can make it,' not 'will make it.' If you're looking for a cake walk, this is not the professor to take it with. If you're wanting to learn the concepts and material, Sze is your man. The homework load is pretty heavy- usually you get 10-15 problems due two lecture days after the corresponding lecture. Dr. Sze moves pretty quickly, so if you don't keep up the homework can really pile up. You should also do all the assignments so you learn the stuff, and so you gets points for them- they are worth a good (and the easiest) chunk of grade if you keep at it. Exams are tough; very tough. Dr. Sze usually tells you to check out his web page, where he posts old exams from previous quarters. Be advised that your actual test might be significantly more difficult than these old exams. Perhaps he is starting to expect more and more from his students, even though they're new ones every quarter. The good news is the exams are also very nicely curved, so if you know anything at all, you should be able to pass. You won't get an A without a lot of effort, though. The lowest midterm score is halved- but not dropped- so you can afford to have at least one bad exam day. It's in your best interest to keep up with the new material, though, as it will constitute a good third of the final. All in all, Dr. Sze is an excellent professor. He will make you learn, or kill you trying, but he's also a really nice guy to talk to. He also clears up things nicely if you ask him questions, and if you make the grade in his class you will definitely be prepared to move on to 143. This is my second try at 142, and even though I know Sze was harder than the other prof, he was also so much better at explaining the concepts that I pulled it off this time around. Definitely recommendable.

Very good teacher... Curves the tests a lot.. i would recommend him

Dr. Sze is defintely a smart man but he appears to be absent-minded at times. He presents his lecture pretty quickly, but they are a little hard to understand. I try to sit up in the front to stay awake and ask questions. Ask questions otherwise he'll continue moving on!!! Definitely go to his office hours. He is more than willing to help you. There are 3 midterms and a final. Homework occurs twice a week or so. Make sure you do it because those are easy 50 points of the 400 total.

Dr.Sze (Z) at times made me want to become a math major. His uses not only the black board but also a computer math program in his lectures. He'll answer any questions you have on the homework at the beginning of class and then move on to lecture about the next section. At times he cracks the occasional joke, and at the least it creates a smile. He is a short little guy and is very apprachable and helpful in his office hour. However he is difficult and will make you work very hard. I had him for 142 and I studied like crazy with a partner. But in the end I felt like I could integrate anything, and got an A on the final. If you want to learn and test yourself, take him, you might find you have something in you that you never knew was there.

Overall he did a good job with the class. The homework load was very fair and was graded on a credit/no credit system. The grader was very easy for my section, and even if you didnt finish the homework you would get full credit. His tests are a different story, they are insane. What makes the tests so hard are the values that he uses in the problems. The curves on the tests were usually fair, but should have been higher. I had some 12 year old kid in my section that would rock every test. He is able to keep your attention in the class by telling some jokes, or cursing when he messes up a problem. He also seemed to run into stuff quite a bit which was also entertaining. If you dont mind studying a lot for tests I would recommend him.

yea..the man's intelligent...but he's such an a** when it comes to tests...

Dr. Sze is the best math teacher I

Well, professor Sze portrayed the material really well. Other than the usual board and chalk, he also used programs to teach us as well. He assigns homework and the load can get pretty heavy; however, you should put quality time into the homework because some of the problems on the exams are exactly from the textbook. Speaking of exams, his are VERY TOUGH. When I say tough, I mean TOUGH (notice I empahasize on this with caps). He gives three midterms and your lowest exam is halfed. He provides old exams for practice on the web, but they are FAR easier than the one he actually gives you (again, notice the caps). He does provide a descent curve, usually 10-15 points. All in all, I think Sze is a really good professor if your ready to be challenged. I know I was. Oh and by the way...unless your a complete genius in Calculus, don't expect an A without a WHOLE LOTTA WORK!

He was a great teacher...I htought he covered it well and was very good with partial credit... I especially found him entertaining when he would pull the overhead screen down...he is just a smidge short so well you can picture it....any ways I recommend him for any math class...although his tests do require knowing the information really well, the homework will usually take care of that.

I was forced to leave the class because this professor has problems presenting the material to his students. You are pretty much forced to learn all the material yourself from the book. His lectures are not relevent to the tests or to the homework. The homework assignments do not relate back to lecture. I know many people who failed his course, which is why I left it. I had a great teacher for 141 and new my material. That did not help AT ALL. HE IS A HORRIBLE TEACHER. DO NOT TAKE HIM!!

Sze has a good heart and postpones the homeworke assignments frequently. He can spend the entire lecture answering 1 homework question. His tests are not easy and force you to learn the material and made our lowest test score/final score count half the points. Average proffessor

Ok, one of Sze's good traits is that he DOES do problems in class...in their entirety, nonetheless (I realized that professors who do this should be praised for this, because I had a Stat teacher this quarter who wouldn't ever show us how to do a problem all the way through...he'd start just the first step and then just stop and move on with the lecture) So, Sze WILL actually go step by step through a problem. However, by the end of the quarter he omits many of the intermediate steps which I always thought to be helpful...Another pro is that he only grades homework on a completed/not-completed, so if you write something down you get credit. Also, he gives lots of partial credit on tests, which is the only reason I got anywhere in his class. The top three cons are: (1)He tends to have test questions that always use some sort of 'trick' that no other problems use...I couldn't see the usefulness of this...? 2)Sometimes he uses that stupid Maypole program and when he does that he goes too fast and you can't take notes (3)He won't give you formulas straight out - he'll just tell you to derive them like it's sooo easy. Yeah, right. *Study his past midterms/finals if you plan to pass - some of the questions are almost verbatum* So, there's three good things and three bad things...read some other reviews for other Profs and see what you think. I guess I'd recommend him, but I really don't know how much I learned...Calc 143 is not required for my major, so I'll never know if I learned enough or not...

I thought this teacher was great. He presented information well and would go over any questions you had from homework in class. It was also a good teacher to take if you know you are going to need a lot more Math in the future.

Professor Sze is very well oriented in the methodology behind all of the integration techniques, and has an incredibly good knowledge base on all the proofs. Given he has a little bit of a habit of changing constants on problems he is working out, but being off by a constant really doesn't matter much anyways. I thought the class moved along very slowly, maybe because I took it over the summer. The advantage to this is if math is tough for you you can still get a conceptule grasp of the material. His tests are comprehensive. It is a very good idea to take one or two of the practice exams he posts on the net from former years.

Lawrence is a dueche bag! he doesn't present math in an understandable matter. He relies on his computer program, maple, too much. He assumes you know everything and understand it completely so he uses short cuts that he never explains. He makes you feel bad for asking questions in office hours as well as during class. If you do poorly on his bi-weekly quizes he'll embarress you in front of your peers. Overall he's a jerk, stay away from this train wreck of a teacher at all costs!

The bright side of this class is that he collects homework pretty much never. Once maybe. But basically you can kind of work at your own pace...or not at all if that's your thing. Lectures weren't too bad, just goes over lots and lots of problems, from book and tests. Tests were rather easy for a math class, too. Seems to give lots of bonus points on the bonus questions, and is quite generous with partial credit on questions you didn't quite get. Take this guy if you want a laid back class you don't really need to go to.

Dr. Sze kicks ass! He takes some time to get used to at first because he seems really quiet, reserved, and shy, but the truth is, he is hilarious. He knows calculus extremely well and he teaches it thoroughly. He's very consistant in his grading and he writes fair tests. He sincerely wants you to do well in his class and it is reflected in how he helps you on quizzes and offers past exams for practice. He made what could have been a tough course enjoyable and successful. Take him and love it!

I liked professor Sze. He was a little confusing at times, but he really cares about his students, and is very fair. If you do the homework and practice the material, you should be fine

Sze is a great teacher and knows alot about calc 2. you can ask him any question and he will come up with an example off the top of his head to answer your question no problem. His tests do kinda suck because i think there were four of them, but you learn the material well. His lectures can be very confusing if you find yourself zoning off. Pay attention and you will get one of the best understandings of calc2 a teacher at cal poly can provide

Sze is an interesting fellow. He can be very funny, but he has a comedic style of his own. Their is alot of teaching yourself, but most importantly he does not solve the problems that he gets stuck on. Basically... if Maple cant do it, he wont try. Sze lives by Maple. Could be seen as nice or not. It's your opinion. His tests are not that hard, but definitely make sure if you understand the contents of calc 2 or not. I would take him again.

I had Sze for my second time taking 142 and if I had not taken the class before, I would have failed, badly. His lectures are incredibly dry and boring. His idea of teaching is screwing arround on MAPLE(A computer program) for half the lecture and having the computer solve problems instead of working them out. He will never let a class out early even if he runs out of things to say. I recommend avoiding Sze.

Good teacher. He doesn't move on in lecture if anyone has questions. His midterms contain homework problems and other, really hard problems, but there are always sample tests online. He is hilarious. He makes witty jokes that no vary little people get...He feels the need to slide furniture with great force across the room...you'll see....haha

Well, I got a D, that SUCKS!!!! I'm retaking Calc 142 to get a better grade. I NEVER got a D in my life... It was my first quarter and I was slackin off a bit more than I should have so I guess that's one reason. It would have been REALLY nice though if we didn't have to do that stupid ILRN online homework. In my current Calc 142 class we are assigned problems from the book itself which allows me to not be forced to stay on the computer which is a major distraction, heh... It's nice to just sit there and get the book problems done. I HATED ILRN. In my rush to get the problems done, I also didn't learn properly and just used my calculator for finding the derivatives and integrals and when the tests came, I didn't do so well as I thought I would. Overall I fucked up in the class because of the damn online homework!!! I hated it. In my current class we now have homework out of the book and I get it done every day and learn a lot more from it than I ever did from online homework. Internet is great and all, but it'll take a long time before it'll be a good way to get homework done. DON'T TAKE THIS CLASS IF YOU HATE ONLINE HOMEWORK OR GET DISTRACTED EASILY BY THE INTERNET!!!!!!!!! Instead go do your homework in a quiet place like I do now...

Sze is entertaining. He's pretty fun, but not the best teacher. He's good, just not great. Sometimes he can get ahead of himself, but if you stop him, he'll go back. The major thing that you either love or hate is online homework. It's graded based on correctness with an 11:55PM deadline. Sometimes it's a pain, but it keeps you honest. There are a couple of tests which aren't horrible. He only curves his tests up so if the class average is like an 80%, he doesn't change the scores. Overall, he's fair entertaining and he cares about his students. The only bad thing that can be said about him is that he has such an extensive knowledge of mathematics that he can sometimes leave the students in the dust.

HORRIBLE TEACHER!!! DONT TAKE HIM!!! All the homework was online using the ILRN program. This program is so difficult to figure out and it wont accept an answer unless its in the "format" that the program wants. He makes tons of errors during class and expects us to memorize the proofs for everything. I made no attempt to help me when I told him I needed extra help. He knows how to get the answer but he has no idea how to explain the steps to solving the problem so that we can actually comprehend the idea.

Um..well I basically don't recommend this professor if u hate ilrn problems, I sure do. but i ended up taking him again for math 143...urg!!!. Anyways overall he is not that bad b/c he is an easy grader. i bombed all of my midterms but just doing my hw w/ the calc..haha.. and acing the final got me a C+ for the class...

He some how finds a way to make calculus even more boring. The only reason why I got an A was because I'm really good at math. He makes constant mistakes and instead of correcting the mistake he changes the original problem. Online homework program is the most evilest thing you'll ever encounter. It's very very picky on how you insert an answer. There was many a time when I had the correct answer just not the way it wanted and I missed the question. His class is structed well. He does make it very easy to get a good grade in his class with 2 saftey nets. One is that you can only ever get 10% lower then what you get on the final regardless of anything else. He also makes your lowest midterm or homework total grade out of 50 instead of 100. So if on the first midterm you got a 70 out of 100 it would now count as 35 out of 50. I recommend him as a teacher if you are compendent enough to teach yourself and be able to recognize all the errors and have patience with the homework. Have fun.

This man is a really terrible teacher. He did not explain concepts clearly, and was not helpful during office hours. I asked him several times to give the class a syllabus, but he never did, which made it hard to know when test and furloughs were approaching. The class average for our first test was very low, but he did not curve, and he even admitted to having a high fail rate each quarter. The test problems were poorly written, and did not test your knowledge, they just tested how well you could work your way out of a really convoluted problem. I studied several hours a night for this class and attended a math workshop four hours a week, and I still got a C. I would definitely recommend finding a different teacher.

Professor Sze is an overall good professor, but make sure you ask him questions if you do not understand something because he moves through material very quickly. He is an odd man, and sometimes does not annunciate his words very well; but if you pay attention you should get a good grade in his class. There is a 2 question open note quiz every friday, so make sure you take good notes. The midterm was hard and the test average was a D+

Professor Sze is an above average professor who is very knowledgable but often times has difficulties remembering things and has a serious lack of organization. Can answer questions very well and cares about his student's success.

Class time is very helpful, examples tend to show up on quizzes. He only takes the 5 highest of the quizzes and is very helpful during office hours, showing he absolutely wants his students to succeed. Beware: The final is significantly harder than the 2 midterms. Both midterms seemed pretty simple to me. Questions seen in homework were seen again on the midterms. The final does not reuse any questions. Do the homework, study EVERYTHING for the final.

I liked prof. Sze. He was able to present the course material well and would help to clarify any questions you had on the homework (basically that was what we did in class). He is also a really nice and funny guy! PLEASE DO THE HOMEWORK his quizzes are open note and homework is never due so it's tempting to not do it at all but then when the midterm comes around you may get lost. If I had done the home work more often I probably would have gotten an A. Hes a great teacher and I would definitely recommend his class.

Dr. Sze is a good teacher. He is very thorough and straightforward when it comes to explaining concepts but over half of the class was review for me, so it may be different for other students. He's pretty funny sometimes, although he doesn't try to be. He is very calm and that sometimes made me want to fall asleep. He doesn't collect homework, has two midterms, and seven quizzes. His tests and quizzes weren't too difficult, you just have to know your stuff. Anyway, he's a good teacher, not great, so I wouldn't worry about taking him.

Professor Sze is the bomb. he was a great prof and always helped you out. made plenty of time for asking homework questions and did a great job. He is really unintentionally funny too. Really intelligent dude. knows his stuff.

Sze is an adorable man. He's about 5'3" and looks like just woke up from a nap. He is seriously just so cute, and really funny without realizing it. He sometimes would stop in the middle of a problem, bang his head against the whiteboard, and moan that he got lost. He actually was a pretty good teacher too. He gave physical, real-world examples of concepts, which helped me. I took this class during a quarter when I simply didn't have the time to devote to learning it, so I didn't get a good grade. He assigns homework but doesn't collect it -- do it anyway. It helps a lot, and many of the test/quiz questions are taken straight from it. He will work through problems that you don't understand in class, so come prepared. Overall, really good professor.

Professor Lawerence is a really nice guy, but his ability as a professor was very disappointing to me. First off, the quizzes mean almost nothing to your overall grade, which is weird considering you get a quiz every week. The majority of your grade depends on the final, which leaves almost no room for error. When talking to other students, many of the other professors included a graded homework component to their overall grade, which I find to be very helpful. The thing that really annoys me was I got a high average on my quizzes and I still failed the class. His lectures also did not prepare me for any of the exams, the math problems he did in class were very doable, but the questions on the exams were all very difficult to do. Professor Lawerence even said after one exam that the problems he gave did not really vary in difficulty and that they were all pretty hard. I really wish Professor Lawerence could understand that when the majority of the class are getting D's and F's on exams, he might need to adjust his teaching style. The only positive thing about this class is that the quizzes are open notes. If you have the option to choose a professor for MATH 142 I suggest you choose anyone but Professor Lawerence.

Lawrence Sze knows what he is talking about, but has no idea how to present it in a usable format. He also makes countless algebraic mistakes in class, such as FOILing incorrectly, forgetting to apply the chain rule, dropping a negative, etc. You need to be on your toes to catch his mistakes and point them out because he is oblivious and will carry out the rest of the problem with incorrect numbers if you don't make him aware of his mistake. When he finishes a problem, he often ends with, "This is the answer....I hope. I'm pretty sure I did everything right, but you should go and double check it on your own time." Naturally, this doesn't fill me with much confidence and seriously hurts my impression of his credibility. If you take his class, expect to rely heavily on your peers, form study groups, and be prepared to teach yourself the material out of the book. He is manageable, but only if you work double time to do the things that he should be doing anyway.

if you have another option for a teacher, take them. Class with this teacher was so shitty. he deliberately makes the midterm and final soooooooooooooooo much harder than the hw and quizzes. nice guy though, just a dick when it comes to midterms and final

Awful class. Sze would spend 35 minutes reviewing the homework from the last night, then 15 minutes on that days lesson where he would copy down 3 or 4 problems onto the board with little explanation. The next day no one knew how to do the homework, so he spent 35 minutes discussing the homework and neglecting the lesson. On his mid-term review sheets, half of the questions were unanswerable. Even the upper-classman led support section leaders wouldn't be able to figure out the review sheet. It's not worth taking this class with Lawrence Sze.

His quizzes usually consist of homework problems so do your homework! He does have a bit of an accent, but I find that I can still understand it. Midterms are definitely doable and the final as well. Just do the homework and study the quizzes/homework/midterms then you should be fine. I ended up with a C+ not doing too well in the 2 midterms, but quite well in the final.

Sze has a good sense of humor and tells you what is likely to be on each of your tests. He plays Maplestory and talks about elephant poop. He's a fun guy and a pretty good teacher.

Prof. Sze's class is extremely hard, I failed it becuase I figured the proffesor would logicaly figure out some of the things I did. Here are a few tips so you will do better than me, don't worry about going to class, the homework is on the website, and he doesn't know what hes lecturing about till he gets to class anyway. The class is basically him figuring out that he can't do the homework. When he says show all work he means it, if you dont include the fact that you breathe, and which nuerons are firing, then you lose credit. I knew the grader and was informed that he was told to grade extremely hard. If you figure that some things in life go without saying, than you will fail this class, dont take it please.

Prof. Sze is a little confusing but I learned a lot in his class. you have to be willing to go to his office hours to fully understand all material. i also recommend taking a math workshop if one is available. he doesnt assign an unreasonable amount of homework, but his tests are hard. on the other hand he usually curves a lot. i would take Sze again if i had the chance.

I took Sze over the summer after taking 7 weeks of Van Lingen and withdrawing. Sze didn't even come close to covering the same amount of material, and didn't even really teach much of it. He made many mistakes and seemed to be aloof the whole class time. He also uses MAPLE. In my opinion maple doesn't help learning because it's all done on the computer. We should be taught how to work it out on paper. Sze didn't know a lot of answers and had to waste 15 minutes playing with the functions in MAPLE. When he didn't figure it out, he would just say "Oh well, maybe you can figure it out later." I feel like he was a waste of time and I urge you to stay away from him.

I thought he was pretty good, but I should probably let you know I had already seen all the material this class had to present in Calculus BC before I even came to Cal Poly. Some people complained that he taught from the computer too much, but I thought it was kind of cool. He tends to curve tests so at least half the class would pass, and is generally helpful / actually happy to help if anyone has problems.

hilarious man. he is great , and really really smart... i would say one of my fav math teachers so far.

This was my second quarter taking Sze, and despite my grade, I still love him! He definitely keeps class amusing just because he is so crazy. When we were studying 3 dimensional vectors, he brought in tape and tried to demonstrate on the walls how vectors work, which was amusing because he was so short he had to get a taller student to help him out. My only comment about Calc 143 itself is that series are EVIL! The rest of the class is fairly easy and Sze explains it well, but series are just killer. Homework isn't collected in this class, but do it because he puts a lot of homework problems on the test. Sze is a very fair grader, you have three midterms, and he drops half of the lowest one, and you have 6 quizzes, one of which is dropped. Also, he has "safety nets," where your final grade cannot be below 10% of the average of your midterms, and it can't be below 10% of your grade on the final. Basically, if you do great on your midterms, the final is nothing to worry about. If you do terrible the entire quarter, study like hell for the final because you still have a chance to pass the class.

Sze was a great teacher. By far the best Calculus teacher i had at Cal pOly. His lectures are almost pointless so you don't have to go to often. If you do the homework/practice problems and feel like you understand them you'll ace the midterms. he also lets you acess old tests that are alomst identical to the tests you get. I got over 100% on every test because he curves so much. Awesome teacher! Take him!

Sze is an idiot. Screw you Sze.

This instructor is horrible. He keeps using maple during class and he doesn't even know how to use it perfectly. We have to use ILRN and that thing is ridiculous. Do not take this professor unless want to be miserable. Oh and he thinks he's funny when he's not.

Do not take this guy! I've always gotten A+ in my math courses and now I get a B! This is unheard of! He does not teach at all! So unless you want to look at a projector all day dont take him!

Sze is an OK professor. Don't take him if you have previously had trouble in calculus, or don't remember much from previous classes. He presents the material mostly on the computer, and makes a lot of small mistakes during class. One thing I will say for him, is that if you get to know him, he will take care of you in the class.

This is guy cant teach at all. But its easy to get a good grade in his class. Do the homework, which is online, and you will be fine. I didnt do any of the homework and still got a B, almost A. He curves almost a full letter grade for his tests, homework is curved, final and whole class is curved. The material isnt that hard to learn by yourself so its not bad. And at the end of the quarter he'll drop your lowest grade... which helps a lot! So if you can teach yourself i recomend taking him.

Sze is the best math teacher that I have had at Cal Poly. He really presents the material very clearly, and as long as you do the homework, study the examples that he gives in class, and ask questions then you will do fine. He is also the funniest teacher I have had yet. He has a very odd sense of humor, but if you get it than it will make the class a whole lot more fun.

Rambles too much during class, doesn't seem prepared, and wastes way too much time on resolving homework problems in class. But, if it wasn't for the ridiculously easy online homework and his Safety Net system, I wouldn't have been able to eke out a C in the class. Don't take this teacher unless he's the better of remaining choices.

you either like mr. sze or hate him. i found him amusing and i know that i laughed everyday i was in his class (sometimes with him, sometimes at him). he's a nice guy who grades fairly in my opinion. i got an a on one midterm and c's on the other 2 mid terms and also on the final but i still got a b in the class. all of his homework is turned in via the online website cengage. this has it's advantages and disadvantages. it's nice because you can ask him questions in class about the homework that is due that day. about half the questions are multiple choice so if you get it wrong, just change your answer until you get it right. it will tell you immediately if you got the question correct or incorrect. disadvantages: i paid a bunch of money for a new calculus book but i used it maybe once (for studying. get a used book) if you don't know what you did wrong, there's no way the computer will help you figure it out. sze is pretty nice about computer malfunctions too. one night pcv didn't have internet (or it was sketchy or something) so sze pushed back the homework for everyone. i might try another teacher with a higher rating in future courses but if i had to take sze again, i would not be upset. he's a good guy and there are definitely a lot worse teachers out there.

This guy is horrible. He brings his daughters in to get him sympathy points and to make sure the class didn't kill him. This guy sucks. Calc 3 is a hard class and he makes it even more difficult. We were expected to do things the honors class was not, and he not only expected us to do them, he expected us to teach ourselves how to do them, he is horrible. I did all the homework, went to every class, studied for all the tests and barely scraped by with a B. His homework is online and it SUCKS, he would assign an assignment due friday night and not teach us how to do it until Friday afternoon, he is horrible. AVOID AT ALL COSTS!!!

Wow, i was expecting this guy to be pretty bad with his low poly rating, but he's extremely good! Very lenient in grading test and extremely comfortable to talk with, whether it be a question you had on his lecture or a mistake he made on grading your test/quiz. Always open to your ideas and will politely correct you if you're wrong when you rose your hand to answer his questions in lecture. The only bad thing I'd give to this professor is that he starts lecturing 5 minutes early, so if you're the late type of guy who gets to class 5 minutes late, you'd better shape up. His quizzes and tests are based on homework problems and lecture problems, sometimes just numbers are changed, no real tricky ones (there are tricky/challenging ones, but they're bonus Qs on tests/quizzes). Pretty funny in lecture too, not intimidating at all. If I could, I would take him again :).

I don't know why Professor Sze has such a low rating! First of all he is unintentionally hilarious, I found myself cracking up every class for one reason or another. Second, he is very fair. Pretty much each test is identical to homework problems or problems he did in class. I think his system has changed a lot since many of the reviews here, we never turned in our homework nor did we have online stuff. Yes, sometimes he used a program to visualize a problem but that was helpful. He is not the best professor I have had in lectures, but if you like to go to office hours he will explain everything clearly and you will do fine on the tests and quizzes. All of our quizzes were open note, and literally identical to homework problems. On the final there were a bunch of formulas and we persuaded him to allow us a note card!

I don't know how Lawrence got such a bad wrap. Maybe it's just because Calc 3 is a difficult course overall. If you go to the lectures, pay attention, take good notes, and study for the midterms you'll be just fine. I didn't do a single homework assignment all quarter and I still got a C. I could've easily had a B too had I not made some stupid mistakes on my exams. Lawrence is unintentionally funny and one of the nicest professors I've had so far. He really wants you to understand the material and he presents it in a way that's easy to follow.

So this is the honest truth. If you get this guy dont trip to much as a person he is a super chill dude but as a teacher the guy is really good at math just isnt the greatest at teaching. He wings a majority of the lectures so he doesnt go off of notes so he tends to make a lot of errors and confuse himself. his mid terms and finals kinda suck but they arent that bad of you study on your own and he had a FAT curve which will save your butt. So i recommend him if you are a good self studier but other than that if you get him its not the end of the world just know that you are going to have to do a lot of work outside of class to get the grade you want.

I really did not like Sze's class. Number one he is extremely boring and number two he cannot teach. He always comes to class unprepared and often stares at the bored for a long time trying to remember formulas and thereoms. I also found him offensive and somewhat ignorant. He made a comment one class that what we were learning was so easy that even a farm boy could do it. I doubt he meant to offend anyone with this comment, but it just showed him to be thoughtless and inconsiderate.

He is really awesome and helpful, but he never said his last name. Does anyone know how to pronounce his last name?

he's a pretty funny dude. if you need a lot of extra help in math he may not be for you but i thought he taught the material really well and graded very fairly

Dr. Sze was fine I guess. He seems to be pretty good at teaching the material for this class. He's just pretty prone to making mistakes in the examples, and you have to keep an eye out for that. However, his midterms and finals are all really hard. At least with the exams he gave us, he would always seem to choose an obscure use of a concept and pick numbers that didn't work out very well. Other than that, I'd say Dr. Sze was a pretty good Poly professor.

Dr. Sze is the man. Super chill dude, makes funny but cringey jokes. He's damn good at teaching too, answers any and every question, and is super passionate about math. He's not a harsh grader either.

I LOVE LAWRENCE SZE!!! This man GENUINELY CARED about each of his students. He never made anyone feel stupid or dumb for asking questions, and he encouraged everyone to ask as much as possible. Everyone always says calc 3 is the hardest calc, but he honestly made it the easiest for everyone. He conveys the material very well and keeps the the class lively and fun. He is always cracking jokes and engaging with students. His tests and quizzes are very fair. Please don't let the other negative views influence you, he's honestly one of the best professors i have had here.

I thought Sze taught everything slowly and made it easy to understand (granted I took Calc BC in high school and this was mostly review for me) Homework is worth 0% of your grade, but put in the work and you will do well. Weekly friday quizzes are open/note and are worth 12.5%. 2 Midterms are worth 25% each. The Final is 37.5%.

Professor was nice and all but kinda just taught out of the book. At least the students could understand what he was doing. Oh well I had him at 8:00 so I prob skipped like half of the course but still managed to pass Also Chapter 13 is gonna kick your ass, if you're taking the class in the future.

I think Lawrence was an entertaining teacher who helped make 8 am class more lively with his occasional jokes, but the class is still fairly boring. Calc 3 is the hardest Calc of 1-4 and the major reason I did well in his class was because I was exposed to it in high school. He can teach fairly well at times, but at others it is confusing and definitely boring. He can help you a lot if you ask him though, which is nice. If you are someone who has done Calc 3 series and stuff before, this class should be fine, albeit a little bit of trudge. He assigns homework but doesn't collect or grade it, and he has a safety net policy to give you no less than 10% your final's grade in his class. He has weekly quizzes and two decent midterms, but the final was easy. I liked him.

The midterms are graded hard but there is usually a curve. There is quite a bit of homework to do. Sometimes there is 4 to 5 assignments a week. He does easier problems in class and then puts really hard ones on the midterms/final. He takes easy problems in class. He does not do a good job explain concepts and explaining them clearly. He spends to much time on doing peoples homework who did not finish it before class and then we get behind in lecture and have to skip examples and or rush through things really fast. I would not suggest him as a teacher definitely for lower level classes. I don't know my final grade yet as finals are not graded yet.

Ok, not good at presenting material. Just puts stuff of the board and barely goes over it. Some homework problems we dont even go over in class and exams suck. The only good thing that helps and probably why i passed was because of the huge curves he puts on the exams (including final). Another couple of bad things about him: 1) NEVER emails back and 2) Sometimes hes not in his office during times he says he will be. Overall, try to get a different teacher.

barely teaches you anything, and the test questions are ridiculous he even said during one of them that he made it to hard for us to do.

Well if you are looking to teach yourself calculus, then Dr. Sze is the way to go, but honestly I needed a professor who broke down concepts and could connect theorems with relative examples. he is very unprepared, would show up to class sometimes 15 minutes after the ten, and constantly rushed through lecture. He is lazy and assigns homework problems online, so it is difficult to actually learn the material at all. His tests and quizzes are Super random; they\'re horrible, he literally tries to trick you and come on we\'re not math majors in this class. I would suggest buying the cheapest textbook because you probably won\'t be using it very much anyway except to study (which I highly reccommend!) as he does not assign any problems from the book. professor sze is a smart guy but a terrible teacher. Easily my Worst teacher at poly. This is a long review, but he should be completely avoided as a teacher..don\'t take him unless you already know calculus. but honestly, he still shouldn\'t even be considered when choosing a professor, wait until the next quarter to take the same math class with a professor who actually cares about his/her students.

He really knows the material, just doesn\'t really know how to present it. I got an A because I took calculus in high school so I knew the material before I got into the class, if you don\'t know it you will struggle ALOT! The homework is all online so save yourself some money and don\'t buy the book, I didnt need it once, you can learn all the concepts on the videos that are on the homework. If you have had calculus before, take him! Its an easy class, if you havent taken him don\'t take him because he doesnt explain concepts at all.

DONT TAKE HIM! if you do, I promise you\'ll regret it, unless you\'ve already taken calculus before because he teaches it like everyone already knows calc. he doesn\'t explain anything and he doesn\'t seem to care about his students. His tests are super hard and tricky. he gives a lot of homework, which is online, which sucks. if you\'re not math minded wait for a professor who can explain concepts well since sze skips out on the concept factor.

He sometimes gets lost in his math problems but always finds his way out. He curves his tests and his notes are easily accessible from the internet. he is really good about answering any questions so much that i never had to go to his office.

He is a horrible teacher, avoid at all costs. His lectures aren't even his own, he gets them from the guy that writes the text. He spends half the lecture proving unnecessary theorems. 2 midterms and weekly hw, the midterms include a proof (although this class is required for methods of proof, ridiculous!) and are fairly straightforward, one midterm was multiple choice so it was impossible to get partial credit. He is a horrible teacher and if you can avoid him at all, do so.

Prof. Sze takes some getting used to, his accent and use of powerpoint instead of the white board are very different from many classes. BUT once you get used to his style you find one of the best math prof. at poly. He is genuinely wanting to help you do great in his class. Homework is due once a week and the rest of your grade is midterms anf the final

Lawrence Sze is da man, he is an awesome teacher and he is willing to take the time out to help you learn. Get him for sure.

This class is really easy if you've had any pre-calc in high school. The teacher gives pretty easy tests and as long as you understand the material you'll be more than fine. He's really lenient on grading. Wants you to get a good grade. Some people were confused by his teaching but I completely understood it. I never had to go to his office for help or anything. If you are reasonable at math and have some experience with calculus definitely take this teacher.

This teacher is pretty good. He wasn't too hard and always let us get away with stuff. The tests were really easy and the homework was easy too. Take this professor if you have to take this class. He is very helpfull too and if you need any help just go to his office hours.

i did not learn much from his lectures, if anything at all. the tests are fair and he curves good

sze was pretty good...he's a nice guy...i didn't get anything out of his lectures...i had to go home and teach myself all the concepts...but his tests arent horrible and theres always a fat curve that raises ur grade...he give three midterms, which is kind of annoying...and random quizzes about once a week that are way easy...i would take him again

Sze was a great professor. Lectures were not very entertaing nor helpful so I recommend going to office hours. The curves on the tests are awesome and helped me out a lot. He's very understanding and accomodating as well.

Sze cares about his students. He does want you to do well and his tests are reasonable, in addition to having a curve. He also says some funny stuff, although some times it might not be intentional (so to solve this booger, you etc. etc.) I did not learn that much from his lectures. He has notes that he makes on Maple and puts them on an overhead, which was sometimes difficult to read. You can print the notes out, but they usually just have pictures, are different from the overhead notes, and aren't very helpful. I usually ended up looking at the book to learn most of the material. Also, he could usually only solve one or two homework problems everyday. The issue was he would explain every single aspect of a problem. Some students like him explaining the algebra of a problem, but I didn't because it took far too long to go over a problem. If he were to just explain the main aspects of solving a problem, the relevant new stuff, he would get through many more problems. If you do all of the homework and read the textbook, you will do fine. If you are a math major, or want to really really have a great understanding of the material, I would recommend taking someone else.

I would reccomend taking Sze. Although his lectures are sometimes dull, because of his use of powerpoint, he is a good lecturer. He teaches the entire class on powerpoint and integrates some sample problems into it via the white board. He drops your lowest MT and quize score so the grading scheme, after that, is like this: MT(3,one drop)=200pts Quizes=50pts Final=150pts All out of 400pts. On top of dropping the low scores he curves all tests...fat curve...the only reason I didn't get an A is because I didn't study enough for the final. Advice: DO ALL OF HIS SAMPLE PROBLEMS!!! You will have to study outside of class alot, but still, he is better than alot of other math professors.

Sze set it up so that before the final we had 3 "safety nets" for our grade. Can't get 10% less then your final or combined score before the final, your lowest test could be half value, and he gave extra credit with hw. All the hw is worth the same as a midterm which is about 25% and his tests are really reasonable. The tests are based completely off the hw, other then changing the numbers sometime, and he even puts multiple choice that if you show work you can get partial credit. What more can ask for from a test. Do your hw ahead of time and study a bit for the 2 midterms and you can know that you'll get a solid grade even before the final which is very comforting. He's not the best at explaining things the first time through but I didn't struggle at all and after calc 3 it was really nice to have this class.

Don't take Sze, especially if you want to learn the material at all. He lectures with powerpoints that are just a whole bunch of meaningless text - so you will never write down anything unless he does an example. The homework is online - both multiple choice and write-in questions. Do the multiple choice questions with a friend cause you each get 4 guesses out of 5 choices. The midterms are pretty straight forward and he always curved by adding 10 points to your grade which was nice. The final was crazy hard... and I thought I absolutely failed it. But somehow with his curving methods, I ended up with an A. Overall, you will be bored, you will not learn, and take someone else if you can.

Sze is not the best professor ever, but he is not the worst either. Sze's lectures are indeed boring, and often times i found my self on my phone not paying attention. He does not try to keep the class involved and he just keeps talking until the class is over. Sze however is very helpful if you need him. He is willing to solve homework problems and answer questions if you need help. Sze is a pretty awesome test grader as he gives out so much partial credit that it could make a test you think you failed into a C, as long as you wrote something down. Sze has some confidence issues in himself and he also seems to always mess up when he lectures. So my advice is that sze is boring and clumsy but he does try to make you pass his class.

If you ever get nervous with math, this is the professor to take. His office hours are SO helpful. He has no problem spending a whole class period on homework questions, which is perfect because his midterms are homework questions. At the end of the quarter, if you messed up on homework or midterms it does not matter as long as you get a good grade on the final. Whatever your grade on the final is, your grade in the class will not be less then 10% of that grade.

Sze is actually a really good teacher, I think he should have higher ratings. The quizzes (once a week) are really easy and he grades them really nicely so almost everyone had a good quiz average. He also drops the two lowest quiz grades so if you miss one you're still fine. He gives two midterms that are pretty tough, but there was a pretty big curve and a lot of people ended up with As. His lectures are sometimes boring, but he's really funny so its not too hard to pay attention. The quizzes and tests are sometimes the examples he does in class the day before so just pay attention and you'll pass.

CONS: Most unorganized professor i've met yet. Doesn't explain the material all that well. Does examples but has no organization to lecture. He wings his lectures. Doesn't prepare notes. First thing he says to us first day of class is "Im a little absent minded and you'll have to help me from time to time" I knew this was not the professor for me. He also lost my midterm for four days the 9th week of the quarter. Almost had to retake it. PROS: He's reasonable. Very nice. Curves the midterms sometimes. Drops two lowest quizzes. Has safety net clause which states you can't get a grade in the class that's lower than 10% of your final score. If i got an B- on the final, the lowest i could get in the class would be a C- I don't recommend this professor but it's okay if you get him

I went into this class very nervous about Sze, but it soon became a 9:00am that I looked forward to every morning. Sze isn't the greatest at presenting information clearly during lectures, and sometimes he can get lost in a problem, but he always finds his way out. He is unintentionally hilarious, and I probably laughed out loud once in every lecture because of it. He doesn't collect homework and assigns a really reasonable amount that all have answers in the book. His quizzes are literally homework problems and the midterms and final are basically homework problems with a different number here and there. He is extremely helpful in office hours and is determined to help everyone understand concepts. He'll learn your name and your grade will benefit if you let him know you in office hours. I would definitely take him again.

First off, Sze is an average teacher. His lectures are all over the place and the notes you get out of it are not very good, but if you ask him to go over certain questions he knows his stuff. Also, do the optional homework, he chooses those problems for a reason. You have about 7 quizzes, he uses the top five, and when you take the quizzes they are open notes, so it takes a lot of stress off it. The tests can be pretty tough, but if the average is below an eighty, he will curve to an eighty. There for as long as you maintain a grade on tests which every one else has, and get A's on the quizzes, a B is easy to get. On a side note, the guy is really funny, he goes off on the strangest tangents and messes around up front.

I took him for calc IV and im still having problems because of how awfully he taught us. I'm in vector analysis now and basic calc IV is coming back to haunt me now.

Sze was a decent professor for 241. Yes, he makes a lot of mistakes when doing in-class examples, but someone usually catches them and they aren't really a big deal. He's kind of funny if you appreciate off-beat, somewhat self-deprecating humor. If you do the homework and pay attention to lecture, you'll do fine overall. Our class had 2 midterms and a final (no quizzes, etc.), but the midterms were basically homework problems and Sze will round/curve enough so you'll be okay. The final was a bit harder because of a heavy emphasis on stuff covered during the first few weeks of class, but it was not impossible. It's also pretty hard to fail this class because of the safety net clause mentioned in previous reviews.

Funniest professor I've had at cal poly! I loved his random jokes here and there, it made the class super entertaining. As a professor he is ok. The way he taught was a bit unorganized. He would write on one side of the board and do an example 30 ft away. However he was a very easy grader and he curved hard. Easy A in my opinion, but I didn't feel like I got too much out of it.

Sze is not the best professor not going to lie. He doesn't really teach us how to do the problems and you spend most of your time going over homework problems only if people have questions. I was in the math workshop for this class and that is the only reason I got an A in the class because my workshop leader was amazing and would reteach the lessons with so much more clarity and ease and that is the reason I found this class easy. Sze will teach you derivations and will teach half of the process and just leave the other half up in the air for you to go an figure out which you won't know until you get to the homework, so I would recommend joining a workshop or a study session or something because otherwise you will have to do some self-teaching. That being said, Sze was hands down the most hilarious and entertaining professor I ever had. Just his personality was so goofy and adorable and he is so nice and it was a really comfortable and relaxed environment. He is a super fair tester and grader and sticks to what he says. The homework in his class is optional and you never have to turn it in, so you technically don't have to do it, but DO IT because it's good practice and the homework is a perfect indicator of the type of problems he puts on the quizzes and midterms. His quizzes are really easy too because they're all open note and he drops the two lowest quiz scores. His midterms were all fair and doable, again same format as the homework and I would do some of the harder textbook problems as good practice. His final was as expected, hard but still doable and his practice final online was a really good indication of the type of problems. Sze gives you a lot of tools to help you do well, so utilize them and you'll be fine. My only "warning" is that you will have to do self teaching so find a way to make that easy for yourself whether it's through a workshop (I RECOMMEND), study group, study session, or just reading the textbook.

You have to teach yourself the entire class. He has you do the homework, come to class with specific questions you were stuck on, and he works them out in class. Never does he teach the material before you do the homework. Homework is not required so easy to fall behind. Tests and quizzes were easy and straightforward. Difficult final. Final grade: B

He doesn't teach you anything so you will have to teach yourself out of the textbook. His tests are really easy though, so if you need to know this class later then you're screwed, but if you don't need this as a prereq for any classes then I highly recommend him.

Sze gets the job done. He's out of the textbook, nothing more. He loses his train of thought very easily, and student help to find mistakes is common. His sense of humor can make the class more enjoyable. Overall, nothing bad to say about him. His grading policy can be nice as someone with a B+ can be given an A- merely because many other people got a similar grade to you.

I have very mixed feelings about Sze. On one hand, he is iconic. His dry sense of humor and general demeanor is entertaining. He is a very, very generous grader. I felt as though I didn't deserve the grades I got because I didn't understand the material and just got a lot of partial credit. But I'm not complaining about that. It was a nice change-- seems like most professors err on the side of being way to harsh. Anyways, I didn't learn anything from his lectures to be honest. He is straight from the textbook... which is good because you know exactly which sections you need to know. I would highly recommend a study session, workshop, or just some math youtube vids to get you through this class because you likely will have to teach yourself a lot. I don't feel as though I gained a thorough understanding of the course... and we also didn't get through everything that other classes did. So it is really a choice: easy grading or good understanding. I would pick good understanding, so I would not take Sze again. However, if you do have to take him it really isn't the worse. He is helpful when you ask him questions and you'll be able to make it through.

Sze is a great professor with a great sense of humor. He gives VERY GENEROUS PARTIAL CREDIT, he only teaches you what you need to know for the final, and makes it easy to suceed. Take him.

First off, I\'d like to say that Sze is a pretty chill guy. He doesn\'t waste our time going over proofs, just gets to the differential equations, matrices, and eigenvectors engineers need to know. So I\'d recommend him if you are in that situation. Homework is typically assigned for every section covered in the book, and collected about a week later. The test questions generally require knowing the process and steps, but not too much reasoning is necessary. In my experience, every test usually had one poorly worded or unsolvable question (due to the no calculator requirement set by the department), but the curve took care of that. One thing to note, if you want anything clarified or a homework problem solved, ask before he starts the new lecture or else he will assume everyone is good up to that point. Overall though, a very decent instructor.

So boring. Seriously couldn't stay awake in class. Hardly ever went to class. Super test grader tho. The first MT I didn't finish like 3 problems and somehow still got a 72 and he curved it 8 points. So I ended up getting a 80. Linear was not fun for me. I don't know what it is still. honestly just try to avoid him. save yourself the headache.

Sze is alright in my book. His lecture is very boring, he talks straight out of the book and doesn't do much to make the information relate-able since the book doesn't give real world examples Sze didn't either. He doesn't give study guides but his tests are pretty easy on the average. There are frequently typos in the tests though so make sure those don't trip you up. He collects several homeworks and doesn't do much in the way of doing homework problems either. I found most of my learning was done on Google and reading the book but I would not recommend skipping class if you can. Sze is very chill and relaxed about his policies and he has a policy for the final that your final grade won't be any lower than 10% of your final test grade.

He's a great guy with an awesome sense of humor but has some issues teaching linear. But hey I passed and looking back I know far less about this class than i should have for passing. One on one he's helpful if you ask the right questions and help him identify your issues. He's good for making boring lectures funny and he's just a funny dude in general, put in the time and you'll do okay.

Sze (pronounced 'Zee') teaches the course material in a manner that is most applicable to the future studies of people in the class; in my class, most people were engineers of some sort, so we learned the 'engineering way' of doing things whenever possible. Lectures were not terrifically interesting, but that's just how Linear I is (there are no words to describe just how stupid Math 244 is). He did not collect homework, and his weekly quizzes were open-notes; his midterms were trickier than most math exams I've ever had, so you really need to BE ABLE TO APPLY THE CONCEPTS TO ANY PROBLEM if you want to do well. His grading policy included a 'safety net' clause, where the lowest grade you can get for the entire class is {[percentage on final exam]–10}; however, I found this clause only helps if you perform terribly on everything but the final. He has a tendency to make small errors in class time (e.g., transferring numbers between different matrices), and uses different notations for concepts as compared with what the textbook uses (which, I feel, was not written terribly well itself). Considering this is Linear I, I wouldn't be surprised if Sze was as uninterested in teaching this course's material as the class was in learning it. He can also drop some peculiar one-liners seemingly out of nowhere. TL;DR If you want to learn linear analysis, take any professor; but if you're looking for a more lively professor, you'll be better off with someone else.

Sze's lecture is for the most part useless. Once in a while it will help you on a tricky subject, but I learned pretty much everything by doing the homework. The class itself is pretty easy. He only counts the top 5 quiz scores and there's one pretty much every Friday. The rest of the grade is based on the two midterms and final. He does put some tricky problems on the midterms, but they generally aren't too hard. Plus he gives a nice curve, in my class he gave 8 points for the first midterms and 10 on the second. Overall not too bad of a class. It's pretty easy to get an A if you do the homework.

Professor Sze has a different lecture style than most math instructors, as he tends to utilize computational tools such as Maple within his lectures. Some students will find this problematic, as the lecture time is less highly structured than most math classes. In Combinatorics, the use of computer software helps to solve problems, focusing on the concepts instead of simply getting bogged down in the techniques. Perhaps this method of teaching would be less effective in a Calculus course, but it seemed to work rather well in a class focused on very computationally intensive problems. But this focus has pitfalls: If you don't make an explicit effort to pay attention carefully in the class, and fail to do a large (though not excessive) number of practice problems, you will find yourself quickly lost. Again, Sze didn't collect homework so student modivation was the deciding factor in gaining a knowledge of the material. He really makes an effort to help each student, and I found that the most useful time spent was in office hours, rather than the lecture per se. Sze makes a real effort to connect with each student, and in a few weeks knows everyone on a first name basis. If you make an effort, you be rewarded with a realistic grade. The exams are challenging, but not unrealistic for well-prepared students. In addition, Sze curves rather liberally, and there were numerous opportunities for extra credit.

Sorry this teacher is really not that good. I was very disapointed with him. I plan on avoiding him in the future and you should too. I think maybe he is better at teaching lower division courses judging from the rest of your comments

Sze was great for Theory of Numbers. All of the material was covered at a sufficient pace to not drag on or go too fast. The homework is fair, and he is very willing to go over the problems. Tests are often variations of homework problems and nothing too unexpected should be on them.

It is only week 3 and already Sze has proven himself to be the least organized professor I have had in 5 years at Cal Poly. We are online this quarter due to Covid, so I get that this is a struggle for everyone. However, my other professors have been able to adequately cope with the challenging times and he has not. He constantly comes to zoom lectures unprepared, makes up definitions and then has to go back 20 minutes later and change the definition he made up because we ran into a problem where the definition he made up doesnt work. Thats not related to covid, thats just him being lazy.

481 is not an easy class, but i definitely felt like Sze made it more difficult than it needed to be. he seemed to pull things out from all sorts of courses that were not prerequisites for the class and seemed to have issues explaining things clearly. i regularly sat in back and laughed at his antics while reading something to get me thru the class. oh and he taught himself abstract algebra, how hardcore is that. what he has going for him is that he will pass you with a C- as long as you give a real effort in the class because i still do not understand how i passed without barely getting more than 50% on each MT and the final. a similar result came last quarter in 336 so if you really want a good grade get ready to do work on your own, but if you just need to pass, he is the man to take because he is so generous with his curves.