Robertson, James  

He is a chill teacher who is unique but still chill. There are no due dates really its pretty interesting and he lets you turn in all homework for full credit as long as it is before the Final. Overall it is a great class to take to fill math credits

Robertson did a good job teaching. He presented the material well. There are quizes on the homework every tuesday and friday. They arent too bad, if you do the homework you will be okay. I enjoyed his class. He was a very straight forward teacher who would help you whenever you need it. Definately take him for calc 141. He will teach you well!

He was so cool. He is an extremely nice person, and makes getting a good grade the class very easy, with out sacrificeing the quality of learning. Would definitly take him again.

Robertson is a great teacher. If you are an engineer, take him. He explains the most basic examples of concepts and doesn't go into the really difficult problems (since the only ones that need to know how to do that are math majors). There are quizes twice a week, but he basically tells you whats on them, and they are really easy problems (2-3 on each quiz). He is awesome in office hours and is always willing to help out. He explains concepts very clearly and never rushes through them. He drops your 2 worst quizzes and his exams are not too hard. The final is broken up into 3 sections (mid 1, mid 2, mid 3) if you do better on one section of the final, he will replace your midterm score with the score you got on that section of the final. This is REALLY helpful. I would definatly reccomend him and I will take him the next chance i get.

This is the best professor I've encountered on campus, and I don't think you could ever find a better math professor than this one. I love everything about him: his teaching style, his "take it slow" attitude with the problems, his clear and clean explanations, his sense of humor... among many other things. The thing I liked most is that he seemed to be able to make me and the class as a whole understand all of the concepts he was teaching instead of rushing the problem. He definitely has unique approaches to the topics that make you think of Calculus more intuitively instead of by memorization of a bunch of techniques. I don't know if this will apply to all others, but I've done very well throughout the quarter with minimal, minimal study time (except for a select few difficult topics) -- so I felt that his lectures were clear enough for me to understand, remember and be able to reproduce, so I didn't have to put in a lot of effort into studying. Also, the grading scale he has is probably the most lenient in the school. It basically forces you to get a good grade. He has two midterms (and one practice midterm) and divides the final up into three parts. He takes the max of the midterm grade and its corresponding part on the final for both sections and gives you a practice midterm a few days before the final which shows you what will be asked of you on the final. I think the tests were of moderate difficulty -- some problems of course were easy, others were pretty difficult. The quizzes, in general, were easy as cake. And he's a fair grader and allows you to regain lost points on your midterms if you visit him in his office hours. I could go on and on about the positives of this professor. They need to have more professors like these and less professors like O'Gorman on this campus. TAKE THIS PROFESSOR IF THERE'S ROOM! CRASH IT IF THERE ISN'T!

Mr Robertson a.k.a James a.k.a Mike is a fair instructor. His grading policy is really great and saved me from failing his class. Basically, if you do great on the final, then you get the grade on the final. Try to do your best on the midterms so your not stressing about your final and you should be fine. Now, about his reasoning. Thats just a whole different story. He becomes annoying sometimes with how you have to be precise about things but once you come to accept the fact thats how things are, you should be fine. Its only 10 weeks :)

Robertson is a very funny guy, but lacks the basics to present material clearly. He does seem helpful in OH (haven't personally gone), but he makes it seem like you should already know what he is teaching and if you don't, good luck! He skips over basic algebra steps, and then makes errors as if they are nothing. 3 Midterms, 2 quizzes a week...hes whatever.

ALL OF THESE REVIEWS REGARDING JAMES/MIKE ARE LIES. He is a horrible man. All the people that like him are basically the smartest ones in the class. Like most of my friends that took this class with me foreal struggled. We all had to take the supplemental workshops to try to pass this class. He sucks so hard. He tries to implement philosophy into his teaching which doesn't make sense at all since you're like learning about math... His grading also sucks. He would give you homework and projects that doesn't match his lectures at all. He gives you theoretical bullsh*t that has nothing to do with Calc 1 most of the times. Also, he is not funny. I'm counting on his final to save my life because I failed the midterms, but he lets you replace your midterm grades if you do better on the final. So yeah fingers crossed, and don't take him. I b=obviously had last rotation for registration so I got stuck with him. I'm telling you the truth. Someone has to tell you... Cuz no one will. ty

Robertson is NOT A GOOD LECTURE TEACHER. I strongly recommend NOT taking him. He goes over material very quickly in class and skips over algebra steps that results in students getting lost and he makes alot of mistakes which makes in even harder to follow what he is saying. PRO: no quizes or homework, your grade on the final can replace your grade on a midterm if you do better in that section on the final. CON: his grading is very hard on biweekly project problems, and his grader for hw is very strict. Although he is willing to give back points on homework and projects if you go talk to him in office hours he basically wants you to go argue with him for points. I took AP Calc in highschool and got an A but Robertson makes topics extremely hard to learn.

Worst professor ever. Every good review I see, I just assume he wrote them himself. Doesn't know how to teach, how to grade or how to communicate. Makes fun of students for asking questions. a judgmental asshole. DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR. I rather graduate in 85 years than take him. only reason I got a B in this class is because I've taken it in highschool and I had to go to his office hours to argue anf get the grades I deserved. He gave me F's on every "project" but when I argued he gave me an A. Stupid. Avoid this teacher at all costs.

If you have taken calc before, it's super helpful. If you haven't taken calc before, "the best way to prepare for calculus is by taking calculus". James, or Mike more often, Robertson is a decent professor(I would encourage you to look up Mike Robertson on polyratings as well since it's the same guy). He explains things in a very good way as long as you know algebra. If you don't know algebra, not only will you be potentially lost in his class, you may want to consider taking an algebra class instead since no calc teacher will sit there and do all the algebraic steps for you, especially in a 50 minute class. He doesn't particularly like questions in class, but will be more than happy to help you in office hours. He wants things in specific form, which could be good or bad. When doing derivatives (quotient rule and product rule mainly) or things what would produce a lot of algebra, he doesn't make you simplify because there is no need! This was my second time taking calculus I (Since I hadn't taken it before college) and it was a much better experience. For homework, he has on average two assignments per week (never more than 2, but less on occasion) of about 2-7 problems he wrote that are graded on correctness. He also has 1 "project" due with every homework that is "challenge". They can be particular and bothersome at times but don't weigh much on your grade.(Homework and projects combined are 25% or less of your grade). The test system he has is amazingly the best thing any teacher could ever offer. He administers 3 midterms, one on dead week, which sucks. But! He breaks the finals into three correlating sections to the midterm. This is important since you can Hail Mary the class. If you get a better score on the final's section correlating to the midterm, he replaces your midterm score with percentage score from the final. For example, I earned a C+,B-, and F(46%) on the 3 midterms, respectively. Going into the final, I had a 69% in the class and earned an A,A, and C on the correlating parts of the midterm. This brought my grade up to a solid B. Take Mike. He also has a rad duck dynasty beard.

Robertson is one of the strangest people I've ever met. He's actually not as bad as everyone says. Here are my recommendations if you wind up with James Robertson - FYI - SAME AS MIKE ROBERTSON: 1. Go to office hours. He expects his homework and projects to be done in just a certain way. Many times I thought I'd done them right but he still gave me really bad grades. Make sure you're doing them the way HE wants you to do them. These projects often apply to the class in bizarre, far-off ways, and are just plain weird. 2. You must go to office hours. You can usually make up bad homework assignments and argue for a better grade. 3. Don't ask questions in class. He'll shut you down. If you have questions save them for office hours. You basically have to go to office hours to do well. I would recommend other teachers first before Robertson. But if you've got 12th rotation hopefully this can help.

He sucks. I've gotten all A's and B's this year except with this dude. I literally had to clutch my way through this class. He sucks and he gave me anxiety. I now suffer anxiety because of him. If youre only taking this class because its the only section available, its seriously smarter to waitlist for another class or just take it next quarter. He is so bad that I was almost tempted to push him down the stairs after class. Ugh. I shouldve done it.

Robertson is a good teacher; he explains his material as clearly as calculus II can be explained and will gladly help out if you need it. He sorta reminds me of Bob Ross (the crazy hippie painter guy with the 'fro on PBS,) except with integrals instead paintings. Two quizzes per week, which should be pretty easy if you're keeping up in the class. Two midterms and a final, which shouldn't be too bad if you're doing well on the quizzes. Homework isn't required, but you should probably do a couple problems just to make sure you know how. I failed this class, but that's my own damn fault because I didn't study, do any of the homework, or go to office hours. And because it was at 8:00 in the morning. Try to avoid that if you can.

A really chill and relax professor. His lecture sounds like he doesnt really care, but you realize its his calm way of speaking. He makes math relaxing. Comparing his lectures to the actual book, he made the material look REALLY EASY. His grading scheme described below is true. Final replaces midterms. But they can be really tough and tedious. Some concept problems or two. I would defintely take him for any math class again. It just seems way easier!

First of all, Mike has a real good understanding of calculus. In class he explains all the useful parts of a chapter rather than the entire chapter. He gets excited and frustrated at times when in office hours. And both it's welcoming and motivating. His personality and way of teaching is wayyyyyyy laid back, yet humorous and informative. I would recommend Mike to anyone because of his incredible flexibility. Points would be handed to you for corrected quizzes, and he will work with you on your exams so he can add some points. He would like you to succeed, but you will have to personally show it to him in office hours. Overall, easy, laid back, humorous and goto his office hours.

very good at explaining concepts, very fair on all tests and quizzes, no homework required... I would always take this professor if i could!

The frequent quizzes are way better than turning in pages and pages of homework every week. Just keep up with the quiz material and the tests are easy. He really likes you to memorize the identities though, which obviously wasn't my cup of tea. Very helpful in his plethora of office hours, he wants you to get it.

A brilliant man who cares more about his students understanding calculus than memorizing formulas. And he cuts breaks on Algebra errors! Definitely will take him for all of calculus.

He was my first math teacher as a Freshman and I thought he did a great job presenting the material. I just wished that I did all of the homework because even though he doesn't collect it, it helps a lot with the midterms. Overall I wished I could have taken him for Calc 3 and 4.

Robertson is a great teacher. I've taken him for both 141 and 142 and he has a great style of teaching math that emphasizes comprehension of the material far above anything else. He has many office hours and knows exactly how to help you when you are stuck on something. I highly recommend Robertson for anyone looking to fully learn the material.

Office hours=essential. Attending a supplemental workshop=probably a good idea. The first two weeks of this class scared the living shit out of me because I had already learned this material in high school and this guy just starts teaching it in the most bizarre way, BUT if I could end up eventually understanding it, I'm sure anyone could. This class definitely requires a lot of effort on the student's end to really practice the material given and fully understand concepts gone over in class, but Robertson is super helpful during his office hours.

Amazing calculus teacher. I took him for 141 also and I will continue to request him. He explains so clearly that it leaves no doubt. Twice weekly quizes are good because they are so easy it just boosts your grade. 2 midterms and a final. They are hard, but he lets you do test corrections, lets you retake and he has the nicest grading policy ever. The final is broken into 3 sections, first section is midterm 1, second is midterm 2, third is new stuff. If you get a 100% on the midterm 1 section, it replaces your midterm 1 with 100% grade. So basically, you are guarenteed atleast a B in this class. Nice guy, great in office hours and hes funny.

YOU MUST TAKE ROBERTSON!!!!!! Hes my favorite teacher I've had at cal poly. he really teaches the material well and makes you understand it. he gives you suggested practice problems to do every night but doesn't collect hw. he gives quizzes twice a week but they're super easy if you go to class and he drops the lowest out of every 5. my favorite thing about his class is that hes really forgiving. he gives 3 midterms and the final has 3 sections on it so if you do better on a section of the final than you did on that midterm he raises your midterm grade. you could theoretically fail all the midterms and still get an A in the class. hes really helpful in office hours and hes a really funny guy. also, i believe his name on pass is james robertson but his real name is mike. so mike robertson and james robertson are the same person. you can check out mike robertson's reviews too

Robertson is a terrible teacher. He does not portray material clearly. The practice midterms/finals he sends out are nothing like his actual exams. I asked multiple questions and he treated me like I was stupid for not knowing the answer, when in reality he never fully explained the concept. DO NOT TAKE HIS CLASS

You walk in the first day of class and question how he passed his background check solely based on appearances but as time passes, you realize he is actually super knowledgeable. He just has trouble transferring knowledge from his head to yours. Exams are reasonable and his grading system is awesome. Downside is he does not teach from the book at all so if you can't understand his unstructured lecture, you're screwed. Avoid Mike (that's what he goes by) if possible, but if you're stuck with him it's not the end of the world. If you want real PopyRatings check the ratings under Mike Robertson. It's the same person and those are more representative.

He's actually Mike Robertson so read those reviews instead. Either way, not a good teacher

By the way...an 85% in his class is still an A-. Sweet!

Professor Robertson really knows and loves his math. He is very helpful and teaches a good class. There are two quizzes a week, so it is very easy to stay up on the material. If you take good notes in lecture and at least do a little homework the class should be a breeze. You will never have to read the book. I reccomend him for any class he teaches.

fuck this guy

Don't buy the textbook! You will never use it and just end up wasting your money. His lecture style a series of example problems that he creates and works through on the board, and the homework is written by himself and posted on Polylearn. If you get stuck then definitely go into office hours, he is way more helpful there than he is in class. Often times he moves kind of fast during lecture and doesn't clarify the steps he is taking very well. For example, he cannot explain parametrization, he jus says it's "intuitive" and something you have to just know how to do. That makes him sound bad, but honestly his class was pretty easy for me. His grading policy is extremely lenient and you basically only have to show up for the final in order to pass the class. I ended up attending every lecture but it was definitely not necessary. He will literally tell you what's going to be on the final and all the midterms. Overall, I actually enjoyed his relaxed attitude and grading policy, and I would definitely recommend this professor to future students

A lot of people either say that Mike is great or that he is terrible, but I don't think either is true. Instead, I think he just has an odd personality that polarizes people while being an average teacher. His class was pretty straight forward and simple, and he presented the concepts that you would need to know in a very robotic manner such that most of the time, I only understood the steps to take, but never the why behind those steps. In addition, he is horrible at explaining things, and could never explain the "why" behind things when asked. However, with the exception of the final exam, his midterms were basically exact replicas of problems he did on the board, so knowing the "why" wasn't important for passing the class. The final had two curveball problems, but both were weighted such that I got an A on the final despite not fully answering either. Other things to know about Mike are that he is extremely approachable outside of class, and loves to have a whole gang of students studying during his office hours. Though he can't explain the "why," he is very willing and able to explain the how and to show you what do to do solve problems. In addition, he is very understanding of postponing or delaying midterms/finals. I got sick right before Midterm 2, Midterm 3, and the Final, and he was willing to let me take all of them a few days later. In addition, at least in my class, Mike allowed you to replace midterm scores with your score on the equivalent part of the final, because he "only cares about if students know the material," meaning that getting an A is always an option in this class up to the last day. If you're good at math or memorizing steps and want an easy A, I highly recommend Mike. If you're looking for a little more conceptual understanding, I suggest looking for another teacher.

Best math teacher I've ever had, easy quizzes, twice a week, often group and he still maxes out 2 of them in addition to the first 2. He is very helpful in office hours, and you can get back 1/5 of the points you lose on the midterms by showing up with a key and sometimes more if he's in a good mood (which is often). If you see him for any course you have to take, go for him, you won't regret it.

Take him. Great teacher, only teaches you what you need to know, tests are very fair, no homework, weekly quizzes, helpful in office hours, very understanding of student's priorities. I don't think i studied more than an hour ever, showed up to every class because he didnt make it a drag to go, got an 87% B+ in the class and i'm about an average student. One of the best math teachers i've had.

STOP READING THIS POLYRATING. James Robertson is the same person as Mike Robertson! Go look up Mike Robertson right now to get a much more accurate interpretation of what kind of teacher he is. This Polyrating is very misleading.

glad I was in this class! he simplifies everything down to something that is easy to comprehend, and we have multiple attempts to raise our scores. If you don\'t get an A in this class you\'re just lazy.

If you use the normal linear book that the other teachers use, he doesn't like that book and his problems don't end up looking anything like the homework problems well, the idea is the same, but the problems aren't asked in that sense, the final is in 3 parts, each part matches up with a midterm so if you do better than you do on that matching part than he will replace that score on your midterm, which is really nice. Basically if you wanna do well, you MUST do this practice midterms and finals that he give. If you are still having problems after that, ask him for more practice midterms or finals, i only asked him for one extra practice final, but i'm pretty sure he is willing to give out more if you need them also he has 3 finished skyrim characters

Robertson was one of my favorite professor thus far at Cal Poly. He is very laid back and he understands his students' struggles. He really knew what he was talking about and he makes his lessons very easy to follow and understand. He doesn't assign homework but he gives you suggested problems to do form the book. From the very start, he tells you that he doesn't like the book and recommends not to use it, so it is your choice to buy the textbook or not. Personally, I just got the PDF file but didn't bother to look at it. Just pay attention in class and ask questions when you need help. He has quizzes every Tuesdays and Fridays, but they are easy. When you don't have a quiz, he will give you a midterm. There are three total and five quizzes per "sections." Before midterms, he will also email you past midterm questions for you to study. I found them extremely helpful and worked on them as though I was really taking a midterm to prepare myself. He will also do the same for the final which he divided up into three based on the three midterms. Overall, if you are going to take 244, I would highly recommend taking it with this guy.

Robertson is very good at teaching Linear, but he stresses topics than many other linear classes never even go over. Much of his class is based on seeing patterns. He has three midterms and a final with three parts corresponding to the three midterms so if you do better on that section of the final than you did on the midterm then it will replace your midterm grade so it is possible to get a 90% by just taking the final, the other 10% is quizzes.

Robertson is the worst lecturer I've ever had at Cal Poly. His slow and methodical teaching style is hard to follow, and he often talks to himself not the class. He takes a lot of algebraic shortcuts when doing examples. I have only gotten below a B in two classes at Cal Poly and this is one of them (I actually had an F up until the final). The best part about the class is that your final grade can replace the grades you got on your midterms. That's how I passed. If you get stuck with him, good luck, and Godspeed.

FYI: James Robertson = Mike Robertson. He goes by Mike. I never asked why but you should. He is a laid-back guy with straightforward assignments and quizzes. Make sure you work with other students. He knows his stuff, but it can be hard for him to get that information across (partly because MATH 244 forces your brain to work backwards: "showing" instead of "solving for"). He makes his lectures simple, but there is so much unmentioned content going on in the background which can make the class quite frustrating. Go to his office hours frequently. That's where most of my learning occurred. I'm the kind of guy that has to understand "why", not just "what" and "how", and if you like proofs in mathematics or explanations, Mike Robertson is not the professor for you. However, some of my classmates were the kind of people who could do just fine going with only the mathematical processes he provides. So if that's you, then he will be a good professor for you. The content proved more of a struggle than the course structure (e.g. quizzes, homework, midterms). He was merciful when it came to midterms, because by the time you understand stuff at the end of the class, you could do the beginning of the class quite easily.

Dr. Robertson is very understanding of his students. He teaches the course well and allows students to redeem themselves on exams. On the third midterm, the superposition principle was suggested as a hint...just remember what he said when he showed you how to analyze bubbles or refer to the textbook beforehand. He's more than willing to work with any trouble you have during office hours.