John Hardin

John Hardin

ENG,HIST

Add your Evaluation

Averages:

Overall Rating

Grade Received

Course Difficulty

Difficult

Quantity of Notes

Overkill

Tag Summary:

True/False: 17

Multiple Choice: 26

Matching: 16

Fill in the Blank: 9

Essays: 26

Mandatory Final: 25

Cumulative Final: 16

Textbook Required: 17

Extra Credit: 10

Attendance Required: 24

28 Total Evaluations

HIST-120 : Hist Since 1500 - Posted 12/12/2013

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

CONTENT NOT HARD; AMOUNT OF CONTENT PER TEST IS OVERKILL--- 80 TEST WITH 40 PTS FROM QUESTIONS AND 40 PTS FROM ESSAY... HE ATTEMPTS TO COVER OVER 1000 TERMS NAMES AND DATES THE ENTIRE SEMESTER.... MUST KNOW NAMES DATES AND EVERY DETAIL TO BE SUCCESSFULL. VERY WIERD SINCE OF HUMOR BUT REALLY A GREAT PROFESSOR--JUST BE PREPARED TO STUDY EVERYDAY TO KNOW IT BY TEST TIME... 3 TEST AND TWO PAPERS ARE YOUR ONLY GRADES

HIST-360 : H Of Africa - Posted 2/16/2013

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Moderate

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

Hardin is a nice guy, but sloppy. He arrives late and spends the first ten minutes preparing. I think he just gets thinned out by his other work. He also lowers standards so that non-historians can do better (e.g.: treating an 88% as an A). He's got a chip on his shoulder, and will not discuss any subject dispassionately and accurately if could instead be worded to make oppressed people sound more worthy of respect.

Regarding content, if he just reads his notes verbatim he's fine, but if he tries to speak extemporaneously it's a garbled mess. Don't ask questions because it's a 10 minute tangent that barely answered your question and certainly didn't help you in class. When he asks if he answered your question you say "yes" just so he'll stop.

HIST-120 : Western Civ Since 1648 - Posted 10/31/2012

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

I took this class as a freshman. I'm now a junior and it remains one of two B's that I've received in college thus far. For an introductory class, I think the amount of notes we took far exceeded how many notes should be included in an introductory level history course. Classes consisted of Dr. Hardin lecturing and spitting facts at us, expecting us to jot down every detail that came out of his mouth, as we'd be liable to know anything said in class on the tests. Classes were exhausting, and I felt like a typewriter, writing what he said verbatim into a notebook with all of our key terms for the semester. His lectures were well organized and followed a list of key terms for the semester, but his tests were very hard. I approached him about raising my grade at the end of the semester; I had a high B and wanted an A, as I was accustomed to being a 4.0 student through high school. Hardin told me the only way to get an A at the point I was at, was to get over a perfect score on the final, an almost impossible task. He was unwilling to bump my score up, and I think I ended the course with around an 89, despite almost perfect marks on my writing assignments. If you're a good test taker, you might do alright. If not, avoid this course.

HIST-120 : Western Civ Since 1648 - Posted 2/13/2012

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

I never really liked history until I took this course. We took a lot of notes but that is just the way history classes are. The tests were set up great, as well as the lectures. You can really tell that he is experienced at teaching and he really cares about his job. He is an excelent professor! He records his lectures and posts them on blackboard, he gives you a list of terms, the exams are 40 multi/matching/T&F and he gives you three essay choices and only requires you to write one essay per exam, and there are only 2 term papers (3 pages apeice) very short. Talked to some freinds in other civ classes and they talked about how hard they were and the professors were hard, essay this and essay that and 10 page term papers... Didn't have to worry bout all of that. Would deffinatly take this professor again if given the chance.

HIST-120 : - Posted 12/13/2011

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Not Specified

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

Professor Hardin as a person is a sweet man. He tries to be funny at times and he's nice enough. His class on the other hand, unless you thoroughly enjoy history, is not one you should take. He only has 4 tests and they're HARD unless you retain a LOT...he covers a crap load of info and tries to cram as much into every test as he can and he has a HUGE packet of words that he expects you to know. He has 2 short papers you can write to help out a bit for your grade, but it's not much. Also, he decides every semester whether or not he will provide extra credit opportunities, so they're not guaranteed. But if he offers them, TAKE THEM! It's just not the course for someone who doesn't like history or note taking cuz it's rediculous!

HIST-120 : Western Civ Since 1648 - Posted 4/12/2011

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

I have never been a history buff, but I have been a straight A student my whole life. Coming into this class, I may have been a little naive to think that because of the size of the class, that it couldn't be too difficult or else everyone would fail. I was wrong. Hardin would have had no qualms about failing every single student in the class, if they deserved the grade. That's not my gripe, though. I tried very hard to pull my grade up to an A in the class, but it was just impossible to study for the tests. With the amount of material covered during class, there was no way to learn everything before a test. He only gives three tests, one of which is a cumulative final, and has two papers. He gives way too many notes, and has unrealistic expectations for a non-honors class. I think he's a great teacher, but terrible for this course.

HIST-120 : Since 1648 - Posted 11/10/2010

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Not Specified

Quantity of Notes:

Moderate

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

His test consist of 40 multiple choice and 40 points for the essay of a total of 80 points per test, even the final. BUT the class only consists of 300 points. There are 2 three page essays that you have to write, but he is a very awesome essay grader. The class is hard to follow but as long as you read your book, you should be fine. If you are just looking for an easy A I wouldnt take him.

HIST-241 : U.s. History Sinc 1865 - Posted 3/2/2010

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

I liked Dr. Hardin, but this class was fairly difficult only because of his lectures. The guy follows no timeline whatsoever and flip flops topics like crazy, for example, he would be talking about something happening in 1915, and the next minute he was discussing something else from the 1880s, and he does this ALL the time, so it's tough to take good notes in here. There were 3 papers in this course, one of which is a 10-15 page research paper on any US History topic of your choice since 1865. I took this class in the fall, and during Constitution Week he offered 10 EC points to anyone who attended a CW event. His tests were worth 80 points, half multiple choice worth 40, and an essay worth 40, and like any other college class, if you study, you can do well on them. Dr. Hardin can be a bit confusing at times, but I really did learn a lot in this class. Oh yeah, he takes attendance EVERY day and allows you 2 absences throughout the semester.

HIST-120 : W. Civ After 1648 - Posted 12/22/2009

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

First off all western civ classes are difficult and this is no exception. Dr. Hardin gives alot of information in every class period and expects you to know it all. There are only 2 papers which have to be 3 pages and 3 tests. The tests are 40 multiple choice questions and one essay. The MC are about random things and you have to know everything from the lectures. He puts podcasts up even if he cancels class. Don't miss more than 3 or your grade drops. He gives one extra credit thing...do it!

HIST-120 : Western Civilization Since 1648 - Posted 12/18/2009

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Ok to begin with, lets just say if you are a white protestant male do not take his class. The entire class he talks about how racists white males are and it drove me insane. NOT ALL WHITE MALES ARE RACIST, which he never stated that.

Back to the class part: His lecture is hard to follow. He gives you 50 multiple choice and 1 essay to do in 1 HOUR!!! His test are timed. He's very very boring and I found it hard to pay attention to. He's also VERY rude and hateful when you just try to make converstation with him. He doesn't really know his history either... when a student would ask a question he would respond by saying "I don't know, I'll halve to check on that". He needs to study up on his black history. And the worst part of his class is the multiple choice... only study the most minute topics b/c that's what he'll ask. Thankfully I'm done with the class. Good luck if you have to suffer through a semester of him.

HIST-120 : Western Civ Since 1648 - Posted 5/30/2007

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

Dr. Hardin is a good professor who believes a lack of organization is key. Hardin put the most important terms for the class in a word document and just went down the column (it should be noted that it was fifteen pages long, one term on each line) and supplemented the terms with a plethora of other information. He typically teaches upper-division African history and it shows because his knowledge of western civilizations since 1648 is rusty and therefore comes out in blocks of confusing conglemorated paragraphs that rarely tie in the one before it or after it. History ought to flow like a story sometimes and Dr. Hardin ruins any chance for a story. Tests are hard but not impossible. Attendance helps in learning the information, especially considering that he presents the information in a different order and importance than the book (if you're following your notes in the book, you'll have to skip around from paragraph--my advice is to skip the book and rely on notes).

HIST-241 : Us History Since 1865 - Posted 5/3/2007

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

DO NOT TAKE THIS TEACHER! Granted I made an A, but as a senior it was the worst class I've ever taken. Maybe he knows his stuff, I don't know, but his lectures are a joke. He rambles with little to no structure throughout his whole lecture. He is easily steered off topic and unless you spend a lot of time reading and reworking your notes you will not do well. He is also not very understanding, a guy in our class had four finals on one day and Hardin wouldn't let him take his on another day claiming he'd have to make exceptions to anyone.

He has an annoying mandatory attendance policy that only allows you to miss three days. His tests are hard enough to study for because of how bad his lectures are, but he also finds the most obscure facts to test you on, and also gives multiple choice questions that are more opinion than fact. This guy shouldn't be teaching at the college level. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS!

HIST-120 : - Posted 4/26/2007

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

STAY AWAY!!! The whole time he just rambles on and on and it is soooo hard to pay attention to him the whole time. I ended up just bringing my laptop and watching movies in his class on it. He will go back and forth in the timeline and confuse you! His Final is a KILLER but he grades his essays pretty easy as long as you dont BS. Each test is about 15 pages of notes and he finds the smallest details to ask on the test.....STAY AWAY!!!!

HIST-360 : History Of Africa - Posted 4/11/2007

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Moderate

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

This class was very interesting. He is very disorganized and lecture can be hard to follow sometimes. He is a very easy going guy. You have to read a book and do a book review on it, you have to write a research paper and there are two tests, thats about it for assignments. He grades very fairly.

HIST-120 : - Posted 4/3/2007

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

HE IS A BAD TEACHER!!! Granted he knows his stuff, his lectures are the most boring thing I have ever had to sit through...EVER!!! The sound of his voice haunts me. His lectures are jumbled and he goes out of order, he gets mad and smart when anyone asks him to slow down. He speaks very fast and alot of time says the wrong thing and then has to go back and correct it. His tests are very difficult but passable if you know your stuff. He takes off 5 pts every time you miss more than 3 days. DONT TAKE HIS CLASS

HIST-359 : Blacks In Us History Since 1877 - Posted 12/14/2006

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

This class covers a ton of information, a lot of which is difficult to process at times because African-Americans are still not included in high school history classes and this is a crash course into a lot of interesting people and events you never studied before. However, Dr. Hardin does a good job going over these subjects for the most part and makes this class an enlightening one into African-American history.

For grades in this class you have two tests (midterm and final) that are both worth one hundred points, a term paper that has to be 10-15 pages over any subject you would like to research on African-Americans in American history since 1877 that is worth ninety points, and then you have to type up a brief 1-2 page description of what topic you are going to write your paper about that is worth ten points. You have to write the topic of your paper to for him in the first two weeks so if your taking this class START THINKING OF A TOPIC RIGHT NOW. I did this before the class started and it REALLY helped me out as far as getting research together and writing a really strong paper.

I didn't find Hardin to be a hard grader but when you write your essays for tests make sure to include a lot of famous people, events, and dates (just like every other history class). If you include that and can provide some decent analysis then you should be able to get a good grade. For your paper, also makes sure to use a lot of sources and VISIT THE LIBRARY for it because he isn't a big fan of the Internet.

On a personal note, Dr. Hardin is very funny and while him lecturing off of large notecards can be a bit of a weird visual he does a good job explaining the material EXCEPT sometimes he likes to quickly recite names and can go so fast they will be tough to take down. However, we does provide you with a list of names (that is rather lengthy) for each chapter so you can look those up if you did not get them all down. You take a lot of notes in this class during lecture so if that's not your thing then don't take him but if you are a good note taker for lecture then you should be able to kill the exams because the questions aren't too tricky. Also, taking notes should be easier the next time he teaches the class because he said he was going to start experimenting with PowerPoint technology.

Attendance is taken for every class also and if you miss more than one your grade is deducted severely. Therefore, DO NOT MISS!

Overall, I'd recommend this class for history majors. Dr. Hardin is a genuinely nice guy that cares about his students and wants to see them succeed and if you have any questions after class he is more than willing to answer them. Yet another great instructor in the WKU History Department.

HIST-120 : Western Civ 120 - Posted 12/11/2006

Overall Rating:

Poor

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

HORRIBLE teacher. just rambles on about stuff doesn't really teach you anyhting. tests are really hard. only graded on 3 tests and a paper. no extra credit for anything and he deducts 5 points from your final average per day that you miss after 3. DO NOT take this guy.

HIST-120 : Western Civ Since 1648 - Posted 11/6/2006

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

I am terrible at history personally but i managed to come out of the class ok. He does a good job at answering questions if you get lost. He is very helpful and willing to stay after class and talk to you. You will have to take notes throughout the entire class period but if you do that you wont have to read the book. I didn't open mine once.

HIST-360 : History Of Africa - Posted 5/16/2005

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Moderate

Difficulty:

Easy

Comments

He is the best history professor in the dept.

ENG-301 : Intermediate Composition - Posted 12/9/2004

Overall Rating:

Good

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Few/None

Difficulty:

Moderate

Comments

This was a writing course, and Dr. Hardin treated it like one. There were no tests or quizzes, just papers to write. These papers were fun, and he was really helpful in the revision process. It sounds like we did nothing, but really we spent lots of time working on becoming a better writer. We also read some short (3-15) page essays by interesting writers so that we could learn how to be a better writer form those who were already good at it. He assigned reading based on what we were going to write about next, and none of the authors were dead, so the language was still easy to follow. AWESOME CLASS. Do not take if you need structure, or don't like when teachers are real laid back.

HIST-359 : African American History Since 1877 - Posted 12/27/2002

Overall Rating:

Grade:

Quantity of Notes:

Overkill

Difficulty:

Difficult

Comments

Let me first say that if you take Dr. Hardin's class at night, be prepared to stay the entire class period. Our class was 5:30pm -8:15pm and we did not leave until 8:15pm. He is an excellent teacher because you can tell that he knows his black history. Sometimes, it was though he was reliving the experiences over again as he lectured. His tests were not as bad as I thought that it would be. His essays are detailed and require at least a full page and maybe a fourth of another page. There is a semester project that consists of picking a person or a concept after 1877 and writing a 10-15 page paper about it. Don't be like me and wait until the last second to get started. It was a good class and I would recommend it to anyone.

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