Other then question about grades and mix ups with my husbands and may grades didn't really talk much outside of class

 I only talked to the instructor only once.

I only mentioned an online comic called "Scandinavia and the World," figure you'd enjoy the sterotypical depictions of the countries in those comic characters, as well as some of the historical references that were covered, some well known or not so well know. From what I heard, you enjoyed it very much.

I wasn't able to interact with you much past that brief exchange because I had to get to work. But from what I've obsereved, you are very approachable to your students and are always willing to stick around for a few minutes or even walk with your students when they want to speak with you

I have met with serveral of my instructors, including you and I found it to be very helpful and insightful. I was able to grasp a better understanding of what I was learning in class. I also discovered that my instructors were all compassionate human beings and not to be afraid to go and talk to them. They are people too.

I never felt the need.

I met with him one time and he was very helpful to me.

Although I felt you made yourself available I just never really needed to speak to you outside of class.

I didn't visit during office hours or seek interaction outise of class because I felt like I had a handle on the material and didn't need any further explanation. 

I didn't have any communication with the instuctor because I did not feel I needed to.

The time that I spent out of class I have been taking care of my daughter and trying to find a job. I put the blame of my lack of effort to connect with my instructor on my shoulders.

Only at the end of class, and that was when I could think of an interesting tidbit of historic family history or when I had to mention that I might be gone.

I felt like any question or information i needed was talked about in class or avalible on moodle.

Your office hours were right in the middle of one of my other classes, but I probably wouldn't have come in anyways. That's nothing to do with you, I just didn't have any questions that weren't answered either in class or online. 

I did not meet with the instructor.

I have been able to talk with Joe after class, and the benefit of picking his brain cannot be overstated.  He is always willing to help in any way and will answer any question you have.  He is a great source on campus and believes every student has the capacity to succeed, if they will only open their ears and learn.  He is the type of teacher I hope to be one day.

We have such limited time in class, so sometimes it's nice to chat about related topics.

The reason I never went to office hours was because of my schedual, and also, I try to find the answers on my own.

i didnt get the chance to talk to you out of class.

nope

Yes we had several insightful interactions, primarily through the Moodle messaging. Our conversations helped my understanding of terminology and certain themes we were discussing, for the forums and class materials. I have always been encouraged to ask a lot of questions and for me the Moodle messaging worked perfect, as I didn't have a lot of availability for office hours and such. 

I briefly met with you to ask a few questions right after class but other than that I didnt feel the need to actually set up an appointment or see you in office hours. You helped me understand the information in class and i felt that i had a pretty good grasp on the information.

I never really had any questions that I couldn't figure out for myself.

Joe's lectures were very informative and I felt that he prepared the material to perfectly fit the time. I never felt that something important was not discussed during class time. Due to the productivity of the lectures and online forums I felt as though the material I was responsible for knowing was presented and I simply reread class noes, and read the chapters well. Joe was available and willing to go over the class notes when I missed a class which made it much less stressful.

I found that each one of my interactions with you was rewarding because it allowed me a deeper understanding of an event or events from a perspective which I respect.  You are very professional and communicate well.

Joe was very understandable when I could not make classes a few times because of a family/babysitting issue. He was quick to respond to my emails and very helpful in offering his time to help me catch up.

0 interacion

I didn't get a chance to use the office hours because my schedule was pretty jam-packed. Unfortunately, I barely had time to get a bite to eat between classes. But, that was my choice; nothing to do with Mr. Escobar. I did talk to him a few imes before class started, though.

I asked questions in class but there was no need to contact him outside of class time. 

I didn't really use office hours because I found I didn't really need to. Not in any sense of "oh I have all the answers" or anything, but that I found my questions could either be answered if I grabbed you before or after class, or via moodle messaging. These interactions were helpful, informative, and a little fun when we were able to discuss things related to class but outside of the curriculum. I feel that via this, had I actually needed office time I'm sure it would have been just as helpful.

I didn't speak with you but have with other instructors. It was very helpful with them. I should of wiith you. I might have had a better chance.

we had a few short conversations after class here and there.

I never made an appointment during office hours.

Just letting the instructor know some facts or asking about certain historical events.

 I didn't communicate personally during office hours or after class during this term because I didn't have an questions/comments that I didn't address during class hours. The syllabus and instructions on moodle made the class expectations very clear.

I am uncomfortable with one on one office hours. It did not help me when talking to you after class because you seem to always point out office hours or phone calls. I would have rather had questions answered in the classroom. 

Speaking with you before or after class helped me to fully understand concepts and review material that I wasn't 100% confident with. It helped to reiterate points and confirm questions. 

The instructor was rather fun and interesting to talk to before or after class. He listened to what I had to say and didn't brush me off. I would have gladly talked to him during office hours if I felt a need/reason to.

Made a study group with other students outside of class. Also, talk to the teacher 1 on 1 and in small groups about other history related events. Also went into more detail, or more specific things,  then the class offers.

I never had the need to visit office hours. I have taken hybrid courses like this before and am familiar with this type of work.

Having had Escobar for 2 terms in a row, I found him to be available on moodle message and after class so I never sought him out during office hours. Many times throughout the 2 terms did I linger after class with follow-up questions and he seemed happy to engage my curiosity.

This term I did not spend nearly as much time as I had in the prior two terms going over material and getting my study group together. I don’t want to attribute any of that to you as an instructor, because it was entirely due to my scheduling conflicts with my job. I did not plan well for my work taking more time this during this season. I ended up being distracted outside of class with work obligations and often too busy to engage fully in any of my classes. Unfortunately, I can’t turn back time, and I didn’t want to drop the class, because I really liked it. In the future, I will consider my work when scheduling my classes.

Overall, I love this class, and would love to take another class with Escobar. I would prefer more hybrid-style classes, because I think his ability and appeal as an instructor really shows in the classroom, and students (myself included) might miss out on that if it were purely an online class.

The instructor was very clear on his grading methods and homeowork assignements. Although I did not think I needed the office hours because the instuctor was clear, I knew he was always there at his office hours to ask any questions. 

Yeah I deffinitely used moodle messaging to contact my instructor during the term. He's one BAMF.

I was at work during the office hours that were available this term. There was not any time for them just because I was either at work or running to other classes. I am also a very introverted student so that is not something I would do willingly.

i just needed to buckle down

In the beginning of the term one of the scores for my quizzes was a given a zero. So I talk to my instructor to explain that I had gotten a better score on my second try.

Mr. Escobar regularly made himself available to talk with the students. I had at least two meaningful conversations with him outside the boundaries of the classroom. 

None

I never felt the need to have a conversation outside of class hours

I did not have a lot if time to meet outside of class. I had lot of personal issues going on this term.

The only things I had trouble with was the forums because so would just kinda forget about while taking care of my daughter and other home work and other daily life. Also because it wasn't a weekly thing. 

I did my best I could to complete the assignments even though it took some time to complete.

I was sure to complete every online quiz and any other assignment provided. I found them helpful, and it was nice that I coudl reveiw wrong answers, it was a good way to get information across.

I liked the online quizzes and the polls. Easy grade as long as it was done in time. I think it helped my grade overall and I feel all students should have been doing these all along. I liked the fact that the quizzes addressed different things as you redid them and helped me remember what I had learned from the readings and class lectures.

The polls themselves weren't that worthwhile, but the discussion about them in class was invaluable. I always did them.

Yes

The quizzes definatly helped me to better understand the material as well as being an easy way to earn points.  Same with the opinion polls easy credits.

I did regularly complete thise assignments and I would say they were worthwhile especially the quizzes because they were a good way to review what I just read from the textbook. 

I regularly complete these assignments and yes they are good to have because they are good review for the quiz.

I believe I did complete all of the quizzes online and half of the forums, but admit I should have been on more.

I did do the quizes, but I usually ended up looking elsewhere than the book just because of it's horrid layout.

I regularly checked moodle, email and completed my online assignments. All of which are very important. I think the online assignments were worthwhile and an easy way to help your grade.

I regularly completed all of these assignments expect the first poll which was just because I had completely forgotten about it and am still kicking myself to this day for forgetting (that's one of the reasons I like that you email us. It serves as a reminder). I do think they are helpful. I like the fact that the final grade isn't just based on tests. I do know that the online work was more time consuming (for me at least) than being in class for more time. 

I did complete most of them. With my schedule being a single mother, working and going to school full-time I did miss out on a couple of these!

As a hybrid class the online assignments are part of the clas, I fail to understand how some students would ignore this aspect.  I enjoy very much the ability to do the work with no undue stress, and being able to research/answer while in my "homework" mindset made it easier and more friendly.  The onlice assignments were easy (for me) and a good way to review the material at my own pace.

Yes and yes

The online quizes can be tedious, but the are very helpful in the end. It only accounts for 10% of your overall grade, but it helps you study what you've read and prepares you for the major tests.

yes i always finished my assignments on time, and they were all worthwhile.

yes, the quizes helped for studying for tests

MORE POLLS!!!

The online assignments were actually helpful to me; atleast the weekly quizes anyway. The quizes helped ensure I did the reading, then when I did do it, I enjoyed testing my knowledge. I also appreciated the fact that anything over 50% of the quiz received an A, because many of the questions I found worded oddly and missed some that I should have known. The opinion polls were somewhat interesting as well. 

I completed every weekly quiz, and it really helped with the mid term and final. It was very helpful especially if you take each quiz several times.

They were definitley worthwhile. If you did all of the online quizzes and studied them you should be set for the midterm/final.

Yes I completed all but one online assignment on time.  The weekly quizes were helpful in pushing me to read the chapters fully and picking out some important points to note.  They are also helpful to take multiple times due to the fact that a number of them are on the midterm and final tests. The forums, as I have stated many times, are awesome.  So much more interesting than the history book and relate to current situations. Some are comical, which is refreshing in  a history class. Participating in the forums also helpful since that material is also on the tests.

They are a great check on your understanding of the chapter before the weekly lectures.

I completed all but one of these and that was my own fault.  I found these quizzes a very easy way to earn points and was greatful for them.

I completed all of them pretty easily, the were easy points

Most of the time, I tried to take the quizzes on the day they opened, so I would have plenty of opportunities to retake them and see all possible questions. They helped me on the mid-term, and I'm sure they will have the same effect on the final exam.

Sometimes I would forget to do the quizzes.

I completed all of the quizzes on time, and I didn't find them all that difficult. I scored at least a 15 or higher every quiz and I feel it greatly helped my grade, especially since I did miss a couple of the forum assignments due to being ill.

I did complete them and that is why I could possibly pass this class.

i did complete the assignments and by doing them you can have a more indepth understanding of some of the things in our history and what impact they have today

Yes, I found the computer quizzes to be helpful.

Sometimes I got busy and forgot one of the polls, and of one forum I just ran out of time trying to edit my post.

I completed every single computer quiz and opinion poll. The computer quizzes are somewhat helpful to complete especially since some of those questions are the same or phrased similarly on the midterm and final exams.

I completed the quizzes except for one and it is because I had so much going on I completely forgot. But it is very important to do the quizzes because they are easy points along with the polls. 

I did compete all of the assignments on time and I think they were worthwhile. They were a helpful review and were a good way to gauge how thorough my reading was. 

The side online assignments were easy, and often did assist with learning the material. I completed them rather completely, and found them to be worth doing. The only real reason someone would not have completed them would be they forgot or bothered not to, I don't feel they were unreasonable.

Yes I did complete these.

I completed these assignments because a lot of the questions in the quizzes end up being the midterm and final exams. 

I think the computer quizes and surveys are relatively low-effort ways to keep students' attention week in, week out. Many classes make the mistake of having the midterm and the final be the only consequencial grades in the class. While not as heavily weighted, these smaller activities can help boost grades of those people who have trouble on bigger test and also keeps them involved with the current information of the class -- an alternative to just checking for 5 weeks and cramming the weekend before the large exam.

I think the computer quizzes are great. Because you don't actually do in-class quizzes or exams, it's good to put a grade to the weekly quiz to help students either (a) remember to read at least SOME of the chapter or (b) become familiar with the terms enough to pass the quiz. Either option will help them retain more from the lecture. It's also really important to have the quizzes, because a lot of the quiz questions end up on the exams!

I did not regularly complete them as much as I should have. The quizzes i believe are very important and help to show understanding of the text. I dont think there is any need for change since we are given one week to complete them.

Honestly I don't feel like I got what I was supposed to out of the online section of the class. I appreciate the time and effort that went into organizing an online forum where students could mingle and voice their opinions, but I rarely felt that reading the forum was rewarding or insightful. I guess I would have appreciated the class more without it, but if others get more out of it than I did then it's certainly worth keeping.

I missed two of the quizzes because I forgot about them and just missed the time cutoff. I am usually terrible at doing homework so I think that missing 2 is not so bad. Maybe change the cutoff to just before class if that is possible.

As far as worth, they were really good. The questions on the quizzes made you have to read (or skim at least) the chapter. If you read the chapter before, they probably also went a lot faster. This semi-forced reading helped me learn because I had to look at the chapter and disect what the parts of the chapter were. If the question related to a presidents foriegn policy, I had to at least think of what his domestic policy was for at least a second. With enough seconds it because easy to remember both. 

no because i would forget and not do it, because i never got the reminders sent.

Yes, I completed the quiz assignments. even though I felt that it would have been much easier to do the quizzes in the end of the week. The only thing that by doing so most of us wouldn't read the book.... So I say it's fine as it is right now.

They were indeed worthwhile. 

Yes I thought they were. 

I completed the weekly quizzes on time to earn points but in reality they did little other that help my grade because i would only do them one time to earn the points and that was that.

i felt the online assignments were useful because they got me to think.

All of it is good. The only thing that might help is maybe doing more forumsoap that its a weekly thing and that might help some that have a hard time remember because it just becomes habit. 

it was the scoring posts and the random groups that got me. even though the online discussions were good, I felt overwhelmed the mateials.

I found the material given for these very interesting. I wish had been able to put more time into it, but with this being a Gen Ed class, I had to put it on the back burner and focus my time and energy on classes that counted toward my major. Either way, the forums provided very interesting information, when I posted in category I was sure to read every answer given by my peers.

I think for me it was how to address the issues brought up and back them up with actual facts. Some of the materials were interesting, other I felt didn't really keep my interest.

The idea of forum activity is great, but I think I personally would enjoy it more if it were a discussion started in class (even if just as lecture), then continued in a weekly forum. Having no immediate context in class or in the book (though related, I understand) made it less interesting. I'd rather be reading the textbook for next week's quiz than reading unrelated material we won't be quizzed on.

I enjoyed posting a lot more this term than any other because of the interesting topics which there were many to choose from.

I struggled a bit with the forums.  I guess mostly just because I found myself with a lack of things to say.  I was always at the middle ground with no real definate side to argue.

I don't know if I completely failed this activity but I know I didn't do that well due to lack of participation. Why I didn't participate so much was because I would make a first post just to have something in and then kind of put the forum on the back burner. Other assignments from other classes and other responsibilites took precedent over the forums. Also, when I did look at the forums after the first post, I never really found anything to reply to or argue with. 

I had problems with the forum because there was to many subjects to decide on and the random groups were kind of confusing.

At first I had trouble with the material but figured it out. Once again lack of effort on my side.

Intersting materials wasn't an issue, nor were there too few, but the deadlines and the random groups were not a good move. I liked being able to choose my topic for discussion, and I didn't have anyone disscus my post when I was placed in a group. I realize that making a grade out of it brings in more people, but maybe make it a less of an anchor if you forget or you internet dies and drags your grade down to the depths.

I would suggest to take time in class to clearly state to students what it takes to earn 3 points and what letter grade a 1, 2, 3 earns. I made at least one post each time we had a forum and gave what I thought were very good responses but sometimes only earned a 1 or 2 on my post.  

I participated on all of the forums. I really apprecaited how there were three different subjects to choose from. I also really apprecatied how you would grade some of our posts early so we could see how many points we still needed. I thought the deadlines gave us plenty of time. I would say worth my time and effort. 

I enjoyed the forums for the most part. I felt that some of the topics were a bit hard for me to relate to though.

In my opinion I think those students who failed to post or did the absolute minimum are not capable of independent thought.  They are unable to form a cogent thought, unless it is about the Ducks, beer or girls.  Seriously, I am sad for my fellow students, some seem as interested in learning as a sponge is to explore the desert.  For myself, the ability to enter into discussions that would not normally take place is exciting and helps me to grow and expand my intellect.  It is too bad some don't feel that way.  Keep them in, and those who want to learn will take advantage of the forums and be the best students they can.

To answer the specifics,

Material very interesting

Just enough material, not overwhelming.

Deadlines, in the real world you better be on time so, deadlines are not a problem.

Scoring is OK, no need to change it.

Topic changes make us think quickly and help to get us to gather our thoughts in a timely fashion.  I enjoy very much the different topics and the ability to engage in many at once.

Groups are just that, a group. Seems there is not much difference between groups, although maybe a group with those who want to post, and do it with intelligence can be a separate group from the...uh, dunderheads.

Absolutely worth my time and effort.  One of the best ways I know of to stimulate conversation and pass knowledge around.  Great stuff.

Very interesting, and I liked the way it was set up.

I think that if we spent maybe five minuets in class introducing each topic of the forum for that peticular week, it might get students interested in it and encourage them to participate in the forum

i liked having multiple topics on the forums; each time i would find something that interests me, they were all worth while.

The problems

i had with the forums

-very busy school/home load so I just plain forgot to do it throughout the week (maybe mandatory due dates 1 sat 1 tue 1 thur 1 fri)

-some of the info wouldn't display for me

-i don't like being forced to share my opinion were the whole class can view/judge/criticise

-didn't feel that it contributed to my understanding or education regaurding the material. Maybe let the students choose subjects themselves?

I found the forums interesting with quite thought provoking topics. I was one of those people who also posted somewhat regularly and received an A in this assignment. However, over the past years I have had mixed feelings about sharing my opinions as they tend to be different than the status quo. While I did enjoy reading my peers posts, I also found certain 'hot topics' (Demonization of the Enemy, Terrorism, War on Iraq, Immigration, etc) stirred the pot so to speak and the debating may have provoked hostility in some cases. Well in my case, where I had other classes with some of these same students I was debating in the forum with and they approached me outside of class. I found this alarming and actually feared for my safety to some extent. So that having been said, I think the forums should be made anonymous, to protect people's privacy and safety. 

I enjoyed the forums. I slacked a little bit in the first few forums which affected my grade poorly. Just as a suggestion maybe you could keep the students anonymous to other students. 

I liked them. I thought it was very good to see what everyone else thought of the same subject and how we were able to talk to them about it.

I think that there is no reason to not get the full 20%. The only reason for not participating is laziness, and if you don't do the assignments, you don't get the grade. The one time I did not get the full points was an extremely stressful week and I knew I didn't participate enough. But I am an adult and I knew that before I got the scores. There were a few really loong reads in the forums this term, but this is college and it's not supposed to be simple.

I enjoyed the forums more when people in the group put forth effort and had semi-intelligent things to write.  At times, that was not the case.

I struggled with this a little only because I was not completely clear what was expected of my answers the first few forums, however once I got the hang of it it was simple.  Participate to your fullest exent and you will get the points, type and "I agree" and that doesn't cut it.

I didnt have enough time to write in the forum everyday between work and school. Most of the times I simply forgot about it. 

I get a lot more nervous making public posts on-line, because they will be there for more people to see. I'd much rather get up in front of the class and give a speech than post in a forum. Although, I enjoyed reading what other students had to say.

I'm just not good at keeping up with the forums

I did fairly well with the forum posts (even having a little trouble at the start) up until I was too ill to get all of my homework done. That said, I think if I hadn't fallen ill I would have been able to ace or at least get a stronger grade in the forum assignments.

I think the materials were interesting and for the most part relevant, however it wasn't always easy to choose which one to jump in to.

The deadlines made sense within the context of the course and worked around the deadlines of the quizzes. Scoring makes sense as well.

Topics changing each week would be needed, I think, and fit in with the rest of the course. Group size and random groups worked well.

I think it's worth the time and effort, and as I said if I hadn't been sick I likely would have participated a lot more, and I wish I could have.

The only problem I have with this assignment is I would read the material then ponder it for a bit then forgot to make my posts by the time it was required. I always remembered after it was due. The Saturday date always eluded me.

i participated, but it was kind of hard to juggle the forums along with reading and the other assingments i had for other classes.

I liked the different topics we discussed but I wish that they weren't such a large part of the grade.

Keep it going, it was a good way to respond and keep track of the topics that were being posted that needs to be responded too.

I didn't participate as much as I could have in the first and second weeks mostly because of the topics: I didn't find them too terribly interesting, but they were still important to do and worth the time and effort.

NOT an "easy A+" I did not like the forums. I feel they were not graded fairly and I put in a lot of effort. If you feel that a student should get on to the computer everyday to post information on the forum that takes a lot of thought and research than that is your answer on why you do not get a lot of interaction. Most students are working their butt off to pay for school, working full time and trying to get classes done by going to school full time, along with their home lives where they might have children and a husband that they are trying to keep happy. I was not able to post every day I mostly posted two days and I feel I did a good amount of work and recieved D's and even F's. Most students do not just have your class and you ask a lot from students outside of class that is almost impossible. Plus the forums were not relevant to the material and they were very open ended. How do you grade these fairly? Id really like to know.... But terms over and I am just hoping to pass the class. I usually am an A-B student, I guess I just do not agree with your grading. 

I thought that many of the forum topics were interesting and enjoyed discussing the topics with others students. I thought the abundance of materials were very helpful and gave me enough information to provide a thoughtful response. I thought the scoring was fair. 

I completed the forums rather thoroughly. They weren't too fun to me personally because I am not too much of a fan of arguing online, but they were presented well. The topics were interesting and there was a nice supply or source materials. Not real problems, though I felt a lot of pressure to do well. 

I think the issue arrives at them (forums and quizes) being due on Monday, or Tuesday before class, because students simply forget. Maybe if they were due by the end of the day Tuesday, there would be more people doing the assignments on time. I think its because most students, but not all,  need a reminder. (Yes I know their all adults but this is LCC)

The material is interesting and relevant, and there is plenty of materials. I think the issue is just the deadline. Students forget over the weekend for whatever reasons, and remember mid to end of the week, and try to do the "drive by" postings. I don't think there is a way to end drive by postings, but just moving the required first post by 1 day might help out.

Maybe if there was only 2 groups, it might make it easyer for the people who post.

The forum was a great way for me to voice my opinion, I don't like to speak up very much in class so I enjoyed being able to participate online. Although it might sound weird, I wish I could have written a paper to show my knowledge of a subject that way. Tests have always been a struggle for me.

Again, I think the forums are a good tool to make sure all students are at least somewhat engaged in the course material. Especially when all the tests are multiple choice, I think it's important to have students read and really understand the information well enough to write about it and reply to other students' arguments. While I sometimes forgot to post in the forum until the last minute, having the incentive-based post scoring kept me from doing simply the bare minimum.

The forums are an interesting topic. I both love and hate them.

I hate the Tuesday morning deadline for the first post, because I often work on the weekends, and reading a chapter, then soaking up forum material AND trying to post can be a little overwhelming. Usually I do fine, but I feel like sometimes my first post is my worst one if it’s Monday night when I get to it.

The WORST time, for me, is when one forum ends the same weekend another begins. That is a lot! I wish there were a week or at least a class period between forums.

As far as participation, I sometimes feel like the discussions within the forums can get a little repetitive. There doesn’t seem to be any motivation for the average poster to ‘up the ante’. There is a lot of agreement and not much original thought. I wish there were a mechanism to encourage a more lively discussion. I don’t know what that is, other than offering extra credit to the ‘above and beyond’ posts. Every student loooooves extra credit.

My problem was not being able to meet the deadlines. Although I participated, I was not able to put aside much time to read eachother's posts. I blame myself for this, and not the instructions. I believe this is a great tool for students to participate and study more on today's and the past's history.

I think the aspect that I disliked the most was feeling the need to comment on someone else's post. It felt like most of the posts were either really long and vapid or unsubstantial, either way I never felt much like reading them.

I think forums themselves are tricky by nature. The material we were presented and the broadness of the topics sometimes led me off on tangents that I had to stop and refocus my post (aka delete and start over).Yet this is the only way that actual discussion can take place. If the questions are too narrow, everything becomes the same and there is no room for any discussion. The broadness also made it feel like in order to properly answer the questions and articulate my thoughts, I had to write and essay. Anything less than a page could not get it done and was probably reflected in the scoring of the posts. A few of my posts took over 2 hours to complete and the thought of doing it more than once was a bit much for me. So I posted once, took what points I could get and bit the bullet to my grade.

The materials were about a relevant as they could be without being repetative. A bit long for my taste but again, I think it was required for them to be interesting. Changing topics seem natural and I had not even considered them not changing. Changing topics fits too well with the rest of the course's flow. 

For someone like me who only posted once and never looked at it again. It was not worth my time or effort. It was just excess stress. 

The whole group thing was more confusing to me than anything. I was never really sure who was in it or what was going on with the different groups or why it mattered who I was with. 

I think you might underestimate the stress of "simply" getting involved. For me it was the most stressful thing about this class. I am also probably one of the most anti-social creatures ever so I am not suprised at my lack of involvement. 

yes, they were very intresting.

I would prefer one small discussion question in that requires 100 words or twitter it was fun for me, to do the forums I even if I did ether in the last minute.

I think the forums are fairly well designed. Don't have too many suggestions re: their improvement. `

They were fun

Too be completely honest, the forums were nothing but a waste of time and effort.  I participated fully the first week but after that I didnt even bother.  There was no insightful conversations taking place, rather it was people agreeing with someone's original post simply for the sake of earning points.  This took place week after week after week with very few exceptions and I too found myself doing it because i had nothing else to say. This is why i quit participating in the forums

I really enjoyed the forums they got me to think. I wish i could have been more active in the first two, but i was dealing with personal issues where I had no computer access.

The material was interesting and relevent to everything we learned in class. I wouldn't change a thing to be honest.

just having more controversial topics that create a better flow of debate.

Really satisfied. 

 I was satisfied with the textbook and the way the instructor incorprated the textbook into the class time.

The textbook was veyr useful, and I was happy to see that it was incorporated into the lecture. I've had classes where I buy a text for $70-$130, either the professor never covers any of the material in lecture and assumes that the textbook is easy enough to understand, though the all the exams given where made up of information in the textbook (making the lecture time a waste).

Anyway, the textbook was well incorportated into lecture, and it served its purpose well.

I flet the information in the textbook in each chapter could be overwhelming at times. Some of the stuff covered in class went with the textbook, but there was things that wasn't covered and I felt it was irrelevant. I think if there was a way to emphazise what is really important in each chapter would be very helpful.

The textbook is great. A school related book I could read that didn't make me sleepy in 5 minutes :P I do wish it were incorporated in lecture material a bit more.

Its fine. just right.

I think the textbook was a good base to understanding what was said in class, which is where I learned the most.

I thought the incorporation of the textbook was just right and felt okay about buying it. Without it, I don't know how you would teach the bulk of the material. 

I was unsatisfied with the textbook because there was to long of chapters and it was boring.

It was nice to have the textbook so I could read and study the materials somewhere other than school. 

The textbook wasn't laid out very well and could have had more important information up front or easier to spot.

I think the quality of the textbook was high and very readable.

To honest, I didn't like the textbook. I thought somethings were worded poorly and I hated having to read it. Of course it is a textbook, but I've had other history textbooks that were actually kind of interesting to read. I felt that this textbook was very dry and didn't give us the story factor of history that makes people actually like learning about history. I feel like it would have been more fun and easier to remember, if the textbook told it more like a story. The information given was very good and relivent to the class though. Just hard to get into. 

I enjoyed the textbook, although I felt that there was a lot of reading, some of it was not used or needed.

The cost is too high (of course) but it is a great book with much detail.  I am keeping it for my personal library.  I appreciate Joe pointing out the discrepancies, it is important to know what is the truth and what is less than truthful.

The textbook was interesting, but a little confusing on the outline.

I'm not a fan of reading, so 40 pages a week was a little tough for me, but it is really important to make an effort to read. If you don't read the whole thing, I recomend reading the introduction, the conclution, and the sidenotes in the text.

I did'nt have much interest for the text book only because it was difficult for me to read. The text was well incorporated into the class time.

the texxt book was a bit much, very long, filled with unnecessary detail that just bogs it down. Pretty well written though

I really enjoyed our textbook, and found it quite reader friendly. 

I found the text to be very helpful. Especially the intro and conclusions like you have said so many times. I found that you touched up on what the text had to say in class to be just the right amount.

Just right.

I like that Joe does incorporate the book into discussions and lectures. He incorporates a lot of material into his teachings, all very readable and he has a lot of knowledge himself. The chapters are long, but aren't all history books??

The text is easy to read and gives a fair amount of information for a survey course.  I enjoyed it.  I was very pleased with the amount of text incorporated into the lectures; it emphasized key points.

The textbook was a little hard for me only because Joe's lectures were so full of interesting material and this is where the book fell flat.  I found that even though I had read the chapters, nothing really stuck with me until we lecutred on it and Joe's enthusiasm helped to seal the information into my brain.

i dont think it was very useful

I thought the textbook was great! It had a glossary of terms in the back, which I used a just a cue. It really helped me understand what the authors were saying.

Chapters hold a lot of info that the class doesn't cover. 

Text books are always hit and miss, though this one wasn't terrible. Not great, but it's rare to find a text that IS. And there were errors, as was pointed out in class at one point. But it worked fairly well with the quizzes, and the online function allowed for easy searching.

I really liked the way the text was incorporated in the lectures. After the readings you would point out the important stuff we needed to remember.

like most textbooks it was a bit dense, but thats the only way to get information to the students. joe did a good job with his incorperation of the text book with the class.

I was satisfied with the textbook and thought there was enough of it discussed in class.

I was really satisfied with the book, it helped me gain a better perspective of historical events.

This textbook isn't as boring and brutal as some I've read.  

I enjoyed the textbook, but a lot of reading and I did not like that I was suppose to read the textbook before the lecture. Most of the time we were a little behind and It was confusing. I think the quizzes should be on Friday or even Sunday for the chapter we were doing that week in class, that way we could take what you said and the information from the book and put it together to easily answer the questions. 

The text chapters were sometimes long and dense. The readings are easy, but the length is sometimes a burden. I think the instructor incorporated the book perfectly. It focused on the relevant points and events rather than overcrowding the teaching with throwaway information provided by the text. 

Textbook was fine. It had it's information in nice little headlines, which made finding information easy. It wasn't too hard to read and had decent pictures to break up the mass of text.

Text book sometimes sounds preachy. Otherwise its not bad. And the instructor points out the books conflicts with other historical stats or other views.

The textbook chapters are dense, but important to read forthe class. The class is a review of the reading.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the textbook for this class, it was well-written and interesting. That being said, some weeks I could get by without reading it and it comes in handy most for cramming for the exams. Since the chapters are long and not all the information is covered on quizes/tests, I felt comfortable skimming or even skipping parts. I often would use the timelines and conclusion for summaries of the time's events.

I liked the book, although sometimes the chapters were full of names. It's hard to sift through all the name dropping when the instructor doesn't teach towards that. I wish there were a better book that reflected Escobar's style more.

I think the way the insctructor used the textbook in his lectures was just right. They both went back to back during lecture hours and were used greatly. 

I did really enjoy reading the textbook, it's written succinctly in a way that's not overwhelming. That being said there were some errors both in the book and certainly in the quiz material.

The textbook was pretty good. Some of the chapters felt a bit disorganized. I honetly only used it for the quizzes. Never opened it otherwise. There were a lot of unused chapters for this course but I think that is not something that can be fixed simply. 

Also, I dont think anyone feels good about buying textbooks. 

i was really satisfied with the text, i was already use to the text becuse i used it last year in my us history ap classes

I found mself bored reading the text book. I'm not much of a reader but it had really interesting data that made it easy for me to accomplish the quiz As it broke it down in sections.

The textbook is well-written, if sometimes dense. 

Textbook was ok. Somewhat boring

The textbook was terrible. Although it had good introductions and conclusions to each chapter, the majority of its contents were boring, and it didnt do the best job of focusing on the really important aspects of each time period

The textbook was pretty good, I'm glad a purchased it. It was a good read.

I think the textbook provides a sufficent amout of information, I also like how the instructor will call the text into question on some things. Also its helpful that he uses it in all three HST 201,202,203.

I would say that they should because it is a really good class.

 take  the class. you'll learn a lot.

I'd say take this class, do your work, don't slack off, and don't be a whiney bitch because no one likes a whiney bitch. If you do as I say, you'll enjoy yourself and learn a lot.

I would say take it! I like the humor and the insightfulness from the instructor. Asking for help during office hours is also a plus, because he makes it very easy to approach him. I also liked the pictures from the different places that he visited that went with some of the lectures.

If you're computer based as I am, this class is a perfect fit for you. If not, I would find a non-hybrid course. And be prepared to take lots of notes!

Best class ever. Never boring. 

I have already recommended it.  I learned quite a bit with a teacher who was fair, entertaining, and for lack of a better word real.

I would tell them that Escobar knows his stuff and you will learn but if you don't have reliable internet of if you don't like forums, then this might not be the class for you. 

I would say yes because Mr. Escobar is a creative teacher. He enjoys teaching the subject and has personally been to many places that he loves to talk about.

Absolutely, you can tell this guy has passion for what he does. It makes for a great learning atmosphere.

I'd say yes, he's an amazing instructor with great in-class videos and a sense of humor to boot!

I would say to take this course. The instructor is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic which makes for a great classroom experience.

You have to know some history and understand politics going in. You need to look online everyday to see if something is due. Do all of the work! Use the study guide. 

I think the instructor did a very good job of getting information to the students, including pictures and videos. The instructor was interested and knowledgeable in the subject. This class is definitely one that takes a lot of focus, attention and study time!

Unabashed YES!  Plese take Joes class, there is nothing like it.  No offense to the other history teachers (of which I have had a few) but this is the shit!  Oops, sorry, didn't mean to insult or offend....

Go Joe!  Go History!

Yes. His promotes thought instead of mindless partisan biases. L

I would say that the instructor is very knowledgeable in the subject, he is enthusiastic, but most important, in my opinion, he is not bias.

i would recomend this class to anyone.

If you could get him in not a hybrid course DO IT, if you must have the hybrid course do it. (note no caps)

I would recommend this course,  and this professor for he is a good teacher. Although I feel he portrays a conservative bias on many topics, particularly in his examples, namely the 'bag ban' issue he frequently detests, etc. 

Yes take it. His lectures include videos to keep you interested and to veer from "death by powerpoint." The online hw makes it very convenient. 

Yes, absolutely. 

If you have any interest in history I would definitely recommend Joe and his history classes. I have taken two of his classes and have actually retained and discussed topics I have learned with him, outside of school. He makes it interesting, relative, personal, and possible to do well in his class. I think history tests are difficult, sue to the amount of names, parties, acts, bills, etc, etc, but I was able to get an A and hopefully a B due to the other activities offered(ie: online forums, quizes, etc).

I will and have recommend this course and instructor.  I would tell that person that it is the most professional course that I have taken at LCC and enjoyable.

If you're willing to give the time, so is Joe.  Be prepared to discuss on what you watch and be willing to get passionate about history.

The instructor is great but there is way too much busy work. (Forums)

I found Mr. Escobar to be a wonderful instructor. He definitely knows what he's talking about each week. I see myself taking another one of his classes in the future.

Yes. 

I've already recommended this class to my sister who is starting Lane next time. I would recommend Joe far more than I would recommend any other teacher.

I don't like history but while I am in your class I  was all into it. I have recommended your class to others.

do it, you'll learn a lot, and he cares about what he does.

I would encourage them to take this class.

I would say do it, the instructor is very knowledgable and gets down to the key points of historical events that and student should know.

I think that I would recommend this class/instructor, because I didn't see anything wrong with his teaching style or the course material.

The instructor was great inclass but the class was not enjoyable outside of class. Teacher does a great job of explanning the information but forums are a waste of time and make a large reflection  on your grade. Im not sure how he grades the forums but I do not think he does it fairly and expects way too much from post on forums. 

I would say that the instructor is extremely organized and passionate. He cares about his work and the success of his students. 

I would recommend this course. Assuming the student is willing to put in the effort, you should do well in this class. The teacher is a little intimidating sometimes, friendly and helpful. I don't think it would take much to pass this class if you try to, there were plenty of resources and interesting classes.

I would says yes, take the class. This class isn't ridiculously hard, and its still challenging enough to learn the facts. I would only recommend it to people who would actualy show up every day to class.

He's interesting, uses modern references, has real knowledge of the subject and is passionate about it. I very much enjoyed this term.

I would tell them to take it without a doubt. Escobar makes the experience of learning history interesting, relevant, and oftentimes funny! It is of course important to be comfortable on a computer for this course, so some older students might not enjoy that aspect. Basic internet research skills are nice to have. You could get by without the textbook if you really studied for all the quizes and took good notes in class. Take this class.

I STILL tell all of my friends to take this class. I should get paid for the advertisement. Mostly I bring up the class while discussing current events. It's nice to be able to look back on history to frame a discussion. It still seems relevant.

I would tell them to go for it! This course is well organized, and it is not easy, definitley a challenge. But thats how every college course should be. The instructor gives you enough tools for you to become knowledgeable in the subject. 

I would absolutely recommend this class to any and all who would listen!

I would tell them that I hope they are good at keeping up. The course is merciless with its pace and unforgiving with grades. But if they can handle the work, it is probably one of the better classes at lane. I only did ok because I am kinda a slacker.

yes, its  good class, the teacher is great its just a lot of work an keep up with it.

Simple, take this course " he knows he's material".

I give a full-throated recomendation to Mr. Escobar. History can be extremely dull in a class taught by a dispassionate, ungifted instructer. Mr. Escobar is neither of these. He knows how to energize a subject that, for many (including me, before I took his class), can be inert. Take History. Take it from Mr. Escobar. Thank me later. 

Yes. Great instructor

I would say no because I found this class to be very boring and i didnt like how focused it was on the political spectrum.  

He likes to use comedy videos in class, that's a plus.

yes definitly! make sure you attend class and get the book, also forums are very important, do them!

None that I can think of. 

It's a good class to take.

Good class, good use of time, reccomend it highly to anyone willing to pull their weight in class.

I liked the hybrid class and wish there was more classes like this with instructors that made it fun. I never really liked history until I took this course and look forward to taking another class with this instructor online or in class.

I wish it were possible to take this as a 5 credit class. So that we could have the 2 hour classes AND some online material. I feel like my understanding of this last century is much better (teachers never got past WWI in high school), but a little rushed.

nothing

Side note for question 18- my computer broke last week and I have been having to borrow and bum my internet devices.  I'm sure for what you are saying though a cell phone would probably work. 

I would say overall an enjoyable class and I learned a lot. Not the biggest fan of the forums but then again, I'm one of the "shy" students. 

no there is nothing else.

Great course great teacher. Nough said!

I thought that it was a good class, it moved forward a bit too fast for my liking and focused too much on the politics but otherwise was a good class.

none that i can think of

I think my only real concern is the length of the exams. I felt that the exam was much too long, making it very difficult to do well for people who have busy lives outside of school.

The only question I can think of would be; If you didn't like this class for ANY reason other than what I have posted above, please tell me.  Be honest, I need to know what you think in order to make the class as good as it can be.

No

This is a good class, its even better if you enjoy history.

none

there are other ways to utilize the forums that would encourage disscusion and deep thought

I don't think you asked what the students thought of the forum questions themselves. To which I would say, they were interesting but could have been better. We could have discussed the impacts of privatization or the GMO issue for example, instead of 'environmentalism as a religion' which is a pointless debate if you ask me. Whereas the GMO debate is actually really critical and effects everyone's lives whether they agree or not. 

Just a thought, to challenge students more you could raise the passing score for the weekly quizzes to be higher. Like 70 percent or 80 percent.

I like the information I got from this class.

It was a thorough questionairre.

This class really is worth it, great material backed by an enthusiastic and knowledgable teacher.  Highly Recommend and will be back for more.

anti-forums

Thank you for being such an awesome instructor! I hope we meet again someday.

No comment

I really enjoyed this class, and I'm very happy that I was able to take it!

I loved being in this class. I learned more from you classes on history than any others.

very enjoyable class, cant wait for the next one.

No questions, just really enjoyed the class and looking forward to taking history 201 with the same instructor to help finish up my history major before I transfer to the U of O for Law school.

Nope the questionaire pretty much covered everything I had to say.

Go back to a traditional course. Less online more inclass because that is where you are the best. 

I have no other questions

I think it would have been interesting to be able to vote for or suggest forum topics instead of being assigned them. Also trying to help the class know each other might improve it a little, it was interesting but didn't have any feeling of being a class, just listening to a lecture.

None.

N/A

I can't think of anything. I think a well-formatted hybrid class like this incorporates the best of both online and in-person learning. There is a still a professor available for questions and discussion and yet the online aspect allows students to keep up with class material and discussion even when not in class. Keep up the good work, Mr. Escobar, see you next semester!

I know you want to have all of your students bringing the internet to class, and I think that in a perfect world, it could be wonderful. But, from a student that has taken 3 terms of this class and usually sits near the back, it's a bad idea.

This term I just started bringing my laptop, and it's AWESOME. But you would have lost me as an eager student in the fall if you had required a laptop.

Also, from the back of the room, I can tell you that I get a pretty good look at the other computer screens and device screens in the class, and most of them are texting, playing games, or on Facebook.

I'm sorry Joe, but the mediocraty of social networking wins. It somedays even gets me, and I find myself itching to check my email in class, rather than focus on the lecture.

n/a

Regarding the previous question, I find it kind of shocking that you would try to teach a class in which you would require students to bring a laptop or tablet. Don't get me wrong, I love technology and I would have been able to bring both to class, but instituting time in class for people to spend on computers? Seems like computing is anti-social and not condusive to learning in a classroom. Although, if anyone could pull it off I bet it'd be you.

Just a few notes...

On question 3 of this servey, there is not an option for 0 time spent outside of class. 

It would be nice if the forums were reviewable even after they were closed to posting. I am sure some people were having good discussions so I think that they might like to see any final discussion posts that people made. 

It might be interesting to ask students what grade they BELIEVE they earned in this class.

Loved seeing stuff from the videos again in class. They were almost like inside jokes.

Class time was always good. I was never really tired of listening so time passed fast. 

keeo on the work.

???

I loved this class. Definitely thinking about taking the first class in the series during fall term. Thanks for a great term!

Nothing

no

worth my time.