Jeffrey Trask

I thought that this class was challenging but interesting. Trask had high expectations of preparedness for class as well as the writing assignments. He was also very interested and informed with regards to the subjects being discussed but didn't run discussion. It really was a venue to discuss many aspects of the readings and their significance to cities. He was insistent on meetings with all of us about our research papers but it was a good thing because i always came out of them feeling like i needed to work on it which kept me on pace to get it done. They were also helpful with regards to where to find good sources and what he was looking for. All in all, the class was worth the time I put into it.

Mr. Trask's class was certainly not enjoyable, nor do I feel I learned much, but overall, it was an easy A (and the whole thing could've been worse). His class discussions were often frustrating and boring, but they certainly weren't difficult-- you could easily get away with sitting in a corner silently for most of class, perhaps spouting off a few lines of BS if absolutely neccessary (I do think, however, he boosted the grades of those students who participated readily in discussion). He was very anal about getting the early class assignments in on time; in fact, he was quite rude about them. His attitude was often difficult to endure, but if you can manage to maintain your composure, he generally settles down and behaves. He really got into our class' research paper; he even took us on a field trip that was fairly enjoyable. Despite his poor assignments, which were generally vague, not offering the student much direction, he was a fair grader. Although he was not very nice about coming in outside of his office hours (if you have another class at that time), if you did manage to meet with him frequently, he would help you with your paper and, as a result, give you a higher grade. In short, endure him with grace, play his games, and your experience will be bearable...

He takes his job very seriously. Unfortunately he also has no sense of humor. He comes up with complicated exercises, doesn't explain them well, then gets frustrated when no one understands what we are supposed to do. Because of this class discussions could be frustrating. On the other hand, he was available during his office hours and flexible about other meeting times. He is very willing to help and provides useful insights during one on one meetings, unlike in class time. He also took the class on a fun field trip. He gets overly excited about the library and his doctorate, but his enthusiasm can be sort of endearing.

I'm completely appalled by these ridiculous reviews of Mr. Trask and I think I may know where the bitterness comes from. Basically, Trask wanted to and did challenge the class. He came into the classroom with certain reasonable expectations and made a point of challenging our thinking ability. Sitting in the class was difficult because my classmates blamed Trask for their own failings or inablitiy to get the jist of the discussion, as if they expected him to pamper them. Whiny, whiny, whiny. I remember once defending Trask's honour. I'm not saying that conversations with Trask were completely lucid. There were definitely times when the problems with my writing were not extremely clear. However, that's what being a student is about... Taking it upon yourself to learn. Also, if you want to, you'll learn a lot. And you will see that your writing becomes more thoughtful and interesting. --- Hardcore Student

I HATED this class and I HATED Jeff even more. This class was a complete waste of time, and not only did I not learn anything, but I am pretty sure that my writing abilities severely deteriorated by the end of this class. We spent the actual classtime just being very confused about what the assignment he gave us meant...and I think he was more confused than we were. I don't think this was the point of this class. He spent absolutely no time actually teaching us how to write. All we did was sit and complain, virtually at the point of tears. I think almost everyone in the class disliked him. And he could be very mean sometimes too Thank God this class was only one semester, because I got very close to hating Columbia just from taking this class. It was the worst experience of my life.

Okay, the thing about Jeffie... well, the first reviewer, by telling us he was the WORSE teacher she'd ever had... vs what I believe is the common spelling convention of WORST, but who's counting, after all we both went through the meat grinder known as L & R. Jeffie tries hard and sometimes he wears wacky bright orange checked shirts to class and man capris (warning you now so that you won't laugh out loud when he finally does...) but he is just a cog in the great mess of Logic and Rhetoric. I came to Columbia totally pumped about the Core, like a little nerd, but I was utterly disillusioned by L & R. Classes disintegrated into bitch sessions about Jeffie's essay topics- and I have to admit they were ridiculous and sophomoric- ie describe an object that functions as a symbol for yourself- and rarely focused on ... good god, WRITING. He is also a tough grader who seems to be rather arbitrary in his toughness. And in his defense, he tried very earnestly to help me when i went to his office hours, telling him that my writing style had plateaued and i needed help. But then he did give me a look like I had asked him for hula dancing lessons. So if you can take the heat, just stick around. There are harsher graders out there, believe me. Probably you will learn more about writing from your Lit Hum class. Just don't get me started on my Lit Hum teacher......

Wow. I totally agree with the other reviewer on this one. I had Jeffie for L&R and I considered it to be one of the most painful experiences of my young life. He's not a bad person per se, he just can't teach, he's very difficult to talk to, very difficult to get in touch with, and his grading style just can't be figured out. I swear the less you try in this class, generally the better you do. His handwriting is difficult to read, but once in a while his comments are insighful if you can get through them. In general, though, if you improve throughout the semester(which some consider an inpossible feat), he'll give you the benefit of the doubt and your grade will be on the higher end of what you thought it would be.

WORSE class I took in Columbia. For the amount of tuition you pay you would expect Columbia to have decent teachers.....this class proved me wrong. I went for EVERY class and turned in every piece of work on time but learnt nothing. I went for his office hours and all he did was mumble about how he didn't like my writing style but couldn't really tell me why. I know L and R can be boring, but this kid, Trask, takes it to extremes. He made some attempt to facillitate conversation in class but success was minimal. To get a good grade in this class you would have to be Shakespeare's clone, even then you might get a B- for stylistic errors.

Moderate/standard for a UniW class. For the first two "progressions," long readings and irritating short essay assignments for each class. No midterm or final, but one long research paper as the final "progression."

Way too many papers compared to other sections, and a lot of them were on stupid topics or focused on American history (which is what Jeff is getting his Ph.D. in). We could meet with him to discuss a paper, and he would tell us what he thought was wrong and needed fixing, and we would follow his suggestions, and then recieve an even lower grade on the revision...and he could never explain why. Most of the time, the grades seemed completely arbitrary. I could get a B+ on one paper and a C on another...but the comments he had were the same on both. It just didnt make any sense the way he graded us. . The midterm and final were ok...much less confusing than the weekly paper topics.