What’s the best or worst class you’ve taken at UofT?

Four students reflect on their experiences 

My worst class at the University of Toronto was a breadth course I took in first year. It was an Introductory Geology course, and at first, I was excited. Little did I know, the rocks we were learning about were the rocks making up the gateway to a new misery. The course started with misinformation when the professor incorrectly stated that covalent bonds between atoms are stronger than ionic bonds. As anyone who has ever glanced at a chemistry textbook will know, this is false. I had hoped it was just a slip of the tongue, but no—this falsehood was also stated on the presentation slide and included on the midterm. The torture continued past the first lecture. The professor spoke very slowly, often pausing for ten seconds or more between phrases, in a sleepy, high-pitched voice. This was exceedingly unideal for an evening class. At the end of the semester, each student had to create a poster about one of four geological topics. In the lengthy 27-page instructional booklet for the poster, we were told to include a thousand words of text about our topic, but to make sure not to make it “too wordy”! All 500 of us spent our last class standing around in the Bahen Centre for four hours while waiting for one of five TAs to come and give us their preliminary thoughts—mostly that we should have used more pictures. All in all, a 2/10 experience.  

–Valentine, Second-Year Student

There are more than a few candidates for the best class I’ve taken at UofT. A great class should do a couple of things: it changes the way you look at a certain topic that interests you, and it crystallizes your ideas about a subject into something tangible. The knowledge you gain from the course should allow you to further your educational trajectory in any direction you choose. I have taken several such transformative courses. ENG341 (Post-Modern Drama) with Professor Matthew Sergi gave me a greater appreciation of artists and the important role that English students play in our world. CSB430 (Neurogenesis) is a biology seminar that offers a fascinating look into a mercurial field, and Professor Vince Tropepe’s course content is always relevant. However, the one course that has stuck with me the most is EEB266—Invertebrate Diversity, now taught by Professor Sebastian Kvist (previously taught by Professor David Zamparo). A survey course that rewards scientific curiosity like no other, it offers you a look into 19 phyla of life (at last count), some more alien than you can imagine, often presented with live examples. It’s a rigorous course, but the material is immensely captivating. EEB266 throws you weird, wonderful, and scientifically-relevant facts and teaches you more during a single day than you might get in a semester of taking four other courses. Although it may seem morbid, I will never forget the day that Professor Zamparo brought in and dissected a huge starfish. In my mind, I place it alongside the wonder-like occasions when I discovered a snail in my grandparents’ garden, and when I first saw neurons under a microscope: foundational moments in my love of science. If there is ever a course that will reawaken your childhood sense of discovery, it will be Invertebrate Diversity. 

 –Arjun, Fifth-Year Student 

What’s worse than needing to buy an iClicker and textbook for a class in Convocation Hall, one that you’re only using for a breadth requirement and that you may have to CR/NCR? Nothing is worse. For AST201, I bought a used and faulty iClicker for 10 dollars, I did not end up buying the overpriced textbook, and I did in fact end up CR/NCRing the class. I’ll be honest, I had no clue what was going on in this class even though it’s supposed to be an easy GPA booster. I thought I was doing pretty well in the first two weeks, but then everything quickly fell apart. The forced attendance twice a week, the painstaking tutorials, the online quizzes that were based on the textbook I didn’t buy, and the strange mix of individuals in the class made me regret doing this to myself. The term project that I submitted was a two-minute podcast on “The Discourse of the Supernovas,” and the only thing that I vaguely remember including is the twin theory and multiple references to Interstellar (2014). I even went to a Bon Jovi concert the night before the exam (and had the best time) and I probably scored a 9 percent overall. I did, however, manage to pass the class and get my math credit over with. My advice is to just do AST101 or literally anything else.

–Nickolas, Fourth-Year Student

The best class I’ve taken at UofT is probably CRI364: Indigenous Peoples & Criminal Justice with Professor Kerry Taylor, who is my favourite professor in the Criminology department. The 60- or 70-person class was held in OISE, and she had us sit in a giant circle in our rolling chairs as we got to know each other during the first class. She fostered an intimate environment for the large class size. We talked through some concepts like colonialism and what we think the law is, and without giving us specific answers, Professor Taylor then announced that the last part of our class was going to be a mini fieldtrip. We proceeded to Philosopher’s Walk and arrived at the amphitheater area with stone seating, where Professor Taylor read us the opening chapter of John Borrow’s book “Recovering Canada.” He talks about the time when his office was in the nearby UofT Faculty of Law building, about Philosopher’s Walk, and about how the walkway used to be a river (it’s currently buried underneath the pathway). The chapter talked about the way the land has been and continues to be important, and listening to Professor Taylor read this while we were sitting on the land was an incredible way to start off the semester. It felt really good to be in a classroom where the professor was so uniquely compassionate.

–Jayde, Fourth-Year Student