AM IND M10
Introduction to American Indian Studies
Description: (Same as World Arts and Cultures M23.) Lecture, three hours; discussion, one hour; activity, one hour. Survey of selected Native North American cultures from pre-Western contact to contemporary period, with particular emphasis on early cultural diversity and diverse patterns of political, linguistic, social, legal, and cultural change in postcontact period. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2019 - If you're searching for the easiest GE on campus, then you're looking in the right place. Class grade is based on participation (if you draw breath you'll get 100%), 2 papers (first one they gave everyone 100%), a midterm (multiple choice section is open-note and take home section is jokes), and a final (also open-note). If that sounds like a bad time, that's okay because college isn't for everyone. But, if what you desire is an A+ in a 5 unit class and a bunch of time to beat your meat in lecture, then you know what to do!
Fall 2019 - If you're searching for the easiest GE on campus, then you're looking in the right place. Class grade is based on participation (if you draw breath you'll get 100%), 2 papers (first one they gave everyone 100%), a midterm (multiple choice section is open-note and take home section is jokes), and a final (also open-note). If that sounds like a bad time, that's okay because college isn't for everyone. But, if what you desire is an A+ in a 5 unit class and a bunch of time to beat your meat in lecture, then you know what to do!
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2025 - As this is my first quarter after transferring to UCLA, I was super concerned about my grades and adjusting to a large university like UCLA, especially given the fast-paced quarter system. Fortunately, I was able to enroll in this class. Dr. Mays is an excellent professor who possesses a deep knowledge of the subject, which is very personal to him. He is down-to-earth, and I appreciate that he doesn't have the Hotep attitude that some professors in African American Studies may exhibit. The course content is very manageable, and if you have previously taken an African American Studies or Indigenous Studies class, you should find this class a breeze! Good luck, yall!
Fall 2025 - As this is my first quarter after transferring to UCLA, I was super concerned about my grades and adjusting to a large university like UCLA, especially given the fast-paced quarter system. Fortunately, I was able to enroll in this class. Dr. Mays is an excellent professor who possesses a deep knowledge of the subject, which is very personal to him. He is down-to-earth, and I appreciate that he doesn't have the Hotep attitude that some professors in African American Studies may exhibit. The course content is very manageable, and if you have previously taken an African American Studies or Indigenous Studies class, you should find this class a breeze! Good luck, yall!
Most Helpful Review
Winter 2019 - I enjoy the class. It taught me a lot about American Indians. I am selling the course reader for $85. It is extremely useful for writing the exams and essays because you are required to cite a certain number of sources from the texts. Please contact me at ********** if you are interested.
Winter 2019 - I enjoy the class. It taught me a lot about American Indians. I am selling the course reader for $85. It is extremely useful for writing the exams and essays because you are required to cite a certain number of sources from the texts. Please contact me at ********** if you are interested.
Most Helpful Review
Course Taken: American Indian Studies M10/World Arts and Culture M23 Overall Professor Reifel was very helpful and understanding. This class is taught solely by guest lectures and she adds her insight in at the very end (usually a 1 minute statement); although she did conduct the last lecture. Class Breakdown: Lecture Quizzes: You are assigned a short quiz on the course website – usually 4-5 multiple choice/true or false/fill in the blank/short answer questions (mostly multiple choice) questions. The quiz is based off of the readings before each lecture. They are easy. They are graded on a very unique curve that essentially guarantees you an A on them. You are given until the beginning of lecture to take the quiz. Lecture/Essays: Each lecture is based off of a different topic in American Indian Studies. At the end of the set period you are assigned an essay and are to find and discuss the common theme of the series of lectures. These are your only major assignments in the class; you have 3 essays during the quarter. For the last essay we were given the option of doing whatever format we wanted. It had to be in a 3-6 page format. It was really creative. I made a syllabus and got 100% on it! The other essays are graded solely off the way your TA grades and the grading rubric. Discussion: You have weekly discussion with your TA. I had Lawrence Mojado – he was really cool and very helpful. Discussion is mandatory and attendance is taken. This counts as 60 points towards your grade. Grade Breakdown: Quizzes: 34 points (2 points per quiz and you take 17 of them) Papers: 126 points (First 2 essays are 43 points and the last is 40 points) Discussion: 60 points (Just show up to discussion and earn these easy points!!) Total: 220 maximum points Overall the class was very simple. I missed majority of the lectures but it helped that they were podcasted; especially when it came to writing the papers. Honestly lecture is pointless unless you are interested in that week’s topic or the topic as a whole. I would recommend this class to anyone because it is very simple and the professor genuinely wants you to do well. Final Grade: A! 208/220 (missed points on the first 2 essays and aced everything else)
Course Taken: American Indian Studies M10/World Arts and Culture M23 Overall Professor Reifel was very helpful and understanding. This class is taught solely by guest lectures and she adds her insight in at the very end (usually a 1 minute statement); although she did conduct the last lecture. Class Breakdown: Lecture Quizzes: You are assigned a short quiz on the course website – usually 4-5 multiple choice/true or false/fill in the blank/short answer questions (mostly multiple choice) questions. The quiz is based off of the readings before each lecture. They are easy. They are graded on a very unique curve that essentially guarantees you an A on them. You are given until the beginning of lecture to take the quiz. Lecture/Essays: Each lecture is based off of a different topic in American Indian Studies. At the end of the set period you are assigned an essay and are to find and discuss the common theme of the series of lectures. These are your only major assignments in the class; you have 3 essays during the quarter. For the last essay we were given the option of doing whatever format we wanted. It had to be in a 3-6 page format. It was really creative. I made a syllabus and got 100% on it! The other essays are graded solely off the way your TA grades and the grading rubric. Discussion: You have weekly discussion with your TA. I had Lawrence Mojado – he was really cool and very helpful. Discussion is mandatory and attendance is taken. This counts as 60 points towards your grade. Grade Breakdown: Quizzes: 34 points (2 points per quiz and you take 17 of them) Papers: 126 points (First 2 essays are 43 points and the last is 40 points) Discussion: 60 points (Just show up to discussion and earn these easy points!!) Total: 220 maximum points Overall the class was very simple. I missed majority of the lectures but it helped that they were podcasted; especially when it came to writing the papers. Honestly lecture is pointless unless you are interested in that week’s topic or the topic as a whole. I would recommend this class to anyone because it is very simple and the professor genuinely wants you to do well. Final Grade: A! 208/220 (missed points on the first 2 essays and aced everything else)
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Most Helpful Review
Fall 2025 - I have mixed feelings about this class. I thought the readings were incredible-- interesting, well-rounded, and exploring a beautiful variety of different aspects of Native American life/studies. I also really liked the concept of our 'big' essay for the quarter-- asking you to examine how your perceptions/misperceptions of Indigeneity affected some aspect of how you see the world, and to tie in some of our readings. That said, it felt like most of what I gained out of this class was self-taught. I really appreciated the resources she was able to guide us toward (and enjoyed our one guest speaker), but her lectures were largely rambling about whatever she wanted to talk about; she had sort of a grandmotherly vibe, never answering questions directly, or really talking about the established topic at hand, but still somewhat interesting and endearing... nice, but not the best for a class. I stopped going to lecture eventually because it felt so irrelevant to my learning. I did well on the quizzes, but I can see how they'd be very frustrating, as they often referred to niche and surface-level material instead of trying to actually assess your understanding of concepts. It felt a little like it was trying to trick you, at times. Anyway, I enjoyed the class, but if you're not already interested in the topic and willing to do a good amount of reading & your own analysis, you probably won't gain much. If you just want an easy GE, look elsewhere, and if you care about lectures being thoughtful & helpful, also look elsewhere lol. I liked the readings and the essay and not much else. Delisle is sweet, but not a great teacher.
Fall 2025 - I have mixed feelings about this class. I thought the readings were incredible-- interesting, well-rounded, and exploring a beautiful variety of different aspects of Native American life/studies. I also really liked the concept of our 'big' essay for the quarter-- asking you to examine how your perceptions/misperceptions of Indigeneity affected some aspect of how you see the world, and to tie in some of our readings. That said, it felt like most of what I gained out of this class was self-taught. I really appreciated the resources she was able to guide us toward (and enjoyed our one guest speaker), but her lectures were largely rambling about whatever she wanted to talk about; she had sort of a grandmotherly vibe, never answering questions directly, or really talking about the established topic at hand, but still somewhat interesting and endearing... nice, but not the best for a class. I stopped going to lecture eventually because it felt so irrelevant to my learning. I did well on the quizzes, but I can see how they'd be very frustrating, as they often referred to niche and surface-level material instead of trying to actually assess your understanding of concepts. It felt a little like it was trying to trick you, at times. Anyway, I enjoyed the class, but if you're not already interested in the topic and willing to do a good amount of reading & your own analysis, you probably won't gain much. If you just want an easy GE, look elsewhere, and if you care about lectures being thoughtful & helpful, also look elsewhere lol. I liked the readings and the essay and not much else. Delisle is sweet, but not a great teacher.
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