Speer can be a little annoying with how repetitive his lectures are. Still, the class itself is super easy and I found that his repetition actually turned out to be really helpful because hearing the same information multiple times helped drill it into my mind. He might come across as a bit condescending at first, but as the class goes on you'll see that he cares a lot about his students' success and does his best to provide helpful resources and give advice for exams and the paper in lectures. The tests were super easy and don't even really require that much studying as long as you attended the lectures. The final 10-page research paper was the most crucial part of the class and although it's tough, you get to choose your own topic and they didn't grade it that harshly. Overall, a really good class for the methods requirement especially if you're scared of the other more math-heavy options.

Speer taught Sociology 185 based on inequalities within American society. We were graded on homework assignments (T.A. checks them for completion in discussion section), participation in discussion section (we go over the homework assignments), a research paper (literature review), then a midterm and final, and course evals. The homework assignments are timely to do since we are given around 50+ pages to read a week, but they are helpful for the tests to study. The midterm/final are fair and easy if you study. Lecture can get borings at times but overall were clear. Ultimately I believe this is a class everyone should take because it really does open your eyes to the inequalities within American society. I'd say it is fairly an easy class just as long as you stay engaged, attend lecture, and study.

Professor Speer is a great professor here at UCLA. In this class we are graded on participation in discussion section, homework assignments that are graded based off of completion in discussion section, midterm and final, a paper, and course evaluations. Professors Speer teaches with lecture slides that were clear and helpful but also he was great at making the complicated theories easier to understand. The homework assignments were dense and time consuming, but completing them and doing the readings for them are really helpful for studying for the midterm/final. With the midterm/final they are easy if you study and he does not try to trick you on them. Ultimately, this class is easy to pass as long as you keep up with lectures, homework assignments and study!

Note: Professor Speer does not record lectures so going to them is very important to understand the material!

Speer is a great professor, who clearly cares about his students. The structure of the class is meant to help students truly learn, and this topic was incredibly though provoking. I can confidently say that I left the course with a greater understanding of race and ethnicity relations in the United States, both from a historic and current perspective. The class has a midterm and a final, which are typically multiple choice and short answer responses. There is also a 6-8 page essay. Speer is very easy to understand, and does a good job explaining concepts. This was my first class with Speer, and I already plan to take a few more classes with him during my time at UCLA.

I came into the class with a degree of indifference and feel as though I came out the same way. Very reasonable coursework with the easiest exams I have taken since high school. Professor Speer is extremely passionate about what he elects to discuss but that occasionally leads to tangential narratives that have less relevance to the coursework. In short, Sociology 1 with Professor Speer is a solid, well-around course.

Great class to meet your Soc requirements. His class is very structured and organized, assignments and expectations are clear, and he does care about student's success. In my opinion, his lectures are not very engaging and because attendance to lecture wasn't mandatory, not a lot of people always showed up. The readings he assigns are interesting and connect well with class material. He gives a lot of time to work on the research paper and we had a midterm and final. MC questions and a short written response. I could have been a more productive student, going to class every week, taking better notes, studying more, but I still was able to get an A-. Also, the TAs are so helpful, shoutout to Rohan!

Very manageable if you do some light studying before exams and participate in discussion sections. Doing homework well is also helpful even though it's only graded for completion.

Very very easy and the content was somewhat interesting/applicable. Average on the midterm/final (in-person) was literally like a 95%. Mandatory weekly discussions.

One of the sociology department's gems. I don't understand the slander of the review below mine because this class was so standout to me. Not only are Professor Speer's expectations clear, but the structure of his class is very fair. If you work hard, it pays off. If you slack off, don't expect a good grade. I think that should go for any class at UCLA, although it doesn't always, as so many classes don't feel that your work actually translates to your overall grade. I also appreciated how he didn't let students use the restroom during the final, mandated masks/pushed for testing, and even provided pencils if we forgot them...can't say my other professors have been as applaudable with any of that. He was also very responsive via email and was always available to provide feedback or help where needed. His class was very interesting. I would definitely recommend any of his classes and look forward to taking more with him in the future.

Very boring lecturer so it’s hard to stay engaged. Doesn’t give back grades on research paper, final, and other until minutes before the deadline, long after class is finished. TAs weren’t consistent with grading. This was a non math methods course but if it weren’t for that, I would stay away from this professor