Karen E Rowe
Department of English
AD
2.7
Overall Rating
Based on 23 Users
Easiness 1.7 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.3 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 2.0 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.7 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

  • Engaging Lectures
  • Appropriately Priced Materials
  • Snazzy Dresser
  • Often Funny
  • Participation Matters
  • Would Take Again
  • Issues PTEs
GRADE DISTRIBUTIONS
23.5%
19.6%
15.7%
11.8%
7.8%
3.9%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

39.1%
32.6%
26.1%
19.6%
13.0%
6.5%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

23.8%
19.8%
15.9%
11.9%
7.9%
4.0%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

22.2%
18.5%
14.8%
11.1%
7.4%
3.7%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

20.0%
16.7%
13.3%
10.0%
6.7%
3.3%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

26.9%
22.4%
17.9%
13.5%
9.0%
4.5%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

26.1%
21.7%
17.4%
13.0%
8.7%
4.3%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

25.0%
20.8%
16.7%
12.5%
8.3%
4.2%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

29.2%
24.3%
19.4%
14.6%
9.7%
4.9%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

33.3%
27.8%
22.2%
16.7%
11.1%
5.6%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

30.4%
25.3%
20.2%
15.2%
10.1%
5.1%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

28.6%
23.8%
19.0%
14.3%
9.5%
4.8%
0.0%
A+
A
A-
B+
B
B-
C+
C
C-
D+
D
D-
F

Grade distributions are collected using data from the UCLA Registrar’s Office.

ENROLLMENT DISTRIBUTIONS
Clear marks

Sorry, no enrollment data is available.

AD

Reviews (8)

1 of 1
1 of 1
Add your review...
Quarter: Fall 2019
Grade: A-
Sept. 19, 2020

I loved this class, probably my favorite English class I've taken. Rowe is a brutally honest professor but because of that, she has changed my writing forever. I am constantly inspired by her love for English and will always appreciate what I learned in her class. She is a REALLY tough grader, but if you put in the work and actually listen and apply her criticism, then you should be okay. Don't let other reviews scare you, Rowe is awesome. 100% would take her class again if I had the chance

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2016
Grade: A
March 29, 2017

I really loved this class. I feel as if the reviews that state Rowe is a poor professor failed to engage with Rowe. She has amazing passion for the works she assigns and he energy makes you more engaged with the content. While in my particular class she did stay a little too long on some works so we failed to read over some others, the depth we went into for the other works was great. She also grades papers really harshly. For my paper she tore it apart, and while I do question some of her edits, overall she pointed out things that I had never really thought about before. But, despite how thoroughly she edits, she doesn't grade as harshly. I honestly feel I got the grade for how much effort I put in, and even though she tore apart my paper I still received an B+/A-. My biggest recommendation if you take the class it to talk to her, she truly values your learning and she'll help you get there.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2015
Grade: A-
May 3, 2016

This class was exceptionally boring and was not delivered in an engaging or exciting way. Rowe is a very old fashioned teacher and her style of teaching is definitely patronizing. She reads and discussing material as though reading a children's book which is very irritating. Leaving the class each time made me feel tired, depressed and disheartened. I love reading works by female writers but Rowe made them so dull. She gave a lot of background about women's rights which can be easily Googled if you don't know this already. Rowe was never able to finish her lectures within 2 hours and often complained about it despite it being her fault for poor time management. She often goes off on tangents which is one of the main reasons our material wasn't covered. We ended up dropping a couple of texts from the syllabus because of the delay. Rowe is a fair grader and my A- was expected but I regret taking the class.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 20, 2012

Professor Rowe really loves what she teaches. The class can be somewhat redundant and boring with so many female writers that all have a similar voice. I attended lectures 3/4 of the time and sat on my laptop surfing the web. She is pretty boring but it is not a hard class to do well in. Reading a poem is really easy and her midterm and final were very fair. They were extremely long however which sucked but not that hard to do well on if you read. There was also one paper that was 40% of your grade. I did the creative writing option and got an A-. I didn't read any of the 3 books and I got an A- in the class. At the end of the class I felt like I learned a lot and ultimately I'm glad I took it. I don't know how I would have done in this class if I wasn't an english major though...

Helpful?

0 1 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 15, 2011

Sure she has passion for her subject and seems like a nice lady, but Professor Rowe is one of the worst English professors that i've had at UCLA. She literally does not want you to come up with any of your own ideas in papers but simply to regurgitate her (sometimes unlikely seeming) opinions. She is a very harsh grader (I am a senior english major and the worst that I've ever got on a paper was a B...i got a C- on one of her papers and a C on the other) and simply wants you to adhere to her writing style, on which she will give you millions of rambling handouts that go on for about 6 pages each, double sided. Avoid at all costs.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Feb. 16, 2011

Professor Rowe isn't one of those professors who tries to make you look, or feel stupid. She is genuinely engaged with the material, and in my experience, always ready and willing to help if you have a concern. She is very enthusiastic, very energetic, totally consumed with what she's trying to convey. She has a lot of empathy for the world and the stories of women in it, she's interested in the writers as people. She's interested in you as a person, if you let her be. It's unfair to say that she's a bad professor, she is absolutely not. Her lectures can sometimes feel like she's throwing out as many synonyms as she can, but it's only because she's gotten so caught up in expressing herself. This lady has passion, and her level of passion deserves respect.

Helpful?

0 1 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Jan. 31, 2011

oh my goodness, enrolling in Special topics in womens studies (M107) with Rowe was one of the worst mistakes I have made thus far academically. The readings she assigns are great works, but reading them with her is horrible. She reads out loud in a very high-pitched shrill voice, and jumps around at the front of the class while waving her arms all about to make minute points. She also makes these strange moaning noises whenever she complains about something, which is often. In a large lecture, She even has a seating chart, and makes sure to pick on students during class to answer questions, some of which are irrelavent to the course like "what is your worse fear in life?" so there is no way you can even try to doze off, because she might call on you and put you on the spot. She only gives about a 5 min breaks in between two hour classes and never wraps up her lectures on time. The class is definitely unorganized, and it is very unfair that this class is even considered a women's studies class when it focuses entirely on a style of writing she prefers. It is honestly a waste of time, and money for the quaility of teaching Rowe provides. She is a very annoying, in your face, type of person, so if you would like to spare yourself a quarter of unpleasant experiences. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS WITH ROWE.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 21, 2010

If you have ever taken an introduction to college writing course, a history of American women course, a basic literature course, or even passed American history in high school--DO NOT TAKE THIS COURSE! I do not believe women's studies credit should even be given for this class. It seems as though all of the authors happen to be women by chance. Professor Rowe spent nearly the first half of the quarter merely explaining that women did not have many rights in the 19th century. She does not encourage any kind of original analysis. Her idea of "class discussion" is asking extremely obvious, almost rhetorical questions. If a student offered a unique viewpoint or connection, she would look anxiously at her watch, brush aside the student's comments and return to her own disjointed rambling. For the midterm and finals, she cares more about fresh verb choice than any kind of ideas or interaction with the texts. Somehow, we received SEVEN pages of indecipherable, rambling instructions for our FIVE to six page essay. I was routinely docked points for writing anything that was not a word-for-word regurgitation of her lecture notes. Her analysis is usually rife with petty, semantic puns and incredibly reductive logical fallacies. Current social issues were usually treated with a detached disdain. Her lecture style when not scribbling chaotically and illegibly on the blackboard is to repeatedly read the most explicit passages from the texts out loud in a high pitched shrill followed by odd little dances. Most of the class time (which always ran 10, even 15 minutes over) is taken up with awkwardly feigning laughter at these antics. I think her treatment of such important, powerful works as the novels she assigns is criminal. Please boycott her classes. The University must know that this is not the kind of education that UCLA students expect to receive.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2019
Grade: A-
Sept. 19, 2020

I loved this class, probably my favorite English class I've taken. Rowe is a brutally honest professor but because of that, she has changed my writing forever. I am constantly inspired by her love for English and will always appreciate what I learned in her class. She is a REALLY tough grader, but if you put in the work and actually listen and apply her criticism, then you should be okay. Don't let other reviews scare you, Rowe is awesome. 100% would take her class again if I had the chance

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2016
Grade: A
March 29, 2017

I really loved this class. I feel as if the reviews that state Rowe is a poor professor failed to engage with Rowe. She has amazing passion for the works she assigns and he energy makes you more engaged with the content. While in my particular class she did stay a little too long on some works so we failed to read over some others, the depth we went into for the other works was great. She also grades papers really harshly. For my paper she tore it apart, and while I do question some of her edits, overall she pointed out things that I had never really thought about before. But, despite how thoroughly she edits, she doesn't grade as harshly. I honestly feel I got the grade for how much effort I put in, and even though she tore apart my paper I still received an B+/A-. My biggest recommendation if you take the class it to talk to her, she truly values your learning and she'll help you get there.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: Fall 2015
Grade: A-
May 3, 2016

This class was exceptionally boring and was not delivered in an engaging or exciting way. Rowe is a very old fashioned teacher and her style of teaching is definitely patronizing. She reads and discussing material as though reading a children's book which is very irritating. Leaving the class each time made me feel tired, depressed and disheartened. I love reading works by female writers but Rowe made them so dull. She gave a lot of background about women's rights which can be easily Googled if you don't know this already. Rowe was never able to finish her lectures within 2 hours and often complained about it despite it being her fault for poor time management. She often goes off on tangents which is one of the main reasons our material wasn't covered. We ended up dropping a couple of texts from the syllabus because of the delay. Rowe is a fair grader and my A- was expected but I regret taking the class.

Helpful?

0 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
June 20, 2012

Professor Rowe really loves what she teaches. The class can be somewhat redundant and boring with so many female writers that all have a similar voice. I attended lectures 3/4 of the time and sat on my laptop surfing the web. She is pretty boring but it is not a hard class to do well in. Reading a poem is really easy and her midterm and final were very fair. They were extremely long however which sucked but not that hard to do well on if you read. There was also one paper that was 40% of your grade. I did the creative writing option and got an A-. I didn't read any of the 3 books and I got an A- in the class. At the end of the class I felt like I learned a lot and ultimately I'm glad I took it. I don't know how I would have done in this class if I wasn't an english major though...

Helpful?

0 1 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
March 15, 2011

Sure she has passion for her subject and seems like a nice lady, but Professor Rowe is one of the worst English professors that i've had at UCLA. She literally does not want you to come up with any of your own ideas in papers but simply to regurgitate her (sometimes unlikely seeming) opinions. She is a very harsh grader (I am a senior english major and the worst that I've ever got on a paper was a B...i got a C- on one of her papers and a C on the other) and simply wants you to adhere to her writing style, on which she will give you millions of rambling handouts that go on for about 6 pages each, double sided. Avoid at all costs.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Feb. 16, 2011

Professor Rowe isn't one of those professors who tries to make you look, or feel stupid. She is genuinely engaged with the material, and in my experience, always ready and willing to help if you have a concern. She is very enthusiastic, very energetic, totally consumed with what she's trying to convey. She has a lot of empathy for the world and the stories of women in it, she's interested in the writers as people. She's interested in you as a person, if you let her be. It's unfair to say that she's a bad professor, she is absolutely not. Her lectures can sometimes feel like she's throwing out as many synonyms as she can, but it's only because she's gotten so caught up in expressing herself. This lady has passion, and her level of passion deserves respect.

Helpful?

0 1 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Jan. 31, 2011

oh my goodness, enrolling in Special topics in womens studies (M107) with Rowe was one of the worst mistakes I have made thus far academically. The readings she assigns are great works, but reading them with her is horrible. She reads out loud in a very high-pitched shrill voice, and jumps around at the front of the class while waving her arms all about to make minute points. She also makes these strange moaning noises whenever she complains about something, which is often. In a large lecture, She even has a seating chart, and makes sure to pick on students during class to answer questions, some of which are irrelavent to the course like "what is your worse fear in life?" so there is no way you can even try to doze off, because she might call on you and put you on the spot. She only gives about a 5 min breaks in between two hour classes and never wraps up her lectures on time. The class is definitely unorganized, and it is very unfair that this class is even considered a women's studies class when it focuses entirely on a style of writing she prefers. It is honestly a waste of time, and money for the quaility of teaching Rowe provides. She is a very annoying, in your face, type of person, so if you would like to spare yourself a quarter of unpleasant experiences. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS WITH ROWE.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
Quarter: N/A
Grade: N/A
Dec. 21, 2010

If you have ever taken an introduction to college writing course, a history of American women course, a basic literature course, or even passed American history in high school--DO NOT TAKE THIS COURSE! I do not believe women's studies credit should even be given for this class. It seems as though all of the authors happen to be women by chance. Professor Rowe spent nearly the first half of the quarter merely explaining that women did not have many rights in the 19th century. She does not encourage any kind of original analysis. Her idea of "class discussion" is asking extremely obvious, almost rhetorical questions. If a student offered a unique viewpoint or connection, she would look anxiously at her watch, brush aside the student's comments and return to her own disjointed rambling. For the midterm and finals, she cares more about fresh verb choice than any kind of ideas or interaction with the texts. Somehow, we received SEVEN pages of indecipherable, rambling instructions for our FIVE to six page essay. I was routinely docked points for writing anything that was not a word-for-word regurgitation of her lecture notes. Her analysis is usually rife with petty, semantic puns and incredibly reductive logical fallacies. Current social issues were usually treated with a detached disdain. Her lecture style when not scribbling chaotically and illegibly on the blackboard is to repeatedly read the most explicit passages from the texts out loud in a high pitched shrill followed by odd little dances. Most of the class time (which always ran 10, even 15 minutes over) is taken up with awkwardly feigning laughter at these antics. I think her treatment of such important, powerful works as the novels she assigns is criminal. Please boycott her classes. The University must know that this is not the kind of education that UCLA students expect to receive.

Helpful?

1 0 Please log in to provide feedback.
1 of 1
2.7
Overall Rating
Based on 23 Users
Easiness 1.7 / 5 How easy the class is, 1 being extremely difficult and 5 being easy peasy.
Clarity 3.3 / 5 How clear the class is, 1 being extremely unclear and 5 being very clear.
Workload 2.0 / 5 How much workload the class is, 1 being extremely heavy and 5 being extremely light.
Helpfulness 3.7 / 5 How helpful the class is, 1 being not helpful at all and 5 being extremely helpful.

TOP TAGS

  • Engaging Lectures
    (1)
  • Appropriately Priced Materials
    (2)
  • Snazzy Dresser
    (1)
  • Often Funny
    (2)
  • Participation Matters
    (2)
  • Would Take Again
    (2)
  • Issues PTEs
    (1)
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