this class wasn't too hard in terms of concepts. It pretty much just expanded on the ideas in high school chem. it consisted of 3 quizzes a midterm and final. they key to getting an A in this class is do all the practice problems you can find. going to lecture isn't really necessary if you understand the concepts. dont bother buying the course reader if you don't plan on going to lecture, it only makes sense if you go because its pretty much written in code. it makes no sense whatsoever if you just try and read it. just read a little reading every other day and do the problems and you'll do fine.

I took Chem 14A with him and I liked it.
He seemed like a nice professor with a fair grading system.
Until I got my first midterm with a 65%!
The thing is, if you dont look good in the TA's eyes, you're done for. They control the class; not Lavelle. And Lavelle is actually a mean man on the inside.
I asked him a question on Virtual Office Hours, and I received a curt, rude, reply.
If you took AP Chem and are willing to study your ass off, then take Lavelle. If not, dont!
And if you cant stand rude professors and TAs, dont take Lavelle!

His lectures are essentially nap time. Don't worry too much, because if you look around, about 1/4 of the class is asleep. It's AP Chem, elaborated. Whatever you sucked at when taking AP Chem, you will suck at again. The course reader are his overheads, and if you can read and understand that (and the book), there is no reason to go to class. He bases each curve by lecture, and typically the 12pm lecture has the highest curve. It is also the most crowded lecture, because 10am and 2pm students attend it as well. He throws curve balls on the midterm and final, but the quizzes aren't too bad. TAs are important, if you have a good one. If not, the TA is useless, and go find another one. Even still, so many people take Chem 14A, so if you really need help, you could ask a friend. They would probably be more help anyway. Doing the homework is important, but you need to realize that he will complicate it on the actual test.

nothing new from ap chem...i fived that exam and have gotten A's in chem 14b and 14c but got A- with Lavelle and i thought the material was supereasy throughout the whole thing..i really don't know what happened so i have to say i think curve can go against you in lavelle's class. i thought his lectures were boring because his voice isn't the most enthusiastic. but it was overall a fun class b/c chemistry is fun in general..quizzes were seriously easy A's and midterm and final weren't too challenging.

go to lectures go to discussion get tutoring and do all the problems. to pass the class. (passing is C-)
Doesnt really help at all. for 14A he assumes that everyone has the same background in Chemistry and that everyone took A.P. Chem. in which i didnt.
so i struggled even more. We had a horrible midterm day The day after halloween. He is Hard. This is a class you need to stay on top of. no matter, what. do the workbook. those are easy points. go to lecture dont try to podcast them. youll just end up not watching it. his office hours are not usefull. But the T.A.s are. Just work reall hard. oh ya have a monster or a red Bull before his class. you tend to get sleepy

LAURENCE LAVELLE IS AN UNCARING COLD BITTER OLD MAN. He has no respect for anyone and is truly inhumane. I experienced a death in the family and he wouldn't allow me to postpone the quiz. Instead he said if I decided to leave and mourn with my family I'd have to accept a zero on the quiz. Not only so, but he is so rude and completely blew me off when I asked for a re-grade on my midterm. He cheated me out of 15 points and refused to look at my exam. He yelled and said, "You shouldn't be showing me this right now! I don't want to see this!" He wouldn't look at me and was extremely rude." Not only so, he is the worst lecturer, puts you to sleep, and cannot teach for his life. If he didn't have the course reader material in front of his face, he wouldn't know what to say. BEST ADVICE EVER: AVOID THIS MAN AT ALL COSTS. HE WILL RUIN YOUR GRADES!!!!

Going to lecture is useless because all he does is go over the course reader. The discussions are useful because more material is covered than during lecture but the TA has to be good or else this is useless also. The practice midterms/exams are extremely useful. Do all the assigned problems, all the practice tests, and study hard and you'll do well in the class. Make good use of VOH. Lavelle is a caring professor and there are a lot of resources available to prepare for the tests. And again, DO the practice tests. Super helpful, if you do well on them, then it's almost a guarantee that you'll do well in the class. I fell asleep at each lecture i went to and did not study with others. The practice problems and practice exams are what got me the A. I know many other people say to do the practice tests but I'm repeating it again because they are just that helpful. The class will seem hard at first but if you study enough, it's actually pretty easy.

Here are the facts:
1. You will not be able to compete with the pre-meds in this class if you haven't taken AP Chemistry
2. The discussions are absolutely useless if you don't have a good TA. By the first discussion, if you realize your TA is useless, change them, because I think I might have done better in this course if I had a better TA.
3. Lectures are pretty much useless. It is directly off the course reader, except he spends about 15 mins going over 2 lines, repeating things in every possible way. Read the book, do the homework, go to SAC and get copies of practice quizzes.
4. Do the practice midterms and finals in the course reader. They pretty much guarantee you about a B on the final, because most of the questions are pretty much the same

Although many of the previous reviews adamantly argue that Lavelle is a terrible teacher, I can honestly say that this class is extremely possible to survive and succeed in. His lectures are podcasted, there are 12 TAs that you can go to if you need help, the VOH website to post questions, and his course reader for lecture notes. Lavelle gives you all the resources you need to do well in the class, all you need to do is utilize them.

If you're determined not to go to office hours or use the VOH website, it's still okay because his lectures cover everything you need to know in the class. Most people use the course reader as their lecture notes and add little bits of information during the lecture, and if this works for you, by all means, do it. But for me, I found that when I stopped writing information, I would doze off and daydream. As a solution, I stopped using the course reader in class and copied down his lecture slides in my notebook. It may seem pointless to write down information you already have in your course reader, but this method helped me absorb the new information efficiently and stay awake.

I don't recall my TA teaching me anything in the quarter, and even then it was still possible to succeed on the quizzes and midterm. I don't believe that it is the TA's fault if you fail your quizzes unless the TA tells you incorrect information. This certainly was not the case. The TA's know their stuff and if you have questions,(it may take a while for you to get the point across), they'll have answers.

All in all, this is not an easy class, but it is manageable. Read the textbook, do your homework, pay attention in class, and utilize the many resources he has for you.

Let's get a few things straight before I give my personal opinion on Lavelle.
1. chemistry is hard, no matter who the professor is.
2. chemistry at UCLA is wicked hard, no matter who the professor is.
3. CHEMISTRY SUCKS.

with that being said... Lavelle is extremely concerned about his students. Yes, his class is difficult, but that doesn't mean you're doomed. If you want to be pre-med, especially at UCLA, you're going to have to work for it, and I'm sorry if that scares you. I did not take AP Chem, and I am certainly by no means the smartest person in that lecture hall, but I studied hard and somehow managed to find really motivated people to study with, party with, and enjoy this hellish experience with. Take advantage of VOH, do all of the homework problems (and re-do the ones you don't understand), take the quizzes VERY seriously (especially the first one, its the hardest), do all of the practice midterms and finals, work your ass off, find things to relieve your stress, and most importantly, DO NOT give up just because you're not number one in the class like you were in high school.
So to sum up: work hard.