Kathryn Calkins

ENG1A · ENGL1A · ENGL31 · ENG20 · 1A · ENG31 · ENG16POETRY · ENG1B · ENGL16 · ENG1C · 97 lifetime ratings

AI rating: 32/100
RMP rating: 2.7/5
Take again: 35.42%
Difficulty: 3.6

The decision

Avoid unless you are a strong self-directed writer who .

Best fit · Hardcore LearnerTough GraderUnclear InstructionsPaper HeavyPolarizing StyleHarsh Feedback

Many students report , and .
Workload is paper- and and discussion posts.
A minority praise creative writing sections and .

Key questions

Four answers before you build your schedule.

Is this an easy A?

HardWork

28/100

Tough grading, long essays, and with uncertain payoff.

Online reviews describe near-impossible passing .

Is the course easy?

Challenging

32/100

, and picky literary standards make content and execution demanding.

Both formats are writing-heavy; online confusion compounds difficulty.

Is attendance flexible?

Varies

42/100

and some online sections, optional in others.

; online varies by course.

Is this professor recommended?

Avoid

32/100

Low take-again rate and frequent warnings about harsh grading and .

Online reviews skew more negative; .

Course guide

See how this professor fits your week.

Grading

Harsh

22/100

; students report docking for unclear criteria and .

Format shift

and frequent.

Workload

Heavy

24/100

So , and discussion volume overwhelm many students.

Format shift

Both formats are writing-heavy; online multiplies weekly posts and readings.

Teaching experience

Poor

34/100

Passion for literature appears, but , and weak teaching of writing process hurt most experiences.

Format shift

; online composition is widely criticized.

Assessment method

FocusOnAssignments

30/100

, and papers; quizzes exist but .

Format shift

Poetry and creative writing center long essays; composition is paper-after-paper.

Luni fit check

Weigh these signals against your actual schedule.

Get help balancing workload, grading, and timing when no option is an obvious fit.

Course format

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Classroom format

In person

27 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Self Taught Pro

and fun for creative and lectures unfocused.

Main concern

, and grading that feels picky or political.

What students said

“Her instructions make no sense and if you ask her to be clearer she claims that you don't know how to read.”
ENG16POETRY

“Loved Professor Calkins, she was my first professor ever in college and she really made my first time less stressful.”
ENG1A

“Her lectures were just random ramblings that did not help us learn and then she would assign insane amounts of reading.”
ENG1B

Remote format

Online

23 reviews

High confidence · Best fit for Hardcore Learner

Online sections draw the strongest complaints , and unclear assignment text.

Main concern

and heavy weekly papers or posts.

What students said

“She will do anything in her power to make sure you do NOT succeed.”
ENG1C

“This woman genuinely made .”
ENG1A

“The and the descriptions for the .”
ENG1A

Exam style

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

Assessment is mainly papers and discussion work with some easy multi-try quizzes; friendliness is .

Essay HeavyQuizzes with Multiple TriesPaper FocusedUnclear Prompts

Assessment risk

Standard

48/100

Low score means less forgiving assessment conditions.

In person

- and participation-driven with limited clarity on how to earn full marks.

Long EssaysParticipation MattersFew Clear RubricsQuiz Optional

“2 essays first one is 1750 words second one is 7 pages. .”
ENG16POETRY

“ . Just communicate with her if you need anything.”
ENG31

Online

Online courses emphasize papers and weekly work; quizzes can be easy but papers and .

Many PapersEasy QuizzesUnclear FinalsLate Work Rarely Accepted

“Textbook is free and , but the typically not accepted.”
ENG16POETRY

“Professor Calkins did not give clear instructions for .”
ENGL31

Student evidence

See what students actually said.

Top student voice
“I genuinely have never had a worse experience with a professor. She grades so unfairly. It's nearly impossible to pass this class.”
Voice snapshots generated from 50 reviews, balancing harsh majority themes with minority praise. Credibility rating: High.

⚠️

22/100

“She grades so unfairly like it's an Olympic sport. She takes pride and joy in making her students feel miserable and degraded.”

📝 Workload Intensity

24/100

“So many papers! Get ready to write at least 3-4 papers a week.”

🎯 Teaching Quality

34/100

“ what was wanted or needed from professor”

👍 Recommendation Split

32/100

“By far the ... will discourage anyone to take her class.”

Theme 1

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

Her lectures were just random ramblings that did not help us learn.
She simply "let me cook."
She doesn't ever teach writing tips, she just teaches subjects to write about.

Theme 2

📈 About Difficulty and Grades

because the instructions for .
She only gives you 100% if you do MORE than required.
Do a little more than the absolute minimum if you want an A.

Theme 3

💔 and Clarity

and doesn't give 100s for completing the assignment requirements.
She graded one of my papers and made such horrible comments on it that I was in tears.
to help with the assignment.

Data context

See exactly what the AI read.

Analysis sample

Recent reviews read by the AI

Lifetime ratings

88/100

Evidence confidence

50 reviews with and long-running split opinions provide a reliable polarizing pattern.

Inside 50 stored ratings

Quality ratings

5 out of 525

4 out of 513

3 out of 510

2 out of 518

1 out of 532

Course coverage

ENG1A17 reviews

ENG16POETRY8 reviews

ENG318 reviews

ENGL1A5 reviews

ENG1B3 reviews

Show 5 more courses

ENGL313 reviews

1A2 reviews

ENG1C2 reviews

ENG201 review

ENGL161 review

Reported outcomes

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

38 reported outcomes

A range

A+ 4 · A 9 · A- 2

B range

B+ 2 · B 7 · B- 2

C range

C+ 3 · C 3 · C- 1

D range

D+ 1

F

No reported values

No letter grade reported

Drop/Withdrawal 2 · Not sure yet 2

Kathryn Calkins

Avoid unless you are a strong self-directed writer who x x x x x x.

Four answers before you build your schedule.

HardWork

Challenging

Varies

Avoid

See how this professor fits your week.

Compare the in-person and online experience.

Know what to expect from exams and major assignments.

In person

Online

See what students actually said.

⚠️ x x

📝 Workload Intensity

🎯 Teaching Quality

👍 Recommendation Split

👨‍🏫 About Teaching Style

📈 About Difficulty and Grades

💔 x x and Clarity

See exactly what the AI read.

Quality ratings

Course coverage

A range results lead the reported letter grades.

A range

B range

C range

D range

F

No letter grade reported

Avoid unless you are a strong self-directed writer who .

⚠️

💔 and Clarity