Teaching Evaluations – Political Science

Politics Middle East (Winter 2017)

  • Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad
  • Subject: Political Science
  • Catalog & Section: 374 27379
  • Enrollment: 29
  • Responses Incl Declines: 25
  • Declines: 2

 Please share with us your thoughts on the course: (41 comments)

Q: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.
1 Dr. Malekafzali was probably the most intelligent and informed instructor I’ve learned from at the university. I will be taking more of his classes.” — Matthew Leger
2 Instructor was extremely knowledgeable. Very funny and clearly wanted everyone to learn.
3 “Professor Malekafzali knows an exceptional amount about the Middle East. He always accommodates students’ needs and makes sure we’re doing as well as we can.” — Layla Kanaan
4 nothing wrong
5 I thought the professor was not always clear in what he looking for in the assignments. I also think there needs to be more of an emphasis on what is the most important information to the assignments/ what information from the readings and lectures is most pertinent. However, there was an improvement with the final quizzes as they were based clearly on the readings and lecture from a set time, allowing us to better understand what information the professor was looking for.
6 Malekafzali was an excellent instructor. He did a pretty good job at explaining lots of material in a structured manner. His input was always helpful and he would encourage questions. He also did a good job at explaining a narrative and perspective that most of us have never heard.
7 Very knowledgeable and passionate about subject area. A little unclear about grading expectations.
8 The instructor is clearly knowledgeable and passionate about this subject. He was very engaging and intellectually stimulating. A possible area for improvement would be to aim to be more impartial. This class interacted with the touchy subject of the Arab-Israeli Crisis. When presenting material he very often leaned towards support of the Arab side. This is understandable given his background, but I think it would be better for an instructor to be more neutral when presenting information.
9 “Great lectures, clear expectations, felt comfortable asking questions.” — Madison Moskowitz
10 Prof. Malekafzali is a passionate and challenging professor. I would say that his only weakness are his organization skills.
11 “Malekafzali is one of the most amazing professors I had in my college career. He is intelligent and funny and passionate on the subject matter. He is so informative on anything and everything to do with the Middle East. I am happy I had him as my instructor for this class. I don’t think anyone could have been a better option for the course.” — Sarah Milad
12 It was not beneficial for our overall academic performance to be told at the beginning of the term that we will be quizzed on all of the readings and that we will not know which ones are the most important. It was also extremely unhelpful to be told that even the subjects that we never went over could be potential material for a quiz.

This is not our only class.

13 “Professor was helpful and organized. He definitely showed bias but it was recognized by him and the students, so it was not very significant in the course.” — Marti Elworthy
14 Professor Malekafzali’s old lecture style took me a little bit of time to adjust to, but I enjoyed his snarky/sarcastic comments because they helped spice up the lectures. He was extremely helpful, while still challenging us (he helped us with essays, quizzes, tests, etc., but still made them challenging enough that we had to work for it).
15 “Mr. Malekafzali is a brilliant man. He makes for a brilliant course. It encompasses every quality I’m looking for in a University education, and the reason everyone in our modern society should hope for a quality education. His class obviously stands out. He is cunning, has an edge, he perforates through the propaganda.” — Nicolas Salter
16 “Professor Malekafzali is incredibly well informed and passionate about the Middle East. He is always receptive to questions. He pushes us to challenge our preconceived notions and stresses research over media portrayals.” — Sierra Tillery
17 “Strengths: Engaging lectures, interesting readings, very organized, and timely in communicating with students and grading work. I enjoyed the structure of the grading as well, especially dividing the final into four quizzes, having quizzes based on reading materials. One thing I might consider changing would be to somehow add weekly reading quizzes to the first half of the course as well (maybe in place of one of the geography quizzes, or just do reading quizzes every week except for when there is a geography quiz).” — Harley Emery
18 Dr. Malekafzali is obviously very knowledgeable about the Middle East and politics. He provides very interesting insight on the issues of the Middle East and its history. He is passionate about the subject and speaks clearly about it. He always responds to student questions and answers them well.

However, sometimes his grading (particularly on the essays and midterm) seemed unusual. For instance, he would grade down certain students for only using 4 sources on their paper, when 4 sources was all that was required in the syllabus. His grading lacked consistency.

19 “Very captivating, knowledgeable lecturer and funny!” — Kristina Lowney
20 An excellent professor on the whole, very dedicated to the topic. Does a great job providing students with supplementary information and is zealous regarding his lectures.
21 “Professor Malekafzali’s PS 374 class was outstanding. His insights into regional conflicts and knowledge on current affairs are unparalleled. His lectures are incredibly thought provoking and intriguing. Whatever your positions regarding the Middle East were prior to taking his class,I can assure that they’ll change follwoing taking Professor Malekafzali’s course. There is never a dull moment when Professor Malekafzali is conducting a class.” — Blake Rubey
22 “I wish the class was longer than 50 minutes so we could have more of a discussion on some days without it taking away from anymore of the lecture. I enjoyed both the conversations and the lectures, I just wish there were a little more time.” — Chloe Simmons
Q: Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole.
1 Grading was harsh, and tests were difficult. Receiving a low score on first test made passing the class relatively impossible. I missed one class period which resulted in a zero on an assignment which buried me.
2 “Since the course was only 50 minutes three times a week, it is difficult to discuss extensively the topics that were taught. However, this is not the fault of the professor. Considering the time constraints, Malekafzali did a good job balancing the topics.” — Layla Kanaan
3 final should not be split into 4 seperate quizzes. I found myself trying to memorize entire chapters when there was only one question asked on a 10 question quiz. If I only got three questions wrong I would get C.
4 The class was very extensive in covering the Israeli-Palestine conflict and debunking many of the myths that are perpetuated through the mass media. The professor’s instruction was enjoyable, although at times he spoke with a monotone. Nonetheless, the information was fascinating and I definitely learned a lot in the class. The professor provides more rigor then other political science instructors, however I see this as a positive. The only problem is at time I was unsure what he was looking for. Overall this was an informative class that I enjoyed, and I will be taking another class from Professor Malekefzali.
5 As a whole, there was a lot of material and the most important pieces of information seemed not apparent. The class was structured well/
6 Very interesting subject material, tests always were harder than anticipated.
7 Throughout my life, I have worked extremely diligently on everything I do and because of this, I usually succeed. However, never have I ever done so badly in a class as I have in this one. It has been the most stressful experience of my whole school career (applying to colleges included!). I attended pretty much every lecture, kept up with the readings, spent time on the essays and still I did so awful. Many other students who are hard workers have also been struggling. I am not sure what exactly is to blame for this, but I think that maybe the instructors grading technique could be less harsh. I just don’t understand because if such a high proportion of usually successful students are doing awful in a class does this not reflect negatively on the professor??
8 “Textbooks were among the worst I’ve ever had to read for a class. Dry and didn’t add a lot to the value of the class. Combined with articles, soooo much reading for a 300 level class. Maybe next time just do one textbook?” — Madison Moskowitz
9 The course material was kind of all over the place. We intermittently talked about regions and I felt quite confused with the relationship between the assigned reading and class lectures most of the time.
10 “Just a longer time would be nice.” — Sarah Milad
11 “Course was well structured but demanding. I thoroughly enjoyed it.” — Marti Elworthy
12 This is one of the most challenging courses I’ve taken during college, and though I did enjoy that challenge, I did feel as though the first half of the term was a little reading heavy. The readings from Anderson were informative, but we barely gave any time to talking about that portion of Middle Eastern history during class, and the Anderson readings didn’t come up on any tests and therefore felt a little unnecessary. The review sessions were extremely helpful, and, if possible, I would recommend holding them before each quiz/test next time as well. The review guide for the midterm was also extremely helpful. Overall, the class was extremely informative, and it was my favorite class this term primarily because of the sheer amount that I learned.
13 “My only critique was the trivial nature of the examinations. I’m not complaining that he’s demanding. I like demanding, I like strict. Mr. Malekafzali has strong, well justified and fascinating opinions, but he wants you to write a very set of particular things to please him, and it makes for very, very trivial demands that makes a lot of students do pass or no pass or drop the course.
This was a fascinating course otherwise, I’m so very glad I crossed paths with this professor.” — Nicolas Salter
14 “The material is very interesting but I think this course would benefit from more of a discussion format. I wish there was more of an opportunity to talk about current events in US relations with the Middle East because we had a very eventful season during this term. There is very large amount of material that we were expected to learn for this course and the outside readings took a lot of time. It was hard to know what was important from the readings because they weren’t discussed in class. A rubric would also be helpful for the papers. Overall this is a very interesting class that’s full of unique material.” — Sierra Tillery
15 “This was my second course taken with Professor Malekafzali, and like the last course, it was extremely engaging, informative, and challenging. This has been by far one of the most worthwhile courses I have taken at the University. Not only did I learn an incredible amount throughout the course, but I have confidence that I will retain this knowledge I have gained – something that can’t be said about many classes. I will be recommending it to many of my classmates for next year!” — Harley Emery
16 The class was very interesting and the lectures were captivating.

The syllabus, however, was not always accurate (dates were very frequently changed and it got confusing at times). The class may benefit from being changed to twice a week for an hour and twenty minutes because the short 50 minute structures seems choppy.

17 “More than 50 minutes would be nice. Like twice a week at 80 minutes.” — Kristina Lowney
18 The technology often failed in this class, which made learning difficult. I felt the slides could be more illuminating and organized.
19 “There is such a huge geographic area covered, as well as such a long, rich history in each nation covered, that some of the subjects got a little confused. But the readings assigned definitely helped with that.” — Chloe Simmons

Teaching Evaluation Summary (Summer 2016) Comment Summary Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad Subject: Political Science Catalog & Section: 467, 42134 Course Title: US Presidency Enrollment: 16 Responses Incl Declines: 7 (Declined: 1)

1. Please share with us your thoughts on the course: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

“Professor Malekafzali is an excellent instructor! The lectures were very well structured and quite interesting. I really appreciated the examples given that were pertinent but not politically related, for example GM and the 64 cup holders.” — Lacey Whitwer

“Very passionate about the subject which helps students become more interested in it.” — Erin Norden

2- Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole.

“This class is extremely informative and valuable. I have learned an astronomical amount about (somewhat tedious) functions of our government. Pfiffner was an enthralling read because there is no better way to understand the presidency than from the writings of presidents, and other influential people. I found the contrast between the Madison/Hamilton view of the presidency and George Clinton’s address to the people of New York quite fascinating.  The lectures really tied the reading material together, highlighting the most important aspects, in addition to adding more information. Thus far, all of my questions from the readings were answered in class during the lectures. All the movies were great, but I am particularly fond of the War Room.” — Lacey Whitwer

“There was way to much reading for a 4 week summer class” — Erin Norden

Please give more specific instructions on assignments, and examples of acceptable projects. It’s extremely stressful to try to write a 10 page paper with so little guidance or assurance that we’re understanding the assignment.

Teaching Evaluation Summary (Spring 2016) Comment Summary Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad Subject: Political Science Catalog & Section: 399, 35108 Course Title: Sp St US Mid East Pol Enrollment: 33

Responses Incl Declines: 27 (Declined: 1) Please share with us your thoughts on the course: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

  • “I appreciate the professor’s depth of knowledge on these topics. He is clearly well-read on US foreign policy in the Middle East, but explains the topics in an engaging and understandable way. It would be easier to follow his lectures if they were presented more closely to the information on the powerpoint slides.” — Carmella Gemmato
  • “One of the best teachers I have had at U of O. Every lecture was well organized and engaging.” — Sarah Manwill
  • “Professor Malekafzali is the best lecturer I have ever had. His PowerPoints are more of a sparsely-worded guideline for his students to base their notes around, and his lectures come completely from memory, down to dates and minuscule details.” — Jessica Roady
  • Professor Malekafzali was an incredible professor who knew the provided information like the back of his hand. I felt comfortable asking questions, and he was confident when answering them. He always made sure that we asked questions.
  • Professor is very knowledgeable and passionate about the subject. I enjoyed the class quite a bit and would take a course taught by him again (if I wasn’t graduating).
  • “Professor Malekafzali is the most knowledgeable professor I have had at the U of O so far. Each lecture was extremely informative (in fact, I believe it is safe to say that I learned more in any given lecture in this course than I did in the entirety of several other courses I have taken during my time at the U of O!), presented in an engaging and entertaining manor, and contained very valuable information of great quality. In addition to the course-related knowledge I gained from this class, perhaps the most valuable knowledge I took from the course was understanding the importance of questioning and challenging what we are told and finding the truth for ourselves – regardless of whether it aligns with our preconceived notions. Outside of Professor Malekafzali’s wonderful lecturing skills, he went above and beyond to help students reach their full potential in his class. Whether it be sending students interesting class-related articles to read outside of class if we chose, holding weekly several hour long review sessions towards the end of the term for students who wanted to further discuss course material, or by responding to emails very promptly (one time I sent an email asking for guidance on a paper outline on a Saturday night and received a helpful response within an hour! Very few professors are THAT committed to their students’ success) – I could go on about how great professor Malekafzali is, but I need to get back to writing my paper for his class (which I am actually very excited to write because his course was so interesting and made me love the topics we studied!)” — Harley Emery
  • could have posted slides online because there was no way I was going to learn all of that info and jot everything down instantaneously
  • “Professor Malekafzali is one of my favorite professors of all time. He really cares about his students, he is also very self-effacing and cares about what he is teaching.” — Heather Hamilton
  • “The instructor’s strengths was how we looked at each specific country than related it back to the US relation with that specific country. It also helped that the professor had first hand knowledge of the country and region being from there made him experience the ethnic turmoil within the US.” — Hayley Howard
  • I really enjoyed this class but it is definitely a hard course. There is a lot of information that is all being thrown at you at once. He graded very hard as well. These aren’t bad things, it’s just a hard class. He was a great teacher though, especially his lectures.
  • Professor Malekafzali is very knowledgeable about the Middle East. He is engaging and makes the information relevant. My only complaint is that his biases and political views are evident in his lectures.
  • The professor offered a unique view point on the subject which I appreciated. However his lectures were not engaging.
  • “Professor Malekafzali was very accessible and offered extra office hours and study sessions for exam prepping. My dad is a professor at OSU and I told him about the extra sessions and office hours and he said that was a good reminder for him for his class this term. The students really appreciated his extra office hours offered.” — Andrew Kent
  • “Excellent lectures and depth of information covered. Willing to consider counterarguments and objections was a strength.” — Robert Stanton
  • Good knowledge of area of study.
  • “Farhad’s class was absolutely eye-opening. I feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to take this class from him in my undergraduate education. His knowledge and experience are invaluable. The content is super challenging for someone who is coming in with no knowledge if the Middle East, but Farhad was always available to explain concepts or events to you again if you needed.” — Liz Arnold
  • The professor is very passionate and educated on the subject which makes it a lot easier to learn. Quizzes and tests were very fair and thoughtful Professor was a wonderful lecturer and I thoroughly enjoyed going to class and listening to him talk. However, I think the organization and coordination of the lecture with the lecture slides would be useful.
  • professor Malekafzali was always ready and willing to help students with whatever they may need in order to gain as much from the course as possible. If I could have professor Malekafzali teach all of my classes, I would.
    He always had interesting lectures — very detailed. He made a good job at making sure that everyone understood the content that was being discussed in class.

 

Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole.

  • “I liked the depth of information covered in this course and appreciated the background information and readings given during the first week of the term. The lectures were very in-depth and interesting to listen to, however I wish that there had been more opportunity for class discussion of the issues presented.” — Carmella Gemmato
  • “The course is structured so students are introduced to basic concepts and foundational history before moving on to more complicated topics.” — Jessica Roady
  • “See above comments . Area of improvement for the Political Science Department: Have Malekafzali teach more classes.” — Harley Emery

 

  • the amount of work that was required exceeded what I thought I should have to do “My favorite course this term. I was sick for two weeks and subsequently struggled to catch up on all of the readings and assignments for all of my classes this term, but I was able to make it work without completely panicking because of the knowledge that my professor cared about me as a student and was willing to work with me.” — Heather Hamilton
  • “none” — Hayley Howard
  • I enjoyed this course and the material taught The course is heavy on content but all of it is important and relevant. The amount of readings during the second half of the term was a bit overwhelming and I felt that it was unrealistic for Professor Malekafzali to expect us to complete all of them. The course could have been better laid out in the beginning.
  • “I really enjoyed this course. I’m interested in international law and international relations and Professor Malekafzali was knowledgeable about Middle Eastern politics and relations between the U.S. without being too biased or judgmental like some poly sci classes I’ve taken.” — Andrew Kent
  • “Everything was good except for the expectations for work. Would be better to have more precisely identified what material we would be quizzed on. Similarly the final paper lacked meaningful instructions/expectations. Not terrible but not particularly specific either.” — Robert Stanton
  • Please don’t show videos from the internet as instructional guides (rather than as primary sources).
  • “This topic is so important for students to learn about. Learning about the Middle East better in this class will be one of my more memorable moments in my Political Science education. I cannot stress how great this class was enough. I was challenged more than I ever have been in a PS class.” — Liz Arnold
  • The lectures were very informative and interesting. Never did I find myself bored in lecture.
  • Lectures were sometimes disorganized and boring
  • This course was very well structured, the only thing I wish could have been improved is maybe discussing each topic in more detail, but since the term is so short, the pace we went at is understandable.
  • The class had was thorough on the subject’s details.
  • Too many readings, but overall great class

Teaching Evaluation Summary (Spring 2015) Comment Summary Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad Subject: Political Science Catalog & Section: 399, 35123 Course Title: Sp St Pol Middle East Enrollment: 37 Responses Incl Declines: 33 (Declined: 4)

1. Please share with us your thoughts on the course: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

“I have never learned so much in a term about a subject. At first the teaching style was difficult to follow and keep up with. Eventually I understood how to take notes, pay attention to important details, and study for materials. Overall the style made me a better studier, listener, and student. I don’t have anything that I would change about the teaching style. I believe this class should be made a requirement for graduating due to its importance in current events.

“Farhad introduced me into the world of Middle Eastern politics for which I knew very little beforehand. It was a fascinating class and Farhad made it even more enjoyable by allowing for class discussions, bringing in current events and using wit and humor to hammer home some of the absurd US policies regarding Israel and the region. I always looked forward to his lectures and of course learning about a subject I knew little about. My only critique was that taking notes was a struggle to keep up with when Professor M lectured. But a lot of that for me was due to newness of all information. This course is one of the few I’ve taken at the university where I never missed a class and a lot of that is because of the professing style of Farhad and the subject, just phenomenal!” – –

“The instructor was brilliant. knowledgeable and funny. I enjoyed the class very much. My only critique would be adapting the class to suit all types of learners. Some students thrive in a lecture setting. For some, coming to class and sitting for an hour and twenty minutes listening to the professor without interruption is a cake walk. However, I am a visual learner and did not like the lack of visual aid during lecture. I end up completely confused without some form of visual aid. Whether the visual aid is a map, chart, a short bullet pointed power point, etc. I need an image in my mind to connect the content with, so that I retain the message.” —

“Professor Malekafzali will challenge you in ways that you never imagined possible. His instruction in this class immediately confront your presuppositions about the Middle East and force you to understand the most fundamental misconceptions held by the Western world towards the Middle East.” —

Good overview of topics, could improve organization I really struggled paying attention in class because there were no visuals — it was hard to see what was on the board and using a powerpoint would have helped.

Instructor’s organization was impressive. Used every class period to its fullest, planned lectures were always dense with information and yet still fit within time, and the course proceeded exactly as expected from reading the syllabus.

His presentation of information was engaging, occasionally humorous, and very educational. “The Professor provided the class with very interesting and informative readings. I overall learned much from his lectures too, though some subjects he went over a little too fast.” —

Farhad was very enthusiastic. He explained both sides of the issues and made sure we had a firm understanding of what we were talking by asking both at the beginning of class and in between topics if we had any questions.

“Professor Malekafzali is extremely versed on the topic of the course. He always was always willing to answer any questions that a student had. He is very professional and brought a unique perspective to the related material.” —

“Professor Malekafzali is an engaging speaker who truly cares about his subject. Also breaks up lectures with sarcastic and self-disparaging remarks.” —

 

Greatest teacher I have ever had! Gets so much information in during one class period but it is at no means boring. Its a fun atmosphere. One of my absolute favorite professors. The course was dynamic and engaging. He was charismatic and did a great job of facilitating discussion whilst keeping the class engaged. He was both bold and reasonable. Hang on to this guy for dear life.

“Prof Malekafzali is a very interesting, knowledgeable professor. Indeed, I was able to learn a lot from him. I would suggest for future classes that it could be beneficial to have the course readings and materials discussed as a more integral part of the class. This would help to add credibility and authority to Prof Malekafzali’s lectures and bring cohesion to the course overall.” —

This professor is annoyingly anti-Israel. He pretty much blames Israel for every single problem in the Middle East and did not talk at all about Palestinian atrocities such as Haj Amin al-Husseini’s support for the axis powers in WWII or his antisemitic pogroms. Nor did he even discuss the Al Aqsa Intifada or Arafat’s Second Intifada. He claimed that Hamas was considered a terrorist organization only because it rejected the Oslo Peace Proposal, and not because they engage in terrorist acts such as kidnapping, suicide bombing, and firing missiles at civilians. He managed to somehow squeeze Israel-bashing into just about every lecture class. Needless to say, he was incredibly biased to the point of omitting very important historical events from discussion.

2. Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole. Good overview of topics, could improve organization “I thought that the course could have better incorporated readings. Moreover, a more general organization to the topics at hand would have greatly benefited the course.” — Michaela Kurinsky-Malos

As stated above, the course was very well organized. Reading was dense, but warranted by how much we were covering in class. “Slightly less reading would take some of the stress away from the class.” —

“It was interesting to learn Prof Malekafzali’s perspective on the present situations in the Middle East. I learned a lot, but would have also enjoyed a little bit more of a discussion included in the class.” —

This course was great although there are only 2 quizzes, 1 essay, a midterm and a final. Our whole grade basically hinged on the essay and the final. A weekly assignment and/or weekly quizzes would have been nice to cushion our grade a little just in case we performed poorly on the essay, midterm or final. Also releasing the questions we would be faced with on the midterm and the final no sooner than 24 hours before the test was a little harsh and did not seem to serve an obvious purpose. “The course was structured well and appropriately challenging. Perhaps a more detailed description on what the geography quizzes will cover would be nice. I felt like I was going in blind for both of those quizzes, and would have liked more guidance towards what to study specifically.” —

“The course was extremely educational. The only weakness of the class was the fact that students were not entirely sure how our work was to be evaluated, what was expected of us in terms of the paper and exams.” —

“Very interesting and important topic taught from a human rights perspective. Lectures are long, but need to be in order to get through the material. More visual aids might be helpful to illustrate concepts and explain them quicker.” —

“The class spent so much focus dissecting certain laws, wars, issues that kept me both intrigued and entertained. Each class went by so quickly because of Professor Ms lecturing and class discussion.”

Fun atmosphere and it really just gave me a whole knew insight on things that I never really knew about. Everyone at the U of O needs to take this course.

 Teaching Evaluation Summary (Winter 2014) Comment Summary Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad Subject: Political Science Catalog & Section: 399, 27411 Course Title: Sp St Pol North Africa Enrollment: 35 Responses Incl Declines: 26 (Declined: 3)

1. Please share with us your thoughts on the course: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

“Professor knows his information, is very helpful outside of class.” —

Lecture was engaging and interesting. The concepts in the reading were expanded on and new information given. I thought both aspects of the course were well chosen. “He is a very good teacher.

His content is always good and interesting, however sometimes I wondered if what he was lecturing on was explicitly related to North Africa. He talks at a good speed and is easy to understand and welcomes questions. I would appreciate it if more of the lecture talked about the reading also, or if we could have a discussion about the reading. Since we don’t talk about it, it was hard to figure out what exactly we should be taking from the reading.” —

“Great strength in fully explaining topic, events, and very open for questions and clarifications. Wonderful course for a topic of study which many schools and teachers hardly ever touch up on, or without a clear pro U.S. bias. The course and professor is eye-opening, clear knowledge of the subject, outlined lecture on board without a distracting powerpoint.” —

“He is a very passionate professor who is extremely knowledgeable about a lot of different things but unlike other PS profs. he does not go on hour long off-topic tangents.

I really enjoyed the course and wish that Professor Malekafzali was teaching another course in the spring but he was not scheduled.” —

“Professor Malekafzali is definitely the most interesting lecturer I have had at the UO. He did not use a power point presentation or any projector or anything and I felt fully compelled to listen to his lectures and copy the notes off the white board. It is very rare for professors to fully rely on their speech for lectures and he did a great job at it. I also really appreciated how dedicated and enthused Professor Malekafzali was to simply teaching. A lot of professors at the UO will glaze over the topics, but not seem particularly interested or engaged. Professor Malekafzali is a very engaging professor, who always took time to answer questions as fully as possible. His passion, sense of humor and professional demeanor have made him my favorite political science professor.” –

Lectures were engaging and interesting. I very much appreciated the attention given to portraying issues realistically even when those portrayals may have caused some people to feel uncomfortable. Also really appreciated the sense of humor that permeated some of the lectures, but they were all engaging.

“Tough, but fair. A very good teacher, this is my second class with him and I am very happy with it.” —

“Very engaging, and knowledgeable. I wanted to come to class everyday. I really enjoyed the selection of films in the class.” —

“Professor Malekafzali was great at integrating the more harsh facts, that people are not often exposed too, in a way that is not too overwhelming. Also he made sure to spend extra time where needed to clear up issues surrounding the context of the culture and the times.” —

Only reason I don’t list exceptional for teaching quality is because of the sternness you exude. Though some may like a more firmness from their teacher, I personally think it causes more kids to fear asking questions, which can stifle learning. The lecturing part was very informative, and most the time very clear for what can be a complex subject.

I took both your North Africa class and Middle East class. While still a bit stern I noticed you seemed to be a bit more relaxed by the afternoon. It made the middle east class more enjoyable, and I also felt there were more question asked in that class.. “Solid lecturer that presents topics and information rarely discussed in US politics. Does a great job giving facts and calling groups/nations out that are simply doing wrong in the world with little accountability.

“He is funny, keeps the class engaged, and is very approachable. I’ve taken two courses with him and learned more in his classes than probably any other class.” —

The lecture should be more visual. We discussed more things that happened in the history than we talked about political analysis of North Africa in the the last decades. “Professor Malekafzali does not shy away from his own opinions regarding the Middle East and North Africa, but regardless I believe he is one of the better teachers I have had at the University of Oregon. He is extremely knowledgable and has helped to open my eyes to what I want to do with my degree after the University of Oregon. He is passionate and shows an interest in his students success. A great professor.” —

“The subject matter was very engaging. The instructor did a good job of selecting interesting cases to study. He made very unique observations backed by facts. We did talk a lot more about the Middle East than the course description let on. This is by no means a bad thing! I really enjoyed it. The course description should be altered to include more mention of the Middle East.” —

Loved the class and the professor. He was very knowledgable and clearly care about the subject. Thank you!

2. Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole.

“Professor is very anti-west/Israel and it interferes with the information provided in the course. Uses biases to influence students thoughts on subjects such as middle eastern treatment. Called US soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan “War Criminals” which offended me being a member of the US Army. This professor needs to be fired.” —

“Good class, very interesting topic. I have learned a lot and enjoy the content. It would be nice though if it was more focused on the North Africa region, and less so on the general Arab World, though I know that they are closely tied. I feel like I learned a lot about Egypt and Israel and the US/Europe outlook on the region, while I did not learn much about Tunisia or Libya”

“Perhaps before and end of lecture, try to make a connection between the current lecture and the previous lecture and class as a whole. But truly a wonderful experience.” —

“Great course I would love to take another specifically about politics in another region.” —

“I can’t really think of anything specific for improvement. But I really enjoyed this class and learning about the Suez canal crisis and the negative effects of globalization and US interference in North Africa.” —

I think that the expectations for the midterm especially were not entirely clear. The release of the questions helped with preparation, but what exactly was supposed to be included in the answers seemed only to become clear after the midterm had already been graded. “The class already has an interesting topic. It would be awesome if there were interactive scenarios where we could put ourselves in the position of people from North Africa.” —

“I think it would add to the class if reading check-ins were done in class. Just a simple discussion of where about we should be in the reading. The only reason I say this is, I was interested in a large amount of the reading but sometimes found it difficult to navigate exactly where I should be based on the syllabus alone. Even with this considered this class is a fantastic one and I would love to take classes by you in the future.” —

“Good topic overall with a lot of information many students will be eager to learn.

So much to cover and all valid info on Egypt, but a little more time on the other North African countries would help.” —

“I really love how there are no slides. You actually have to listen and the information is easier to retain because you aren’t just copying things down. I like the way the tests are set up also.” —

“We were assigned a wide range of readings, some more interesting than others. I would have enjoyed more additional readings assignments from online sources, and less from the books.” — Laura Stanten A little more information on how papers were graded, or touch a little more of that material in class.

 

 Teaching Evaluation Summary (Winter 2014) Comment Summary

Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad
Subject: Political Science
Catalog & Section: 399, 26303

Course Title: Sp St Pol Middle East

Enrollment: Responses Incl Declines: 23
(Declined: 2)

1. Please share with us your thoughts on the course: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

 Strong speaker. Maybe clearer lecture notes.

Passionate lecturer who is knowledgeable in his field.

Professor Malekafzali is an excellent lecturer, open to student questions, and handles disagreement on controversial subjects very well.

Instructor’s passion and intellect for subject truly inspired me to become immersed in the topic, but at times it was hard to read his notes on the blackboard.

Dr. Malekafzali is an intelligent and committed professor. I admire his passion for the subject and his eagerness to discuss the Middle East with his students.

“Very organized and serious about his work. Prepared detailed lectures that demanded serious note-taking, which has been a rarity in my experience. Takes the class seriously and earnestly cares about his students and the subject he is teaching. The only area for improvement is to acknowledge nuances as is necessary.

Sometimes the position he takes feels more partisan than fair and he doesn’t seem to want to acknowledge details of a situation that detract from the point he is trying to make.” — CG

directed at one view point and catered class to that ideology when he could have taken a border approach. I felt that it was more of a history class than a political science class. we didn’t learn any politics, only history.

The midterm was very vague about what he wanted from us, a little more direction would have been good. I would have liked if the professor used PowerPoint. It’s easier for me to follow along in class and review my notes at home with slides to guide me.

“He was very passionate and knowledgeable, I just felt that he could be biased at times and I sometimes felt uncomfortable asking questions or sharing my own belief.” — Halle Niehoff

One of the best dressed Professors, I wish I had as many nice suits. It also sometimes felt like the class was too focused on Israel faults. Not that any I can remember were invalid. It just felt like there was unbalanced blameon Israel for issues that both parties caused. Whether it was relations with Egypt, Syria, or Palestine. maybe that just me though.

Lectures were interesting and engaging; however it felt as if we were often behind schedule and were made to make up for this on our own time, out of class. Also, I don’t believe watching an hour-long youtube video is an appropriate use of class time. Finally, if it is expected that students attend an outside-of-class time meeting to watch a film, it should be noted on the registration page for the course, rather than expecting students to rearrange their schedule after the fact.

“Updating the lecture to a power point format would be helpful for those with subpar vision.” — AK

The instructor has great insight on the subject. I appreciated his honesty in the material taught. One area of improvement I would suggest is to not be so strict on how students behave in class. I understand that there should be no rudeness or disrespect but not feeling like you are able to go to the bathroom or get water during class is unreasonable in my view.

2. Please comment on the strengths and areas of possible improvement for the course as a whole.

The amount of information covered was exceptional. If anything, a bit unorganized.

“More structure and openness.” — HN

“The lectures were extremely good. The tests were fair. The topics covered were interesting, informative, and of immediate relevance. The course could be improved by fewer, more carefully selected readings. Too much was assigned for me to read, given that it mostly wasn’t necessary to get a good grade. I would have preferred fewer articles and/or chapters and then some discussion/expansion of them in class.” — CG

Great class with a process that makes you realize your own flawed perspectives at times and makes you want to really learn the topic, but i felt talking about Pakistan and Afghanistan would be beneficial, too.

Despite some opposing beliefs with the information presented, I greatly value and appreciate the course as a whole. I think Dr. Malekafzali did a fantastic job at supporting debate and dialogue which is imperative towards creating a successful class. I would have liked to talk about modern politics in the class, but do understand the significance of history in the current Middle Eastern political developments. Dr. Malekafzali not only respects the views of those who disagree with him, but invites them to express their questions and fosters dialogue. This was my favorite class of the term and I would be ecstatic to take a class with this professor again.

“Professor Malekafzali discusses topics in his class that many are unwilling to. His unique perspectives help students to have more open minds which allows us to formulate more well rounded opinions. He is very knowledgeable and it is refreshing and relieving to see professors such as him in our educational system.” –AK

PLEASE post an electronic version/outline of the notes discussed in class. I can’t read handwriting on the blackboard sometimes. Also, some students (me personally) would be so much more engaged if lecture was more visual. I am a strong visual learner and this class was very difficult to pay attention to. The course itself was well organized. Everything flowed and made sense. I enrolled in the course hoping to get a taste of some of the controversies surrounding the Middle East, but this course was more of a history lesson. Incorporating more current events could have made it more interesting.” — KL

Teaching Evaluation Summary (Spring 2013) Comment Summary

Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad
Subject: Political Science
Catalog & Section: 399, 35750

Course Title: Sp St Pol Human Rights
Enrollment: 31 Responses Incl Declines: 27
(Declined: 3)

 1: Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

“Strengths: a lot of resources, captivating. Improvement: maps would have been helpful, either with a video projector OR with a real map on the board.” – L.B

“Professor Malekafzali provided a deep understanding of human rights violations. This dense distribution of information helped me relate to other classes and current dilemmas within an international scale. He is able to deliver socio-economic and historical analysis as an extension to how liberties are violated. His strength lies in the structure of information and it how it pertains to modern day. I currently find no need for improvement except that a classroom map would be handy. I am sure he would agree.” – M.Z

“Prof. Malekafzali is a thoroughly engaging lecturer and faced the task of presenting admittedly difficult topics with the grace and poise of a true academic. I believe Prof. Malekafzali’s greatest strength is his courage to present the facts as they are, without bias or personal judgment.” – J.L

I think he is a great professor who is very motivated and very passionate about expanding students’ minds and challenging them to look beyond just the surface of what we are told/taught and what is in the media. The only criticism I have of Farhad is solely that I feel he doesn’t make it quite clear what he expects out of you in terms of testing.

Very knowledgeable about many topics that have to do with human rights violations. I think it would be helpful however if the instructor give more credit to his students for actually knowing some of the things he talked about and also to not discredit himself so much. While the topic can be very sensitive for some students, the professor doesnt have to baby them and doesnt have to constantly explain, justify or prove himself one way or another.

“The teacher was incredibly knowledgeable on the topics he was teaching. He was open to all opinions. I learned so much from this professor, he really opened my eyes to new topics and ideas.” – L.D

Lots of material without any guidelines as far as what to expect on the exams. Very knowledgeable and blunt, refreshing.

“The instructor brings a unique perspective to his lectures that I really appreciate. He tells both sides of the story, and coming from Iran, he surely understands the injustices that are prevalent in today’s world and does a great job of teaching us why and how they happen. The instructor has a tendency to only talk about rather important end results of a given subject rather briefly, at times I believe more thorough explanations would be useful.” – J.J

“Articulate and knowledgeable. Well taught.” – J.B

The Instructor is a brilliant teacher, and very passionate about the class and the topics being discussed. The only area of improvement that I can see is for the instructor to not be so horribly one sided when it comes to the Palestinian conflict.

Very one sided and argumentative without hard facts at times. Discussions were difficult to have because everything said would be called out as wrong. Somewhat hostile environment at times.

It may be helpful to have your own personal set of whiteboard black markers on hand for every class.

“Professor Malekafzali has a lot of content to share and leads the class in a very structured and organized

lecture. He covers a lot of important information and does so in a logical format. He also is very helpful and always makes sure to ask if we have questions. He is an entertaining lecturer and also makes extra time for students to get help. Professor Malekafzali is very intense and passionate about the subject and clearly tries not to be biased but to present the evidence before us. I appreciate that he asked us to take a stand and not to be wishy-washy about the topic.” – R. M

You are very passionate about the topics, and I appreciated that very much. You also introduced new perspectives on topics like Israel/Palestine.

“He is very personable and entertaining. The class isn’t boring because his enthusiasm and opinions on the topic makes you even more interested.” – A.F

Passionate about material and informative. Can tend to go off of topic or course material. I think slowing down the tempo of lectures would help.

“I had a hard time approaching the instructor. He had a huge knowledge of the subject and could answer any question thrown at him, but it he didn’t seem overly friendly to questions.” – K.L

“This class was really sort of a joke. Farhad is a nice guy, but some of the approaches used in this class were beyond ridiculous. We were not allowed to use Blackboard in the course… When asked about this, Farhad’s response was, “so that as students you will have to go out and find the information.” I don’t need help organizing my emails to find all of the shit that gets emailed to us on a daily basis – I need help learning about human rights and how they are related to the world around me. My student fees and tuition pay for me to be able to use services like Blackboard… LET ME USE THEM TO MAKE LEARNING EASIER! It is a tool, just like a calculator in math class… you have to know how to use it to get the work done. Also, use a Powerpoint presentation now and then – no one can read your handwriting. Our school spends how much annually on integrating technology into classrooms to make them easier to use and you can’t flip open a laptop once and a while? And my last rant: No technology use by students during class. Are you kidding me? Am I 12?! No, I am a grown man! If I want to use my cell phone or iPad to take notes, or go on Facebook, or look at porn… WHO CARES!?!? If I am sitting in the back row so students behind me are not distracted by what I am doing and it is on silent – I am disturbing noone. If it disturbs you – take an Adderall and keep talking about human rights – MY tuition pays your salary. OK, I lied… one more: please spell check your stuff. Sometimes we would get emails that looked like they were from a 13 year old boy learning to type. For someone who has a Ph.D., I thought spell check would be more routine. OK, I am done being a dick now. All in all, I really appreciate your effort and passion for what you do. However, I vehemently disagree with much of your approach to presenting it to us.” – J.E

“Professor Malekafzali has a passion for teaching human rights. He is not afraid to tell it as it is, and I highly respect that from an educator. The plethora of knowledge concerning human rights I have acquired has really ignited a fire within me to really want to continue to educate myself, and others about human rights.” – S.

 

Teaching Evaluation Summary (Winter 2013) Comment Summary
Instructor: Malekafzali, Farhad
subject: Political Science
Catalog & Section: 467, 27646

Course Title: US Presidency
Enrollment: 22 Responses Incl Declines: 15
(Declined: 1)

1. Please comment on the instructor’s strengths and areas for possible improvement.

“As an instructor I really liked you, I felt you “opened up” as the term went on and were very welcoming and friendly. As for improvement I have no real advice, you teach well and give ample time to ask questions.” –S.K.

You are quite an interesting teacher, I learned a lot. I liked your test formats.

“The course was very well organized and the teacher did a good job of making an effort to make sure the students understood the material presented.” – J.A

“The lectures could be altered a bit, because they tend to drag on when only lecturing. Did a great job of pacing his speaking during lectures, so it was very easy to take notes” – D.B

Very knowledgeable of the material. Came off at the beginning as “too smart to ask questions” but that got better throughout the term.

The instructor is knowledgeable about the subject of the presidency, but his attitude was bitter and uninspiring. I understand if he is jaded by the U.S. political system, but he came off as arrogant and very bitter. A lot of professors talk about their political views and expose their biases, but the amount of bias in his lectures made me question at times his credibility. He presented his opinions as if they were fact. During one lecture, he failed to mention the fact that Ronald Reagan served as a governor for eight years. He only included Reagan’s background as an actor prior to being president. He mentioned Reagan’s governorship only after a student brought it up.

“Great teacher, demands a lot out of students and the student either performs or falls by the wayside. Very difficult but worth it.” – S.H.

“The professor did well at conveying the points he wished to make from his lesson plan, and he was very organized and methodical in that respect. I felt as if some of the questions asked during the course could have received better answers, but this could as much be an issue of question clarity as answer clarity. I appreciated the professor’s willingness to contribute to the class outside of class hours. He sent us a large number of relevant reports and news-bits throughout the term, which helped connect the class to reality.” – C.C