Helen Finkelstein

She has a certain rise and fall (both in pitch and volume) in her sentences that's reminescent of the braying of an aged donkey. Okay, I've never heard a donkey bray, but I have a pretty good idea of what it might sound like after wasting a whole semester in her class. So if your idea of the perfect napping environment include the idyllic cry of those animals of burden, sign away! Otherwise, her class is not for those who needs a motivating professor in this boring course. Those of you already in her class, stay put for an easy grade if you have an hour each day for homework and reading. As for my grade, I didn't do any of the hmwk or the project and skipped the final.

Helen is a very sweet woman who honestly tries to teach the class statistics. But I have to say, no math class is easy to teach and there are very few people who have that ability. She gives a long lecture every day to further explain the poorly written and edited book with examples that she makes up herself from real statistical data (like from newspapers). Her lectures are very boring, but they really do help to understand the math. I suggest skimming the chapter before she lectures, or else you will have no idea what she is lecturing about: she starts with a random example, and then gives you the actual formula and what you're solving for at the very, very end. Homework is due once a week and consists of a few long problems. There is a short, easy quiz once a week. There are 3 tests total and then a cumulative final test. The tests are a bit confusing because of the way she "words" or writes the problems.You do not have to attend class because doesn't take attendance, but I suggest you do. If you are natually good in math, take her. But if you normally struggle, I suggest you take another teacher who actually has the ability to teach math.

This class is basically go in to turn in homework, or take a quiz. You don't learn ANYTHING from her lectures. She makes a five minute long lecture turn into an hour and a half. I always go home and have to read the book to figure it out. Its very simple material and a very easy class, but you basically learn it on your own. There is a quiz once a week and you have about 10 or 15 problems (long ones) due all at once, once a week. She doesnt take attendence, but you kinda have to be there either to take a quiz or turn something in.

I was extremely skeptical about taking a stats class at first but Helen provided easy-to-understand lectures and homework assignments. Helen made Statistics appealing to people who usually don't enjoy math. If you flunked algebra, trig, geometry or calculus, don't worry! You don't need any of that in elementary statistics. Helen's monotonous personality makes it hard to engage students but if you pay attention, you will learn and understand a lot in the course of an hour or so. Her homework follows directly from her lectures and are more or less repeated on her tests. There are short and (really) easy quizes each week, weekly homework assignments, a short report, three mid-terms and a final. It's not as hard as it looks! Just understand her lectures and homework and you'll ace the class with ease.

Perhaps I'm a bit biased (being a math major), but she kept things quite simple, got a very good understanding of stats and how they were used. She didn't have the most flamboyant personality, but she did her job and it was fun to be in her class.

I did not at all learn anything from her class. No doubt she is a good individual that knows her math but she lacks the talent of teaching. I basically taught myself everything from the book because her lectures were off, and she did not seem able to communicate the process of math to the class. If you do not like to do homework I also would pursuade you to take another teacher's class because you will always have homework that is collected and also she tries to feed too much info for one session.

I do not consider myself a math whiz by any stretch and was very concerned about taking statistics. Helen was a really great teacher, she made stats seem easy by using real world examples. She also makes sure that the problems we did only require a pocket calculator, and not an expensive stats calculator. If you are concerned about taking stats, I would highly recommend Helen Finkelstein.