Wenshen Pong

The Engineering Department lacks instructors like Dr. Pong. He is very patient with his students because he understands that althought the material may be extremely basic to him, it can be a huge challenge for his students to understand, especially those who have just seen the material for the very first time. It's in his paradigm.

The problem solving strategies that he presents in his lectures are far more understandable than the ones in the book. A problem that may require countless Calculus equations to solve, can be reduced to one algebraic chart due to his method. Because he's also in the professional field when he's not teaching, he gives his students an insight about the engineering field, especially CE.

Some may argue that he emphasis "too much" on teaching calculus, but hey, he cares about his students because some of them are concurrently enrolled in a calculus course while taking statics and may not have a deeper understanding of calculus than other students.

Some may argue that he always make mistakes, but how many instructors do we know that will thank us for pointing that out? Some argue that he "can't talk," because sometimes he has difficulty putting his ideas into words, however since I actually understood the material through his lectures more than the book, he can actually communicate through his lectures. Just give him your respect and attention.

Communication is always the key. Show him your effort not matter how much you are struggling, and he will empower U to pass the course. Granted, he makes mistakes, but we should look at the entire building, and not just it's brick.

Let me start off by saying, I think Dr. Pong is a real asset to SFSU School of Engineering! I know he has come a long way in his teaching style. I read some legacy reviews about his teaching 'here', and they were mostly less than favorable. I will say from my experience, that he now possesses the finesse to explain concepts more than one way and offering students crystal clear clarity on the method and approach; which in my opinion is a gift I rarely see in instructors. He might make mistakes on the way, but is consistent in catching his errors and making corrections. I know he has been, and will be criticized for performing examples from the textbook and about his accent. He is, however, able to take these examples and improve upon the book method by demonstrating a more straightforward path of lesser resistance in the approach and method. And as far as his public speaking abilities go, no problems here; compared to other Asian profs I've had in the past, his diction is excellent and he's always making an effort to make sure his statements are clearly understood. Not to mention, he is so attentive to his students needs, is INCREDIBLY approachable, always pleasant, and goes out of his way to assist and make himself available. I am sure that he does this because it's obviously very important to him that students perform well in his class. And, because he understands the gravity here; ENGR102 is the foundation/jumping off point for the rest of the engineering curriculum. Not to mention, his exams are fair and straighforward. If I do have a constructive criticism for Dr. Pong, I think it would be that he spent too much time having to teach Calculus. This is, in my opinion, not his fault. I can't help but think when students come into this class they are deficient in Calculus. For example, one should know how to take the integral of the area under two curves. Dr. Pong should not have to reiterate the theory here, but he does because he cares.

From his first day, he makes clear what he's looking for. He is enthusiastic in teaching, but clearly disallows student chatter. If you have a question, don't ask your neighbor, ask him. No matter how behind your question might be, he will still answer it. He openly states that everybody should be receiving perfects on the homework. There is a problem solving session which is not mandatory, but very helpful. There are take-home and pop quizes. He does occasionally give you full credit if the entire class in general doesn't understand the pop quiz. The homework prepares you for the exams because the exams are easier than the homework. He gives you a perfect outline of what will be on the exam. He says how many problems, and what types of problems. In order to succeed in this class, you should come to each class meeting to read and understand the book. The only problem is that Pong sometimes has his own easier methods than that shown in the book.

This teacher is a disgrace to the faculty at SFSU. Like many other teachers, and specially those in the engineering department, he is not a teacher nor he tries to be one. His lectures are boring and he doesn't do anything besides writing the examples from the textbook on the blackboard. This is already bad enough but to top it off, he even make mistakes when writing the examples already solved in the textbook. He doesn't tell you when you are going to have quizes or what to study for them. The homework is really hard and the book where it comes from really sucks. In general if you want to learn something take someone else or think about going to another school.