Shawn Whalen

Shawn was a good lecturer. He's funny, entertaining and for the most part, pretty fair when it comes to grading. I definitely learned a lot and I would happily take another class with him if I had any interest in public speaking.

Just like most of the teachers in the Speech department, Shawn is excellent. He has a very sharp mind which, combined with his personality, makes his classes very enjoyable. He always treats his students like adults. While he doesn't require that you attend class, he is very clear that if you choose to be absent it is on you- don't go to his office and ask for a recap of what you missed. He gives challenging exams, but if you go to class and do the reading you should be fine. You will also learn a great deal. I am a little bit sad that I have completed all of Shawn's upper division courses, because now I can't have him as a teacher anymore.

I know this is long, but I think that it is worth reading if you are considering Whalen as an instructor. Whalen is the best professor I have had so far in my three years of college. He is brillant and is full of interesting ideas that flows fluidly out of his mouth. He is very knowledgable in the things he teaches and is a very articulate speaker, bringing clarity to what might otherwise be confusing. Initially, I found his class to be quite intimidating, not because of his personality, but because he expects a lot out of you. Your grade in this class is based on two exams, a few reaction papers that should be about two pages long, and a final paper. His two exams both consisted of about 10-12 short answer questions and three essays. But don't let that scare you. As long as you take good notes and have the ability to think, you'll do fine because he lets you use your text book and all the notes you want during the exams. The only thing that is difficult about the exams is that time might run out before you finish. But I found him to be rather lenient when he graded. As long as you show that you put thought into what you wrote, you'll get some credit, sometimes more than you thought you would. There are also these reaction papers to write after watching certain movies he shows in class. These aren't really graded, but you have to do them. It prepares you for the final paper you have to do in the class. All and all I found the work load to be tolerable. It's not as bad as it sounds. Whalen encourages his class to actually think and look deep into certain issues instead of just regurgitating facts. His classes are not lectures per se but more like discussions. He has a great since of humor and you could be sure that you'll find yourself laughing at some point during the class. His classes were never boring but on the contrary they were very interesting and I learned so much. I took so much more out from the class than I expected.

Okay, if you guys like a kick back type of guy with a personality it's Whalen. The guy teaches in a style that is fun and interesting at the same time. Oh yeah you learn too that's another plus. p.s. If you ever read this Whalen the Giants still stink....haha

Shawn Whalen was an excellent instructor, if you want to hsve fun. While he does teach the fundamentals of speech, and he uses a textbook, I felt that the overall class attitude was much more layed back, and easy going. Included with this class were three speeches, as well as a mock-trial type of courtcase scenerio, in which the students were required to take on a role, and speak in front of the class in a somewhat of an improvisational atmosphere. An excellent night class!

Professor Whalen is an incredible debate coach! As a subject Argumentation and Debate is "dry" however, Whalen makes is interesting and enjoyable. He's coached nationally ranked debate teams and is always there for you. I highly recommend taking his classes or better yet, joining the SFSU Forensics Team. He's almost as good as Tuman.