Professor: Blair Course format: Lecture w/lab Number of respondents: 91 Total Enrollment: 117

Class Composition Froshs: 1 Sophs: 36 Jrs: 61 Srs: 19 Concs: 37 Non-Concs: 35 Don't Know: 7	Instructor Average: 2.72 Course Average: 2.48

"Principles of Physiology" in an intermediate level biology course that introduces the structures and functions of physiological systems in mammals. The formal prerequisite was Bio 20 or placement, which students felt was sufficient for understanding the course.

Professor Blair was criticized for her teaching style. Some appreciated her positive attitude and enthusiasm. They felt that she was extremely knowledgeable and did a good job of reviewing material. Others were not as impressed with her ability to convey material to the class. They felt that she underestimated their level of understanding. She seemed uncomfortable teaching and extremely nervous, ,but improved as the class continued. Others also claimed that she was disorganized and repititive. Once again, though, she improved as the class continued.

The workload for this class was relatively light. Most students approximated spending only two to four hours on this course every week. Chapter reading was assigned every week, but was not necessary for understanding the material. Three exams were given; all were noncumulative and very straightforward. They were based exclusively on class notes. Homework sets took up the majority of time and were often unrelated to the class; the same was said about physiology labs. There was no final in this course.

Most students were disappointed with the lack of challenge in this course. They felt that they did not learn as much about the topic as they originally expected they would. Blair did not delve into material as extensively as they had hoped. Others, however, appreciated the light workload and felt that this class was very enjoyable.

All students who took the class were interested in human physiology and most were pre-meds. All recommended taking this course, but some felt it should be taken with a different professor.

View BI/0080 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.