Professor: Emlem Course format: Lecture Number of respondents: 25 Total Enrollment: 60 Class Composition: Froshs: 15 Sophs: 8 Jrs: 18 Srs: 15

Instructor Average: 1.78 Course Average: 1.86

If you have ever wondered about the history that lies behind gravestones then "Gravestones and Burying Grounds" might be the class for you. The goal of this class was to show history of New England through the study of gravestones and to introduce students to material culture study. There were no prerequisites for this course, but a background in American history would have been helpful.

Students appreciated Professor Emlen's willingness to let them discuss what they wanted, but sometimes the discussions went on odd tangents. He was great during office hours and many students said they would have liked to take a class with him in a more intimate setting. Respondents really liked the field trips and the use of slides as a learning tool. Although he was sometimes slow and repetitive, he was very passionate about his topic, which made the students passionate as well.

Two short papers, one midterm exam and a final project were the required assignments for this class. Students felt that the readings were very useful especially for the midterm, though after the midterm they became less useful to the class as a whole. Many felt the final paper was too long, but otherwise the assignments were what they expected from the course.

Most students spent about three to five hours on this class per week, however near the end of the semester many students felt that they were loaded down with research for their paper. In general, survey respondents really enjoyed this class, especially the field trips, but recognized that the topic had little application to their outside life.

View AC/0125 in the Brown Online Course Announcement.