Cell Biology and Genetics

Over the semester, I have not been able to understand why people call it "cell hell". With Professor Putnam, it is the complete opposite. She is great at teaching, and I love her structure of the class. You do readings that are easy to understand, and tiny warmups before class on Canvas - then after the lecture, you do an "exit ticket" - which is write three main points of the lecture on a piece of paper from memory and hand it in to Professor Putnam. She has made me actually enjoy biology, when I disliked it in high school.

Over the semester, I have not been able to understand why people call it "cell hell". With Professor Putnam, it is the complete opposite. She is great at teaching, and I love her structure of the class. You do readings that are easy to understand, and tiny warmups before class on Canvas - then after the lecture, you do an "exit ticke …Read more

This course wasn't too hard, but Professor Combelles's teaching style made it very difficult to learn anything. Class time was spent working in groups answering questions, but I feel as though it did not give me a good foundation in biology.

Previously known as "cell hell", this class with Emily is engaging and laid back! Participation is part of your grade, so you have to be in class but otherwise, there are no worries. Everything is effort-based grading so its pretty laidback. Lab could sometimes still be stressful though.

There is no doubt that Prof. Combelles is extremely passionate and enthusiastic about biology, which makes it fun to interact with her about topics. As someone who didn't love AP bio but who did love a biotech course I took in high school, I actually really liked how I could tell I was learning and being pushed to understand things in class. However, aside from saying hi to us every class and walking around the room a bit, I saw/heard very little from her during the actual class times. The course set-up is: (out of class) readings, notes, quiz/"warm up," and then video "mini-lectures," and then (in class) group work on a worksheet with your learning team. I understand that she wants collaborative learning in class where we can ask questions and try to puzzle things out with each other, however, I think that it would have been much improved if maybe one day was her lecturing while the other day was group work, since I feel like I've barely gotten to learn anything from her while actually in class. That being said, she leaves EXTREMELY detailed and thoughtful feedback on every assignment and is also a very sweet and caring professor, and her feedback is really very valuable (I don't know how she has time for it all). If you're good at independently-driven learning you'll probably be okay with this course, but if not, I think you'd be better off with a more traditional-style bio course (i.e. Spritzer).

There is no doubt that Prof. Combelles is extremely passionate and enthusiastic about biology, which makes it fun to interact with her about topics. As someone who didn't love AP bio but who did love a biotech course I took in high school, I actually really liked how I could tell I was learning and being pushed to understand things i …Read more

Professor Combelles is extremely nice and accommodating, but this class was not structured well. There were no lectures and all learning was done through the textbook and pre-recorded videos. In class, we would work in teams on worksheets and peer leaders would go around the class and help if needed. The class is effort-based, but it is difficult to actually learn the material. This style of learning was not effective for me.

Professor Combelles is extremely nice and accommodating, but this class was not structured well. There were no lectures and all learning was done through the textbook and pre-recorded videos. In class, we would work in teams on worksheets and peer leaders would go around the class and help if needed. The class is effort-based, but it …Read more

Professor Combelles uses a flipped classroom model which is extremely difficult to use entirely efficiently. She does it well, but I wish that she would be more clear on what exactly she expects us to get from the readings while we are taking notes or studying. Classes are entirely comprised of group work which can be helpful as long as you get a decent group. The TAs are helpful and Combelles is always around if you have questions. The exam grades are almost completely based on your own effort and takeaways from the class, but they can take quite a while. She is definitely a caring and passionate professor, I just feel like the flipped model could use some extra fine-tuning.

Professor Combelles uses a flipped classroom model which is extremely difficult to use entirely efficiently. She does it well, but I wish that she would be more clear on what exactly she expects us to get from the readings while we are taking notes or studying. Classes are entirely comprised of group work which can be helpful as long …Read more

The amount of memorization that is needed for these exams is totally unreasonable. This does not facilitate understanding but rather just your skills to memorize everything said in the lecture. You can totally not comprehend any of the concepts but as long as you've memorized all the fancy words than you can still pass the exams. The lectures are relatively well structured and he gives you printed out slides to write on which was very helpful, the exams are just unreasonable though. This class is making me reconsidering a bio major.

The amount of memorization that is needed for these exams is totally unreasonable. This does not facilitate understanding but rather just your skills to memorize everything said in the lecture. You can totally not comprehend any of the concepts but as long as you've memorized all the fancy words than you can still pass the exams. The …Read more

Greg is an incredible professor. His class is graded on effort, so you only get out what you put in. If you want to read nothing that is fine, but you will learn so much by doing the readings and putting all of your effort into the material. You do group work once a week and have lecture the other 2 days. You have a problem set every other week that takes maybe an hour and a reading response on the opposite weeks that take only 30 ish minutes. Super fun class and Greg is amazing-- I could not recommend more!

Greg is an incredible professor. His class is graded on effort, so you only get out what you put in. If you want to read nothing that is fine, but you will learn so much by doing the readings and putting all of your effort into the material. You do group work once a week and have lecture the other 2 days. You have a problem set ev …Read more

Catherine teaches the course in a discussion-based format where you watch the lecture videos before class and work with a group during class times to cement understanding. I loved the class, this teaching style really worked for me. The exams were difficult but are set up in 2 phases where the first is the actual exam and the second is opportunity for corrections and deeper understanding.

Catherine teaches the course in a discussion-based format where you watch the lecture videos before class and work with a group during class times to cement understanding. I loved the class, this teaching style really worked for me. The exams were difficult but are set up in 2 phases where the first is the actual exam and the second …Read more

Professor Spritzer is a great professor. He’s very passionate about biology and it’s reflected through his lectures. The exams are not difficult you just need to memorize the entire slides. Although this is a lot of information, you always know what to expect from the exam, which I love. We have two canvas quizzes almost every week, they just consist of four multiple choice questions. There are also two short paper we write on research articles he provides.

Professor Spritzer is a great professor. He’s very passionate about biology and it’s reflected through his lectures. The exams are not difficult you just need to memorize the entire slides. Although this is a lot of information, you always know what to expect from the exam, which I love. We have two canvas quizzes almost every week, …Read more

Professor Ward is great. His lectures are engaging. The exams are on Canvas and you can earn points back for test corrections. The course is quite interesting. His slides were very minimalist, so you definitely want to take good notes in class because there is not much to refer back to on the slides. Professor Ward is super helpful, and if you don't get something will explain it in a different way.

Professor Ward is great. His lectures are engaging. The exams are on Canvas and you can earn points back for test corrections. The course is quite interesting. His slides were very minimalist, so you definitely want to take good notes in class because there is not much to refer back to on the slides. Professor Ward is super helpful, …Read more

This is a very basic intro to biology class, if you did well in AP biology then this course will be very easy. If you are pre-med I highly recommend pairing this course with Chem 104 because they will balance each other out and give you the opportunity to adjust to a double lab course load. Emily is a very slow teacher and tends to go over the basics of the course however if you read the textbook then you will find the course much more rewarding. If you have never taken a biology course before this will be a great way to ease yourself into STEM

This is a very basic intro to biology class, if you did well in AP biology then this course will be very easy. If you are pre-med I highly recommend pairing this course with Chem 104 because they will balance each other out and give you the opportunity to adjust to a double lab course load. Emily is a very slow teacher and tends to g …Read more

The exams were very memorization based but not too hard and Professor Spritzer gave a lot of partial credit. Lectures are very organized and go over exactly what will be on the exams. As long as you understand and study the lecture material the class is very fair.

Professor Pask was a great professor--his style in accepting that test/exams aren't a good measure of learning really helped me to focus on understanding the material, rather than memorizing for my grade. In being able to focus like that, I have learned and internalized so much more about cell biology, and there's a lot of vocabulary! Doing work in groups frequently allowed me the space to talk about my understanding, to teach and learn from my peers as well.

Professor Pask was a great professor--his style in accepting that test/exams aren't a good measure of learning really helped me to focus on understanding the material, rather than memorizing for my grade. In being able to focus like that, I have learned and internalized so much more about cell biology, and there's a lot of vocabulary …Read more

Professor Combelles follows a teaching style founded on intrinsic motivation and curiosity, which is something that I can appreciate. For BIOL0145, she puts students into teams and, basically, our "lecture" is just a small group discussion over the content. It's nice because we can focus on specific topics, but at times, I felt like I was depending more on the TAs than Combelles herself. But overall, a really good class that had great resources and test set ups.

Professor Combelles follows a teaching style founded on intrinsic motivation and curiosity, which is something that I can appreciate. For BIOL0145, she puts students into teams and, basically, our "lecture" is just a small group discussion over the content. It's nice because we can focus on specific topics, but at times, I felt like …Read more

I had a great experience with Professor Putnam. I was intimidated to take this class, but she made my experience very valuable. She was willing to work the pace of her students. There were no exams but there were constant assignments to test our knowledge, so I really felt like I was learning for myself instead of learning just to cram to memorize.

I feel like it is relatively easy to get a decent grade in this class, as it is graded by effort. But, it is hard to learn material in this course as it is a flipped classroom model and you essentially teach yourself the material from readings and pre recoded lectures. The course material is very dense and I personally did not retain much information from learning this way.

I loved taking a course with professor Ward. He was one of if not the most accommodating professors I've had. All around great guy. Tests were definitely on the harder side and I would recommend spending more time on readings to prepare but he makes his best effort to curve grades and fairly evaluate everyone. Loved Jeremy!

I enjoyed taking this course with Professor Spritzer. Exams were pretty difficult and contained a lot of memorized information, but the class in general was super interesting. He really tries to incorporate the voices of the students into the lectures. Discussions are interesting too. Nice and enthusiastic professor but lots of memorization.

I really liked the structure of this class, but it's definiteley an acquired taste. It's kind of a flipped model class where where you watch lectures before class and do just group work in class. If you aren't prepared for class, the class is useless. It makes it hard to do anything but put LOTS of work into the class to make it worthwhile. However, when you do put work in, it's super useful and awesome and good. Combelles is an incredible person and professor and gives endless comments. She obviously puts a lot of intentional work into the class.

I really liked the structure of this class, but it's definiteley an acquired taste. It's kind of a flipped model class where where you watch lectures before class and do just group work in class. If you aren't prepared for class, the class is useless. It makes it hard to do anything but put LOTS of work into the class to make it wor …Read more

If you like memorization then this course is for you! Every class is the same- a dreary lecture where Spritzer reads off a powerpoint slide. The good news about his exams is that you won't get any surprises. The bad news is that if you aren't able to memorize everything (EVERYTHING) that he says in lecture, then you're screwed.

Combelles was a very hands off professor for this course. The class consisted of mostly small group work and the TAs really carried the class. I wish there was more lecture in-person or instruction from the professor rather than group work where concepts were not always clarified. However, the material was very straightforward and it definitely helps you adjust from memorization of concepts to a higher level of understanding. Exams are self-graded and time consuming as you have to provide written corrections if you missed a learning goal. The course sets you up well for future physiology classes. The lab also was low stress and there is lots of feedback and additional help if necessary.

Combelles was a very hands off professor for this course. The class consisted of mostly small group work and the TAs really carried the class. I wish there was more lecture in-person or instruction from the professor rather than group work where concepts were not always clarified. However, the material was very straightforward and it …Read more

I really liked this class with Professor Putnam. she is very clear in her lectures and will look things up and get back to us if there are questions that she doesn't know the answer to. She is very accommodating of student needs and understanding. the content itself was not that hard, but you should do the readings to ensure you know everything before class. It was a lot of time mostly because of the lab section, but that is to be expected with lab courses and the labs themselves are super interesting.

I really liked this class with Professor Putnam. she is very clear in her lectures and will look things up and get back to us if there are questions that she doesn't know the answer to. She is very accommodating of student needs and understanding. the content itself was not that hard, but you should do the readings to ensure you know …Read more

Professor Pask is an amazing instructor and is so nice. He creates an environment that encourages you to learn while also making it so you are not intimidated by new concepts. He has an obvious love for the topic and is so helpful in office hours or if you having any questions/concerns.

This was a weird one for me. Yes, the lecture was completely effort based (including tests), which made it stress free. But sometimes to really learn material you need a little bit of pressure, and looking back on Cell Bio I really feel like I didn’t get all that I could have out of it. Yes, part of that’s on me, but also I really never saw Combelles because the lecture was flipped - all lectures were pre-recorded and we just did problems in class. I appreciate the new approach to teaching in an effort to alleviate stress but I simple feel like a traditional, in person lecture would have been more engaging especially seeing as Combelles seemed wonderful when she was present.

This was a weird one for me. Yes, the lecture was completely effort based (including tests), which made it stress free. But sometimes to really learn material you need a little bit of pressure, and looking back on Cell Bio I really feel like I didn’t get all that I could have out of it. Yes, part of that’s on me, but also I really ne …Read more

Combelles was very kind and accommodating. The style of the class is irregular though. You do all the learning beforehand and put your work into practice. It is beneficial if you have taken AP Biology before though.

Greg made a "scary" class enjoyable, fun, and anything but scary. I thought that his alternative teaching style and passion for the subject was clear and I had a great overall experience. If you are going to take Cell Bio, take it with Greg.

This was an extremely strange course. Combelles does not use lecture-style classes. Rather, most of the learning is done outside of class and class time is used to discuss the readings and short lecture videos Combelles posts tocanvas.

He was the best great course; definitely take it if you can. No exams all semester. Two or three homework a week and reading. The class is engaging and not stressful. Best experience with cell biology.

The course largely relied on lectures and reading for learning. There were no exams, as he used ungrading methods for the course. There were wednesday group work sessions every week for this course. Highly recommend taking this course with Greg.

Professor Spatafora is extremely smart and knowledgeable about Cellular biology but she takes it to the extreme. She explains everything very fast and expects you to piece it together on your own and in many cases confused me more during office hours.

Spatafora is an extremely kind and enthusiastic professor who has extensive knowledge about cellular biology. That being said, she almost exclusively teaches very high level courses and as a result, this already difficult class is taught literally at a 300 level instead of as an intro level class. There’s an obscene amount of information we need to know that is only increased because of Spatafora’s knowledge and enthusiasm on the subject. Overall the Spatafora is a brilliant person but so out of touch on how to teach an introductory level class. I feel I would have learned substantially more with a different teacher and would have had less stress and a better end grade.

Spatafora is an extremely kind and enthusiastic professor who has extensive knowledge about cellular biology. That being said, she almost exclusively teaches very high level courses and as a result, this already difficult class is taught literally at a 300 level instead of as an intro level class. There’s an obscene amount of informa …Read more

Professor Spatafora is extremely knowledgeable and extremely passionate about biology. She is also a very effective teacher and makes good use of videos to explain things when she cannot. With that said, she also has extremely high expectations for her students, and grades accordingly. Her class and exams are not for the faint of heart, particularly if you don't have a lot of experience in biology, but I would recommend her class nonetheless because of all the content you learn.

Professor Spatafora is extremely knowledgeable and extremely passionate about biology. She is also a very effective teacher and makes good use of videos to explain things when she cannot. With that said, she also has extremely high expectations for her students, and grades accordingly. Her class and exams are not for the faint of hea …Read more

Pask is awesome! Absolutely loved this class and learned a lot in a very chill and low stress environment. Will definitely be taking more classes with him in the future. The effort-based grading system was an extremely refreshing take on the typical STEM class at Midd. 10/10 would recommend

Hardest class I have ever taken. Requirement to know pointless, arbitrary material of unimportant biological processes that are only explained in lecture and not found anywhere else. Exams were extremely challenging and predatory. Do not take.

Professor Spatafora's Cell Biology class was very challenging. It is very hard to get a good grade in her class. She grades the homework strictly and her exams are also very difficult. Granted, Professor Spatafora is incredibly smart and is really passionate about the material that she is teaching. However, this is not a class to take if you have other heavy work/class load. You will need to study a lot for the exams if you want to do well on them. I personally found her class very discouraging. However, if you work hard, the grade will work out in the end as lab is 50% of the grade.

Professor Spatafora's Cell Biology class was very challenging. It is very hard to get a good grade in her class. She grades the homework strictly and her exams are also very difficult. Granted, Professor Spatafora is incredibly smart and is really passionate about the material that she is teaching. However, this is not a class to tak …Read more

This course was a worksheet-based class meaning that we were split into groups, and we had to work on a worksheet with the help of TAs. The Prof only commented on the word document, and there was hardly any teaching on her part besides having to watch video-lectures before coming to class. The TAs were doing the professor's job, which was odd. The readings and tests were durable.

Spatafora is a great biologist but not a great teacher, especially for an entry level biology class. She goes into an excrutiating amount of detail about every little thing which is not only extremely overwhelming but it inflates the amount of material in the class. She also does not take into account student feedback about her exams. They're extremely difficult and she is unable to prepare her students well enough to face the challenge of her exams. She, does, however offer test corrections but that only adds to the amount of time and effort dedicated to the class with little gain.

Spatafora is a great biologist but not a great teacher, especially for an entry level biology class. She goes into an excrutiating amount of detail about every little thing which is not only extremely overwhelming but it inflates the amount of material in the class. She also does not take into account student feedback about her exams …Read more

This class wasn't very hard, especially because there were no exams. However, I wasn't the biggest fan of Putnam's teaching style. Lectures are very discussion based and I felt like too much time was spent on discussion instead of her teaching us the material.

I really liked this course and this professor. He is very accommodating and we let anyone take the exam on their own time up until a little over a day later. He is a great professor and very interesting. The class is exam based with a heavy portion of class being the lab which is almost like a separate class. The class itself wasn’t very hard but the lab is definitely challenging.

Greg is a fantastic professor. He uses effort-based grading, so as long as you do the work in a meaningful way, you get full credit. He's super chill and understanding, and he doesn't give exams. I also took the lab with Lauren Ash, and she is very sweet. If you're gonna take Cell Bio, I highly recommend you take it with Greg!

Prof Ward is a great lecturer, making the material feel relevant to potential career paths you may not be aware of. This is arguably more important than learning about material like the cell cycle, especially if you've already taken a cell bio course previously. Prof Ward is super respectful of your time and great to chat with!

Great professor. Draws on the applicability of learned content. Exams are difficult but fair; his grading (especially for the written portions of exams) is chill, almost easy. Do the readings and you will have a pleasant experience in this course.

There are a lot of readings for that class. Prof ward is a very nice guy and he wants everyone to succeed. Tests are hard but they are take home. There is no homework for that class but I would def do the readings

Professor Ward is the best. He makes the nitty gritty material super engaging and will also help you with life guidance and advising even if he isn't your advisor. Go to his office hours to make a personal connection and I'm sure you will benefit.

Class lectures were super interesting but had little relevancy to the actual material on the exams. Better off reading the book than attending lecture. Exams were fair and consisted of multiple choice and short answer sections. Super friendly guy who knows his stuff.