I disagree with the other review saying this class was boring (but to each their own). Professor Yates is super passionate and he's a very engaging lecturer. I admit some of the readings were a little long and dense, and I skipped out on a few of them, but the history is super cool to learn. He also brought in a few guest lecturers that were super interesting to listen to, as they each focused on a very specific field of linguistic history. The discussion sections are mandatory but they were super fun to attend as the TA often led interactive activities like carving your name into clay using hieroglyphs. Overall this class was a super fun way to knock out the linguistic GE requirement, so I definitely recommend it.

This class was super boring, but I would recommend it as an easy GE. I stopped going to class after the 4th or 5th week and still passed with a B+. The professor is nice and passionate about his course.

Weekly assignments - There are 9 on Canvas and you are given a week to do them. Multiple choice and matching questions based on readings and lectures. Your lowest two scores will be dropped. There was no time limit and usually 10-15 questions.

Midterm/Final - The midterm was just like a weekly assignment. On Canvas and multiple choice, but just longer maybe about 60-70 questions. He gave you about a week to complete it on your own time. The final was supposed to be a project, but it got cancelled due to the TA strike. It was going to be a research paper about a writing system that you would have to create.

Sections - Mandatory. You can miss two.

Readings - He gave you one textbook online and the other you would have to buy on your own or find online yourself. I did the readings here and there, but even the times I didn't I was still fine.

No extra credit was posted.