i have to start off by saying I'm not a fan of US history so maybe my review is a little bias but I thought his lectures erred on the side of boring. First off all, there was so much information he would give and I thought some were quite redundant. Hes also just not a great lecturer. Like he def knows his stuff and is really into history of california but hes just not a good lecturer. all he does is read off his slides in an alarming speed, one where its basically impossible for you to write it all down. he has no texts on his slides, his lectures are not recorded and so it makes it extremely difficult to get all the information down. he is really helpful in his office hours and in most cases seems like a nice guy but i wouldnt value that as being a good prof. i dont think i would consider his exams and papers difficult. he does tell you exactly what he wants from them and so if you follow that closely your more than likely to get a good grade its just that man was this class absolutely boring

Professor is nice but his lectures consist of him talking very fast for the entire class. Doesn't give you time to write notes because of how fast he speaks and does not use PowerPoint so you have a chance to go back and write notes. He gives you 1 midterm (10 ID questions & a 4-5 Page paper, fairly easy), one 4-page paper, an image analysis, and one final paper (8 pages). Although the work is not hard, keeping up with his lectures is rather impossible, he reads his lectures way too fast.

I learned a lot in this class and Professor Sladeck made sure to offer all the necessary resources to help students succeed. The readings were a bit lengthy but were extremely helpful when writing the papers. The professor kept the lectures very engaging and explained what he expected from students thoroughly from the first day of class. If you keep up with the readings and follow his writing guidelines you will receive a good grade in the class. Definitely would take his class again!

This class was one of my favourites this quarter. Professor Sladeck is very knowledgeable and his lectures are engaging. He’s also very helpful and makes sure that your questions are answered and gives you constructive feedback on your essays. Participation is not mandatory but would be very helpful for the assigned essays.

I joined this class because of the high ratings on here. Yes, the professor is a funny lecturer, clear, and very willing to help his students. However I would not take this class unless you want to ruin your GPA. Sladeck is a "If you do the bare minimum you will get a B" type of professor and I simply disagree with this philosophy. I feel like if a student does what the professor asks of them, they should receive an A. The professor is a brutally harsh grader and has extremely high writing expectations for the midterm and final papers. Personally, I do not like the style of how he lectures- he speaks VERY fast (reads everything he says off of his laptop) and does not use slides (only picture slides) so it is hard to keep up and truly grasp the content while taking notes. You basically have to read all of the readings (and buy a book) in order to understand what's going on in the course. If reading is not your thing, DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS. Additionally, I was horrified when the professor started going over his writing expectations today in class, which is why I am dropping this class in week 3... And also because I do not want to ruin my GPA. I would consider myself a decent writer and usually enjoy classes with written take-home exams, but absolutely not this class. If you are not a good writer, this class is not for you. I would not recommend taking this course as an elective to anybody, and especially not to non-history majors like myself.

Amazing professor, and maybe the best lecturer I have ever taken a class with. I have taken two other classes, and he continues to be an engaging, kind, and smart professor. I think I have literally learned the most from these classes without a lot of stress or burden. Literally, have to take any of his classes!!!

I regret taking this class. I originally signed up because I saw good reviews, but this was a bad class. It was really hard to get ahold of the professor and he only held office hours once a week and he didn't respond well on email. Lectures only comprised of an audiofile where we had to try and follow along with the posted slides. The lectures were dense and so were the readings. His writing requirements were super strict and he is the only teacher I've had who doesn't allow for contractions and wants you to introduce the author of a text every time you use a quote rather than allowing for floating quotes. If you want to learn about California history you're better served going to a community college. DO NOT TAKE THIS CLASS if you care about your GPA as even if you follow the strict requirements he has and follow the feedback you get, you still won't do good.

Sladeck is a great professor who made his class lectures, contents and assignments very clear. Even had extra credit opportunities. I loved his class and would totally take another with him. His lectures sometimes went very left leaning but who doesn't at UCLA.

Sladeck is a great professor, and I highly recommend him if you're comfortable with reading and writing. As a historian, Sladeck emphasizes writing and has a rather long list of guidelines each paper must meet, such as no passive voice and proper Chicago format with footnotes. Attend Office hours. This class consisted of roughly 1500 pages of reading and a little under 20 pages of writing. With that said, this class is an easy A for anybody who is comfortable with reading and writing.