So Sanchez-Ocal is definitely a guy of all time. I would trust the reviews that have come before mine. So his lectures are straight out of the textbook (which was free, in my case. I am definitely glad about that). The textbook is about as unhelpful as he is. The readings are in very basic detail. The same is true with his lectures.

Then the homework is somewhat difficult compared to the examples from the texbook and the lectures. And the exams seem borderline impossible.

The only saving grace is the grading scheme, so if you grind really hard for the final, you can still get a good grade.

pablo sanchez ocal doesn't deserve the hate. he teaches straight from the textbook and though his lectures can be slightly confusing at the start, that's just because linear algebra is conceptual course and the content takes time to process in your head. HIS TESTS ARE A LOT EASIER than the homework problems and they are also extremely straightforward. there is barely any homework and the lectures + discussions aren't even mandatory. the grading scales are also super generous, it's hard to do bad in this class especially because pablo is always so willing to help and improve based on student feedback. i highly recommend pablo (+ his t-shirts are funny) for linear algebra !!!!!

In terms of teaching, probably the worst professor I've ever had. Lectures were extremely confusing and it seemed that he relied wayyy too much on the textbook because he would read almost word for word from the textbook. It didn't help that the textbook was also not very good. Put simply, he didn't do a very good job with explaining the concepts and it eventually got to a point a few weeks in where I just couldn't watch his lectures. The only reason I did well was that he copied his test questions from the textbook, so as long as you knew how to do the textbook problems, you were fine (he gives you a link to the textbook, no need to buy it). As for the class itself, I can't really say how much I liked it because of how bad Ocal did of teaching it, but if you need to take this class, do not take this professor unless you can teach the concepts yourself in which case you will do well on tests since he copies problems from the textbook.

I would say Pablo is one of the worst professors in terms of teaching here at UCLA. He is a great guy, extremely genuine and kind. But I don't think I have ever had a teacher that is more confusing than him. Often times in lecture, he will miscalculate his own computations. Because of this, during essential theories- he just won't compute them because it takes him too long to do them correctly. It's extremely difficult to learn this way, when even the teacher is not willing to rehash the work in such a computation heavy class.
After week 3, the majority of the class stopped showing up. Everyone I knew stopped watching lectures and just started self studying using the textbook.
One thing I appreciate about Pablo is that his exams are straight out of the textbook- so doing the textbook questions and checking the answers in the back will help you a lot. His grading schemes are also extremely clutch.

I had Pablo for Math 31B, which I confess was a difficult course with him. However, since I took him the last time, I'm not sure if it's because he prefers linear algebra over calculus or if he's absorbed all of the reviews he's gotten, but man has he improved significantly. I can now confirm that he is in fact a brilliant professor!
Every homework (and exam) problem was manageable and accurately represented what he lectured on. He did not assign any tedious homework and, in fact, made part of it optional through ”recommended exercises.” Not to mention that some of our exam problems were similar, if not identical, to those from homework and discussion.
He is not out to trick you or anything. He’s easily accessible and if you need help, don’t be afraid to go to OH! He’s super friendly. Thanks for a great quarter Pablo!

This professor essentially just recited the textbook to the class during lecture. Many people didn't even show up despite his lectures not being recorded. He showed simple examples of problems, but didn't elaborate on any higher difficulty questions despite putting them on the exams. I would not recommend taking this lecture if you have trouble understanding math quickly.

Don't, just do not

This class consisted of homework, discussion worksheets, a midterm, and a final.
Like almost all other math classes, there are two grading schemes, where the second scheme drops the midterm.

Grading Scheme 1:
Homework 25%
Discussion 15%
Midterm 25%
Final 35%

Grading Scheme 2:
Homework 25%
Discussion 15%
Final 60%

The homeworks and discussion worksheets were extremely difficult since they were based on accuracy (at first) and the TA was very nitpicky on our answers. Not mentioning a certain theorem or even missing a step could cost you a lot of points. However, during the second half of the quarter, the TA began to grade on completion which definitely saved me a ton of points. The good thing is that the TA would make comments on our homework and discussion worksheets on what was wrong or what we need to do.

The midterm and final were essentially like the practice exams he gave us. However, don't rely on just going over these practice exams because the TA is also nitpicky with our exam answers. I remembered how the professor had solved one of the exam questions during a review session, and I understood and remembered it. However, my TA still took off a lot of points for my answer to that exam saying that I didn't really explain my proof. So, the professor and TA seemed to have their own ways to prove the problems.

Speaking of the professor, the lectures were definitely not that helpful as all he would do is write down theorems/ideas briefly and then spend a lot of time proving that theorem without using much time to go over examples. Most, if not all, of the examples that he did do were from the textbook, so anyone could've self-studied the class. With that being said, I stopped going to lectures after Week 4 since I realized I would be better off studying on my own. I will say that the professor is nice and approachable at least.

Overall, the content is definitely difficult and the homework and discussion assignments can be time consuming since the TA is strict with grading. Even if the exams are like the practice tests, I recommend studying a lot and meeting with the TA to make sure your solutions follow what the TA wants. Although he wasn't as bad compared to what I had heard from the Math 31B students, he was still pretty bad and I would not take a class from this professor again.

Pablo is not bad as everyone says but I have to say that discussion and homework problems are tough and harsh on grading. His exams are all from practice exams he gives out so you only need to focus on solving them correctly and memeorize them all to get a satisfying grade.

I wrote a draft review that ended up being a short paper, so here is the very, very gist of the class:

1. Standard math class policies: homework and discussion assignments are worth some peanuts of your final grade, while the midterm and final make up most of it. The midterm can be dropped on a second grading scheme. Discussion assignments and homework are graded half on completion and half correctness. Discussion work is graded harshly by the TA, Kong.
2. The class is well organized: All lessons and chapters they will cover are shown from the start of the quarter on Ocal's github, which he uses in place of Bruinlearn. All discussion assignments and homework are there as well, in addition to helpful a practice midterm and final. Although I haven't taken the final quite yet, the midterm was fair and conducive to the practice midterm, and I suspect the final will be similar. (Fair=/= easy, again the class is quite difficult, but doable)
3. Ocal himself is a fairly nice person: Self explanatory. He delivers his lectures with excitement and tries his best to answer questions. Some things are a bit rigid like the fact that he still has assignments due the weeks where he has exams, which is annoying but manageable.
4. LECTURES ARE VERY VERY VERY CONFUSING: Lectures are basically a 1 to 1 of the associated textbook chapter. While the class has no proof based math courses as a prerequisite, it probably should. Off the bat, Ocal assumes you are comfortable with mathematical proofs, although, again, the course does not require any proof based math courses as a prereq. In addition, besides the proof part of the class, Ocal's lectures end up being extraordinarily hard to follow. It is almost as if the lectures are geared towards those who have already taken the class before. I went to all the lecture up until mid quarter, because the lectures would confuse me so much, so I ended up reading the book (which he anyways teaches out of) for the rest of the quarter, and it was actually less confusing than the lectures.

In essence, while the class is well organized consistently paced (albeit very difficult still), Ocal's lectures provide virtually no benefit to students taking the class, and honestly this could be a self study online class and would not be different in the slightest. If you are confident in learning the entire class by yourself, take it, the exams are fair and the work is consistent and available in advance. However, if you are not extremely comfortable with proof based math, then PLEASE take another professor.