Reviews of professor Brett Esaki

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 5.0/5
Never take this class. Esaki is most definitely a great guy, but no gen ed should be this overbearing. It's a gen ed, and nobody really cares about the material, so make it fun and not an annoyance. You're also forced to use certain sources that have very little connection to the material he asks you to write about. Let us use our own sources, lol

Rating: 1.0/5, difficulty: 5.0/5
Like the others were saying Brett Esaki is a very nice professor but grades really strictly. This class is only half a semester so it felt really heavy at times. If possible it is best to do the in-person JPN 245 than the online one.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 1.0/5
Is a great professor! Not strict at all, is willing to work with students so long as we give him a heads up. Content is super easy and easy to understand.

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Nothing but a headache. The class material was not covered well. The notes do not reflect what's expected on exams. JPN 245 was more rigorous than my actual STEM classes, not a good gen-ed. So many papers. Confusing D2L site. Deadlines are not clearly stated, assignments are hard to find, and you cannot see your grade in the class. AHHHH

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 1.0/5
He always started class late and kept talking past the end of class.  His lectures aren't that engaging and his presentation format makes it hard to understand if you didn't listen to the lecture.  Be careful if you ask any questions because he will talk for an additional 5 minutes every time.

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 4.0/5
Took this class solely because it was available and seemed interesting. If you want a fun class that seems interesting, this class is not the one. I wish I had enjoyed it but there are a million 30-45 minute long lectures, you have to constantly refer to the syllabus, and the overall layout of the class is confusing.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Super fun class, I learned a lot about the relationships between popular culture in the US and Japan. Not a lot of work, all you have to do is read and pay attention to be successful.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Class was small so it was a lot easier for everyone to participate and be heard, he used interesting examples in lectures to make it easy to relate material in class to outside world. Very relaxed atmosphere in class, was always able to clarify on lectures whenever we had questions. A lot of supplemental reading to expand information even further.