Reviews of professor Hou Dongchen

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Her classes are extremely boring and almost no one is actually paying attention. If you want to hear her gush over Chinese characters and calligraphy for hours then go ahead and sign up. If you would rather take an interesting class, take literally any other ASIA course.

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
ASIA 355 with her was not so pleasant. Class content was interesting and easy. Honestly can pass with just showing up and do your homework on time. Also accessible outside of class which I love, she returns emails within an hour. Tough grader and the TAs do not have the same grading requirements.

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Lectures are very interesting and the films in this class are fun to watch. The professor is very insightful and encourages participation. However, how well you do in the course really depends on how strict your TA is. Personally, I did poorly on one paper and did very well on another paper. It really depends on the TA!!

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Dongchen's lecture is inspiring. And this course, indeed, is a good variable that changed my life. Both the TA and the professor care about students; they are willing to take extra steps to help us (i.e. providing guidelines and useful resources). This course opened a door for me.

Rating: 5.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
One of the best classes I've taken at UBC !The way she structured this course allows for independent thought. She also gives great feedback when asked. One group project, participation, pop quizzes and papers. Put in the effort and you will be easily rewarded.

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
The assignment instructions aren't clear until a while after it's been marked.

Rating: 2.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
This prof is good in general but rubric of all the written assignments is not clearly stated and grades given are low with little helpful comments. One assignment is graded by completion but the hidden requirement is at least one-page in length. Isn't it too weird? Why don't you state it clearly and make the grading fair?

Rating: 3.0/5, difficulty: 2.0/5
Never ends up the class on time or earlier! she will ask you to participate and answer questions by calling names or pointing people randomly, so be sure to listen what she is saying during the class. Attendance and discussion worth marks.

Rating: 4.0/5, difficulty: 3.0/5
Her classes do get stale at times, but often it's the fault of the student presenters which take up a large portion of the class. She is a easy marker and general participation (attendance, in-class discussions, brief summaries of the readings) take up 40% of the course mark. Tests are easy if you prepare beforehand and essays are short.