Semester: AY18/19 Sem I
Professor(s): Kiven Strohm
Workload: Light to Manageable
Overall: I super duper enjoyed this module (though not everyone agrees with me). It was a last minute module I decided to take but it turned out to be my favourite module of the semester. The module started off with a screening of the matrix which we needed to write a simple reflection on. The second lecture was a webcasted one since Dr Kiven was overseas at a conference. When he came back that was when things started picking up. He organised this module into 3 themes and focused the lectures and readings around them. His lectures are what I call “one word slides lecture”. He would usually put a word/words/a quote on the slide - simple font, black words and white background - and he would just talk about it. This style suited me quite well and I was usually captivated by what he was saying. I enjoyed just listening to him talk and type down notes. He gives very insightful thoughts so just listen to what he says. My friends did get lost however. He does not usually upload his lecture slides but it’s alright since you probably won’t understand it anyway if you did not attend his lecture. He has a very calming and smooth voice too! Generally very pleasant lectures.
The readings for this module is manageable and even light at times. It is generally digestible and quite interesting. Dr Kiven is more of an anthropology professors so his readings are usually case studies and story-like. I enjoyed the readings for this module as well!
Assignments: The matrix reflection was not too tough. I think Dr Kiven just wanted to make sure we were there for lecture and actually watched the movie. He sounded quite chill about this assignment too.
We also had to do an individual presentation on one of the readings. The expectations of the presentation was manageable - we had to summarise and analyse the reading - but because I presented in the first week, it was a bit tougher as there was no structure to follow. Dr Kiven was ever so helpful tho! I asked him so many questions regarding the presentation as well as questions about the reading itself and he replied so quickly and with so much detail. He was also so encouraging in class and kept smiling and nodding. Love it!
Exams: There was a midterm and a final for this course. Both were written examinations. I don’t remember much about the midterms but it was very manageable. The final exam was slightly tougher (I think it was 2 long essays) but Prof Kiven gave us the questions more or less beforehand so you can definitely prepare for it although we could not bring out essay outlines into the exam. But brainstorming the essay outline should be enough preparation for the final exams.
Professor: I LOVE Prof Kiven. He is a super nice guy. I remember distinctly how he collected our final exam scripts with 2 hands and thanked each other of us while wishing us a good holiday. Some of my friends described his voice as so soothing that they felt the urge to sleep. As I mentioned on top, Prof Kiven has a rather unique way of teaching (“one word slides lecture”) so it might be something to take note of. He is also a super helpful professor as I said above too!
Tutorials: Prof Kiven was my tutor for this course as well. He is as friendly as he always was in lectures. He smiled quite often during the presentations and also looked very attentive throughout the presentations. I would say that the tutorials are mostly student-led as everyone take turns to lead a discussion on the various readings during the sessions. In a way, the tutorials complemented the lectures very well as it delved deeper into the readings.
Recommend? I would recommend this mod to anyone who is looking for a really nice and helpful professor. It is also a rather light 2k course
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