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Winn, Michael

Cumulative GPA: 2.52/4.00 with 69 evaluations
Presents Material Clearly: 2.58
Recognizes Student Difficulties: 2.58

English Department, Cal Poly, SLO
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COMS 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A Elective 8:44 pm, Apr 11, 2013 Report Evaluation		Very knowledgeable teacher with great stories that kept the class entertaining. My only problem with him is that his tests have nothing to do with what was taught in lecture, but rather on what he assigns as reading. The readings are very boring and dense. On the upside, tests aren't worth that much in his class. For a 4 unit class, the workload wasn't unreasonable, but compared to other professors, yes, Winn does assign more homework.

COMS 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:21 pm, Dec 4, 2012 Report Evaluation		I thought Professor Winn was a fantastic teacher. I am not a speech person in any way, but by the end of the quarter I felt so confident in my presentations. He lays everything out pretty clearly, and if you need clarification on something he is fairly quick at responding to emails. His stories are hilarious and he goes off on tangents all the time, its extremely entertaining. You only have to do 4 speeches and turn in an outline or paper with each one and the midterm/final is only worth 15% of your grade. Some people don't even have to take the final depending on what they're grade is up through the last speech because it is worth only 9% and would barely affect their final grade. I would definitely recommend taking his class if you have a chance, its definitely a new experience.

COMS 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 4:29 pm, Nov 30, 2012 Report Evaluation		He is an interesting professor. He is very open about his political views and his hate for liberals. If you contradict him and engage him in debates, the class can be pretty entertaining. He knows way too much for his own good and will often flaunt his knowledge, but overall I found it to be an enjoyable class with a fair amount of work.

COMS 102 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 6:50 am, Nov 21, 2012 Report Evaluation		So funny. I had this guy 7-9pm tues/thurs and he made it feel like an hour. I hate public speaking but i got lucky with this class. Because no one wants to take it our class was relatively small and so I got to know the students well enough that I am not embarrassed giving speeches. I mean its a boring class in general but it goes by fast and if you enjoy teachers telling stories instead of teaching lessons than this guys for you.

COMS 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: C General Ed 2:58 am, Nov 16, 2012 Report Evaluation		First of all, do not take this teacher if you are a liberal. Michael Winn is blatant in his political beliefs and your grade will suffer if you have opposing views. For a coms class you will have to do way more work than you will have to do with other professors. His classes consist of listening to him flaunting his knowledge on random subjects where everyone pretends to be amazed. He is a smart man, but he really loves the sound of his own voice and it gets old. He is sexist as well, you will get an A if you are a girl, but if you are a guy and don't have flawless public speaking skills do yourself a favor and take someone else.

COMS 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 9:07 am, Aug 21, 2012 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is a great teacher. He does ask you do a lot of reading, but the midterm and final are only worth 6% and 9% of your grade respectively, so you can succeed in this course one of three ways: 1) do poorly on the exams and do fairly well on the speeches and written portions and get a B; 2) Do poorly on the speeches but write, read, and test very well and get a B; 3) just kick ass all around and ace the course. It is not difficult my friends, this class will be background noise compared to your other courses, but you will still love going to class and listening to his lectures.

COMS 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 8:17 pm, Jun 11, 2012 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn is great. He is incredibly smart and knowledgeable on just about every subject. His class is insightful and allows students to improve their speaking skills. Expect to work hard in the class, but an overall great experience.



COMS 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 11:42 am, Mar 27, 2012 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn was a pretty cool guy. I can't complain too much about him because he laid out exactly what we were going to have to do in the beginning of the quarter, but it was definitely not easy. We were required to write an essay to go along with every single speech and the last research paper was 8 pages. Honestly it was a lot of work for just a GE but he didn't grade super hard so that was a plus. The midterm and final were jokes. He assigns super long readings and then pulls the most minuscule pieces of information out of them for the tests. They were both only worth a tiny bit of the grade but it was unnecessarily stressful. I would recommend not taking Winn if you want to breeze through Coms 101.

COMS 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 12:42 am, Feb 28, 2012 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn is a decent teacher. At first, his speech and paper grading may seem random and unfair, but after one or two assignments his requirements become clear. The midterm and final combined only account for about 15 percent of your grade, so do not stress if you do poorly on them. He made the final optional for my class, it could boost your grade or drop it if you took it, and would not count against you if you didn't take it. Mr. Winn likes to talk about his political opinions and such, which gets annoying, but don't let it take away from the fact that he is a fairly good speech teacher. I suggest making powerpoints for the last two big speeches, he seems to give better grades if they are done well.

CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 10:34 pm, Nov 1, 2011 Report Evaluation		First off, I took Mike Winn's class last year, with no idea what to expect. He had horrid polyratings, and that worried me. I was even more worried when he walked in first day with this old fashion suit and briefcase. I learned not to judge a book by it's cover that quarter. I have never had so much fun in a class, high school or college. You have to give a speech every 2 weeks or so, but the speeches aren't very long and he doesn't grade very hard. You have to write papers on your speeches, but they don't have to be more than a few pages, and those are even easier in terms of grading. There is both a midterm and a final in the class, but don't worry, combined they are only 15 percent of your grade. I failed both of them, I want to say 38% on the first and 43% on the second, but it's okay, because it's almost funny. The midterm and final are based out of a book that nobody.....nobody read. Mike understands this, so tends to make jokes about his tests as well. Honestly though, by far the funniest teacher you will ever have at Cal Poly ( and I've taken Tony Garcia's class). His tangents are Grade A, and some of the most hilarious things I have ever heard in my life. He was really helpful in office hours helping me prepare better speeches, but also was really kind in taking the time to talk to me about the rest of my classes, because he knew that I was having a hard time. In conclusion, take this guy, even with the low Polyratings, I have never had so much fun in a class. He cracks so many jokes that will just have you balling if you take the time to understand his humor. I also suggest fully researching your topic, you really can't give false information because this guy knows everything about everything. If you talk about how bottled water is cleaner than tap water, you'll surely get Winned because he is on the Nipomo county board in regards to water. Don't think twice, just take Mike and enjoy.

CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 12:43 am, May 19, 2011 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn is a great guy. Here's how the class works: Midterm is 6% of your grade. Final is 9%. There are 4 speeches that add up to 60% of your grade and 3 essays that add up to 25% of your grade. His lectures can be boring, but overall he's a likable guy. There is no homework, and you honestly don't need to buy the books. I bought them, but never read them. I got a 65% on the midterm, but it doesn't even matter, it's only 6% of your grade. I definitely recommend taking him.

ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 7:54 pm, Mar 27, 2011 Report Evaluation		hrmmmmmmmm well i hate this man. Dont take Winn! his political and personal views bar many students from picking speech topics that they are genuinely passionate about that would in turn transfer over into a more devoted interest in excelling in public speaking. but i will give him this hes pretty funny and lighthearted, but his "vast knowledge of the universe" come off as condescending. i dont recommend him at all and would at all cost stay away from his classes and any classes taught by him. his has no concept of the idea that COMS 101 is a GE and supposed to be not as intensive as say a major class. DONT TAKE HIM!

CM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 2:20 am, Mar 23, 2011 Report Evaluation		Winn is a very intelligent man. His class is designed so that his midterms and finals aren't worth anything compared to his speeches and papers. You have 5 speeches due every 2 weeks. Personal insight = 7%. Inspirational person = 12% Informative = 20% Persuasion = 20% Impromptu = 3%; Midterm = 6% Final = 9%, and the rest comes from your papers. It's quite lame that you have to write papers for a 101 class...but he grades really easily on them. As long as there is no grammar errors, you get the full grade. But be careful, he finds all kinds of grammar errors. He circles words that he doesnt think belong in the sentence even though they are valid. And he's quite biased on speech topics. He's a republican too. I felt like if he approved of your topic, you'd get a good grade. A speech class shouldn't be about what you deliver, but how you do it. Overall, if you put in minimum effort, you'd get a B.



CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 11:45 am, Feb 20, 2011 Report Evaluation		Michael Winn is a good guy lets be honest. But his class is complete Bulls***. If you want to waste 2 hours of your life sitting and listening to his life stories and random tangents than this is your guy. We all know those teachers that take 45 mins going off on a 5 min lecture i mean comeon! I could say every one of his classes were pointless but you have to sit through it (or sleep) seeing he takes attendance every day. The way he teaches his class is ridiculous! if last option good luck but take a different teacher please..

CM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:50 pm, Feb 10, 2011 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn is a very smart person, but he uses this to bully people. Overall, very arrogant and sexist. I got A's on the two most important speeches but still ended up with a B+ in the class because his midterm and final require pointless reading from a book that will not teach anyone to be a better public speaker. Overall I learned to be a better public speaker in his class, but did not enjoy it much on the way.

ENGL 102 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:03 pm, Dec 6, 2010 Report Evaluation		Winn is a great professor. His midterm and final are hard and you have to really read the text and take good notes during lecture. He goes off on tangents during lecture which keeps it interesting but isn\'t relevant to coms. Print out anything he sends you through email because he will expect you to know all of it.

CM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 8:39 pm, Nov 22, 2010 Report Evaluation		Honestly, all of the other people that have commented on this professor need to grow up a little bit. College is going to be work, you\'re not in high school anymore. Yes, he gives quite a bit of work but it is all relevant. All you need to do to receive an A in his class is at least show improvement through the course of the quarter. You do NOT need to be abel to give a perfect speech. He actually emphasizes the fact that you are in the class to LEARN how to give a better speech and by NO means does he expect you to be able to give a perfect speech. The papers submitted for each speech are not even papers half the time, most of the time they are just outlines. The papers that you do have to write are ridiculously easy because all of your research and prep for them is already done because you had to give a speech on the topic, they are essentially mindless writing assignments because the state legislature mandated that a \'speech\' class needs to be graded 25% of the time on writing... He is a great guy and fun to listen to as he tells stories of all of the places he\'s been and interesting events he\'s had happen to him. If you\'re trying to get an easy A where you don\'t have to work, then don\'t take him. But if you want to ACTUALLY learn something, this is the best professor for the job. and isn\'t that the point of college?... to learn..???

CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: C General Ed 3:11 pm, Jun 25, 2010 Report Evaluation		dont even think about taking this teacher if your not in theatre and cant give a flawless speech. you WILL get a B or C in this class if you are not one of those people. being smart doesnt matter to him. i saw multiple people gets C\'s on speeches i thought were closer to A\'s. this is one class you do not want to take, trust me.

CM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:09 pm, Apr 22, 2010 Report Evaluation		He\'s very good at teaching and helping students speak more effectively (I had him for COMS 101) but he has one problem: HE GIVES A TON OF WORK! seriously, you have to write a huge paper for each speech, plus a ton of reading to do every other night. its ridiculous for someone with 12 other units of \"real classes\" they have to work for, but get stuck writing bs papers for a class that has no importance whatsoever. if you can help it, DONT TAKE MICHAEL WINN\'S CLASS!!!!



ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 7:47 pm, Apr 14, 2010 Report Evaluation		Overall, Prof Winn is a great teacher. Prof Winn kept class interesting, he\'s really smart and super nice and willing to help you. I\'d definitely recommend him for a teacher. 4 speeches and 3 papers including a long research paper at the end, but everything is spaced out so you\'re fine as long as you don\'t put everything off until the last minute. Midterm and final are harder (open-ended questions not multiple choice) but they\'re not worth that much so they won\'t kill your grade. Worst thing about the class is that the textbook is incredibly dull...

ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: Credit General Ed 11:30 am, Mar 24, 2010 Report Evaluation		First of all COMS is a joke class. Mr. Winn makes you write something for every speech including an 8 page paper for the final one. This is much more writing than any other teacher requires. He claims this is because 25% of the class HAS to be written by state law, but he\'s the only one who follows that. He\'s nice and somewhat interesting, but he\'s old and only getting older. He thinks he knows everything and if you do stuff his way you\'ll get a good grade. His midterm and final are worth nothing (6% and 9% respectively) I took the class CR/NC and didn\'t even take the final and bombed the midterm. Admittedly the tests are hard and require a ton of studying for a small percent of the grade but if you want an A you have to earn it. Of course I still passed because he\'s a generous grader on the speeches. I suggest you take this class CR/NC like I did and just barely put in any work because he basically gives you a ton of free points but in order to get an A it takes a lot of work.

ENGL 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 9:53 pm, Mar 17, 2010 Report Evaluation		professor Winn is not only a great teacher but hes also a very interesting person as you will find out in his class, he reads a book a day at least, he sleeps 3 hours a night, his daughters a world class ju-jitsu master or something, anyways, his class is not easy but its doable, I thought it was fun. he definitely has reasonable expectations of how well a person can speak and grades accordingly. he grades a little harshly on essays but im assuming thats because he edits papers for a living as well so, in short i recommend Dr. Winn to anyone looking to take a speech with a professor who knows what hes talking about and is a fare grader.

CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 11:19 pm, Feb 28, 2010 Report Evaluation		I love Michael Winn! He\'s hilarious, and a really fun teacher to have. His class is easy [4 speeches 2 tests], and he\'s completely understandable when it comes to speeches. His tests are hard but they only count for 16% of your grade or so, so you can pass the class even if you fail the final. His speeches are interesting topics and very easy to research. Overall this was a great class and i really enjoyed Professor Winn! Oh and try to be the timer, it gets you 5 percentage points extra.

CM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 4:10 pm, Feb 24, 2010 Report Evaluation		I had him for coms and i thought he was pretty great. you have to do about 4 speechs within the quarter. we also take one midterm but its not really going to affect ur grade if u fail it. basically hes a really funny and smart guy. the class wasnt boring at all. i like how he critiques our speeches. i promise you will do perfectly fine in the class as long as you show up and put a little effort into your speeches.

ENGL 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 4:48 pm, Feb 18, 2010 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn was one of the most fascinating people I\'ve ever met. Not only did I learn many applicable public speakings skills in COMS 102, but I was entertained and enjoyed attending his class.



ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 2:58 pm, Feb 3, 2010 Report Evaluation		Avoid this teacher. He gives more work than any other public speaking teacher i have heard about. His impression of you greatly affects your grade. He knows a ton but spends most of class showing off with pointless facts. If you do take this class be very careful with grammar and do not do anything that might hint that you are liberal. He is very conservative. I would suggest waiting and getting a different professor.

ENGL 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 4:20 pm, Dec 15, 2009 Report Evaluation		Great professor, but he is very intense. I do not know if coms 101 is easier than coms 102 in general, but this class was rather intense for a GE. My friends who had other teachers for coms 101 definitely had an easier time than I did because Winn assigns just as many writing assignments as speeches. He is, however, very devoted to teaching, very accessible, and very interesting. He really cares about teaching you and getting you to be a better writer and public speaker. If you are interested in public speaking and willing to do a little bit more work than your peers, take this class. If you are just interested in getting an easy A for a GE, look somewhere else. The only negative aspect about this class (and I mean the only) is that Winn easily goes off on tangents during lecture (a common topic is his and his family\'s accomplishments), but he only digresses if asked to by his students; hopefully you don\'t get meatheads in your class. I put a lot of effort into this class (just as much as my other Freshmen classes), but I grew as a writer, a speaker, and a disciplined student. This was a great experience.

ENGL 102 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:53 pm, Aug 25, 2009 Report Evaluation		"Tau, tau TAU tau tau!!!" That's him speaking Vietnamise. Turn and run the other way, my freind. TURN AND RUN.

ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:25 pm, Jun 8, 2009 Report Evaluation		Interesting class. Speeches were fine. Essays were fine. Tests were pointless. I would have had a solid A if it werent for the tests. We have to read about speech and then be tested on it. He loves quotes. Overall he was an alright guy/professor. I definitely did learn some good things about public speaking.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: A General Ed 12:09 am, May 13, 2009 Report Evaluation		The grading was a little tough, and the sheer amount of writing/speaking was a little daunting, and the midterm was hard for sure... but Professor Winn was definitely one of the best teachers I've had. We had so many awesome (though usually irrelevant) conversations in class, and the guy is so damn smart it's hard not to admire him. I always came out of that class smiling. He has a blatantly conservative point of view, and though his logic is usually un-biased, you could tell he always loved the conservative speech topics much more. You're gonna have to earn your grade for sure. His requirements for a good paper are pretty standard, but when it comes to speeches you really need to listen to his tips, and be extremely self-confident. And study like hell for the midterm and final, they are quite detailed.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 8:49 pm, Mar 27, 2009 Report Evaluation		Honestly, this class was terrible. I received a good grade but with an abnormal amount of effort for a communications course. Know this: when you write your papers, check grammar and spelling and that only. Don't concern yourself with being imaginative/ writing a well thought out paper. He doesn't care. However, grammar mistakes take your grade down a whole bunch. Give speeches on Republican topics. Welcome to college: give your professors what they want. I disagree with previous postings about how he grades liberals harder. This wasn't my experience. However, he does cut you some slack if you give speeches on topics that he agrees with. Don't take him if you don't have to, but if you end up in this class, use these tips!



SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 3:13 pm, Nov 1, 2008 Report Evaluation		douchebag.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:44 pm, Jun 11, 2008 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is an interesting character. I had him last quarter and it wasn't the most difficult class. But, what other people say is true. He thinks he is god's gift to earth and feels that he knows everything and if you have a different opinion than him, he's right because he has so many degrees and went to Thailand and reads 8 books a day and he is basically the most amazing person you will ever meet. Also, he wants you to know how big of a deal he is because hes an elected official. I did well on most of my speeches, until my final speech. My final speech I argued a liberal point of view and Mr. Winn is very conservative. I put many hours of research into my final paper and speech and I felt I had an educated strong point of view and after getting A's and B's on all my speeches before. He gave me a D-. Mr. Winn let his personal opinion get in the of my grade. He's a decent teacher, but not a good guy.

SPC 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:54 pm, Mar 27, 2008 Report Evaluation		Ok here is the run down. DONT TAKE HIM. Clear and simple. He grades the class exceptionally hard, will make you write 4-5 papers between the lengths of 4-10 pages and you will work your ass off for a grade you feel does not reflect the amount of time, effort, and improvements in speech that you have made and put into this class. Ok, your a bad registration group and you really want to get speech out of the way (like me). WAIT ANOTHER QUARTER. It will be worth it. I put so much effort into the class, got A's on all my big speechs and papers and still got a B in the class. He is not a terrible guy, but teachers a rather terrible class in a less than satisfactory manner. Ask anyone who had him. They will say avoid this guy. So once again, don't take him.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 1:02 am, Mar 21, 2008 Report Evaluation		if i could edit my last post i would but thats not a feature of polyratings. firstly it was scoms 101 not eng 101 and i dont know if i got a c or not but i got c's and b's on all my papers and speechs. even though everyone else seemed to be getting a's. maybe he hated me or maybe im a dumbass. whatever. besides mr winn being nerdy and annoying i wanted to add that if the class was called sit around and argue/talk about random things he would be a great teacher, but its coms 101 and doesnt really need the extra element he puts in it.

ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: C General Ed 6:17 pm, Mar 20, 2008 Report Evaluation		when i read the poly rating for this guy after i took the class. (now) i laughed my ass off because ever part of it is true. he always slips in useless information about himself or personal experiences. like "when i was your age i was in my 2nd year at berkley reading 5 books a day" congratulations cunt. or "i noticed that study group are mostly asian people" are you kidding me? racist. one time i rode a scooter to class when it was raining and i was like yea it doesnt brake that well in the rain. and he says "ah yes because the wheel becomes lubricated and it reduces friction." and im just like uhhh yeaa. douche.. also hes hates liberals so unless you really know what youre talking about dont argue politics. hes also a politician for his town.

ENGL 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:06 pm, Mar 2, 2008 Report Evaluation		This class was completely detailed. Along with every speech, you have to write an essay with it. For the persuasive speech you have to write a research paper and he grades very easily on the essays and very harshly on the speeches, which are 60% of your grade. He is so smart and he knows like seven languages. He will correct you after you do a speech if some of your information was invalid, so don't slack on the research portion. He lectures about random stuff that I had never heard of before and the midterm and final were hard. They were all short answer with an essay on the back and everything came from the book and lectures. Hard class but I learned a ton.



SCM 112 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 10:37 pm, Feb 26, 2008 Report Evaluation		Attendace is crucial: don't take this class if you plan to skip. Also, every single thing in the syllabus, lectures, and reading is fair game for the midterm and final. He likes when you're confident during your speeches, so if you're not, fake it! Also, ask questions about your specific speech, and you'll get a better grade. Follow his rules for the papers, and double check spelling and grammar (big no-no). His rules are very straight forward, just follow them and you'll be fine! He's not a creep, and his life experiences are very interesting, and he tries to relate everything to speeches.

ENGL 101 Freshman Grade Earned: C General Ed 10:24 am, Jan 11, 2008 Report Evaluation		DONT TAKE HIM IF YOU'RE A GUY! HE IS TOTALLY SEXIST! he is one of the smartest guys i have ever met but his tests have nothing to do with his lectures and he always goes on random tangents about god knows what.. dont take him if you are a guy!

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 2:47 am, Sep 21, 2007 Report Evaluation		I think I'm the only guy EVER to speak about a topic that Professor Winn didn't know about---Yes, parkour! This professor doesn't give below a c it seems, if you actually do the work! His midterm and final were extremely easy for me, yet I still got a d on each. You have to go to every lecture, but believe me, each one's worth it. Prof. Winn always has a story about a time when he was in Thailand, and seems to know everything about everything--you can pretty much ask him anything, and he'll know it--so don't try to b.s. your way through a speech or essay!

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 9:22 pm, Jun 12, 2007 Report Evaluation		Prof. Winn is a very smart man and knows just about everything about everything. Unfortunately his lectures don't relate to any of the material which is being covered on the midterm or final so unless you like lots of reading I would recommend staying away from this teacher. Also it seems like this teacher likes to play favorites. Don't piss him off with your first speech since the grading in this course is mostly subective or you are surely going to get a poor grade since he is republican and it seems like he cant give a fair grade to speeches related to topics he disagrees with. Also when he grades your writing he grades harder than any english teacher i have ever had did. plain and simple mr. winn shouldn't be taken.

SPC 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 10:45 am, Apr 16, 2007 Report Evaluation		this guy really needs to step back and look at what his class really is...a speech 101 class. the 5-6 page essays we had to write per speech is way too much work for such a useless class...the midterm and final were very detailed and had no bearing whatsoever to public speaking or life in general. He was nice enough...but really conceited and i think he was full of shit half the time. He pretends to be modest about everything he has supposedly done...but really he tells you everything so he can show off his intelligence. Personally...i dont think he's that smart...he just never shuts the fuck up. and if you have an opinion that doesnt match with his COMPLETELY...dont say anything cos all he will do is bullshit his way to make you sound wrong. o yea and he hates anything that isnt nerdy: he hates sports, games, parties, and even sleep. and i am not kidding with the sleep part. overall...dont take winn unless you like beating your head against a brick wall on a daily basis

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 5:21 pm, Dec 31, 2006 Report Evaluation		Wow. Where should I start? This guy is a genius, but that's exactly why you shouldn't take him. His grading on the speeches wasn't that bad, but his midterm and final were pretty much impossible. Their scope was simply too large; for example, he made us correct sentences that were grammatically incorrect IN A SPEECH CLASS! He made us know some philosophy crap that we will never need to know ever again! Oh, and the average class grade on the midterm was a D. TAKE ANOTHER PROFESSOR and you will find this class a breeze. DO NOT TAKE WINN AT ANY COST!



SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 5:38 pm, Jun 26, 2006 Report Evaluation		I looked up Winn on polyratings before spring quarter when I took him and got freaked out because he sounded like a creep, but I am so glad I took him because he is not--at all! Winn is a good teacher, and overall this was a great class. As long as you follow guidelines you can get an A. Just make sure you have structure and organization...and even if you have differing opinions he will still give you a good grade if you present your information clearly and reasonably. He wants to hear what students have to say, even if it is different than he would say himself. I am really glad I took this class, it is low key and does take alot of pressure off finals week.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: A General Ed 5:06 pm, Jun 14, 2006 Report Evaluation		Prof. Winn can seem very intimidating, but he's actually really nice. As long as your speeches show improvement, I think he'll say it's fine. Grading standards are very clear. He reads a lot, so he knows all sorts of weird trivia and you shouldn't try to BS him on anything. That much is for sure. He used to live in Thailand and has a Thai wife. He's very Christian, but not in the usual judgemental way. If you're liberal, don't get cocky with him. He won't be mean if you are, though; he'll just jest with you. This guy is really funny if you're nerdy. Speeches are 60% of the grade, writing is 25%, and tests are 15%. The nice thing is that the midterm is worth twice as much as the final. It made it much less stressful during finals week. Good guy.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 5:50 pm, Apr 25, 2006 Report Evaluation		if you take this class be prepared for a lot of writing and DO THE READING! if you want a "A" the class wasn't too bad, but we did twice the amount of work the other speech classes did.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 7:04 pm, Apr 4, 2006 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn is a funny guy. He will talk a lot about politics and Thialand. He is a tough grader but if you do the work he won't fail you. Don't expect quick grading.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 12:09 am, Mar 27, 2006 Report Evaluation		Great guy... I am a guy and I have no breasts and I got an A. Hot girls are self-confident thus they speak better and get good grades... so there's a bit of a hindsight bias looking at it as others have... if you get up there and give an awesome well-thought out rehearsed speech and get a C on the midterms and A-/B+ on the papers it's really easy to get an A. He's so awesome to talk to and he knows EVERYTHING... dont BS a single word in your speech... he has 5 majors/degrees from UC-Berkeley... awesome guy... take him.. its fun and laid back...

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 7:48 pm, Mar 15, 2006 Report Evaluation		Winn is a good teacher. This class requires a good amount of time but isn't too bad. There is a midterm and a final which are written they were hard but not impossible. For every speech you have to write a paper so be prepared. If you are a good speaker you will have no problem if not you will have to work hard. He is very easy to tlak to and very reasonable. You have to go to class because he takes off if your not there.



SCM 102 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 1:08 am, Mar 14, 2006 Report Evaluation		He's a good teacher, he'll tell you exactly what you did wrong and how to fix it. The final is a test and an impromptu speech. Not too bad I'd say. If your a girl and have no problem with old men staring at your boobs to get a good grade, I would advise this class. Thats an easy way to pass. Oh and he knows just about everything in the world. He's great with stories and has a ton of them from all around the world. He's a pretty interesting guy, you know, the kind that you WANT to talk to at the old folks home.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 12:11 pm, Mar 2, 2006 Report Evaluation		I got an A, but not because I had good speeches. Others had way better speeches and got worse grades. He's kinda ugly so it's hard to pay attention in lecture.

SCM 102 Sophomore Grade Earned: C General Ed 6:24 pm, Mar 1, 2006 Report Evaluation		didn't like this teacher very much, he didn't lecture very well. He tells some jokes but most weren't funny, even though I "got" them. He's a politician and dresses kinda old fashioned. Grades too hard and doesn't explain why. One time he actually lied to me about something when I came to his office hours. I didn't know until I went home and looked it up.

SCM 101 Junior Grade Earned: B General Ed 8:29 pm, Feb 25, 2006 Report Evaluation		I'm not sure really how to describe professor Winn. If I was a girl, I would call him creepy, but I'm not a girl, and I don't have a chest for him to stare at, so I'm not going to call him creepy. His teaching method is quite unique. He has a broad knowledge about a lot of things, and being a politician, he wants you to know that. Hence, his lecture is filled with tons of irrelevant examples for a very simple point. In fact, it gets so ridiculous that you forget what his point was, until he reminds you at the end of class - after spending two hours on outrageous tangents. He mentioned something about the class having to be 25% writing, so instead of having you write one essay for every three speeches, he has you write one essay for each speech, but only counts the essays 25% of the grade while the speeches are much more. This is irritating in two ways. First, most of the time is spent writing the essay. Second, when he grades the essay, he checks only for grammar and mechanics, not on content at all. He's a spelling/grammar machine, and nothing more. Aside from a few comments, he doesn't really teach you anything about speaking in this class. You will get better, but not from anything he does (he may actually slow down your progress), but just from practice. His midterm is on a book that you read which provides some helpful hints on speaking (a lot more in one chapter than he ever gives you). However, he doesn't test you on the important parts of the book. He tests you in the irrelevant side points that you aren't supposed to remember. Most of the time, I let teachers slide by with a lot. I try not to bitch unnecessarily like a lot of people do. But Winn is a different story. I am warning you - do not, under any circumstances, enroll in his class. Michael Winn is the worst teacher at Cal Poly.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 7:06 pm, Feb 6, 2006 Report Evaluation		Firstly, i'm a guy and I got an A in this class, so it IS possible to do. Mr Winn cares more about whether you give good speeches than whether you're a guy or a girl. It's true, however, that Mr. Winn knows everything. That's not even an exaggeration, he reads so much that he's familiar with every subject known to man. This means two things: First, he loves to go off on tangents about random subjects (boring more often than not), and second, its impossible to BS anything, because he knows more than you do about whatever subject you're talking about. The workload in this class was probably above average. We had to write a paper in addition to every speech, while most other SCOM classes didn't have to do papers. On the bright side, he gives you plenty of time to do the work. The tests are also pretty tough, but at least there are no surprises. He gives weekly "quizzes" (not graded or collected) that give you a sense of the type of things he wants you to know. If you can memorize those things you can ace the tests. Mr. Winn is not an easy teacher, but he knows what he's doing. If you take his class, you WILL get better at giving speeches.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 6:24 pm, Jan 5, 2006 Report Evaluation		Professor Winn... He is a very knowledgeable person, and he makes sure you know it. He knows a few good speaking tricks and grades pretty fairly, but seems to favor girls to an extent. Prof. Winn can also ramble like hell about anything, because he's read books about everything. Ya, I wouldn't suggest taking him if you are a guy or if you will be bothered by a politician who sleeps 4 hours a day.



SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 10:08 pm, Jan 4, 2006 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is a nice guy and a pretty good teacher. 5 different types of speeches and he requires papers to be written for 3 or 4 of them. I heard in other Speech class papers were not required, so I thought the papers were a bit much. Definitely use 1 or 2 notecards for the speeches, he really marks down if you look at your notes a lot. For the 1 midterm and the final read over the book and his lecture notes - that makes up a majority of the them. Not sure if I would take him again, but overall not too bad.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:58 am, Dec 28, 2005 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is generally a nice guy. He has decent humor, which is oftentimes very subtle. His grading however is ridiculous. Not that he graded hard, he just didn't grade well at all, nor did he grade consistantly. If he likes you, he will give you an A on your speech even though you did a horrible job, or give you a C even though you had a great speech. He also does not know how to grade essays AT ALL, even though he said he has before. If you aren't any good at public speaking, Mr. Winn doesn't care. He just grades you a whim, even though he makes it sound like he is grading you with some meaning. His lectures are hard to follow. He goes off on some WILD tangents but somehow he gets them back to the main point. The workload isn't too much, just 4-5 speeches, each with an essays, and a research paper. As mentioned, he knows EVERYTHING. He reads about 4 books a week. So don't try to make up BS in his class, even though he seems pretty gullible. The class starts off pretty hard but it mellows out after the first midterm. He takes roll so make sure you go to class or you will lose points. Good luck in this class.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 10:59 am, Dec 13, 2005 Report Evaluation		I enjoyed Mr. Winn, moreso in the second half of the quarter than the first. The test are a bit lame in the sense that you're tested on a book that he has you read but don't discuss in class. He didn't make me nervous for the speeches, and he always gave good advice. And he's a book worm...very knowledgable.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 8:32 pm, Dec 2, 2005 Report Evaluation		Prof. Winn was an excellent instructor. I really enjoyed my speech class and feel like I came out a much better and more comfortable speaker than I was before. Prof Winn is increadibly knowledgable about just about anything actually. It is fascinating to listen to him speak. The only bad thing is that his midterm and final are extremely difficult BUT, they are worth a small percentage of your overall grade. On the midterm I was also expecting to get an F but I recieved a C+ which I just didn't deserve. He was actually a nice grader when it came to speeches. I would definetly recommend this teacher to anyone who has to take speech.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 5:21 pm, Feb 22, 2005 Report Evaluation		what a dick.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: A General Ed 10:59 am, Feb 22, 2005 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is a really nice guy. He is kind of a hard grader, but really he just wants you to become better at public speaking. My first speech I got a C on, but after that it was A's because i started practicing my speeches. He only lets you have one 3x5 card to look at so this class is really about knowing what you're going to say and presenting it well. His midterm was kind of hard, but if you study hard it is all in the book so you can pass easily. I enjoyed this class, but he rarely lets you out early so it can get boring.



SCM 102 Sophomore Grade Earned: B General Ed 10:52 am, Jan 6, 2005 Report Evaluation		I thought Prof. Winn was a pretty good teacher. He does know almost Everything, but I thought that just made the class more interesting, you were always waiting to see what insane fact or story he was going to throw out next. The only homework is the reading and the essays for your speeches. The essays really aren't that hard to do but you need to practice them for your speech. Make sure to keep up with the reading, though the stuff may seem like common sence sometimes, read it! I procrastonated and it sucked when it came time for the midterm. Overall his class isn't that bad if you keep up with the work. Yes, giving speeches suck, but everyone has to do it so you might as well learn how and Proff. Winn is a good guy to learn from.

SCM 102 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:34 pm, Dec 28, 2004 Report Evaluation		Prof. Winn knows so much information that it's sometimes overwhelming. He assigns papers for each of the speeches, which seems unnecessary. He grades the speeches hard and he grades the papers based on grammar. Your grade is based on speeches, papers, a midterm and a final. Overall, the class is ok and you do learn a lot, but the papers are extra work.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:55 pm, Apr 13, 2004 Report Evaluation		Mr. Winn is an intersting man. He is a Christian but doesn't ever grade speeches based on their morality, in that way he was very fair. He does however grade hard on speeches and the midterm was quite difficult. I liked how he set us up with speech partners. It was nice to have someone to practice with and have one person critique you as opposed to an entire class. You should try to come to every class because he does take off percentage points. I know that a lot of people think he is a know it all (and he is) but I kind of enjoyed his random stories about reading 5 books a week, leaving in Thailand, and being a politican. He is deaf in one ear so often someone will speak, and then he'll look confused and say "whose talking" because he can't percieve the depth of the sound. Overall I thought he was a good teacher. I feel like I did become a better speaker and learned a little bit.

SCM 101 Sophomore Grade Earned: N/A General Ed 10:54 pm, Mar 16, 2004 Report Evaluation		What does burning thousands of dead cambodian bodies, comparing rough-housing teens to Nazis, and knowing almost every language ever spoken have in common? These are all things that crept up in my class with Mr. Winn. Aside from him knowing everything like more about you and your last name than you do or the pH level of soil in Peruvian rainforests, he is also a politician. He teaches in his free time once in awhile. But he has a lot of free time since he doesnt sleep and manages to read several books in addition to every newspaper ever published EVERY DAY. He dresses like it is the 1950's. An interesting guy, not a great speech teacher. His "lectures" consist of him ranting on something or getting lost on a tangent while throwing in a random quotation or fact that will be on the midterm. Also if you are a male student, I advise against this class. He is old and likes to look at girls. Hence girls give shitty speeches and get an A whereas any guy will get a C for a good speech. So if you are a girl who can put up with him talking in Thai and about how his wife is Thai and how he has been everywhere and knows everything then you should take him. If you are a guy then do not take him.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:23 am, Feb 27, 2004 Report Evaluation		If you are a girl, and can look cute, take this class. It isn't that hard anyways, but it pisses you off after a while the way he favors girls. This guy is still a pretty neat professor, and seriously knows EVERYTHING. I would reccomend this class only if your scedule is pretty light.

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 12:03 pm, Jan 19, 2004 Report Evaluation		Well, I am not going to lie to you, but Mr. Winn is a tough professor, but you can handle him. He does require you to write essays for every speech usually ranging from 3-5 pages. For these, he does grade them hard, but personally, I thought that he was fair. I never did get a single A in anything in his class, but I did get an A- on the midterm so it is possible. Just remember to keep on top of the reading and lectures and make sure you go to class even if it is at night becuase for ever hour you miss that's 1% of your grade, ouch. The midterm is really tricky, but he does give partical credit for most stuff so as long as you are keeping up, you will do great, just remember that Mr. Winn knows EVERYTHING....there is nothing that he does not and when you get to class you will know what I am talking about.



SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: B General Ed 11:03 pm, Nov 21, 2003 Report Evaluation		This teaher was the BIGGEST JERK EVER. He gave stupid ditzy girls who gave HORRIBLE speeches A+'s and guys who actually did things B's or C's. He made us write essays along with the speechs. After I gave one of my speeches he told me that lip rings (I have one) are distracting. When I got my speech paper back he graded me down from an A to a B- because OF THE LIP RING!!! The next week I took it out and the jerk didnt even notice. He is a big "know it all." Also you get 2% off your grade for every day you miss.... DONT TAKE HIM!!!! Besides his MIDTERMS AND FINAL ARE SOOOOOOOO HARD!!! RUN AWAY FROM THIS CLASS

SCM 101 Freshman Grade Earned: C General Ed 10:19 am, Nov 10, 2003 Report Evaluation		prof winn really knows his information. he seriosly knows everything! he explains hi sinformation well and also knows alot about public speaking which is what i took. his does grade the speeches hard but still fairly. i liked and thought he was a really great guy. he was easy to talk to in his office hours.

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