Colvin, Mike  

Mathematics

0.28/4.00

50 evaluations


MATH 116


Freshman
B
Required (Support)
Sep 2001
This guy is a HORRIBLE teacher, but a nice guy out of the class. He really does not know what he's doing. His lectures consisted of him writing crap on the board then turning to the blank class and saying, "Do you see it?" No we do not! Then his "hw quizzes" on our lab days was a group of us copying from one person who did the hw, which usually was me becuase I had the supplement book. By the way if you do have this class, get the supplement book (answer book) because it's heaven sent. The two midterms were easy if you studied a lot, like a couple days study. If you want to prepare for the midterms look in the supplement book and do the chapter tests at the end of each chapter. At the end, since I wasn't failing I didn't have to take the final. I would not recommend getting a tutor, but forming a study group of people in the class. I had two people that worked out for me, even though I was teaching them the materials sometimes it helped to review the material that way. If you want to work the system of a class: take this class. Go to class when you have the hw quizzes, which was Thursday and then leave and have your book handy. Really it's an easy class with a bad teacher.

MATH 117


Sophomore
Credit
General Ed
Aug 2001
NEVER TAKE THIS TEACHER!!! Dr. Colvin is one of the hardest teachers i have had here at CAL POLY. For one, he does not allow his students to pass with a D, you either have to get a C or an F and fail the entire class. He doesn't assign any homework but then you have quizzes every week and then he e-mails you the problems like the night before. This quarter i had him and by the end of the quarter everyone in the class had tutors even though it was only 117. He does not teach at all and he does NOT know how to teach his students, he makes everything all comlicated then it really is, i didn't like him at all. And then at the end of the class he set a curve and it's like usually was an C was an A or B in the class. And then the C was like at a 50 to 64 curve. So then do well on the midterms and there you go, that is your grade according to him. SO AVOID THIS TEACHER AT ALL COSTS OR YOU WILL GET SCREWED!!!


Sophomore
C
General Ed
Aug 2001
DO NOT TAKE THIS PROFESSOR FOR ANY REASON!!! I wanted to get math over and done with this summer and he was the only professor offered and even though all polyratings were bad I took him anyways thinking, "Thats just them it will be different with me." HUGE MISTAKE. Colvin assigns homework but doesn't collect it. You probably think thats good but if your anything like me-you won't do it. There are quizzes every thursday over the homework, just 5 questions. He lets you work in groups for these, he forces you to talk and cheat and share the answers. He knows if he didn't everyone would fail them. He has the usual two midterms and one final. 2 people passed the first midterm out of about 50. Oh yeah he also tells you you don't have to come to his class--so no one went. I got a 22% on the first midterm-that was high. Then I panicked(I shouldn't have) and got a tutor. She taught me everything that he should have. So I got a 71% on the secong midterm. I was soooooooo happy then I started looking through it and Colvin gave me 30 pointed that he should have. I really should have gotten a 41! Then everyone started looking at there, and they were all added wrong. It was like he was just passing everyone so he wouldn't look bad. If thats not bad enough he curves the grade. Our class was sooooo bad that a 50% was a "C". WOW huh? So if you want to just pass the class, take him, don't even worry when oyu get a 20% on your midterms-don't even waste your money on a tutor cause hes gonna pass you anyways. BUT if you want to learn something(weird huh who would put the two together--college learning) take anyone but Colvin. I am sooooooooooo disappointed in Cal Poly for keeping him on the staff. Imagine the incoming freshmen who have him and what they think? Why does Poly keep teachers like him, but let go teachers like Koeninger? Why don't they listen to us? HEY PRESIDENT BAKER--READ THIS!!!!!! HAHA

MATH 118


Freshman
A
General Ed
Aug 2003
Colvin is not as bad as he is made out to be. The book he teaches from is very informative, and anything he doesn't explain in class is explained in the book. He always stops to make sure everybody understands during his lectures, which is the perfect time to ask a question. He gives weekly quizzes, which usually contain problems similar to the tests. On average, most don't do well on his exams simply because they don't study. Many don't think it is worth going to class, thus falling behind. My best advice is to study fairly hard for all the tests and for the final, along with trying to keep up on the ungraded homework on a nightly basis. The tests are straightfoward, with the occasional curveball. An A is difficult, but not out of reach for the student willing to put in extra effort to stay on top and ask questions.

MATH 141


Sophomore
C
Required (Major)
Jun 1999
This guy is the worst professor I've ever had! he's disorganized. I came out of his class not knowing how to integrate! Ask him a question, and he says, "let's see how maple does it". I've had two C's my whole college carrer, both from his class. honestly, I should've had an F so I could've retaken it and actually learn something


Freshman
N/A
Required (Support)
Jun 2001
I guess I'll just start with the fact that colvin is a horrible teacher. his lectures are completely unorganized, and have nothing to do with the material in the book. Its only been a week and I'm already completely lost. He goes through the maple lesson so fast that it is very difficult just to keep up with what he is doing, much less learn anything. Do not take his class unless you have already taken calc and you just want a review, because you will never be able to keep up with him.


Freshman
A
Required (Support)
Sep 2001
Colvin is not a horrible teacher, he just takes awhile to get used to. His explanations in class are usually pretty poor, so become good friends with the book and perhaps form a study group. He assigns homework reflective of the tests, but never collects it. The tests are moderately difficult and are VERY reflective of the final, if you get my drift. He's a much better teacher if you want to the review the material rather than an introduction.


Freshman
A
Required (Major)
Sep 2001
A dyslexic baby monkey could present the material better than Colvin could... SEE IT! I feel extreme pain for those of you that are unfortunate enough to have him as a teacher, but there is a bright side... He is a complete lazy ass. If you haven't already had Calculus, then you are in my boat. I spent 500 dollars on a tutor in one quarter. It paid off but I would have preffered a teacher that could actually teach. As far as midterms: They suck balls, but don't worry, the final, which is the entire grade, is a compilation of the exact same questions from the two midterms. So here are some strategic hints for surviving this buffoon: Don't pay attention to his confusing jibberish, Work in study grops with smart kids, Don't go to his office hours or ask any questions because he will only make you feel like an idiot, Don't sweat D's on the midterms- you can still pull an A, Study the midterms thoroughly before the final, and even though you may feel violated in some unlawful manner after every class period, don't lose hope.


Freshman
C
Elective
Sep 2001
I passed the class obviously. Only due to great friends who already knew the material. This is the worst teacher on the campus. How he maintains his job is beyond me. He's even notorious among the faculty. He does not present the material well at all. He does not go over homework. He allows you to ask questions but usually will get mad if you do. He gets upset all the time and throws his chalk. Often cursing it as "damn california chalk." I really don't like this teacher and don't recommend him to ANYONE for ANY class. Ya see it?


Sophomore
C
General Ed
May 2002
ok...im sorry but i don't see it!!!!! fuck this guy. this is by far the worst teacher i've ever had. i'm not just talking about at cal poly...i mean ever. not only does he lick donkey scrotum, but he thinks that because he's a red neck from new orleans that he can be a complete dumbass. he frequently throws his chalk across the room screaming "damn california chalk"! he doesn't know how to present the material, and often becomes agitated when students ask questions. i actually got kicked out of his class one time for asking a "stupid" question. and by the way, ass fuck, it's c++ not cc+...anyone who's even seen a computer before knows that!!!!! he can fuck himself in the ass with a broken beer bottle for all i care.

MATH 143


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Nov 2000
Colvin is by far the worst professor at Cal Po.....the world. Wait wait, hear me out, let me explain.... he can't teach the material, he won't answer your questions, he skips around topics, and he spends half the class time preaching about the Alamo or whatever, how Texas should belong to Mexico. I do either two things in his class, laugh at him or pick my nose because both those activities at least stimulate my brain cells. "Ya see it?" "Damn California chalk" and "Are-thur" are some of his favorite sayings. Oh and don't expect to pass his class unless you have degree in Maple. His answer to any question he does not know...."hmmm let's see how Maple does it." I swear, if you take this guy, you will hate Math FOREVER, if of course you don't aleady. As you can see, I don't advise taking his course.


Freshman
A
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
Take someone else. He's a funny guy and his class reflects this--it's a joke. For our homework quizes, we were emailed the problems the night prior to the quiz. Maple files--"so you can check your homework"--were emailed bi-weekly, if not more frequently....but nobody has Maple on their home PC! The midterms were basic example problems (from the text, because he never did any in class). The final consisted of the two midterms, numbers changed, stapled together. He told our class the wrong day to show up for the final...and was in New Orleans for all of finals week. Dr. White baled Colvin, and us all out by finding a room for us to take the test. The only challenging part of the class came in the form of twogroup projects. The second required extensive use of Maple, which all but nobody could effectively use.


Freshman
A
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
I don't even know where to start with this guy. I have had a lot of math classes over the years, and he is by far the worst. He can't get the concepts across to his students at all. Pretty much my survival in that class was doing all of the homework, teaching myself and studying with a group of my friends that were also in the class. Probably the one of the worst parts of his teaching style is that he jumps around from section to section back and forth and even between chapters with out telling the students. So you can be completely lost and not even know it. My advice to you is to stay as far away from this class as you can.


Freshman
Credit
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
objective... hmm this guy licks my nutsack. You see it? Be prepared to make love to either him, or the book. He hits on 12 year olds. He doesnt respond to questions. Hes still pissed about losing the civil war cause thats how frickin old he is. Dont take his course even if it means you have to crash someone elses. And Im not ripping on him cause he failed me, but because he literally cannot teach.


Freshman
B
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
Horrible, that's a good beginning. I hated this teacher. I have been very successful in grasping math concepts and understanding math, however in this class I was unable to determine whether the concepts were that he hated California and that Californians don't know how to think, or that there are concepts not used in the text book that he thought were better, yet they were not, rather more confusing. I only scrambled to grasp concepts by reading the book and studying with a group of friends. My advice is to avoid this teacher at all costs, and if people tell you that he is a good teacher they are obviously lying.


Freshman
A
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
Whenever the guys in the class would ask a question, Colvin would ignore them or tell them he wasn't on that topic!! I(me being a girl) thought this was funny becuase everytime I asked a question he rushed over and rubbed my shoulder while he tried to answer my question. This teacher looks like Mark Twian and talks and acts like Foghorn Leghorn. Watchout he is a Mac Truck. If you are an engineer don't take this teacher, he believes they are worthless. Beware to figure this course out you need to be doing it for a scrillion years!!!


Freshman
B
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
Basically, DONT take this guy. He is a very bad teacher. You wont understand anything in class. He covers topics that aren't even related to what youre studying in the book. Office hours? Right after class, if he has time, but he wont help you anyway. Instead he'll tell you, "You should of learned that in 141." THere is no homework cuz he doesnt collect it. He just gives you a quiz every week(he emails you the questions an hour before) based on 5 hw problems. Most people talking this course need to learn something in will probably have to go higher in math. If so, take someone who actually cares, like agronsky or white.


Junior
F
Required (Support)
Mar 2001
DO NOT TAKE THIS TEACHER!!! In my 3 years here at Poly, this is by far the worst teacher I have ever had. His lectures don't pertain to the homework, which is not collected by the way so nobody really does it. And if you have questions in class, be prepared to be humiliated publically. He told us the wrong time to show up to the final and when we were waiting outside for 40 minutes, Dr White finally came and took us to another room that was open. He was in New Orleans by the way so he had another teacher give the final. I leared nothing in that class except how much i hate math. He will not help you on any problems and his explanation for everything is "You see it?" He sucks.


Freshman
B
Required (Support)
Mar 2001
I'm not very fond of this buffoon. I get lost amidst the bullshit of his lectures. I cannot go to sleep because all I see is images of me prying his skull open with a cleaver. I only grasped the smallest amount of the material in during class, so homework was my only hope. When i couldn't figure out the homework i went to his office hours and he just looked at my boobs the whole time and not once at the book. He would occasionally look up at me and pretty much say " SUCK IT" with his eyes. HE IS A DISGUSTING, SCROTUM CHEWER FROM THE SOUTH! I want to see him skinned! What a slime ball!


Freshman
A
Elective
Mar 2001
I love math, but all he seemed concerned with was getting me in the sack. DONT TAKE HIM!!


Freshman
C
Required (Support)
Feb 2002
dont bother going to class


Sophomore
N/A
Required (Support)
Jun 2002
This guy is the perfect example of "those who can'tdo it, teach it". He is the luckiest SOB alive, Cal Poly is the cushiest job around. If the cost of living was cheaper and the pay was better, we'd get REAL teachers and this dumb ass would be shit canned back New Ol'ins! Ya See it!


Freshman
F
Required (Support)
Nov 2002
I eat pie!

MATH 221


5th Year Senior
C
Required (Support)
Oct 1999
When I first entered this class I felt comfortable since he likes to use computer applications as an aid in teaching. That was day one. Day two, he yelled at a student for asking a


Sophomore
Withdrawn
Required (Major)
Mar 2013
So what, im a 48 year old virgin who lives with his mom in paso and I never attended cal poly, does that mean I can't write an eval on my old math tutor, I think not. 7 years of grueling abuse as a young boy didn't prepare me for the roughage suffered at this mans care. I lost years of my life, it was ultimately this complete obliteration of my self confidence "You will never amount to anything if you can't add" that drove me to my depraved lifestyle. Thank you Mike, you ruined my life.

MATH 241


Sophomore
A
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
In my four years, this is by far the worst teacher at the university. I did not open my book once during the quarter, which is to say I learned nothing. This may sound appealing, but taking nothing away from a course can come back to haunt you. He is unprepared, condescending to students, and is basically unqualified to teach the course.


Sophomore
A
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
really EASY teacher. from New Orleans or some shithole. Always says, "I dunno , im allowed to say that cause im from da south" Truly is a flaming idiot. Has best job at Cal Poly. Order your T.A to do all grading and even test writing, and just play with the computer all class period. Funny guy, EASY A


Freshman
B
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
I have taken Colvin's classes for the last 4 quarters. He guarantee's you a seat if you take his class. He isn't an awfully good teacher but he his very sincere to his students. He says what he thinks at all times - that can be quite entertaining. His tests are a little on the confusing side, but it is all about the final. I have passed his class 4 times by getting an A or B on the final. Homework isn't collected. Colvin is a cool guy - you just have to get used to him.


Sophomore
C
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
Let me make this clear... this guy is really, REALLY hard. He doesn't teach, he just spends his time "popping egg crates." You see it?


Freshman
C
Required (Major)
Jun 1999
Bottom line-- this guy does not care about helping students learn. he tears on anyone who asks questions.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Mar 2000
The teacher presents the material in a way that can sometimes be confusing to the students. The key to passing his class is asking questions via in class discussions, email, or office hours. He is strict about cheating on test, however he is very approachable if you are having difficulty with the subject.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Jun 2000
Colvin was rude to students, and even asked one student to leave class for asking a "dumb question." He writes on the board faster than I can take notes, let alone pay attention to. According to him, it's merely our fault for being a bunch of stupid California-educated students. I did really bad on the tests, and still passed, which makes me wonder if he pulls the grades out of his ass, or if his TA does. He doesn't collect homework, and doesn't go over it, and doesn't relate to it in his lectures. He spends a lot of time saying "You see it?" and I spent a lot of time saying "No." By the end of the quarter, the class had loosened up and would regularly chuckle or laugh as a group at his expectations. I loved when he demonstrated what certain three and four dimensional curves looked like by waving his arms around. He belongs on the streets with beggars and thieves, and not in our education system.


Junior
B
Required (Support)
Aug 2000
Hmmmmm, where to start. Let's start with, THIS TEACHER SUCKS!!! He is absolutely the worst teacher I've had in my whole life. He did a total of two example problems the whole quarter that involved numbers. The rest were a bunch of nonsense symbols and random variables. He is majorly condescending and shoots down pretty much everyone who asks a question. One time, he responded to a question, "That was back in Math 143, go home and read your book." This was in the beginning of the quarter. If you like to feel stupid, not learn, and be annoyed constantly, then I definitely recommend Colvin. And no, I don't see it!!!!


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Oct 2000
"what the hell are you talking about?" - if you like having that go through your mind, you'll have a ball in colvin's diff. eq. class. the whole course was based around colvin going through things he seemed to pull out of thin air - i wouldn't be sure whether to ask a question and see him get frustrated that he's got to RE-explain something or to just copy down whatever chicken scratch he had on the board and memorize it at home. my friends and i came out of this class knowing NOTHING about differential equations. The only reason i didn't flunk this class was because i memorized my notes from that class - i had no idea why any of the steps were done or what any of it meant - i just learned to mimic his steps and repeat them on the tests. by the way - what the hell is a differential equation?


Junior
D
Required (Support)
Feb 2001
1) I didn't like his learn math on your own approach. 2) The guy is an asshole. I watch him bring a guy to tears by yelling abuse at him for asking him a "stupid question" in class.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Jan 2002
Colvin was rude to students, and even asked one student to leave class for asking a "dumb question." He writes on the board faster than I can take notes, let alone pay attention to. According to him, it's merely our fault for being a bunch of stupid California-educated students. I did really bad on the tests, and still passed, which makes me wonder if he pulls the grades out of his ass, or gives us C's so he doesn't get fired. He doesn't collect homework, and doesn't go over it, and doesn't relate to it in his lectures. He spends a lot of time saying "You see it?" and I spent a lot of time saying "No." By the end of the quarter, the class had loosened up and would regularly laugh at his demands. It's amusing in a sick way to watch him demonstrate what three and four dimensional curves looked like by waving his arms around. He belongs on the streets with beggars and thieves, and not in our education system. If you're forced to take his class, look on the bright side, it can only get better from here on out.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Sep 2003
DO NOT TAKE THIS FOOL. Doesn't know how to lecture, so don't bother to go to class. Failed both midterms and recieved a C in the class. He needs to go back to school and learn how to teach.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Sep 2003
This guy should not be teaching. Not only can he not teach, he does not respect his students.

MATH 242


Junior
C
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
Flaming idiot, he gets angry at any question and has NO PLAN. No syllabus, No homework set, lecture consists of him scrawling a bunch of crap on the board. Avoid at all costs.


Junior
B
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
The university should be ashamed to employ this guy. If you want to teach yourself Diff Eq's then take him by all means. If you want to learn anything or have an instructor that has a clue how to respond to questions go to ANYONE ELSE!!!!!!!


Sophomore
B
Required (Major)
Aug 2001
Lazy and Disorganized!!! The guy admits he is lazy and also seems to know that most of his students think he's a bad teacher, but does nothing about it. Loves to talk. Does it the whole time. Ask a question... he's usually got some sort of answer that implies you're stupid and should already know the answer. The material taught in class was jumbled and every time I thought I knew what he was talking about he'd jump to something he missed 5 minutes ago, saying "Oh, one more thing I forgot to mention...". Also likes to use the phrase "You see it" after he finishes part of or all of an "example".... I never said anything because after a while I accepted that I wasn't gonna get anywhere asking him questions in class(never tried office hours) I learned everything in 242 from the book. Take him if you like to a hear a southern guy talk alot or like to learn without a teacher.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Aug 1999
Colvin is the worst proffesor I have aver taken and the lazyest person I have ever seen in a proffesional position. The only good thing I got out of that class is a great anicdote about the time he went ballistic in class threw the chalk across the room TWICE and stormed out because someone corrected his Algebra mistake. The university needs to reevaluate his tenure.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Nov 1999
This guy sucks!!!!!!! Avoid him at all cost... he can't teach crap.... go back to the south!!!!!!!


Sophomore
A
Required (Support)
Nov 1999
AS one other guy commented, you may learn DiffEq in this class, but it certainly won't be from Colvin. Hope that there's a guy in your class that is a genius and is willing to share his knowledge in after class study groups. That's how I learned. Going to class is a waste of time, he's not gonna let you ask questions and all of his lectures are muttled anyway. His tests are generally simple and he grades generously - which almost accounts for the fact that he didn't teach all of the stuff on the test to begin with. He told us at te beginning of the quarter, "If you come to my office hours, know what your questions are and know how to do the problem you're asking questions about, otherwise, I'm not gonna listen to you. 'Salright so far?" Seriously, avoid at all costs, "you see it?"


Sophomore
B
Required (Support)
Feb 2000
He is a ******* idiot. how he got a job here, i don't know. probably ********** or something. he doesn't teach at all to anything in the Homework, and he's just plainly a **** *******. avoid this ******* at all costs


Junior
C
Required (Support)
Aug 2003
this man is the most awful professor ive ever had hands down. 51% was a passing grade, thats how bad he was. When i asked him why he did something when he was solving a problem in class, his answer was "cause i felt like it" no further explanation. when i brought my homework to office hours and asked him to look at it, he refused, and simply did the problems so i could compare them later. i compared them later, and all 3 (odd) were wrong. the man is a complete idiot, general concensus in our class was that a retarded monkey would be a better teacher. his lecutres are impossible to follow, even if you fully understand the material. i learned everything this quarter from the book. on the first midterm, 25% of it was on somthing he mentioned the first day, never brouhg up again, and wasnt in the book. another 16% of it had instructions so vague i hadnt the faintest idea what he wanted me to do. if he had simply said "solve", i could have gotten it right. the only reason i am passing is because of the curve. i in no way deserve to pass, i dont know shit, and its going to come back and bite me in the ass when i take my EE classes. I HATE YOU COLVIN. and no, i don't see it.


Sophomore
C
Required (Support)
Sep 2003
Do not be too worried if you get Colvin. He's not nearly as bad as it polyratings says. His tests are some of the hardest I've taken at poly, but at the end of the course when he shows the curve it doesn't matter. The C range was down to 51%, so pretty much everyone gets an easy C. His final exam was not all that bad actually; for the most part it was identical questions from the two previous midterms. Colvin's a pretty cool guy, he's a hick from the South with an accent, but he will joke around with the class and make lectures tolerable to go to for a differential equations class. Overall, if you want an easy C without much work Colvins the man, but if you want an A, you might try someone else.


Sophomore
C
Required (Major)
Sep 2003
Don't take this idiot if you have any sense of sanity at all because you will be beaten to death with his notorious style of teaching. Can't teach and won't help pretty much leaves you on your own to master the material. Avoid at all costs.


Senior
A
Required (Major)
Dec 2003
Take him if you are good at math, because his lectures are useless, so that you don't even have to bother to go to class. Avoid him at all cost if you are not good at math, because there is no way to understand his lectures.

TH 668


Freshman
C
General Ed
Nov 2016
Missed the first day, went to the second day. Went to the midterm. Went to the Final. Three days of class total. I got a B, easy. This kind of shit gives our school a bad name.