Goers, John  

this man is so unapproachable. if you ask him a question he pretends that you are the dumbest person he has ever met. seriously. dont take him if you can avoid it. i went to all of his office hours and he made me feel so incompatent. thank god i had another teacher for lecture or i would have withdrawn. he is mean so dont even think about taking his class. BAD TEACHER

he's awful...not helpfull at all, you'll ask him a question and he just side steps it and gives you some convoluted answer that doesn't have anything to do with your original question plus he's a ridiculous grader...he'll nickel and dime you to death

Goers made me dread coming to chem lab. He is a nit picky grader. no matter how long u spend on a lab u will not get a good score unless u compare with a friend to get rid of small mistakes. He lectures but he cannot teach what he knows. there is no doubt that he knows his stuff, but he seems like he would rather be doing research than talking to students. Gives pretty hard quizzes and makes labs stressful. Disappears during lab for long amounts of time. very limited office hours

I dreaded going to my chem lab every week. Over half the quarter I was too busy freaking out about failing the lab (therefore the lecture) to study for any of his ridiculous quizzes on material that just made everyone sit there and stare at each other with a \"When the fuck did we learn this\" face on. He\'s hard to approach and he\'s really nitpicky about the lab notebook, too. I waited until the last minute to finish the labs and to study for the quizzes, but that didn\'t really make a difference. He usually inflates everyone\'s grades at the end of the quarter if they\'re not up to par with the normal 78% average that most lab teachers are required to submit. I got D\'s on the quizzes and reports so if you\'re not sure if you\'re going to pass, go and ask him about your chances of passing...It may save you a lot of trouble

AVOID THIS TEACHER AT ALL COST. I had Goers for Chem 127 Lab fall quarter of 2009 and it was a horrible teacher. He doesn\'t go over the materials in class and his test and quizzes are so hard. Class average was like a low C. WORSE TEACHER EVER. Try and take Dr. Baxley for lab if you can.

Dr. Goers wasn\'t that bad. Sure, it\'s hard to go into lab without READING the lab beforehand, but that\'s what he expects you to do. Make sure to update the lab notebook and learn from what he wants each week. The quizzes can be hard, but the material for them is given. So in all, Dr. Goers is intimidating at times, but hard work will succeed in the long run.

Goers was my lab instructor for Chem 127. I was super excited to take this class and actually really enjoyed my lecture instructor, but Dr. Goers completely ruined my chemistry experience. He never explained the material clearly and expected us to just "figure it out". When you would approach him with questions he would talk down to you and make you feel stupid or he would tell you to "ask a friend" or say "what do you think?" . No doubt he's a smart guy but he shouldn't be teaching, especially general chemistry if he's unwilling to help with simple questions.

This professor was the ultimate worst. He doesn't understand student difficulties, he pretty much hates everything, and he is very condescending and makes you feel like an idiot if you ask a question. I don't understand why he had to be so cruel all the time. Also, his quizzes are the most difficult task ever. Most of the questions either made me want to burst out crying or be like "when did we learn this...???" I have no idea how i got a B in his lab, honestly i think he must have curved the entire class by a letter grade.

I really don't understand why Dr. Goers has such horrible reviews. He explained things pretty clearly and overall made chem lab pretty easy to get through. He can be a little picky about formatting and sig figs and that sort of thing but doesn't really take off points for it. His quizzes are also a bit long but they pretty much consisted of questions almost identical to the previous labs questions. The averages for the quizzes and labs were always in the 80-85% range too. I didn't put a whole lot of effort into this lab and ended up with a B.

dr. goers was not a good teacher. biochemistry can be really interesting but he does not teach it in a way that it is. he cant keep his facts straight and constantly gave us wrong information. the tests were not a very accurate representation of the course material. he cannot teach and so you dont have a good chem background dont take him, its a total waste of time.

AVOID THIS PROFESSOR AT ALL COSTS!! He is the worst teacher Ive ever had during my 6 years at Cal Poly. He doesn\'t lecture on test material, and the tests are HARD. Like so hard the averages were less than 40%. He never prepares his lectures, so you might as well not even go because he stands in front of the board waving his hands saying \"ohh no, that\'s wrong.. I don\'t know.\" And that\'s not even when someone asks a question!! In lab he was even worse. Super picky about the notebook and you could never get a good grade. We had to photocopy our labs to turn in.. what is the point of a lab notebook then??! I studied from the book and homework and past exams ONLY, nothing from his lecture, got B\'s on both midterms, and didn\'t even study for the final because I was so over it and got a C. Basically.. you can get through the class, but you will hate HATE every minute of every day you have to be around him.

Dr. Goers is very unorganized in presenting his material. He uses his lecture notes, but still has a hard time teaching the class. The material in itself is hard, but he makes it more difficult by not teaching it well and by making the tests 10 times harder than they need to be. Sometimes I wonder where he pulled those questions from! He doesn't go by the book, so it's hard to follow along with him if you don't understand his lecture. As far as grading goes, he has a recitation quiz every week, 2 midterms and a final. The good thing is he curves the class.

Dr. Goers was very unorganized and fell way behind with the material. By week 10 we finally were getting to the stuff we were supposed to do in week 7. We spent a total of 3 days on carbohydrates and lipids, stuff we were supposed to spend over a week each on. He gets lost and flustered and repeates material from old lectures almost every day. In lab, he's extremely picky with the notebooks. His tests are very hard, but not necessarily unfair, but it's more than just memorizing material, you have to be able to apply what you learn. If he could organize himself he wouldn't be so bad, but I'd avoid him if you can.

I don't understand how people thought that he was arrogant and was unwilling to help. I only went to his office hours a couple of times but on each occasion he was very willing to answer all of my questions. In class he was also willing to make sure that students understood the concepts. He did get behind and his tests were very difficult (but that is to be expected from a class such as this).

Goers seems like a nice enough guy, and Im sure he's a good scientist, but he isn't a great teacher. He fails to clearly explain basic concepts, he writes the wrong thing on the board almost every time and his tests are GNARLY. If you can manage a 50%, thats a solid B. I found myself spending twice the time on this class as I would classes of simmilar difficulty and earning the same grade.

Dr. Goers is a smart man but is hard to understand. There are two midterms and a final (homework is handed out but not graded). Study hard. Read the book. The tests are much harder than you can imagine.

Ugghhh...

THIS MAN WAS THE WORSEST INSTRUCTOR EVER. HIS STUDY GUIDES DOES NOT HELP AT ALL. I NEVER UNDERSTOOD WHAT HE WANTED ME TO KNOW........SO THANKYOU GOERS.....FOR THE C. THERE ARE SOME RUMORS THAT HE IS RETIRING SOON, BUT UNTIL THEN HE WILL BE HAPPY TO FAIL YOUUUUUUUU. I DON'T RECOMEND YOU TO TAKE HIS UNLESS YOU WANT TO LOWER YOUR GPA...........

THIS FOOL SUCKS MORE THAT JENNA JAMESON!!!!!!!! He will quiz you on material that he hasn't even lectured you on and the worst part is that his tests are written at Grad School level so good luck!!! AVOID AT ALL COST!!!!!!!!!! He is kinda nice in person though...but still no real help!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously... I would rather shoot myself in the face than sit thru his lectures... it is THAT painful. If you do take his class be sure to have a full nights rest before hand, sit in the very front row, and drink at least 2 energy drinks. Otherwise you will sleep thru it. He is NOT nice, he is NOT helpful, and he is NOT interesting. So, good luck!

He does not know how to teach. exams are vey hard. Overall, he sucksss.

This man knows his stuff, but he\'s pretty intimidating. Basically, if you\'ve already read the material and prepared for lab, he\'s super helpful and friendly. If you haven\'t, you get the \"you\'re an idiot why are you wasting my time with this\" facial expression and a curt response. However, he is really harsh grader and his lab final is ridiculously hard. The entire class spends the quarter thinking they\'re failing, only to get curved up at the end. I\'d avoid him unless you really care about the subject and are willing to work your ass off for his class.

Dr. Goers is an excellent teacher who expects his students to give 100% effort into their work. He expects students to think through problems they encounter and -gasp- read before lab, this scares most \"students\". Do not take Goers if you are afraid of hard work and learning the ways of a true scientist.

AVOID THIS PROFESSOR AT ALL COSTS!! He is the worst teacher Ive ever had during my 6 years at Cal Poly. He doesn\'t lecture on test material, and the tests are HARD. Like so hard the averages were less than 40%. He never prepares his lectures, so you might as well not even go because he stands in front of the board waving his hands saying \"ohh no, that\'s wrong.. I don\'t know.\" And that\'s not even when someone asks a question!! In lab he was even worse. Super picky about the notebook and you could never get a good grade. We had to photocopy our labs to turn in.. what is the point of a lab notebook then??! I studied from the book and homework and past exams ONLY, nothing from his lecture, got B\'s on both midterms, and didn\'t even study for the final because I was so over it and got a C. Basically.. you can get through the class, but you will hate HATE every minute of every day you have to be around him.

Dr. Goers is by far the worst professor I have encountered in my 4 years at Cal Poly. Not only is he an extremely harsh and unfair grader, but he is horrible at teaching. I don't think anybody in my lab section ever received an A on any assignment. This could have been a really cool lab but Goers ruined it. I wish I had listened to all of the warnings..seriously, don't take this professor.

I like chem, but Goers made this biochem lab unbearable. My biggest complaint is with his grading. Most assignments were only out of 2 points, so you could only possibly get 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, or 2. This was frustrating because one little mistake dropped the grade down by 25%. And the way he graded the lab reports was excruciating. For example, he would take off points for left aligning data in a table as opposed to centering it. One time, after handing back the class's lab reports, he lectured us about proper usage of a colon. He then proceeded to explain that sentences should be in the format of "subject, verb, then direct object." He was so strict about formatting and grammar that I felt like I was in an english class. To be fair, though, Goers does know his biochemistry (and english). He's not dumb (some lab instructors are kind of clueless), but he's extremely anal and made this my least favorite lab that I've taken.

I honestly don't know why Goers' reviews are so low. Yes he is a hard grader. Yes he expects a lot out of his students. Welcome to college everyone! Goers' biochemistry lab is rigorous and difficult, but it has also taught me more than all my other chemistry labs combined. I learned how to keep an immaculate lab notebook. I learned the reasoning behind each procedure of every lab. In every other lab, I blindly followed instructions, not realizing why I was doing each step. Even worse, in most labs, we weren't even required to keep a laboratory notebook! Cal Poly's motto is "learn by doing," but if you don't learn anything from the lab, there's really no point to doing the lab in the first place. After this class, I feel so much more prepared to work in a real lab when I graduate. I would recommend Goers to everyone!!

Dr. Goers knows and loves molecular biology. Not only does he teach you about the basics of the subject, but he incorporates new research and technology into the class. This is definately a plus. The lectures are easy to understand because he goes slow and is always willing to answer questions. He gives homework assignments, but they are fairly simple compared to exams. The exams are really hard! Dr. Goers expects his students to not only know the material, but be able to apply the knowledge on the exam. Even though the tests are difficult they are graded fairly. Dr. Goers is a great teacher because he cares about his students and wants them to learn basic and current molecular biology, plus he challenges them to do well.

Dr. Goers' class was very informative but lectures seemed unorganized at times. The pace of the class is good, and his answers to questions are complete(unless the question has no answer, which is common with this material). To do well on the test you must be able to take information covered in class and apply it to a new situation, quickly. Tests are long. I would recomend Dr. Goers for chem 373 if you have a choice.

Dr. Goers seems to care about the subject matter and seems rather knowledgable about molecular biology in general. But his demeanor to students is AWFUL. I was very excited about taking this class, one of my major classes, and Goers ruined it for me. He seemed too busy to be bothered by us lowly students and always copped an attitude when asked questions, particularly if they were more complex questions. I don't mind the difficulty of the exams, something I was actually prepared to tackle, but his personality was just too condenscending for me, and a majority of my classmates.

Dr. Goers is a knowledgable professor who has the brain power to be a researcher at a UC or other research oriented institution. Unfortunately, his ability to convey the information is shoddy at best and he has little ability to respond to student questions in or out of class. I found this to be especially true when reworking missed exam questions. If possible, rearrange your 4 year plan and take Dr. Rigler for 373 (and 371,2)

If you don't have to take him, don't take him. Dr. Goers is tough to understand, unorganized, and arrogant. But if you do have to take him, do your best. Don't stress too much. Immunology is a tough subject but unbelievable interesting. The tests are tough. If you had Bio 452 or Zoo 426, you should be ok.

I was looking up Dr Goers and found all these comments very amusing. I graduated many years ago but Dr Goers still remains in my mind as one of the most influential and excellent professors I've had. He was my mentor for my senior research and an inspiration. I have to say though that his reputation has been as such for as long as I've known of him. Even when I was in school most everyone else in my class hated him. They pointed out my relationship with him that I was a suck up. Fact of the matter is, I love science, I was excited to learn and he appreciated it. I was not an A student, not even close, but he saw my enthusiasm and willingness to learn and couldn't possibly have been more supportive! He challenged me and drove me towards being a creative and independent scientific thinker. I've been incredibly successful in the workplace since and I truly believe Dr Goers had a huge hand in my professional growth!

Dr. Goers is not an easy professor to have but you will learn a lot in his classes if you keep up and do your part. He lectures off his handouts -- I never cracked the book the entire quarter even though it was a really nice textbook. Tests are difficult because he's big on application. So basically you have to really understand immunology lab techniques that he teaches so you can apply them in new situations. People say he's arrogant but they're usually slackers who want to slide through these difficult chem classes. Don't shy away from Dr. Goers if you're willing to work.

don't believe what this butt kisser down below wrote...this class is a lecture not a lab... why should I need to know lab shit if it's not a prereq? isn't always the A people who think the teacher rocks?! ...overall tough teacher, little unclear what he wants most of the time...advice: take chem 474 first then this class if you have to take it

I would say overall Dr. Goers is very intelligent. I liked the class. It sparked a new interest in me. It's tough though, don't be fooled. As far as Dr. Goers goes, I think if you show him the proper respect and show interest in the class, he'll be more than willing to work with you. I do believe though Chem 474 should be a prerequisition for this class. It would help.

This prof. is very intelligent, but his tests are amazing. You will have to study alot and understand everything. If your into learning this is your man, but if you just want a pass then stay away.

This lab is very informative and interesting. The material complements 473 (immunochem) well and if you've had immunochem you'll be in better shape. That having been said, it's more than possible to do well without having taken it (I didn't). Keep your notebook up to date and be as specific as you can. Figure out what Goers wants you to put in your lab notebook as early as you can. People will say that his tests are extremely difficult, they're understating the fact. That having been said, do NOT fail to study, rather, study the "big picture." Be prepared to reproduce what you did in the experiment on the test except with a different spin. There's a big curve. You'll do fine.

don't be so hard on goers. he knows his stuff and he's approachable as long as you put some effort into learning the stuff yourself. he requires you to really understand the material. do his practice problems and ask him questions (which i didn't do enough) and you will do fine.

Work Hard and Goers will work for you! Excellent professor!

Dr. Goers is by far the worst professor I have ever had! I took him for 371 and 474 and wanted to shoot myself every single day I had to come into contact with that horrible, miserable little man. I worked my ass for both of the classes, went to almost every office hour (that he didnt flake on so really there weren't too many) and still barely passed. He would respond to my lab groups questions with catchy little phrases like "why don't you try thinking," and "what is wrong with you guys." Then when trying to explain things he would get so flustered he couldn't finish his sentences and just say "figure it out on your own." Just writing this review is pissing me off thinking about what an awful professor he was. AVOID HIM AT ALL COSTS, EVEN IF IT MEANS STAYING AROUND UNTIL HE FINALLY LEAVES CAL POLY.

this was an interesting class, but dr goers presents the material in the worst way possible. he is dry, mundane, kind of an ass about...everything. i'm surprised no one's tried to poison him yet.

he sure does like his women, wet!!