Anatomy & Physiology II
BI 162 at Worcester State College
Professor: Dr. Samuel Tarsitano
Schedule: M,W,F 9:30-10:30 (Lab) M 1:30-4:30
Grade Achieved: A
Overall: This class was a unique experience and not necessarily positive. The professor barely lectured abut the material and then proceeded to regale us with bad jokes, personal stories, and political rants. His exams however did not reflect his flippant approach to the material and were quite detail-oriented and I, for the most part, found them challenging. (I have heard his A&P I is far easier)
Instructor: The instructor was more interested in storytime than teaching it seemed. This isn’t to say he doesn’t know what he is talking about, I actually believe he might be some sort of eccentric genius. I say this, because when he did actually lecture, he either had brilliant insight into the detailed workings of a physiological concept or wasn’t ever able to breakdown a complicated idea into something worthy of a 100-level course audience. If this man was offering a workshop or lecture (not to be graded) on a topic of his choice, I would go in a heartbeat. But as a teacher he was disappointing. In general, he could not related to his students issue with comprehension nor did he find any fault in his own in struction when almost 75% of the class failed the first exam.
Grading: The grading was esoteric at best. He had his own method, but I’ll be damned if I could figure it out. All I know is that I received one score from my test questions and then additional points from what may have been bonus questions hidden in the test… I’m really not sure. The exams were difficult. He picked seemingly obscure details from his notes. The questions were often worded strangely. And what ever you do, memorize every little aspect of the vascular system, specifically collateral circulation. The lab exams are upfront enough except when it comes to microscopy. Several members of the class had a difference of opinion concerning some exam slides, but in the end professor is always right.
Materials: Don’t bother reading the book. Rely completely on his slides (and especially the material he talks about in lecture). He doesn’t even use the diagrams in the book. If you are struggling with seeing the big picture on any of the topics I recommend the UC Berkley Integrative Biology lectures on YouTube. That sweet old lady saved my butt.
Notes Technique: I turned the Powerpoint slide outlines into word documents and took notes in red on those on my laptop. I found this useful, because he will often jump from topic to topic. And that way you can also highlight what slides are important.
Study Technique: To study, I nearly memorized his slides word for word. I am not joking. Know the diagrams he gives you in the slides, those will be easy points on the exams.
