Mark Facknitz - James Madison University

Professor: Mark Facknitz
Department: English
College: James Madison University
Rating # 1
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: C+
  • Overall Rating: 3.0
  • Course Difficulty: 5.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Not Mandatory
Comment:
The guy's lectures are awesome. I could listen to him talk for hours, he was so insightful and knew so much about the readings. You have to read the poems on your own, and get to know them well. Tests were short, but hard, and teamed with an essay, and if you didn't know what you were talking about, he knew. Curves a ton, still a tough class.
Rating # 2
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: B+
  • Overall Rating: 3.0
  • Course Difficulty: 3.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
I'm an English minor who got an override me into the class. Felt out of my league amongst those majoring in subject. Spent most of the semester thinking I was failing but plugged along. Gave tough but fair/clear feedback on papers. There were few tests. Ended up doing fine in the class because he curves it so much. Take if you're willing to work!
Rating # 3
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: B
  • Overall Rating: 2.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
Facknitz is a pretty good professor. Throughout the class it seems like you have an F because his tests are so hard. But at the end he curves A LOT. As long as you do the readings and pay attention in class you will do fine.
Rating # 4
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: B+
  • Overall Rating: 4.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
This course is by no means easy, but Dr. Facknitz makes it so worth it to take. He really knows his stuff and knows how to give you critiques without making you feel like you wrote a bad essay. He's a great guy but you have to show that you're serious about the class to get his full support - Sparknotes will be the death of you here.
Rating # 5
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: C
  • Overall Rating: 3.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
Dr. Facknitz is very smart and a pretty good English professor. The problem is his lectures are often long and focus on things that most would be considered irrelevant in the given texts. The tests are tough, the paper prompts are difficult to understand, and the amount of reading can be taxing at times. It's a challenge for sure.
Rating # 6
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 2.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Not Mandatory
Comment:
This is by far the worst gen ed I have ever taken. All the readings assigned are long and hard to make sense of. His tests are more of a history exam as you have to recall on irrelevant dates and fill in the blanks of lines from obscure poems- lines that did not matter. He would be a great professor if this was for english majors and NOT a gen ed.
Rating # 7
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 2.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: No
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
Facknitz is a super cool dude but his content exams are ridiculously specific and he is a tough essay grader. If you don't remember dates or who said specific quotes/which novels, poems, or speeches they came from, you probably won't do very well on the tests. I've attended all lectures and take very detailed notes and I am barely maintaining a C.
Rating # 8
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 2.5
  • Course Difficulty: 3.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
Facknitz has an interesting way of teaching. He is an awesome person and super cool to listen to however sometimes what he says just doesn't click with what we are discussing. This is not a class where you will be breaking down and understanding poetry and novels. You are building off of your readings all semester.
Rating # 9
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 5.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
Generally that was very insightful and intellectual challenging course. His two content exams were pretty tough for me that asked very tricky questions about authors and contents, and three in-class essays were yet difficult but attainable if you did the reading and grasped some ideas on his lecture. Final grade was based on curved total.
Rating # 10
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 1.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: No
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
Facknitz did not teach me much. We had ONE lecture where he taught us to write. His lectures are spacey and tangental. The comments he gives you on papers are condescending, vague, and generally unhelpful. Individual word choice is questioned; he was nit picky and treated the students as if teaching them was a waste of his time. Avoid, please.
Rating # 11
Overview:
  • Course: ENGLISH248
  • Grade Received: B
  • Overall Rating: 1.0
  • Course Difficulty: 5.0
  • For Credit: Yes
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Not Mandatory
Comment:
Lectures are all over the place. Went to every single class and I could not tell you one thing I learned. His tests are filled with questions that would be asked on Jeopardy.
Rating # 12
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 1.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
I read all these comments about Facknitz being a GREAT professor, but his lectures are ALL over the place and leave you very confused at the end of class, he often calls on you to answer a question after he has made a random statement that makes no sense, and his assignments are generally very vague.
Rating # 13
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 4.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
Dr. Facknitz was simply amazing. As both a freshman and an English major, I found his class to be enlightening and interesting. He makes you want to earn a good grade despite his, at times, harsh comments. That is such a unique quality. He's an incredibly difficult grader and test-writer, but you will NOT regret taking any of his classes.
Rating # 14
Overview:
  • Course: GENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 5.0
  • Course Difficulty: 5.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
He digs really deep into the literature; its a very challenging class that you have to study hard for...on the other hand he's an entertaining professor and curved grades A LOT at the end. Overall i'd recommend it to anyone who's looking for an extremely challenging/interesting class that wont bring your GPA down as long as you progress
Rating # 15
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 2.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: No
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Not Mandatory
Comment:
Not that bad of a teacher. He tends to use a lot of inflated diction that honestly could be done without. When explaining the material he does so in a way thats hard to understand, and then wonders why his students don't grasp what he is saying. He is an extremly tough grader, and his comments are harsh, although can be beneficial.
Rating # 16
Overview:
  • Course: ENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 1.0
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
There is only a few weeks left in the semester and I still don't know what he is trying to accomplish with the class. This class has been my least favorite class so far at JMU. If you like to understand what is going on in your classes, I advise you to stay far away from this class. On the bright side, he seriously curves
Rating # 17
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 4.5
  • Course Difficulty: 4.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
Dr. Facknitz is one of the best professors at JMU and one my my favorites! I loved his class and grew so much as an english major and student! It's definitely not an easy A but you won't regret taking it!
Rating # 18
Overview:
  • Course: ENG299
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 4.5
  • Course Difficulty: 3.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
Professor Facknitz is charismatic and enlightening. He cares about what he is teaching, but more importantly he cares that you understand it. He is an incredibly tough grader, but only because he expects the best- and you want to give him that. It's a lot of work, but definitely worth it. If you love literature, you can be sure to love this class.
Rating # 19
Overview:
  • Course: GENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 3.0
  • Course Difficulty: 5.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: Yes
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: N/A
Comment:
He is a funny guy, very intelligent, and cares about what he is teaching. If you are an english major this class is for you. If you are not an english major and you are looking for an easy A-B+ gened this class is not for you. The tests are difficult, and as he goes over them afterwards he laughs at how silly and pointless the questions are. Rough.
Rating # 20
Overview:
  • Course: GENG248
  • Grade Received: N/A
  • Overall Rating: 4.5
  • Course Difficulty: 2.0
  • For Credit: N/A
  • Textbook Used: No
  • Would Take Again: N/A
  • Attendance: Mandatory
Comment:
One of the best Gen Eds you can take. Prof. Facknitz is hilarious, and loves to publicly call out kids who are using phones in class. The class wasn't very hard. You could barely skim the readings and still score at least a C easy on tests. I enjoyed him a lot and I can't recommend him enough.
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