John-Stephen Taylor

She places a great deal of emphasis on in-class participation, so be sure to contribute regularly if you want to be on her good side. Although feedback on drafts can come off as harsh, it clearly outlines how she wants you to revise your essay to get an A. Also, prepare for heavy readings until there is a quarter of the semester left. She has cats!

5/5/2024

Cannot express how wonderful this professor is. So funny. I along with other girls from my class still maintain a relationship with her over a year later. You would be so lucky to have prof taylor for college writing!

2/21/2024

My guy cannot engage with a class. Graded only on exams and lab.

1/15/2024

An outstanding professor. She is kind and caring, checking in with her students to make sure they're alright, and she only assigns a couple of larger writing assignments. Just know that there will be readings and discussion posts for each class, but they can all usually be done in under 30 minutes. Cannot recommend her class enough.

1/2/2024

I took Chen's class, but went to Taylor's office hours sometimes. I found him to be quite condescending, and he really doesn't seem to enjoy being around students. Fine at explaining things.

12/22/2023

Terri Taylor is an absolute gem. She cares about her students and picks out exciting content while being hilarious and fun. I continue to recommend her class to every first-year student! The WashU College Writing requirement shouldn't feel like a burden. Thanks to Professor Taylor, it was my favorite class that semester.

8/30/2023

My other three classes had restrictive deadlines which is already hard to maintain when you work full time and have a two-year-old. If not for the flexibility given, I most likely would have not succeeded. He allowed me the freedom to be an independent adult and student, and most importantly, a mom.

4/27/2023

She was the kindest teacher. Very understanding and gave me an indefinite extension for no points off. Surprisingly enjoyed the class and I think she grades easy (no grades are in yet lol).

4/20/2023

I LOVE Professor Taylor. The amount of times I brag that she's my college writing teacher is astronomical. Discussions are lively, engaging, and the readings are all very interesting. Taylor is hilarious and makes class so much fun. 10/10 would recommend. nnP.S ask her about her pet cobra

4/7/2023

At first the class can be intimidating, as it's very heavy in readings and the emphasis on participation through discussion boards and during in class lectures. Make sure to meet with her at least once to discuss your paper. If you put in the work you''ll be fine, she loves students that are active in class.

1/28/2022

Prof Taylor liked me very much (except for when I would not attend classwhich I would not recommend to do) because I participated so much. The readings were all short (10-25 page) essays, with assignments being discussion boards for every class. We had a total of maybe 3 papers, with a 8-10 page final research paper. Put in effort, and you're good

12/24/2021

Prof. Taylor showed up to class late for the majority of the semester. It is the last day of finals and I have received one grade from her all semester. Nothing was graded out of the probably 10 major assignments that we had until after the last week of classes (the day before the final paper was due). She is kind, but her class is poorly organized

12/23/2021

Pretty solid college writing professor. Beginning of the semester is super busy with a lot of readings but eases out towards the end. Only three large papers to write and you have a lot of time/help with them. A very fair grader.

12/9/2021

If you're taking Commodity Culture, I recommend taking it with someone else. I had friends with other professors that gave much less work who seemed more interesting. Class is discussion-based, but Taylor sucks all the time out for herself. She will completely monopolize the discussion so it's hard to cut in and earn points. Grading not too rough

11/18/2021

Professor Taylor's class wasn't particularly interesting, but it also wasn't too difficult for someone with a decent amount of writing experience. This is an adequate option for meeting the college writing requirement, but I do know other students who had a more enjoyable experience with other courses and professors.

1/3/2021

Though college writing is often hated by freshmen, this class was great. Terri, though maybe initially intimidating, is quite affable if you show up and do the readings and engage in discussions. Overall a good experience and one of my only As from first semester.

4/27/2020

Taylor is a great lecturer and generally does a great job at explaining difficult concepts. However, he comes off as a bit condescending during office hours and he goes really fast (which is kind of necessary for this class since there's so much to cover). Just watch lecture videos so you can pause the lectures and take better notes.

12/31/2019

Professor Taylor provides very detailed lecture slides, and the textbook is fairly easy to read and learn from. His lectures aren't high energy, but are clear and detailed. Wrote straightforward tests, medians in the low to mid 60s and A cutoffs at 80. In addition, your lowest test score is dropped. Overall generous grading and possible inflation.

11/13/2019

Very mediocre professor at the very best. Motors through lecture material at an insanely fast pace, making it impossible to keep up on notetaking. He doesn't engage students at all, making the lectures super boring and does not emphasize or transition topics well. Also very unapproachable and condescending, do not go to him for questions.

11/9/2019

Terrible course. My advisor pushed me to take Orgo during the academic year, and I regret it. It was a waste of time. You do not have to go to lecture. Just study his notes and read the text and you will do fine. Really weird guy. I don't think he likes teaching or interacting with students.

2/3/2017

Taylor and orgo are boring. but Taylor's exams are VERY FAIR. I BARELY did anything for this class except for the four days before each exam and got very very high scores on the exams. During those four days I read the book while looking at his lecture slides. Didn't pay much attention in lecture, did practice exams and went to the TA prob sessions

1/13/2017

Very awkward guy. He is clearly smart, but he is not able to connect with the students. He tried powerpoint, chalk, handing out notes, but none of it worked. By the end of the semester, hardly anyone came to class anymore. Just get his notes and read the book. I would not take this class. The problem is that Ponder is evidently worse.

1/6/2015

Terrible!! He does not teach, he just lectures. He might be smart, but he does not know how to convey the material to students. He is one of those professors who only teaches because he has to. Thank God that the lectures are taped...you don't have to go to class, just fast forward through it later.

11/26/2011