Carney Curve

Boston College course evaluations · every published number, ranked class by class

Positions account for how many records stand behind each number, so one perfect review does not outrank a semester of them. Every score shown is the real average — only the ordering is adjusted.

Class record · LING · MCAS

LING 3358

The Linguistic Structure of Japanese · 1 instructor on record · 2 sections

What the course score is made of
84BC evaluations2 records · weight ×1.0 · Spring 2022 – Spring 2024
Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute
RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

That is the class itself, averaged across everyone who taught it. Who taught it, and how each of them scored, is the board below — that is what a student picking a section is actually choosing between.

What the challenge rank is made of
52ndMore challenging than 52% of BC classesranked against every one we hold
91BC — “Intellectually Challenging”2 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question for this class only — students answer it positively about courses that stretched them, so it measures intellectual challenge and NOT grading, workload or quality. Almost every BC class scores high on it, which is why it is shown as a rank rather than a score.

What the workload rank is made of
25thMore work than 25% of BC classesranked against every one we hold
40BC — “Workload”2 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload for this class only as one of five bands, not as a number of hours, and it does not publish what the bands mean — so this site will not translate it into hours. Higher means more work, which is not the same as worse.

The only instructor on record

2 sections · nobody else has taught itFull record
InstructorOverallWorkloadChallenge
Margaret ThomasProfessor, Linguistics · Eastern, Slavic, and German Studies Provisional962 records25th52nd

There is no ranking to read here: Margaret Thomas is the only instructor with evaluation records for LING 3358, so the number is a record, not a position. It rests on 2 records, which is thin — read it as provisional.

Also taught by Margaret Thomas

6 other classes
ClassInstructorsCourse score
LING 3103Language and Language Types13 records86
LING 2379Language and Ethnicity12 records90
LING 3104Formalism and Functionalism in Linguistics12 records96
LING 3361Psycholinguistics12 records85
LING 3362Language in Society12 records86
LING 2102The Linguistic Structure of English11 record76

Other LING classes

All of them
ClassInstructorsCourse score
LING 3101General Linguistics24 records76
LING 3102Syntax and Semantics14 records91
LING 2377Language and the Study of Africa13 records83
LING 3103Language and Language Types13 records86
LING 1201General Linguistics12 records85
LING 2379Language and Ethnicity12 records90

The line

All 13 items · means across 2 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
9666th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
9883rd pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
9562nd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
9663rd pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
9467th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
9358th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8925th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
796th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
9887th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
9677th pctl
Workload, difficulty & attendanceNot ratings
WorkloadHow much work the course took outside class, on Boston College's five-band scale — the band boundaries are not published, so this is not a number of hours.
4025th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
9152nd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
9676th pctl

Bar length is the rank against every comparable record we hold, not the raw score: BC's questions all have a median around 4.5, so a raw-scale bar would be nearly full on every row and would tell you nothing. Every bar is one ink colour — nothing here is graded green or red. The hatched bars are not ratings at all: a higher number on either describes a different course, not a better one.

Game log

2 sections · newest first
InstructorTermSecInstrCourseWork
Margaret ThomasSpring 202401988740
Margaret ThomasSpring 202201948240

How to read this boardInstructors are ranked on their record in this class only, never on their average across everything they teach. Scores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Workload is BC's own five-band figure, not a number of hours, and is shown as a rank. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero.