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.

Instructor record · English · Spring 2023 – Spring 2024

Rachel Lewis

English · 5 evaluation records across 1 class

On this class's board
What the overall is made of
75BC evaluations5 records · weight ×1.0 · Spring 2023 – Spring 2024
Student reviewsno reviews — does not contribute
RateMyProfessorsno ratings — does not contribute

Sources are averaged by how much we trust each one and by how many records sit behind it, so a handful of reviews nudges the number rather than replacing it.

What the challenge rank is made of
5thMore challenging than 5% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
75BC — “Intellectually Challenging”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College's own “intellectually challenging” question — 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
26thMore work than 26% of BC instructorsranked against every one we hold
40BC — “Workload”5 records · raw score out of 100

Boston College reports workload 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 line

All 13 items · means across 5 records
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
8315th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
806th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8623rd pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8621st pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
789th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8214th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8522nd pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
8114th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
420th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
693rd 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.
4026th pctl
Intellectually ChallengingThe course was intellectually challenging.
755th pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
7812th 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.

Class by class

1 class · 5 sections

How each position is worked outPositions 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.

ENGL 1010 First Year Writing SeminarOvr75Chal3rdWork25th
On this class's board127th of 136 instructors

5 sections on record · course itself rated 68 out of 100. See the full board for ENGL 1010.

TermSecInstrCourseWork
Spring 202414635540
Fall 2023238272
Fall 2023246555
Spring 202311868040
Spring 202346777740
All 13 items for ENGL 1010
The Professor4 items
Clearly Explains MaterialThe instructor was effective at creating an understanding of difficult subject matter.
839th pctl
Available Outside of ClassThe instructor was available for help outside of class.
804th pctl
Brings Out Your Best WorkThe instructor motivated me to do my best work.
8615th pctl
Sparked My InterestThe course stimulated my interest in the subject matter.
8612th pctl
The Course3 items
Well-Organized CourseThe course was well organized.
787th pctl
Clear Learning GoalsThe learning objectives for the course were clear.
8211th pctl
Useful Beyond the CourseWhat I learned is applicable beyond this course.
8513th pctl
Assignments & Feedback3 items
Assignments Help You LearnAssignments and exams contributed to my learning.
819th pctl
Gives Feedback PromptlyI received feedback on my work in a timely manner.
420th pctl
Meaningful FeedbackThe feedback I received on my work was meaningful.
691st 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.
753rd pctl
Attendance MattersAttending class was necessary to do well in this course.
787th 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.

How to read this pageScores are out of 100 — Boston College's 1–5 agreement scale, ×20, the way these numbers were printed for years. Almost every class scores high on that scale (the median is about 90), so challenge and workload are shown as a rank against every instructor we hold rather than as a score; the raw figure is in the breakdown above. Neither describes quality, and neither is ever marked better or worse anywhere on this site. A dash means the question was not reported, and is never a zero. The position printed against each class is this instructor's place on that class's own board, computed from the same records the board itself is built from.