Alejandro Azocar is described as helpful, considerate, and responsible, with clear instructions. Reviewers note he is supportive and understanding during office hours, contributing to a positive experience where students can easily pass if they concentrate.
Fall 2026
Academic Reading and Vocabulary Skills
ESL 116 teaches academic reading and vocabulary skills, focusing on comprehension, speed, and summary writing.
Summary
1 / 4
Reviewers describe the course load as decent or low, noting it is a pass/fail class that prepares students for ESL 117, though some find the grading strict.
Grade history
↗ average GPA
letter grades
letter grades
No recorded grade history.
All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors
Prerequisites
Course mapESL 115 or placement into ESL 116
“Used by” includes alternatives; linked courses may have other requirements. This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.
Prerequisite text tree
- Any of
- ESL 115
- placement into ESL 116
Professors
Fall 2026Parthy Schachter is praised for providing useful feedback and helping students improve summary skills, with one reviewer noting her fair grading and adequate support outside class. Another reviewer appreciated the strict grading as beneficial for learning in this pass/fail course.
Conversely, Schachter is criticized for being poorly prepared, demanding strict attendance without clear explanation, and using indirect communication that hinders clarity. Reviewers describe her as a tough grader who teaches poorly, resulting in low satisfaction.
No course-specific feedback yet.
No course-specific feedback yet.
Shauna Crowther is praised by some students as an excellent, nice, and patient teacher who provides useful help and deserves respect. These reviewers found her supportive and expressed strong willingness to take her class again.
Other reviewers criticize Crowther for unreasonable grading, limited essay feedback, and a refusal to answer direct questions, instead forcing group work. They describe her as mean, nonsensical in grading standards, and unhelpful for learning to write good essays.
Historical instructors & teaching patterns
No reviews exist for current instructors Alejandro Azocar, Danielle Scheffler, Karen Best, Parthy Schachter, or Shauna Crowther. Historical reviews highlight varied experiences, with some praising engaging teaching and others citing harsh grading or poor demeanor.
ALYSSA FRANZE is recorded teaching in Fall 2015, Fall 2016. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
ANDREA POULOS is recorded teaching in Fall 2014, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Spring 2020, Fall 2020, Fall 2024. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
CHRISTINE ELLIOTT is recorded teaching in Fall 2014. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
KAREN BEST is recorded teaching in Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
KRISTIN DALBY is recorded teaching in Fall 2015, Fall 2016. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
MARY WANG is recorded teaching in Fall 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2017. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
PARTHY SCHACHTER is recorded teaching in Fall 2022, Fall 2023. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
RENEE LAJCAK is recorded teaching in Fall 2017, Fall 2018. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
SANDRINE PELL is recorded teaching in Fall 2017, Spring 2018. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
SHAUNA CROWTHER is recorded teaching in Fall 2016, Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
STELLA ISENBUEGEL is recorded teaching in Fall 2014, Fall 2015. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
STEVEN TIMM is recorded teaching in Fall 2014, Fall 2015, Fall 2016, Spring 2017, Fall 2017, Fall 2018, Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Spring 2022, Fall 2022, Spring 2023. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Calendar & sections
Fall 2026Schedule loads here as you scroll.
| Section | Mode | Enrolled / capacity | Waitlist |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | Classroom Instruction | 15 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 002 | Classroom Instruction | 15 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 003 | Classroom Instruction | 14 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 004 | Classroom Instruction | 16 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 005 | Classroom Instruction | 16 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 006 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 007 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 008 | Classroom Instruction | 16 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 009 | Classroom Instruction | 17 / 15 | 0 |
| LEC 010 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 011 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 013 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 014 | Classroom Instruction | 0 / 0 | 0 |
| LEC 015 | Classroom Instruction | 16 / 15 | 0 |
Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections. Enrollment reflects scan time.
Meeting source records
Student experience
the class
Current instructors Alejandro Azocar, Parthy Schachter, and Shauna Crowther receive polarized reviews. Some students praise their helpfulness and fairness, while others criticize their grading standards and communication style.
difficulty & workload
Reviewers describe the course load as decent or low, noting it is a pass/fail class that prepares students for ESL 117, though some find the grading strict.
Students report frustration with instructors who avoid direct answers, provide vague grading criteria, or offer limited concrete feedback on essay drafts, requiring independent interpretation of expectations.
Topics
Skills
Grades
Grade distribution · % of letter grades
No grades available yet.
More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data
Sources & history
UW–Madison
Catalog & offerings
Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.
Catalog observation history
Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.
Selected offering source records
Academic Reading and Vocabulary Skills
Recorded 2026-09-07Raw records
[
{
"run_id": "20260907T155543-ce3781c4",
"semester": "1272",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00",
"offering_id": "1272:351:006729",
"course_id": "ESL 116",
"course_uid": "course_afb52dda211f6124cb653b8b",
"term_id": "1272",
"source_course_id": "006729",
"source_subject_id": "351",
"title": "Academic Reading and Vocabulary Skills",
"credits_min": 3,
"credits_max": 3,
"typically_offered": "Fall, Spring, Summer"
}
]Rate My Professors
Student reviews
Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.
Read original reviews
Madgrades
Grade history
Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.
Explore recorded gradesModel outputs & technical records
nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4
LLM outputs across runs
Full model traces
Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.
Model & dataset provenance
{
"model": "nvidia/Qwen3.6-35B-A3B-NVFP4",
"model_revision": "1355db6a052410cfd62085d94b58866fd0f2c3c5",
"task_version": "14",
"output_id": "93bc174747454031b022c766f14109ed1463a1e0fbbc6c85744360736576f3ca",
"requirements_status": "needs_review",
"dataset_revision": "e243353dcb7d79b7247ced91d69443ef4c2a6349",
"observed_at": "2026-09-07 15:55:43.033547+00:00"
}