I've had profs like that. What really struck me about Irani is that even without the homework, even with only weekly quizzes, it still stuck. It wasn't an AP

I've had profs like that. What really struck me about Irani is that even without the homework, even with only weekly quizzes, it still stuck. It wasn't an AP class, but he encouraged us to write the AP exam at the end of the year and nearly everyone got a 4 or a 5. I do agree with the notion that profs are more effective when the homework is harder than the exam, however. I had the exact opposite for a fourth-year crypto class. For homework, we'd work through some basic cryptanalysis with lots of hints. Then the test would come around, and two or three of the ten questions would involve breaking a cypher, from scratch. I got about 25% on the first test, which ended up being 65% after he scaled it. Brutal class.