Course Details at a Glance

Description

The Denison computer science curriculum begins with a fundamental assumption that, to be a successful computer scientist or software engineer, you must begin with a foundation that includes good programming skills.  Thus, one of the first goals of this course is for you to learn a new programming language.  Java has been selected as the introductory computer language of choice for the reasons of cross-platform ubiquity, relative simplicity, and strong object orientation as the principal programming model.  So you will learn the syntax and semantics of Java.  This is much like learning to speak a foreign language with very restrictive syntax and vocabulary.  The key to learning the language is by practicing as much as possible.

The other reason to focus on a programming language in the introductory computer science curriculum is to use it as a means to develop problem solving skills.  At its core, computer science is about the algorithms used to solve problems.  And learning to translate a real-world problem into a precise, specific, realizable set of steps (or algorithm) is exactly the type of skill that extensive practice with a programming language will allow us to develop.

In addition to the programming language of Java itself, the course will provide an introduction to some of the breadth of computer science, including computer hardware, operating systems, data representation, and some rudimentary algorithm analysis.  More detail on the specific topics to be covered can be found in the outline below, or by looking at the course schedule.

Textbooks

The following textbook is required for the course:

The following is a supplementary (optional) text, so that you may have an introductory Java text that is not e-text based.

Course Web Page

http://www.denison.edu/~bressoud/cs171-s03/

Final Grade Determination

Course Work

Exercises/Homework:

There will be homework exercises at least once a week and sometimes twice a week.  These will not be weighted equally, as many of the lab-oriented exercises will be a quick check of answering the questions in the ProgramLive companion workbook.  Others will be full-fledged programming assignments, wherein you will write increasingly larger and more complex Java programs.  And a few will be written exercises so that you can demonstrate your mastery of the conceptual issues and to prepare you for the types of questions that might appear on the tests.  Homeworks are due in class on the date specified. This semester, I am going to try my new Russian roulette late policy.  For each day (whether class is held or not, and including weekends) an assignment is late, an additional 10% will be deducted from your score. So if an assignment is due on Wednesday, and you turn it in on Friday, and your raw score on the assignment is 85%, you would receive a 68 (85 - 0.20 * 85).  The roulette part is that, if I grade and turn back the homeworks from the other class members, or if I pass out an answer key prior to your turning in a late homework, then you get a 0 on the assignment.  In practice, a class day or two will probably be safe.

You may discuss homework problems with other students in the class, but written work must be your own. In other words, you may talk generally about homework problems with your peers, but when it comes time to write your solutions, you are on your own. You may not get help on homework from students outside the class. Of course, you are always welcome to come see me for help.

If your handwriting is illegible, I reserve the right to request that your homework be typed into a word processing program.  If you know that your handwriting is difficult to read, you may want to proactively prepare your non-programming homework exercises in Word or another word processor.

 

Projects:

By the end of the term, you will be proficient enough in programming that I will be assigning a more ambitious final project.  This will entail a project definition, implementation, and documentation.  More details will be given later in the semester.

Exams:

There will be three midterm tests as well as a final exam.  Each midterm will cover its respective quarter of the course material. Note that the midterm tests are not cumulative. The final will be cumulative and cover material from the entire semester, but I would expect a greater weight given to the material from the last portion of the class.  All exams will be closed book, closed notes.

Class Participation:

In general, we would like everyone to do their part to make this an enjoyable interactive experience (one-way communication is a much poorer way to learn). Hence in addition to attending class, we would like you to actively participate by asking questions, joining in our discussions, etc. Note that there is a significant portion of your grade attributed to class participation.  Any day that you do not attend class, you (by definition) do not participate, and so be very careful about missing class, as it will affect your grade.

Student Responsibilities

Attendance:

Your attendance is expected at each class meeting. Per the class participation portion of the grade, I reserve the right to take into account attendance in instances of borderline grade assignments. Of course, excused absences (sickness, family emergencies, athletic) will not be held against you.

Readings:

You are responsible for the content of reading assignments, lectures and handouts, as well as announcements and schedule changes made in class, whether or not you are present. If you must miss a class, be sure to check with me or another student to get what you missed. Exams will be given in class on the day scheduled and may not be made up.

Other Issues

Disability Accommodation:

Any student who thinks he or she may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact me privately as soon as possible to discuss your specific needs. I rely on the Office of Academic Support in Doane 104 to verify the need for accommodation based on documentation on file in their office.

Academic Integrity:

Do your own individual homeworks and projects. Do NOT copy from another person. There should be no reason for two nearly identical assignments. Usually a warning will be given first and then an incident of academic fraud will be reported for subsequent incidents.

Course Outline