CSC 151-02, Fall 2006 : Course Mechanics
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This class meets four times per week on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 10 a.m. to 10:50 a.m.
Computer science 151 is taught in a collaborative workshop style. Each day, you'll work on laboratory problems with other students in the class. We may start each day with a short lecture/discussion and end with a reflective discussion.
Because our time in class is limited, you should come prepared to each class. What does it mean to be prepared? First, check the schedule for today's class meeting to what we will be working on. Second, if there is a reading listed for today's class meeting, read it before class. Third, come to class on time, with paper and a writing instrument, ready to be an active participant.
The evening after class, you should complete the lab exercise so you can gain its full benefit. You will be expected to carefully write up your solutions to some lab exercises as part of your homework.
The course schedule includes 18 homework assignments, 10 of which will be graded. Homework assignments are typically due on Tuesdays and Fridays when there is not a project or exam assigned. They are intended to be small; if you find they are taking longer than an hour or so, please come talk to me so that I can help you approach the homeworks more efficiently. (If I find the homework assignments are taking a long time for many students, I may also scale back the assignments.)
I will give you instructions about what forms of collaboration are permitted on each homework assignment.
The course will also include two more substantial projects, which you will undertake in small groups. We will spend three class meetings getting started on each project; you will complete the project and write a report during the following week.
You will have opportunities to demonstrate what you have learned through three written take-home exams. You should find they challenge you to go beyond what we have done in class.
Take-home exams are open notes, open computer, and open instructor. However, because I intend the exams to assess your own individual understanding of the material, collaboration on exams is not permitted. You should not talk to anyone (except me) about take-home exams before they are due. You should not discuss the problems on the exam, nor your answers. You should not give any information about your progress on the exam (e.g., which problems you have completed or which you found difficult), and neither should you ask others about their progress. If you have any doubt about what is and is not permissible, ask me.
In accordance with the schedule issued by the Committee on Academic Standing, the final examination for this course will take place at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, December 13. The final examination for this course is optional. It can be used as a makeup for one examination.
The final exam will be an in-class exam. Talking with other students during the exam will not be permitted. You may ask me questions. The final exam will be closed-book and closed-computer, but you will be allowed to use one double-sided, 8.5"x11" sheet of hand-written notes.
I expect you to follow the highest principles of academic honesty. Among other things, this means that any work you turn in should be your own or should have the work of others clearly documented. However, when you explicitly work as part of a group or team, you need not identify the work of each individual (unless I specify otherwise).
You should never give away
answers to homework assignments or
examinations. You may, however, work together in developing answers to
most homework assignments. Except as specified on individual assignments,
each student should develop his or her own final version of the
assignment. On written assignments, each student should write up an
individual version of the assignment and cite the discussion. On
non-group programming assignments, each student should do his or her own
programming, although students may help each other with design and
debugging.
When working on examinations, you should not use other students as resources.
Grinnell notes that A
and A- represent exceptional work. To me, exceptional
means going
beyond solid, acceptable, correct work. Exceptional work entails doing
more than is assigned or doing what is assigned particularly elegantly.
Work limited to mastery of the core materials is B-level work. To help
you demonstrate exceptional understanding, I will occasionally suggest
extra credit work (although truly exceptional students will
often suggest such work on their own).
I will use this scheme as a base for weighting course work grades in the final grade:
I expect you to come to class on time, prepared, and ready to work.
Everyone gets one "oops," one free day off while still getting full credit for participation. Beyond your one "oops," each additional unexcused absence will lower your participation grade by 10%. To have your absence count as excused, you must either (a) contact me to make suitable arrangements at least 7 days in advance, or (b) ensure that I receive documentation of the circumstances of your absence from Health Services or Student Affairs.
Because I care about you, if you miss class unexpectedly, I would also appreciate a quick call or email as soon as you are able. Don't be surprised if I email to make sure you are OK.
When you do miss class, it is your responsibility to talk with a classmate about what you missed, get as far as you can on the lab exercise you missed, and then see me to address any questions or concerns.
Work is due at the start of class on the date specified in the assignment. A penalty of 33 1/3% per class meeting will be assessed on any work turned in late, even work turned in at the end of class. Thus, work turned in 4 class meetings late will be weighted -33 1/3%; since a negative score reduces the cumulative total, it is better not to turn in the work at all.
Similar to the attendance policy, to avoid the late penalty when circumstances prevent timely submission of your work, you must either (a) contact me to make suitable arrangements before the assignment is handed out, or (b) ensure that I receive documentation of the circumstances from Health Services or Student Affairs.
Because I am concerned about your health and well being, I will also waive the late penalty if (1) you start the assignment at least three days in advance of the due date; (2) you get to sleep by midnight the night before the assignment is due; (3) you expend a reasonable amount of effort to complete the assignment by midnight; (4) you turn in a letter attesting to facts (1), (2), and (3) when the assignment is due; and (5) you talk to me ASAP about any problems you've had on the assignment.
Exception:
Deadlines for
exercises involving programming will automatically be extended by at
least one class period if MathLAN is down for an unscheduled period of
3 or more hours during the week preceeding the assignment due date.
No such extension will be granted for exercises not involving
programming.
Absolute deadline:
All homework must be turned in by Friday, December 9 at 5 p.m.
If you have specific physical, psychiatric, or learning disabilities and require accomodations, let me know early in the semester so that we can work together to meet your learning needs. You will also need to provide documentation of your disability to the Dean for Student Academic Support and Advising, Joyce Stern, located on the 3rd floor of the Rosenfield Center (x3702).
The Math Lab makes tutors for 151 available at regularly scheduled times. As soon as tutors have been scheduled, I'll let you know what those times are (and post them on the front door).
I expect to stay in touch with students throughout the term. Please come by during my office hours to discuss course content, get extra assistance, or talk about how the course is going. My office hours will be posted weekly outside my office (Science 2412); if you wish, you may sign up for one or two 15-minute slots.
You may also email me (davisjan@cs.grinnell.edu) to schedule an appointment outside of office hours; please include 3-4 possible meeting times so that I can pick one that works for me.
Although I very much enjoy getting to know my students, I prefer to reserve office hours for academic matters. If you would like to have a conversation in a more informal setting, please consider inviting me to lunch; I also invite you to join me on my walk. I also read plans, though I intend to limit my time spent doing so.
As a rule, email is the most reliable way to get in touch with me. However, please allow 24 hours for my response. You may also call me in my office (x4306) for more urgent matters (e.g., if you will miss lab due to illness).