CS 171 Computer Programming 1 - Syllabus

Term and Credits

Fall 2018-2019
3 Credits

Room and Time

Lectures:

• A - Monday 12:00PM-1:50PM Room: Randell Hall 327
• B - Monday 2:00PM-3:50PM Room: Randell Hall 327

Labs: (Primary TA in Bold)

• Section 63 - Wednesday 11:00AM - 12:50PM Room: Rush 06 (TAs: Amira Mefteh and Chetan Parakh)
• Section 67 - Wednesday 11:00AM - 12:50PM Room: Rush 09 (TAs: Jiho Yoo and Klaus Nuredini)
• Section 62 - Wednesday 1:00PM - 2:50PM Room: Rush 06 (TAs: Minh Le and Amira Mefteh)
• Section 66 - Wednesday 1:00PM - 2:50PM Room: Rush 09 (TAs: Klaus Nuredini and Curtis Bechtel)
• Section 64 - Wednesday 3:00PM - 4:50PM Room: Rush 06 (TAs: Chetan Parakh and Jiho Yoo)
• Section 68 - Wednesday 3:00PM - 4:50PM Room: Rush 09 (TAs: Patrick Brinich and Klaus Nuredini)
• Section 61 - Thursday 5:00PM - 6:50PM Room: Rush 06 (TAs: Yigit Alparsan and Minh Le)
• Section 65 - Thursday 5:00PM - 6:50PM Room: Rush 09 (TAs: Patrick Brinich and Curtis Bechtel)

Who Grades What:

• Reading - Autograded by ZyBooks
• Homeworks - Autograded by ZyBooks
• Quizzes - Autograded by learning.drexel.edu
• Labs - Graded by your Primary Lab TA
• Midterm/Final - Graded by Professor

Instructor

Mark Boady
Electronic Mail Address: mwb33@drexel.edu
Office: University Crossings 138
Extention: 215-895-2347
Office Hours: Wednesday 11am-1pm, Friday 11-1PM, others days/times by appointment.

Teaching Assistant(s)

• Chetan Parakh ckp44@drexel.edu
• Jiho Yoo jy434@drexel.edu
• Klaus Nuredini kn398@drexel.edu
• Amira Mefteh am3836@drexel.edu
• Minh Le mnl37@drexel.edu
• Yigit Alparsan ya332@drexel.edu
• Curtis Bechtel crb359@drexel.edu
• Patrick Brinich pjb338@drexel.edu

Office Hours and Contact Info Through the CLC: https://www.cs.drexel.edu/clc

Course Description

Introduces fundamental concepts of computing including memory, instructions, function calls, and activation records. Covers fundamentals of structured computer programming in the language of instruction: variables, input and output, expressions, assignment statements, conditionals and branching, subprograms, parameter passing, repetition, arrays, top-down design, testing, and debugging.

Course Objective and Goals

1. Trace execution of a Python program containing assignment statements, strings, conditionals, file input/output, functions, and loops.
2. Determine appropriate code constructs and design a Python program using them to satisfy problem description.
3. Write appropriately styled Python code and documentation for programs using assignment statements, strings, conditionals, file input/output, functions, and loops.
4. Detect and correct syntax errors in Python programs containing assignment statements, strings, conditionals, file input/output, functions, and loops.
5. Detect and correct logic errors in Python programs containing assignment statements, strings, conditionals, functions, and loops.
6. Communicate and solve problems effectively as a member of a team.

Audience and Purpose within Plan of Study

This course is open to all student's interesting in Programming and Computer Science.

This course is the first in a two-term sequence of computer programming courses in Python 3 (CS 171-2) and is a required course for students majoring in computer science, mathematics, physics, information systems, and digital media. It is also a required course for students pursuing a minor in computer science. The goal is for students completing this sequence to be competent programmers, able to write working Python 3 program on their own using appropriate constructs when presented with a problem description.

Prerequisites
None.

While there are no formal prerequisites for the course, students are expected to be computer literate. Prior programming experience is not required, but is definitely helpful.

Textbook

Programming in Python 3
Edition: CS 171: Computer Programming I Fall 2018
From ZyBooks
Sign up at learn.zybooks.com
Enter Code DREXELCS171BoadyFall2018 for our textbook
Subscribe for $77.00.

Grading and Policies

• Homework Assignments: 20%
• Labs: 20%
• Readings: 10%
• Quizzes: 10%
• Midterm 20%
• Final Exam 20%

Final grades will be determined by your total points weighted according to this distribution. Grades may be curved but are generally computed via the formula below. It may be modified at the instructor's sole discretion, but letter grades will generally not be lower than those shown here.

• [100-97]A+
• (97-93] A
• (93-90]A-
• (90-87]B+
• (87-83] B
• (83-80]B-
• (80-77]C+
• (77-73] C
• (73-70]C-
• (70-67]D+
• (67-60]D
• (60-0]F

Readings

• Each week sections of the ZyBooks online textbook will be assigned.
• You are required to complete all Participation Activity and Challenge Activity questions in the assigned readings.
• You must purchase a ZyBooks subscription to complete reading assignments.
• Each Student is required to have their own ZyBooks account.
• Late Submissions will not be accepted for Readings.

Homeworks

• Most weeks Homeworks will be assigned.
• Homeworks consist of an additional section in ZyBooks with Programming problems.
• You must purchase a ZyBooks subscription to complete homeworks.
• Each Student is required to have their own ZyBooks account.
• Late Submissions will not be accepted for Homeworks.
• If you feel ZyBooks has graded your homework code incorrectly, you may request a TA review the grade. You must request a review within 1 week of the Homework's due date.

Labs

• Lab Attendance is Required
• Students will work in teams to complete lab assignments.
• Labs will be posted in bblearn.
• Labs must be submitted by the end of the lab period.
• If you must miss a lab, contact your Primary Lab TA. Exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Quizzes/Midterm/Final

• Quizzes and Exams will be given in bblearn.
• Tests will have a fixed time limit.
• Tests will only allow one attempt.
• Some questions will be manually graded by the instructor.

Special Circumstances

If you have a documented reason why you cannot submit any work by the cut-off deadline, a special exception may be made. The Professor may also wave the late submission policy for documented special exceptions. Special Exceptions must be approved by the Professor.

Additional Policies

• You, your instructor, and the TA are bound by the Academic Honesty policy. Students are responsible for reading and understanding the course policies in this syllabus and for announcements made in class and in the course discussion board. See the academic policy linked to in this syllabus.
• During lecture and recitation sessions please refrain from using mobile phones or otherwise being impolite.
• Any dispute about an assignment grade must be made and resolved within 5 days of receiving your grade. After this period your grade cannot be adjusted.
• If you are seeking help with an assignment you must contact the Professor or a TA prior to Friday close-of-business hours. We cannot guarantee a timely response on nights and weekends. This policy is to ensure that you get started early on your assignments.

Plagiarism Detection System

To ensure that assignments are done independently, in addition to human observation, we will be running all assignments through a plagiarism detection system. This program uses compiler techniques which are invariant of syntax and style. It has a very high accuracy rate.

Academic Honesty Policy

The CCI Academic Honesty policy is in effect for this course. Please see the policy at http://drexel.edu/cci/resources/current-students/undergraduate/policies/cs-academic-integrity/.

In the event of an Academic Honesty Violation, punishments include but are not limited to

• Failure for Class
• Deduction of One Letter Grade
• Zero for Offending Assignment
• Report Submitted to University Student Conduct Department

Computer/Software Help
iCommons: http://drexel.edu/cci/about/our-facilities/rush-building/iCommons/

Disability Statement
Students requesting accommodations due to a disability at Drexel University need to request a current Accommodations Verification Letter (AVL) in the ClockWork database before accommodations can be made. These requests are received by Disability Resources (DR), who then issues the AVL to the appropriate contacts. For additional information, visit the DR website at drexel.edu/oed/disabilityResources/overview/, or contact DR for more information by phone at 215.895.1401, or by email at disability@drexel.edu.

University Policies
In addition to the course policies listed on this syllabus, course assignments or course website, the following University policies are in effect:

• Academic Honesty: http://www.drexel.edu/provost/policies/academic_dishonesty.asp
• Judicial Affairs Academic Integrity: http://drexel.edu/studentlife/community_standards/facultystaff/integrity/
• Official Final Exam Schedule: http://www.drexel.edu/registrar/scheduling/exams/
• Students with Disability Statement: http://drexel.edu/oed/disabilityResources/students/
• Course Drop Policy: http://www.drexel.edu/provost/policies/course-add-drop
• Course Withdraw Policy: http://drexel.edu/provost/policies/course-withdrawal
• The instructor may, at his/her/their discretion, change any part of the course during the term, including assignments, grade breakkdowns, due-dates, and the schedule. Such changes will be communicated to students via the course web site Announcements page. This page should be checked regularly and frequently for such changes and announcements. Other announcements, although rare, may include class cancellations and other urgent announcements.

Software and Hardware Requirements

All Drexel students are required to have individual access to a dedicated computer which meets minimum specifications, including: processor speed, memory and secondary storage requirements, connectivity via high-speed or direct connection to campus network, and a CD/DVD drive.

The Official Language is Python 3.6. You must have Python 3.6 installed on your computer. It is available for free from https://www.python.org

No specific IDE is required. We strongly suggest Thonny for offline development.

Tentative Course Schedule

Please see the appropriate assignment webpages for a detailed description of course deliverables.