CSC 110 Home Page

Basic Information:

• CSC 110, Summer 2009
• Class credits: 5
• Section 02
  • Item #2315
  • Meeting Times: Monday – Thursday, 9:10 – 10:40 am in ED2841A
    Also meets: Monday – Thursday, 9:10 – 10:40 am in TB1643B
• Instructor: Dan Jinguji
  • Email: djinguji@sccd.ctc.edu
  • Office: IB2425C.
  • Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 8:30 – 9:00 am
    or by appointment.
  • Messages by email or in mailbox in Math, Science, and Social Sciences (MS³) Division office.

Course Description:

This course is designed to help the student learn the general principles of modern programming, including how to design, implement, document, test, and debug computer programs. The course is based on current Web technologies, specifically DHTML and the JavaScript programming language. Topics include variables, values, expressions, statements, functions, parameters, conditionals, iteration, and arrays. This course is intended for students who have computer experience but no prior programming experience. It is a prerequisite for CSC 142.

Your goal in this course should be to learn general programming principles, concepts, and techniques. This course is not designed to make you an expert Web master! However, you will develop broad foundational programming skills and gain some knowledge of Web development along the way. This course focuses on programming that will run in the browser.

Classroom Diversity Statement:

Respect for diversity is a core value of NSCC.  Our college community fosters an optimal learning climate and an environment of mutual respect.  We, the college community, recognize individual differences.  Therefore, we are responsible for the content and tone of our statements and are empathetic speakers and listeners.

Disability Accommodation:

Students with disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in this class are encouraged to contact Disability Services as soon as possible to ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion. You may make an appointment with Disability Services by calling 527-3697 or stopping by the DS office on the 2nd floor of the Campus Center.

Prerequisites:

• Computer experience.
• MAT 098, Intermediate Algebra.

Text and Supplies:

• (optional) Weaving a Website:
  Programming in HTML, JavaScript, Perl, and Java
      by Susan Anderson-Freed
  (Prentice Hall, 2006; ISBN: 0-13-028220-0), available in the campus bookstore
• A flash drive or some 3.5" floppies will be very helpful.

Computer Access:

This course is Internet Enhanced.

• Most materials will be obtained from this site, the class web site:
  http://northstar.northseattle.edu/CSC110/Summer2009/csc110-02/
• Assignments will be submitted electronically via email.
• Each student will need to have an e-mail account by the end of the first week of class. Several FREE web-based e-mail services are available, including Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo, which have worked well in the past. You are expected to check your e-mail regularly.

A detailed class schedule will be posted on the web site and updated as the quarter progresses.

Students can use computers in NSCC open lab, IB3303. Hours of operation are posted for the lab. There are computers available in the Math Learning Center in ED1845B. Tutors are also scheduled to be available in the lab. All of these machines have required software and full Internet access. To use the computers in the labs, you will need an NSCC NetId account.

Access to a computer with Internet access at home or at work would be valuable. All the software used in this course is freeware and can be installed on any appropriate computer, allowing you to work on assignments away from campus.

Expectations of Students:

• Attend all classes.
• Participate! Ask questions in class. Respond to questions from the instructor. Work with your colleagues in the open labs.
• Practice each new technique as soon as possible, and practice often!
• Complete all assignments, quizzes, tests, and the final.
  • Exam dates and times will be posted on the course web site at least one week prior to the exam. If alternate arrangements for the exam need to be made, it is the student's responsibility to contact the instructor, minimally one class session before the scheduled exam date.
  • If unforeseen circumstances arise that prevent a student from taking an exam, it is the student's responsibility to contact the instructor to schedule a make-up exam. In general, if this is not done within 12 hours of the exam time, the student forfeits the points for that exam. Notification can be by email or a message left with the academic division staff.
• Hand in only your own work.
  • You are ENCOURAGED to work with your colleagues to develop an understanding of the concepts we will be studying. This can include discussing the assignment problems. However, in the end, when it is time to complete YOUR assignment, you need to do it by yourself from scratch. This process of actually doing the assignment helps you develop your own skills! Do not try to submit work copied from another student! Don't shortchange yourself!
  • For the quizzes, tests, and the final, all work must be your own. Copying from another person's paper is not allowed!

Grading Policy (may be adjusted):

Each graded task you perform is worth a certain number of points. These point will be converted to normalized points. All normalized points are equal. There will be bonus points for participation.

Grade awarded will be mapped to the total number of normalized points earned as follows (instructor reserves the right to adjust this scale):

Assignments	45%
Labs	15%
Midterm Exam	20%
Final Exam	20%

Programming Assignments

• Assignments have posted due dates. All assignments are due by 9:00 pm on the specified date.
• Assignments will be graded on two scales: functionality and style.
• Functionality scores will range from 0 – 4.
  • A score of 4 will be given when the homework accurately follows the instructions in the assignment.
  • A score of 3 will be given when the homework meets the stated objectives of the assignment, but it falls slightly short of the stated objectives for the assignment. For example, the features of the assignment are working, but there are some small errors in the logic.
  • A score of 2 will be given when the homework is short of the stated objectives of the assignment. For example, many of the features of the assignment are working, but several are missing or operate incorrectly.
  • A score of 1 will be given when the homework is significantly short of the stated objectives of the assignment. For example, does not compile, uses a different technology or syntactic construction that listed in the objectives.
  • A score of 0 will be given when the homework is drastically short of the stated objectives for the assignment.
  • Extra credit points (up to a functionality score of 5) will be given when the homework accurately follows the instructions in the assignment and demonstrates extra-credit portions of the assignment. 
    Note: extra credit points will not be awarded on late assignments.
• Style scored will range from 0 – 1.
  • One-half point of the style score will be granted for commenting.
  • One-half point of the style score will be granted for formatting.
• At the end of the quarter there will be one additional (extra credit) assignment available to you.
• There is a one-week grace period after the posted due date.
• Late assignments will be accepted up to one week past the due date. However, there is a one-point penalty for late submission. Also, extra credit is not available for late submissions.
• Also, if your performance on an assignment is particularly short of the mark, you will be invited to resubmit the assignment within that one-week grace period.

Lab exercises

• Lab exercises will be opportunities to apply some of the topics we have discussed in lecture. The lab exercises will be "guided", that is, there will be set instructions for the lab exercises. They will also be graded.
• Lab exercises are due on the lab day, by the end of the class.

In-Class Exams

• There will be two in-class exams. One around the middle of the term, and one toward the end of the term.
• Dates: TBA
• The material in the in-class exams will focus on the more recent material, specifically, first half and second half of the quarter.
• There is no "finals week" during summer quarter.

Exams, in general

Typically, the score distribution for an exam has the bulk of the scores in a somewhat normal distribution often with some outlying scores at the high and low ends. The exam scores will be "normalized" such that the median score (disregarding outlying scores) for any one of the exams will not be less than 90% of the available points.

Other Issues

If you need to request a grade of NC (no credit) or I (incomplete), this must be done in writing before the final. An email sent to the instructor is sufficient.

Accommodation can be made for students. However, this generally must be done in advance and in writing. When unforeseen circumstances intervene, you have until 10 am the next day to contact the instructor. Typically I would suggest a phone call to the division office (206-527-3746) or email sent directly to the instructor.

Make it Work!!

We can tailor this course to address your needs and interests. If there is a special programming problem you would like to tackle, let me know and I will see if it can be worked into the class or a project. Likewise, if you have any special educational needs, please let me know. Finally, if you have any questions about topics we cover, ask them right away or see me in my office. Each week's new material builds on the subjects already covered, so it is best to make sure you do what it takes to understand it right away.

Students from all classes are encouraged to seek help with any kind of writing and reading assignments at the Loft located upstairs in the library. The Loft also offers online tutoring in writing through their website: http://www.northseattle.edu/services/loft.

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