Introduction to Computer Programming

Every year several students fail the course because of dishonest practice. Please do not be among them. You are encouraged to discuss the general aspects of a problem with others. However, anything you submit for credit must be entirely your own work and not copied, with or without modification, from any other person.

If you share details of your work with anybody else then you are likely to be in breach of the University's General Course and Examination Regulations and/or Computer Regulations (both of which are set out in the University Calendar) and/or the Computer Science Department's policy. The Department treats cases of dishonesty very seriously and, where appropriate, will not hesitate to notify the University Proctor.

If you need help with specific details relating to your work, or are not sure what you are allowed to do, then contact your tutors or lecturer for advice.

The Computer Science department's grading policy states that in order to pass a course you must meet two requirements:
1. You must achieve an average grade of at least 50% over all assessment items.
2. You must achieve an average mark of at least 45% on invigilated assessment items.
If you satisfy both these criteria, your grade will be determined by the following University- wide scale for converting marks to grades: an average mark of 50% is sufficient for a C- grade, an average mark of 55% earns a C grade, 60% earns a B- grade and so forth. However if you do not satisfy both the passing criteria you will be given either a D or E grade depending on marks. Marks are sometimes scaled to achieve consistency between courses from year to year.

Aegrotats
If factors beyond your control (such as illness or family bereavement) prevent you from completing some item of course work (including laboratory sessions), or prevent you from giving your best, then you may be eligible for aegrotat, impaired performance consideration or an extension on the assessment. Details of these may be found in the University Calendar. Supporting evidence, such as a medical certificate, is normally required. If in doubt, talk to your lecturer.

Practical work is an essential part of learning to program.
A new laboratory exercise will be made available each week and you are expected to work on that exercise during your scheduled lab for that week. Each laboratory exercise is accompanied by an online quiz. The quizzes are electronically graded and the sum of all your quiz marks contributes 10% of your total course mark. Usually you will submit your work at the end of that scheduled lab session but if you wish to continue to work on the exercise in your own time during the next week you may do so.

However, you must submit each quiz by its final submission date, the so-called “drop dead date", which is written on the exercise handout. Usually this is the Friday of the week after the lab exercise is handed out.

The lab tutors will help you work through the exercises when you are stuck, but try to solve the problems yourself before calling for help. In programming there are in infinitely many possible programming exercises and each one has a huge number of possible solutions. It's not the solution to the problem that's important; it's the mental processes you use to get even one solution that matter. Tutors can provide only limited assistance with guiding your mental processes - ultimately you yourself have to acquire the necessary problem-solving skills.

Your usercode on our computer system enables you to access a range of services. Some of these services are not free and you are responsible for ensuring that your account contains sufficient funds to cover any charges you incur. If your account balance becomes negative then you may be unable to use any computer facilities until you have cleared this debt. The Computer Science Department is not involved with the financial details of your account - you should go to the Information and Communications Technology Services (ICTS) Department for this.
The main chargeable service you are likely to make use of is printing.

To use chargeable services you will need to have money loaded on your Canterbury Card.

See the Information and Communication Technology Services (ICTS) Department home page for details of services and charges.

If you need help or are feeling lost, seek help immediately. Do not wait until the day before your assignment is due. There is plenty of help available - it is up to you to make use of it.

Sources of help
There are a variety of ways for you to get help.
•   The Learn COSC121S1 forums provide electronic noticeboards for use by all students and staff involved with COSC121S1. You can post any course-related queries to these forums and other students or staff can answer them. You can access the forum by logging into Learn.
However, there are a few rules to be observed:
•    Be courteous. The forum should be a pleasant place for everyone. Rude, angry or arrogant postings will rapidly destroy the value of the forum.
•   Don't be too helpful. By that we mean don't destroy someone else's learning experience by posting direct answers to test, exam or assignment questions. Rather, try to guide someone towards the solutions by hints or suggestions as to where the answers can be found. Never post assignment-related code.
•   If time permits, some problems may be discussed with your tutors during normal laboratory sessions.
•   Your lecturers are happy to help. However, their time is limited so please try to arrange an appointment by email to ensure that sufficient time will be available to deal with your queries effectively.
•   Some students may wish to engage a tutor for additional private or group tuition. Mr Holland (room 220) can assist with advertising and information about likely costs.

Note that the department is not responsible for computer systems and networks around the campus. The ICTS help desk (x6060) is the place to get help with technical problems outside the department.

Many students will do at least some of their laboratory and assignment work on home computers.
To do that, you will need to install some course-specific software as follows:
•   Python, version 3.3 or later. This can be downloaded from www.python.org. NB: Version 2.7 is NOT appropriate, as it is not compatible with version 3, which will be using in the course.
•  Wing101 Version 5.0, the IDE (Integrated Development Environment) we use in COSC121S1. This can be downloaded from http://www.wingware.com/downloads/wingide-101/5.0.3-1/ . [This is not strictly essential; you can, if you wish, develop your programs using the IDLE IDE that comes with Python. Wing101 is what we will use in the lectures and laboratories, however.]
•  Enjoy the Course!!!