CMP 104 CA - Programming Logic and Problem Solving

Summer 2009 – Monday through Thursday 10:05am-12:00pm in B221


Professor:  Darci Burdge

 

Email: Darci.Burdge@ncc.edu

Home Page: http://www.matcmp.ncc.edu/~burdged

Office: C 3064

Office Hours: by appointment

Office Phone: (516) 572-7976 

Department Phone: (516) 572-7383


Textbook:

Alice in Action: Computing through Animation by Joel Adams, Thomson Course Technology, 2007.

JavaScript: A Beginner’s Guide, Second Edition by John Pollock, McGraw Hill Osbourne Media.

 

Prerequisite:

Students must have successfully completed all remediation prior to taking this course.

 

Course Objectives & Philosophy:

This course is designed to introduce students to programming concepts and terminology as well as the problem solving and logic skills needed to write computer programs.

Computer programming is problem solving. A computer program is a set of instructions that tells the computer how to solve a problem using the limited tools and vocabulary that it understands. The first step in learning how to program is to understand the problem being posed and figure out how it can be solved. Therefore, the focus of the first third of this course will be on building problem solving skills. You will be presented with a variety of problems, puzzles and games which you will solve without a computer. This is to prepare you for the second and third parts of the course during which you will use the problem solving skills you have developed to create programs for the computer using two different environments.

 

Background Knowledge/Materials:

·        Students will find having a prior knowledge of navigating through a Windows environment, saving and locating files helpful.

·        Students will need a USB external storage device (such as a flash drive or jump drive) to save their work.

·        Students who wish to work at home will need to install the following software: Alice, Notepad++ and a web browser.

 

Electronic Resources:

Students will use Blackboard throughout this course for mail, assignment notification, submission and grading.

Exams:
There will be 2 exams given during the semester in addition to a final exam. Make-up exams will not be given. Consideration will be given to those students who contact me before the exam (via e-mail or phone) and provide a valid, documented reason for missing the exam.

Computer Learning Center:
The Computer Learning Center is located in B225 and has all the software used in this course. To use the
Learning Center you must present a valid NCC identification card.

Attendance:

Students are expected to attend all classes, arrive on time, and stay until class is dismissed. It is the student’s responsibility to find out what was covered in class and make up any work missed prior to the next class meeting. Students are expected to hand in all assignments by the due date regardless of attendance. Any student absent on the day an assignment is due is still responsible for handing in the assignment electronically before the deadline.

 

Withdrawal Policy:

The last day to receive an automatic "W" for this class is June 15, however students may request a “W” prior to the final exam. It is the student’s responsibility to file a signed, drop/add form with the registrar if you wish to withdraw from this class. Students will not be withdrawn from the class for excessive absences or failure to take the final exam.

 

Citation/Cheating:

Collaboration among students to understand the course material is highly encouraged. However, each student is expected to submit individual work. Cheating includes (but is not limited to) turning in someone else's work as your own (with or without his/her knowledge), allowing someone else to turn in your work, copying from the textbook or a web site, and using unauthorized material on exams (including other people). Cheating will be suspected if an assignment results in multiple similar submissions or if a student cannot completely explain his/her submission.  Any student who does cheat will receive a zero for that assignment/exam and may be given an F for the course.

 

Grading:

Final grades will be determined by the following percentages:

Exams (2 and the final exam)

60% (20% each)

Homework/Labs/Projects

40% (assignments not handed in by the due date will receive a grade of zero)

 

Tentative Outline:

The following is intended to provide you with a tentative outline of how this course will progress.  Dates of exams may be adjusted to account for progress of the class as a whole.

Unit #1: Building problem solving skills: 5/26 – 6/2

Exam #1 Review: 6/3

Exam #1: 6/3

Unit #2: Programming in Alice: 6/4 – 6/10

Exam #2 Review: 6/11

Exam #2: 6/11

Unit #3: Programming in JavaScript: 6/15 – 6/24

Final Exam Review: 6/25

Final Exam: 6/25

 

If you have - or suspect you have – a physical, psychological, medical, or learning disability that may have an impact on your ability to carry out the assigned coursework, I urge you to contact the staff at the Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD), Bldg. U, 572-7241, TTY 572-7617. The counselors at CSD will review your concerns and determine with you what accommodations are necessary and appropriate. All information and documentation will be kept confidential.