SPRING 2011

Course Description: CSC 221 is the second course in the three course programming sequence: CSC 121, CSC 221, CSC 332. These courses are currently taught using the Java programming language and a Windows environment. The prerequisite for CSC 221 is CSC 121 (with a grade of "C" or better), and the co-requisite is CSC 133 (Discrete Structures). Topics in CSC 221 include searching and sorting, recursive algorithms, file input and output, reusable classes and packages, inheritance and polymorphism, event-driven programming, and graphical user interfaces.

Note 1: Students may declare a major in Computer Science after completion of CSC 121, 133, and 221 with a grade point average of at least 2.5 on these 3 courses and with an overall grade point average of at least 2.0.

Note 2: A grade of "C" or better is required for taking courses for which CSC 221 is a prerequisite.

1. Text: Starting Out with Java: From Control Structures through Data Structures by Tony Gaddis and Godfrey Muganda ISBN-10: 0321421027 ISBN-13: 9780321421029 Publisher: Addison-Wesley Copyright: 2007
2. Class Web site: http://people.uncw.edu/narayans/courses/csc221/csc221_Spring2011.html


3. Class time: 
• Lectures 1:00 - 1:50 MW in CI 1012.  
• Lab:
1:00 - 2:40 on Friday in CI 2006
• During lab hours you will be expected to complete a focused programming task. If you are unable to complete the lab task in class, it is your responsibility to make sure that you complete it after class. You will use Blackboard to submit your program. There is no opportunity for late submissions. If you do not submit your lab assignment before the deadline, you will receive no credit for it. The lab meetings may be used to present lecture material as needed.

Attendance: You are required to attend, and expected to actively participate in every class meeting. Active participation implies coming to class well prepared with your textbook, notes, and pens and pencils. You are expected to read the textbook before and after topics are presented in class.


4. Instructor: Dr. Sridhar Narayan, CI 2015

   Office phone: 962-3695

   Office hours: Monday, Wednesday 2:00 - 3:00 pm. Tuesday, Thursday 10:00 -11:00 am. Other hours by appointment.

   E-mail address: narayans@uncw.edu

5. Academic Integrity

   University Policy on academic integrity will be followed for this course. Cheating will be taken very seriously, resulting in harsh penalties. Since the skills required in this class are also required in the next class, cheating in this class will seriously hamper your ability to pass the next class. The academic integrity policy for each class varies. Please follow the policies below:
    

   Appropriate Collaboration

   • Sharing class notes with another student.
   • Discussing anything that was covered in class.
   • Helping a fellow student locate a bug in his program, provided the following are true:
     1. You have already completed your program.
     2. You never type or dictate code for the student. You should be helping with minor details, not solving the programming problem for him/her.

   Inappropriate Collaboration

   • Showing another student (who has not completed the assignment) your code.
   • Copying code from another student.
   • Verbally providing other students with the solution to the program. (This would be along the lines of giving them the key to solving the problem when they need to think it through themselves.)
   • Helping other students during a test or quiz.
   • Doing another student's work.

   Any of these constitutes cheating and will be reported to the academic integrity council.

   Honor Code

   It is the responsibility of every student to uphold and maintain the UNCW Academic Honor Code (see Section V of your Student Handbook). You violate the honor code when you represent someone else's work as your own. Programming assignments may be discussed at a conceptual level with other students but details and coding must be your own. Copying and team collaboration is prohibited.

6. Help Debugging from Instructors

   Obviously, you may ask for debugging help from your instructor or TA. However, debugging is a skill that can be developed only by practice. It is important to learn how to struggle through problems on your own. If you are genuinely stuck, we will be willing to help you as far as your code matches the techniques described in class. If you write your program with an approach that is a complete departure from the way described in class, you are responsible for fixing your own resulting problems.

    
7. Programming Assignments: All homework must be YOUR OWN INDIVIDUAL WORK. You may be asked to explain any code that you submit as a part of the assignment. Inadequate explanations may lead me to believe that your submission was plagiarized.
   • Independent programming assignments will be assigned most weeks, typically on Friday. Any assignment you do not complete in class automatically becomes homework. That is, you are responsible for completing the assignment outside of class and submitting it on Blackboard before it is due. If Blackboard does not accept your lab assignment, you will not receive any credit for it. Some programming assignments may carry more weight than others.
   • There will be one team project which will be assigned in the second half of the semester.

8. Tests and Grading: You will have 2 in-class tests with written and programming components on the following dates:

   • Friday, February 25, 2011.
   • Friday, April 15, 2011. 

    

   In general, no make up tests will be given; if you miss a test and have a PREARRANGED reason, your final exam grade may be substituted for it.

   Monday, May 2, 2011 is the last day of classes. You will have a FINAL EXAM on Monday, May 9, 2010 from 11:30 am - 2:30 pm in CI 2006. If you are passing the course, and if you cannot take the final exam when it is scheduled because of an emergency beyond your control, and if you notify me BEFORE the end of classes, you may possibly receive an ``I'' in the course. Details about the format of the final will be announced later in the semester.

   • Independent Programming Assignments: 40%
   • Team Project: 15%
   • Test 1: 10%
   • Test 2: 15%
   • Final Exam: 20%
   The upper 30% (except the A range), and lower 30% of all grade ranges will be assigned + and - modifiers, respectively. For instance, an overall score of 93 in the course will result in a grade of A-, or better.

   The instructor reserves the right to relax the grading scheme outlined above.

   • Students with Disabilities:  If you have a disability and need reasonable accommodation in this course, you should inform the instructor of this fact in writing within the first week of class or as soon as possible. If you have not already done so, you must register with the Office of Disability Services in Westside Hall (extension 3746) and obtain a copy of your Accommodation Letter. You should then meet with your instructor to make mutually agreeable arrangements based on the recommendations of the Accommodation Letter.