CSCI 131: INTRODUCTION TO PROGRAMMING

SPRING 2018

Professor : Jeff Rufinus

Office : Freedom Hall 317

E-mail : rufinus@cs.widener.edu

Please do not send email to any other address besides this one

Phone: (610)-499-4015

Office Hours: MW 12-12:50; M 2:00-2:50; F 08:00 – 08:50 or by appointment

Course website: http: // rufinus.cs.widener.edu/csci131 (announcements, etc., will

be posted on this website)

DESCRIPTION OF THE COURSE

This introductory course is designed for the Arts and Sciences students who have no

previous experience in programming. The python language is used to work with lists,

strings, arrays, and files using loops, user-defined functions, and Python library

functions.

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

To make the student understand (and write programs using) Python programming

language

To make the student learn and understand the basics of programming, writing

programs, problem solving, etc.

If a student already has a background in programming, this course will introduce to

them a different (and good) programming language

WORDS OF WISDOM

In order to be successful in this course you need to

Practice a lot through homework/assignments

Practice yourself (Try all exercises given in the required textbook)

Start early, do not wait for the last minute

Come to class regularly and on time

Ask your instructor

REQUIRED TEXTBOOK

Required textbook (Each student must have his/her own textbook - No exceptions):

“Programming with Python 2nd edition” (48hrs book Publisher) - Available from the

instructor

COPYING FROM THE INTERNET

There is certainly an infinite amount of solved programs that you could find by

browsing the Internet. Copying these programs and claiming them to be yours

(especially during the tests) are considered cheating.

LAB SESSIONS (ACTIVITIES) POLICY

Lab sessions or activities will be given in all lectures. You will be asked to do a variety of

activities, e.g. to write programs, answer questions, group discussions, etc. Attendance

to the lab sessions is, therefore, REQUIRED and MANDATORY. (See the following

section on attendance policy)

CLASS ATTENDANCE POLICY (FAILING THE COURSE IF YOU MISSED MORE

THAN 5 LECTURES, REGARDLESS OF YOUR TESTS, ETC.)

Attending classes regularly is an essential ingredient to understanding the materials

taught in this course. Therefore, class attendance is required (you will be required to

sign an attendance sheet). You are only allowed to miss the maximum of 5 (five) classes

per semester for any reason, or else you will fail (F) this course. During lecture time, you

are expected to concentrate on and contribute to class presentations, lectures and/or

group discussions.

CLASS BEHAVIOR

Small group discussions that distract from the ability of others in class to adequately

concentrate on class presentations, lectures, and group discussions will not be tolerated.

Use of laptop computers during class will be restricted to note taking and computer-

based activities as assigned by the instructor.

Internet surfing (Facebooking, Twittering, reading email, streaming music, writing

other papers, or the use of programs not specifically related to the lecture) are strictly

prohibited and will not be tolerated. Also, turn off your pager, cell phone, etc. when

you come to class. You have been warned! Second time offenders will not be allowed

to take the remaining exam(s).

TARDINESS POLICY

Course definition of tardiness = 15 minutes late. If you do this for more than 3 (three)

times, without compelling reasons, your final grade will be reduced by one point. E.g.

A to B, B+ to C+, D to F, etc.

EXAMS

Most of the time, exams are open book, open note, but closed neighbors. A calculator

can also be used in the exam. If one misses an exam for an emergency, there will be no

makeup exam; the other exams will become proportionally more important (i.e. I will

divide your final grade by N-1 exams instead of N exams.) An announcement will be

made in advance if it is necessary to change the exam date. There will be no makeup

exam for any reasons (If you were really sick and have a letter from and only from the

doctor, there is still no makeup exam, but instead I will divide your final grade by 7

exams. A signed letter from your parent(s) can be used in lieu of a doctor’s letter).

FINAL GRADING

Tests/exams 80 %

In-class activities + Attendance 10 %

Final Project 10 %

TOTAL = 100 %

Tentatively, the letter grades are assigned based on the following: A(90-100), A-(85-89),

B+(80-84), B(75-79), B-(70-74), C+(65-69), C(60-64), C-(55-59), D+(50-54), F(below 49).

Your final grade may be influenced by a number of factors including: motivation,

improvement, attendance, and class participation.

NOTE: The instructor will not give any EXTRA points, EXTRA work, and other

EXTRAs, in this course.

EXCUSES POLICY

Excuses (this rule is valid for exams only; and remember that no more than one excuse

per semester will be allowed) can only be given if:

You were really sick and have a legitimate, signed letter from : your doctor (just

a regular headache will not be count as an excuse); your parents (please also

include the phone number); your Professor, coach, and/or Dean

You were able to provide an obituary from the newspaper in case you claim

someone in your family passed away

You participated in a University event (need a letter from your coach or Dean)

CHEATING POLICY

Students shall be guilty of violating the honor code if they:

Represent the work of others as their own

Use or obtain unauthorized assistance in any academic work

Give unauthorized assistance to other students

Modify an examination, paper, record, or report for the purpose of obtaining

additional credit

Misrepresent the content of submitted work

In all the above cases, you and your friend(s) will be held accountable. The penalty for

violating the honor code is severe. Any student violating the code is subject to receive a

failing grade for the course and will be reported to the Office of Students Affairs.

LEARNING ACCOMMODATIONS

In accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, any student has the right to

request reasonable accommodation of a disability. Accommodations can be requested

through Academic Support Services, Disabilities Services (520 E. 14th st., 610-499-1266).

Disabilities Service is the office that authorized all accommodations on campus. Please

note that you will need to present documentation of your disability to Disabilities

Services. It is important to make this request as soon as possible so that we will have

time to make any necessary arrangements.

STATEMENT CONCERNING ACADEMIC FRAUD

“The Science Division strictly enforces the University’s policy on cheating and other

forms of academic fraud.”

IMPORTANT DATES (Tentative – Subject to change)

Test 1 Monday, January 29, 2018

Test 2 Friday, February 9, 2018

Test 3 Friday, February 23, 2018

Test 4 Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Test 5 Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Test 6 Monday, April 9, 2018

Test 7 Monday, April 23, 2018

Test 8 TBD

Any modifications to this syllabus will be announced in class

COURSE OUTLINE (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

Introduction to Computers (Hardware/software), von Neumann architecture,

memory (RAM, ROM, Hard Drive), Basic data types in computer (Text, Image,

Number) and how computers interpret them; Introduction to binary and decimal

numbers and their conversions

Basic programming technique, introduction to algorithm and introduction to

Python programming language:

Interactive and non-interactive ways of python programming

Basic arithmetic operators and math library

How to do Input/Output using Python

Looping programming techniques (while and for loops)

Decision techniques (if, else, elif)

Modular programming using function (Introduction to object oriented

programming)

Advanced topics in Python: Arrays, lists, dictionaries, working with files (will not

cover all, depending on the availability of time)