There is a discussion group on Piazza for this course. Use it to ask questions about clarifications on the lectures and labs, and do answer questions from your classmates if you know the answer! Keep in mind that the discussion group has the same academic integrity policy as the course, so you shouldn’t, for example, share code from your solution in a public Piazza question. You can share examples from lecture, lab, or the book to ask questions, but never copy your own code into a public question. If you aren’t sure if your question is OK to post publicly, it's fine to send it as a private message and the course staff can promote it to be publicly visible (and answerable). In fact, a private message to the Piazza board is the best place to ask a course or lab content question.
Late lab and written assignments will not normally be accepted. There are a few reasons for this: Sometimes, an assignment and its solution will be discussed in the lecture immediately after it is due, so it’s infeasible to grade late work fairly. In addition, many assignments build on one another, so it’s best to avoid a policy that lets you slip behind. Special exceptions can be made if you contact me well in advance of the deadline (having a lot of work in other classes does not qualify for a special exception). Even if you do not fully complete an assignment, you should submit what you have done to receive partial credit.
Some labs may take a considerable amount of time, so you are strongly encouraged to begin working on assignments well before the due date.
If you believe that you need accommodations for a disability, please contact
Leslie Hempling in the Office of Student Disability Services (Parrish 113) or
e-mail lhempli1 to set up an appointment to discuss your needs. As
appropriate, she will issue students with documented disabilities a formal
Accommodation Letter. Since accommodations require early planning and are not
retroactive, please contact her as soon as possible. For details about the
Student Disabilities Service and the accommodations process, visit
http://www.swarthmore.edu/student-life/academic-advising-and-support/student-disability-services.xml.
You are also welcome to contact me privately to discuss your academic needs.
However, all disability-related accommodations must be arranged through Leslie
Hempling in the Office Of Student Disability Services. To receive an
accommodation for a course activity, you must have an Accommodation
Authorization letter from Leslie Hempling and you need to meet with me to work
out the details of your accommodation at least two weeks prior to any activity
requiring accommodations.
This course is governed by the college’s policies on academic honesty and computing, which you can find at http://www.swarthmore.edu/student-handbook/academic-policies. I will pursue disciplinary action in cases of misconduct.
As a general rule, you should not look at, or provide advice on, code or prose that doesn’t belong to you or your lab partner.
Your grade will be calculated from:
There is no midterm exam.
Participation includes:
Lab assignments are typically handed out at the beginning of the lab period on Monday, and due at 11:59pm the following Sunday. We’ll let you know in advance about deviations from this pattern. Assignments will be handed in via Github, which you will get practice and instruction on using over the first few labs. Several labs will be done in pairs, with the partner policy discussed on a per-assignment basis. The distribution of the assignment will make it clear which assignments are solo and which are in pairs. Some lab assignments may involve a significant written component instead of or in addition to the programs you write.
Quizzes will be announced well in advance, and will take place in either lecture or lab on the scheduled date. Notify the professor at least a week in advance if you cannot attend on the day of a quiz – if you don't give this much warning and don't show up, you get a zero on the quiz. Quizzes will come with a study guide.