CS 120 Syllabus

21 January 2015

Welcome to Web Development. Here is the official course description:

Web page and Common Gateway interface (CGI) application development. Topics include HTML, Web browser and server communication using HTTP and HTTPS, browser state tracking, basic web server configuration settings, client-side JavaScript, back-end database connectivity, and CGI application development using common tools and languages. Students are required to develop and complete several web-based applications.

When:
Monday, Wednesday 3–4:50 PM
Where:
LLC 207
Credits:
3
Prerequisites:
CS102

Contact Info

Instructor:
Prof. Christopher League, Ph.D.
Email:
— please include the course number (CS120) in the subject. I have several email addresses, but all messages end up in the same place, so use only one.
Google Hangout:
cleague@gmail.com
AIM:
chrysleague
Office hours:
Monday, Wednesday 2–2:50 or make an appointment at https://liucs.net/bookme
Office phone:
+1 718 488 1274
Office location:
LLC 206, LIU Brooklyn

Resources

We will use several web resources:

There is no required textbook, but if you’d like a book to supplement or for reference, here are some great suggestions:

Campus library resources tailored for computer science are available at https://liucs.net/u1

Requirements

Your grade will be computed based on assignments, exams, and participation. There are a total of 1,000 points available, broken down as follows:

  • There will be 6 programming assignments during the semester. Assignments are worth 100 points each, for a total of 600 points.

  • There will be 14 ‘check-in’ opportunities, roughly one per week. These vary from week to week, but may involve responding to a survey, taking a brief online quiz, participating in a discussion, or making some progress on an assignment. Check-ins are worth 12 points each but I will drop the lowest 2 scores so only 12 will count, for a total of 144 points.

  • There will be a midterm and final exam, worth 100 points each, for a total of 200 points.

  • The remaining 56 points are for effective participation in the Piazza online discussion and Q&A forum.

On the 1,000-point scale, you can expect the following letter grades:

   ≥ 870: B+ ≥ 770: C+ ≥ 670: D+
≥ 930: A ≥ 830: B ≥ 730: C ≥ 600: D
≥ 900: A–    ≥ 800: B–    ≥ 700: C–    else: F

In the end, I may choose to adjust the scale slightly to compensate for assignments or questions that turned out to be trickier than I intended. Such adjustments would never lower your grade from what is designated in the above table; if you achieve 930 points, you are guaranteed an A.

Policies

It is important to complete tasks on time, so you don’t fall behind. Missed check-ins will receive a zero, and cannot be made up (but remember, the lowest two scores are dropped). If you need to miss an exam, try to notify me in advance so we can make other arrangements. Late assignments will be graded as follows.

This formula specifies a lateness factor \(f\) that is multiplied by your earned score to determine a late score. The variable \(h\) represents the number of hours the submission is late.

\[ f = \frac{8.5 - \log_2{\left(\frac{h}{24}\right)}}{10} \]

You can adjust the sliders beside the graph below to visualize the effect of this formula. The green slider at the left controls the score you would have received based on the content of the work. The red slider below controls how late the assignment was turned in. The red circle in the graph indicates the adjusted score.

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There will be no extra credit. Students usually ask for extra credit late in the semester after they have already squandered their original opportunities. Be sure to start your work early, so that we can detect and solve any problems before they can affect your grade.

Plagiarism is the use or presentation of ideas, words, or work that is not one’s own and that is not common knowledge, without granting credit to the originator. Plagiarism is a practice that is not only unacceptable, but which is to be condemned in the strongest terms possible on the basis of moral, educational and legal grounds. Under University policy, plagiarism may be punishable by a range of penalties from a failing grade in the assignment or course to dismissal from the School of Business, Public Administration and Information Sciences. All students are required to read the handbook on avoiding plagiarism by visiting https://liucs.net/u2

Cheating includes, but is not limited to the following: falsification of statements or data; listing sources that have not been used; having another individual write your paper or do your assignments; writing a paper or creating work for another student to use without proper attribution; purchase of paper or research work for one’s submission as his/her own work; using written, verbal, or electronic or other sources of aid during an examination (except when expressly permitted by the instructor, depending on the nature of the examination) or knowingly providing such assistance to aid other students.

In a course with programming assignments, it is usually okay to work with and learn from other students to some extent, but what you submit in the end needs to be your own. The most reliable way to do that would be to set aside whatever code you created together, and then recreate it from scratch on your own.

Showing up on time to class is extremely important. If you must be absent or more than 5 minutes late, please try to notify me in advance. I will be keeping track of whether you are in class, and when you arrive. A few missed classes will not count against you, but habitual absence will significantly hurt your grade. Additionally, there will be no make-up quizzes. I do not distinguish between ‘excused’ and ‘unexcused’ absence. Unless you miss an exam due to a severe medical emergency, I don’t want to see a doctor’s note. If you do miss an exam, the make-up exam will be different – and probably not easier.

Long Island University seeks to provide reasonable accommodations for all qualified persons with disabilities, whether psychological, neurological, chronic medical, learning, sensory, or physical. The University will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines with respect to providing reasonable accommodations as required to afford equal educational opportunity. It is the student’s responsibility to register with Student Support Services as early as possible and to provide faculty members with the formal communication for suitable accommodations. Visit Pratt 410, call 718 488 1044, or visit http://www.liu.edu/Brooklyn/SSS

I participate in the LIU Safe Zone program. Representatives of the program serve as contacts for individuals on campus with questions or concerns related to sexual orientation and gender identity, whether of self or of a friend or family member. The goal of the program is to promote a safe and free campus for all students. Safe Zone areas can be identified by a sticker with the LIU Safe Zone logo.

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) gives students control over the disclosure of their educational records. During this course you may have the opportunity to create accounts or register with certain public online services. In these cases, you need not make any personally identifying information public. You may use a pseudonym or online handle, as long as you identify yourself to the instructor.

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