Welcome Message

Hi all!  Welcome to CPSC221!

Your first required activity for the course is Monday, January 10. In this module we're providing a few resources you can look over before class starts. They're intended to help you scope the course, and to plan your schedule.

There are 4 different components to the course, each of which has its own schedule.

1. Programming Assignments and Homework: The schedule for these is not tightly controlled. You should think of them as projects--you and your partner manage your progress together. Work windows are 1-2weeks, and assignments may overlap. (~8hr/wk total, but the load in one week varies)

2. Labs: Every lab consists of a coding exercise whose solution you upload to PrairieLearn for automatic grading. Our plan is to support you as you work through the solution to the lab exercises within the 2hr block set aside for your lab meeting. Credit is based primarily on submission and passing minimal test cases. We drop your lowest lab score when computing your lab average. (2hr/wk total)

3. Examlets and Final Exam: You will complete weekly exams (called examlets) primarily on Fridays during class or self-scheduled alternate times. (While we're online, just during class time.) Examlets will require a deep engagement with the content. We'll release practice material on PrairieLearn at the start of each week. In general the end-of-week examlets will ask you about content from the previous week, plus the current Monday. You should consider them to be motivation to stay connected with the material--we hope that coming to class, watching the videos, and doing the practice problems will be good preparation. We drop your lowest examlet score when computing your examlet average. (3hr/wk total (1 for examlet + 2 for general study); 10 over the term). In addition there will be a final exam.

4. Class Content: The balance of instruction will be approximately 2hr/wk of live class meetings (MW), and 1hr/wk of off-line videos that fill in the gaps between the live content. We will be very careful to let you know the sequence of videos you should watch between live sessions. This schedule, together with any assignment due dates, and any other important information, will appear on the "Course Schedule" page. Go look at that page now (it's mostly filled with not-yet-live links). (3hr/wk total)

That's 16hr/wk of class attention, which is a lot! We follow the rule of thumb that says time spent per week in a normal term should be approximately 4 times the number of credit hours.  Here we go!!

If you will miss an assessed course component due to medical issues, personal emergencies, or other grounds for academic concession, contact our course coordinator right away!

What you can do now:

1. Students report that learning C++ is one of the largest hurdles in the class. We do not expect you to have used the language before in any of our narrative, but you may enjoy the labs more if you've done some self-study. In this module there is a link to videos from a C++ Short Course from a past semester. Watch them if you think it would be helpful, and feel free to ask questions on piazza.

2. Make sure all course components are on your weekly calendar, and plan for blocks of time to dedicate to Programming Assignments (PAs)/Homework (HWs).

3. While we are online and later if you want to take your examlets during class time, you will need a reliable device with web access. Let us know if you're concerned about your technical setup and/or access to online resources. 

4. Begin establishing study groups, and coordinating schedules. Feel free to use piazza for this now!!  

5. Read through Lab Intro, and complete your machine setup on your own, if you can! This process is a personal journey, because everyone's environment is unique. Feel free to ask for help from TAs on piazza.

In closing:

We have a busy term ahead of us diving into the heart of computing! Be sure to keep reading for the course guide (including how to get in touch!) and much more.

That's it for now! See you soon!

Steve and Geoff