CS360 – Databases – Spring 2008

 

Instructor Information

Instructor:

Pete Nordquist

Phone:

552-6148

E-mail:

nordquip@sou.edu

Office:

CS215

Office Hours:

Afternoon is better than morning.   If the door is open and I’m there, come on in.  Making an appointment by email is a good strategy. 

Website:

http://cs.sou.edu/~nordquip/cs360

 

The web site contains lab assignments, class notes, demos, and other useful information.

 

Class Times

Monday, Wednesday, Friday (Lecture)      10 - 11

Thursday (Lab)                                              10 – 11

I will be working to fix the scheduled meeting place.

 

Course Text

Database Concepts, Third Edition
Author:  David M. Kroenke & David J. Auer

Prentice Hall, 2008.

ISBN-13: 978-0-13-198625-1  (ISBN-10: 0-13-198625-2)

 

Course Objectives

Introduces the concepts necessary for designing and implementing database systems. Emphasizes data modeling, normalization, and SQL, using MS Access, MySQL, and Oracle.

 

Tentative Course Schedule – schedule.htm

 

Course Grading

There will be four exams during the term.  Your lowest exam score will be thrown out.  Make-up exams will not be given unless arrangements are made in advance, or you had a bona fide emergency on the day of the exam.  Your exam scores are worth 40% of your total grade.

 

There will be one lab assignment given at the beginning of each week.  Lab assignments are due by 11:59PM on the date specified on the assignment page.  Lab scores are worth 35% of your total grade.  Your labs will be graded by running and testing the code you submit.  Labs that do not compile will receive 0%.  Labs that do not run will receive <= 60%.  In general, lab scores will fall on 5 point boundaries, e.g.,

100 - your lab met all of the requirements.

95 - your lab failed the test for a minor requirement.

90 - your lab failed the test for a major requirement

80 - your lab failed the test for two major requirements

70 - your lab ran, but just barely

<=60 – your lab did not run


If you submit your lab after the due date, but within a week, you will receive a 5% late fee.  I.e., your lab will be graded according to the schedule given above then 5 points will be subtracted from your earned total.  If you submit your lab more than a week late, you will receive a 10% late fee. 

 

 

There will be a comprehensive final based on the exams and the topics covered in class.  The final is worth 25% of your total grade.

 

Lab assignments

Unless otherwise indicated in the instructions for an assignment, you are to work on your own. If you get stuck, you should definitely ask for help from your colleagues, the tutors, or me.  Copying answers or allowing someone to copy from you harms the copier in the long run.  Campus-wide student rights and responsibilities can be downloaded at http://www.sou.edu/studentaffairs/SOU%20Student%20Planner%200708.pdf. Pay careful attention to the Academic Policies Section, on page 16.

 

Blackboard

This course uses blackboard for exams and grading.  The blackboard site is http://courses.sou.edu.


Email
 I expect that you read your student email every business day.  I send all kinds of class announcements by email and expect that you get these announcements.  I sometimes forget to make these announcements in class, so email is the only way you have to get this information.  (See  http://www.sou.edu/studentcomputing/emailsetup/options.html for help with your student email account.)

If you find you are having trouble with a lab, get sick the day of an exam, or anything else that you think might affect your grade, send me email explaining the problem as soon as you can (the earlier I receive the email, the more likely I am to be lenient).  Email gives us a starting point for discussing a solution and an official timestamp that indicates when you first took action to solve the problem.

Hint

If you find you are not making progress with a lab, go see one of the tutors upstairs in the main lab.  They are upper division computer science students and are there to help students taking programming I and II.  If a tutor is not available or is unable to help you, come see me, and if I am not there, email me with a description of the problem and your source code as soon as possible.  Do not delay or hope the problem will go away – it won’t.

 

Philosophy

Liberal education involves more than the mind. It also involves developing students’ personal qualities, including a strong sense of responsibility to self and others. Liberally educated students are curious about new intellectual questions, open to alternative ways of viewing a situation or problem, disciplined to follow intellectual methods to conclusions, capable of accepting criticism from others, tolerant of ambiguity, and respectful of others with different views. They understand and accept the imperative of academic honesty. Personal development is a very real part of intellectual development.

(From Academic Freedom and Educational Responsibility, Association of American Colleges and Universities Board of Directors Statement, December 21, 2005.  http://www.aacu.org/About/statements/academic_freedom.cfm)

 

 

If you are in need of support because of a documented disability (whether it be learning, mobility, psychiatric, health-related, or sensory) you may be eligible for academic or other accommodations through

Disability Services for Students.

 

For Detailed Information, call 541-552-6213 or visit the ACCESS Center in Stevenson Union, lower-level.  The Disability Services website is:

 http://www.sou.edu/access/dss/