Course grades are evaluated on a 10 point scale. There is no curve. Anyone earning 90% or more of the total number of points available will receive a grade in the A range (A- to A+); 80% or more guarantees a grade in the B range, 70% or more guarantees a grade in the C range, 60% or more guarantees a grade in the D range.
The table below provides a quick overview of each aspect of Compsci 201 that contributes to your final grade. The sections that follow elaborate on each category/row.
| Projects (8 scheduled) | 25% |
| Mini Exams (3 scheduled) | 21% |
| Final Exam | 15% |
| APT Quizzes (2 scheduled) | 14% |
| Discussion (14 scheduled) | 12% |
| APTs (11 scheduled) | 10% |
| In Class Questions | 3% |
Projects
These are programming projects that will require several hours to complete, with later projects requiring more time to understand and complete. There are eight of these; the projects at the end of the semester will take longer and be worth more than projects at the beginning of the semester. In particular, the 25% of the course grade dedicated to projects is the sum of the following.
- P0, 1%
- P1, 2%
- P2-3, 3% each
- P4-7, 4% each
You may discuss the assignment and strategies to solve it with other students, but the programs you write and the written answers to questions you submit must be your own.
Each project requires developing code and answering questions about the assignment. You’ll submit using Git and Gradescope and an autograder will determine whether your code passes a suite of tests for each assignment. The written questions are called the project’s analysis and will be graded by teaching assistants for the course.
Projects turned in within 24 hours of the due date will receive no penalty. After that project submissions will lose 10% per day late. Individual extensions will be granted for medical reasons (see the Incapacitation form) or other circumstances beyond your control that must be presented with an official Dean’s excuse. We do not grant retroactive extensions after an assignment’s due date. Submit the extension request form as well as any additional related documentation (such as a STINF) if you need to request an extension.
Mini Exams
Mini exams are 50 minutes long and will be completed online on Gradescope. They are “mini” in two senses: (a) they are 50 minutes each instead of 75 minutes, and (b) each is worth just 7% of the overall grade. Mini exams are typically released at 3:55 pm on class days (that is, during lecture) and must be completed no later than 11:59 pm of the same day. Note that this means you can complete the mini exams in-class or later in the day as you prefer.
You may not discuss or otherwise collaborate in any way while completing mini exams. You may use the following resources while completing mini-exams: (a) course materials, including videos, slides, and Zybook, (b) official Java documentation, and (c) any of your own personal notes, and (d) JShell and a code editor or IDE such as we use in the course. You should not otherwise search the internet or view/post to forums such as stackoverflow while completing mini exams.
Mini exams 1 and 2 will have “retake” opportunities, denoted on the schedule. These will be comparable assessments covering similar topics but with different questions. You may take the retake for any reason, such as being unable to take the first one, technical difficulties, or just being unsatisfied with your score. We will take the higher of the two scores between the original mini exam and its retake. The retake for mini exam 3 will be incorporated as part of the final exam. Please note that there are no retakes for the retakes.
Final Exam
The final exam will be comprehensive and three hours in duration. It will involve a combination of conceptual and programming questions.
APT Quizzes
APT Quizzes are meant to assess your mastery of programming in Java and algorithmic problem solving. There are two APT quizzes scheduled. For each quiz you will have multiple short programming problems and two hours in which to complete them. You may begin the APT Quizzes at any time of your choosing in a window of at least 48 hour prior to the due date.
You may not discuss or otherwise collaborate in any way while completing mini exams. You may use the following resources while completing mini-exams: (a) course materials, including videos, slides, and Zybook, (b) official Java documentation, and (c) any of your own personal notes, and (d) a code editor or IDE such as we use in the course. You should not otherwise search the internet or view/post to forums such as stackoverflow while completing mini exams.
Discussion
Discussion sections meet on Friday and will have a series of problems/questions to work through in small groups with other students and with teaching assistants available to guide and help. Attendance at discussion is mandatory for all students. In addition, there will be a discussion reflect form that asks you to respond to the questions for that day.
You can miss 2 discussions with no penalty. However, we do not grant any further exceptions except in extenuating circumstances in consultation with your academic dean.
APTs
APT stands for Algorithmic Problem-Solving and Testing. Most weeks you will have a short set of APT style programming problems due on Wednesday. There are 11 of these sets scheduled throughout the semester. Note that this means each individual APT is worth a very small portion of your grade; these are intended to be regular low-stakes opportunities to practice your programming. Typically you’ll write one method, perhaps with some helper methods, to solve the problem. Testing is online and automated. In general we will do some of these in class and discussion and you’ll do some on your own. As with projects, you may discuss the problems and strategies to solve it with other students, but the programs you write must be your own.
APTs are not accepted late for credit, though you are certainly welcome to try to solve the problems for your own edification after the due date. Individual extensions will be granted for medical reasons (see the Incapacitation form) or other circumstances beyond your control that must be presented with an official Dean’s excuse. We do not grant retroactive extensions after an assignment’s due date. Submit the extension request form if you need to request an extension.
In Class Questions
Most lecture days we will pause for a WOTO (working together) activity during class in which you discuss with your neighbors and answer questions based on the days topics. You will submit your answers via an online form in class.
In class questions are graded for completion, not for correctness. You can miss 4 with no penalty. However, we do not grant any further exceptions except in extenuating circumstances in consultation with your academic dean.
