Course Syllabus

Spring 2024 | CIS-1100-VU01 - Introduction to Computer Science

In Person Class

Standard courses meet in person at CCV centers, typically once each week for the duration of the semester.

Faculty

Hilary Ivy
View Faculty Credentials

Hiring Coordinator for this course: Nick Molander

General Education Requirements

VSCS Digital and Technical Literacy

Note

Many degree programs have specific general education recommendations. In order to avoid taking unnecessary classes, please consult with additional resources like your program evaluation, your academic program catalog year page, and your academic advisor.

Courses may only be used to meet one General Education Requirement.

Course Description

This course is designed to give a broad-based introduction to all aspects of computing. Students focus on core aspects of the discipline including hardware, networking, the Internet, programming logic, ethics, and the history and future of industry. The goal of this course is to give students a working knowledge of the computer industry and provide a solid foundation of knowledge to begin technical training. Students have the opportunity to take the CompTIA IT Fundamentals certification exam in this course.

Essential Objectives

1. Discuss computing history and driving forces of change in the computer industry.
2. Explain the systems of inequality in computing history and the impacts and opportunities for social change.
3. Describe the use of system and application software.
4. Determine appropriate hardware and software to complete a variety of tasks.
5. Define the role of databases in applications.
6. Compare computer hardware architecture including RAM, CPU, storage, and busses.
7. Compose a basic program in a high level language, demonstrating algorithmic thinking to solve programming problems.
8. Identify and investigate the scope and diversity of career opportunities in the field of computer science and information technology.
9. Demonstrate safe, ethical, and accurate communication of information, thoughts, and ideas.
10. Discuss software systems development as an engineering discipline.
11. Explore the foundations of networking, operating systems, and data security.

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV IT Support page. https://support.ccv.edu/general/computer-recommendations/

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

*** This is a no cost textbook or resource class. ***

This course uses one or more textbooks/books/simulations, along with free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials.

Spring 2024 textbook/book details will be available on 2023-11-06. On that date a link will be available below that will take you to eCampus, CCV's bookstore. The information provided there will be specific to this class. Please see this page for more information regarding the purchase of textbooks/books.

CIS-1100-VU01 Link to Textbooks for this course in eCampus.

For Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

The last day to use a Financial Aid Advance to purchase textbooks/books is the 3rd Tuesday of the semester. See your financial aid counselor at your academic center if you have any questions.

Methods

1. Provide students with online discussions forum, narrated lectures, written online content, demo videos, and podcasts to develop knowledge of key concepts of computer applications.
2. Develop an understanding of the social and ethical impacts of computer information and intelligent systems through reflection and online group discussion.
3. Weekly lab assignments that help students become familiar with computer science development software, data requirements and cloud computing technologies.
4. Oversee applied field assignments, participatory computer science projects and individual computing and AI ethics research presentation.

Evaluation Criteria

Assignments are weighted by group:

· Attendance, Discussions, Quiz & Content Completion: 25%

· In-Class Lab & Homework Assignments: 25%

· Research Papers Mid-Term Portfolio: 25%

· Group Codebase Final Project: 25%

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Weekly Schedule

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Participation Expectations

A significant part of your grade in this class will be based on your participation and engagement in-class and group work. To earn full credit for participation students should:

• Read, watch and or listen to content connected to that week's learning objectives.
• Complete individual and group lab work
• Participate in and make meaningful contribution to group projects
• Submit individual final project and portfolio materials.

Before engaging in discussions students should read and be familiar with the course Ground Rules and CCV's Academic Integrity policy. The Ground Rules and Integrity policy are non-negotiable, failure to adhere to either will negatively impact final grades.

Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom. Attendance in class, collaborative group work and participating in discussions are required to obtain full credit for this course. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance. Please review CCV’s Attendance Policy for additional information.

Missing & Late Work Policy

• Assignments are due by 11:59 pm the Monday after class. Please upload your assignments directly on Canvas.
• It is your responsibility to regularly check Canvas to review weekly reading assignments, notes and materials if you have missed a class. Please reach out to me and ask any questions if this is unclear.
• Plan to complete the labs even if you will be absent. Being absent is not an excuse for failure to complete and hand in homework assigned for the day.
• Please avoid handing in work late, except in emergency situations. In the case if an extenuating circumstance, please communicate with me as early as possible about your need to miss class and/or an assignment.

Experiential Learning Expectations

Hours: 6-10

You will have at least eight hours of field learning that will occur throughout the semester. Lab Assignments will at times require you to engage with the natural and built environment utilizing technology in new ways. I will hold live office hour blocks for students who have additional questions during this week.

Field Work Requirements: Total EIGHT Hours Work-time

Four Hours: Group Project Assignment - Students are expected to meet with their assigned group for field work related to final group presentations for at least two hours (via video or in-person) and conduct an additional two hours of further work (can be individually or collaboratively) on group projects. All materials and project work must be documented and submitted in the week's lab assignment to receive credit for attendance on this week.

Four Hours: Individual Research Project Assignment - Students will conduct field research for individual project completing at least four hours of work on required deliverables. Students submit all work by the assigned deadline to receive full credit for attendance this week and field work portion of grade on final assignment.

Documentation

All students must submit notes and documents for field work by Week 11. In order for the individual and the group work to be marked as ‘Attended’ and too receive credit for the week’s labs. Students will gain valuable experience in conducting research, identifying relevant service and community organizations, compiling artifacts and utilizing technology to capture, synthesize and report out on their findings.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/discover-resources/students-with-disabilities/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity