EXPECTATIONS

REQUIRED MATERIALS

You will need a laptop that is fully charged for every class as we will be working through problems in class most of the time. All of the software we use is available for free online so you will not need to download anything onto your computer and any type of computer will work.

EXPECTED BEHAVIOR

This is an introductory elective course. It is not my intention to add to your stress or overload you with work to do. That being said, it is still possible to do poorly in this course if you are not willing to take responsibility for your own learning inside the classroom. Students who do well in this course generally display the following behaviors:

Arrive on time to class and spend class time working on the assigned tasks
Submit your work on time and respond to feedback promptly
When given an opportunity to resubmit your work, take that opportunity to learn and improve so that you can better understand the material
When you have questions or are struggling to complete the classwork, come see Mrs. Porter immediately to resolve these concerns
Attempt to answer questions in class even if you don’t always get the answers right
Use your mistakes as an opportunity to learn
Use the resources provided to answer your questions when you can.

GETTING HELP

If you are struggling with the course material please come see me or send me an email.

Email: porterr@wellesleyps.org

I have office hours twice a week and am usually available during A block if you let me know ahead of time that you will be coming to see me. If you cannot make it to either of those times you should speak to me in class or email me to set up an alternative time to meet.

It is not appropriate to copy work from a friend or classmate if you do not understand how to do it yourself. Doing so is a violation of academic integrity and will result in a zero for the assignment as well as a note in your record and a conversation with your parents. Please come talk to me if you are having trouble as it is MUCH better to admit that you don’t understand then it is to pretend you do.

GROUP WORK

Being able to collaborate with other programmers is a key skill if you choose to continue your work in computer science. Most industries make use of pair programming in order to ensure that developers are able to work as efficiently and effectively as possible.

You will spend quite a bit of time in this class working with a partner to complete programming assignments. When you are pair programming, only one person should have their hands on the keyboard and should be typing code. The other person should be guiding them and explaining what needs to be done next. If you and your partner are not talking during pair programming then you are not working together.

You will be given class time to work with your partner. If you do not complete the work in class you are expected to meet with your partner outside of class to complete this work. You may choose to meet in person or virtually. Either way, it is important that you exchange contact information with your partner so that you can communicate outside of class.

If you and your partner are not able to complete your classwork and submit it during class time please make sure that you have access to the work before you leave the classroom. If your partner is absent during subsequent classes I will not be able to provide the work that you completed together. If your partner is the only one with access to the work and it is not completed on time you will be penalized for not submitting your work on time just as much as your partner is.

If your partner is absent during class time you are allowed to work on the assignment on your own. However, you are responsible for talking through your solution with your partner to the extent that they feel they could create the solution on their own as well.

When you submit work with a partner you are stating that the work was created jointly by yourself and your assigned partner. Submitting work that was not generated by yourself and your assigned partner is considered a violation of academic integrity. The following are examples of behavior that is not acceptable.

Unacceptable behavior	Why it is unacceptable
Splitting up the work so that you do half of the problems and your partner does half of the problems.	Both you and your partner are now submitting work that you did not create. In addition, you now only know how to do half of the problems.
Doing all of the work yourself without consulting your partner.	Your partner is now submitting work that they did not create. You have also sabotaged their ability to learn the material.
Letting your partner do all of the work without contributing.	You are now submitting work that you did not create. You also do not know how to solve any of the problems and have not learned the material.
Working with a classmate other than your assigned partner.	Both you and your partner are now submitting work that you did not create. You have lied about how you reached your solution.
Copying code from a classmate (this may involve copying and pasting text, looking at a classmate’s solution, or a classmate verbally telling you the solution).	Both you and your partner are now submitting work that you did not create. You have lied about how you reached your solution.

MISSING CLASS

The agenda for each class will be posted on Canvas every week. If you are absent for any reason please check Canvas to determine the agenda for the day. If you need an extension on any assignments you must tell me about it BEFORE the deadline.

THE USE OF AI

This class is meant to teach you the basics of programming which means that any programs you submit to me should be your own work and not the work of artificial intelligence software. Using AI to create your programs is considered a violation of academic integrity and will result in a failing grade as well as a note in your record and communication with your parents.

ELECTRONIC DEVICES

To maintain a focused and respectful learning environment, cell phones, smart watches, and other electronic devices will not be used during class time. As students enter the classroom, they will park their phones and smart watches in their assigned spaces in the back of the classroom. Students will also put their devices on Do Not Disturb mode to avoid sounds or vibrations from disrupting the class. These devices will not be accessed by students, including during bathroom breaks, without specific permission. Additional electronics, including headphones, will also not be used during class time.

GRADING

My goal for you is that you learn the material that I am teaching in this course and that you become programmers who can both write clean, well-designed programs and read and interpret code created by other programmers. However, it is necessary for me to apply a number to this learning for the purposes of your academic transcript.

The grade you receive in this class is a reflection of your understanding of the course material. It is not a reflection of your intelligence, your capabilities, or your worth as a person. Your grade in this class will never affect what I think of you. I am aware that I am fighting a losing battle to try to convince you that your grade is not what matters, but I will keep fighting that battle anyway.

Since your grade is a numeric representation of your understanding I am not willing to change grades without you changing your understanding. If you are half a percent away from the grade you want, then you need half a percent more understanding. I do not round grades and I do not add points without seeing a change in your mastery of the content.

I know you just skipped literally all of that because you really only want to know how your grade is calculated so here is a table that shows you that information.

Category	Percentage	Approximately how many assignments per quarter?
Warmups	5%	20-25
Partner Work	10%	5-10
Writeups	25%	3-7
Projects	60%	3-4

There is no final exam for this class. Each quarter grade will be weighted equally (50%) to calculate your semester grade in the course.

LATE WORK

In spite of your best efforts it is not always possible to submit work on time. Since your grade is a measure of your understanding and not a measure of whether your life is currently going according to plan, I do my best to be lenient about this. Here is my policy:

If you do not submit a warmup during class time you have until 5 minutes before the next class period starts to submit it. If you were absent from class you can be excused from the warmup if your absence was excused.
If you do not submit classwork by the due date you will receive a temporary zero and will have 7 days to submit the work to me. If I receive your work in this time period there will be no penalty and your grade will be updated to reflect your mastery of the content. After this point the assignment will be closed and you will no longer be able to submit.

The 7 days between an assignment’s due date and the closing of the assignment are meant to provide you with time should you have a class absence, an illness, or some other mitigating circumstance that did not allow you to submit work on time. Because of this I do not grant any further extensions on assignments past this 7 day time period.

If you submit your assignment before the due date I will do my best to grade it as soon as possible. This means that if you submit your work on time, you often have a chance to correct your mistakes and resubmit to improve your score. If you are choosing to use the time between the due date and the assignment closing as an extension you will not receive additional time to resubmit your work.