Grading Scheme

Grade components:

Students are expected to complete and submit all assigned coursework in good faith; those who fail to do so will earn a failing grade, regardless of overall numerical score. Cut-oﬀs for ﬁnal letter grades D, C, B, A are, respectively, 35, 55, 70, and 85. In case of class-wide unexpectedly low scores the above may be adjusted, but only in a manner that everyone’s grade is at least as good as the above indicate.

component	% of grade
in-class participation	5
discussion forum contributions	5
online work and tests	20
homeworks (including programming)	20
two quizzes	10
two midterm exams	20
ﬁnal exam	20

Students are expected to be responsible in tracking their own performance and to ask for clariﬁcations or assistance in case of diﬃculties.

In-class participation:

Students are expected to contribute to learning by asking questions and making relevant comments in class and participating in the speciﬁed online components of the class. Quality is more important than quantity. Disruptive activity contributes negatively. See policies below. Attendance is an important aspect.

Discussion forum activities

Discussions on the class discussion forum are an important mode of learning. To encourage everyone to participate actively in these discussions, there is a portion of the grade assigned to how well, and how often, students contribute there.

Homeworks:

Homeworks include programming and non-programming ones, often mixed. No collaboration is permitted. Everyone is encouraged to discuss the problems and solution strategies at a high level, but the ﬁnal solution and details must be individual work. If the boundary between permissible and non-permissible interactions is unclear, please ask for clariﬁcations.

Exams and quizzes:

Unless otherwise noted, all exams and quizzes are by default open book, open notes. They are held during regular class meeting times, with the important exception of the ﬁnal exam, which follows the usual university schedule. You are free to bring with you any resources that you ﬁnd useful (within reason). However, no communications are permitted other than between students and me. The use of computers during exams is strongly discouraged, but brief use may be permitted provided it does not cause a disturbance, at the discretion of the proctor. You may use the Internet, but only as a library to look up material you may ﬁnd useful. Ask for clariﬁcations in case of any doubt. The exams are designed to require no equipment other than a pen and paper, along with the textbook and assigned readings.

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