| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Instructor: | Alex Washburn |
| Email: | aw2918@hunter.cuny.edu |
| Section: | CSCI 49900/53432/5 |
| Semester: | Fall 2021 |
| Credit Hours: | 4 credits |
| Textbook: | None |
| Format: | Online; Synchronous |
| Time: | Monday & Thursday 1:10pm - 3:00pm |
| Office Hours: | Thursday 3:00pm - 4:00pm or by appointment |
| Zoom Info: | Zoom Meeting ID: 891 9980 7340 Passcode: 0xC499FA11 |
| Course Page: | github.com/recursion-ninja/CSCI-499-2021-Fall |
- Overview
- Course Description
- Course Schedule
- Assignments
- Grading
- Standard Information
- Legal Considerations
A capstone course which offers a chance for computer science majors to test their mettle on major projects. Working in small groups, they will implement systems that involve at least two platforms running programs written in at least three languages.
The instructor has extensive experience with functional programming and encourages students to employ functional programming languages and techniques to their projects in order to maximize the guidance the instructor can provide. Some languages with functional programming support with which the instructor has proficiency include:
- Elm
- Java
- JavaScript
- Haskell
- ML
- TypeScript
- Scala
The learning goals for the course are two-fold; understanding product development and learning collaborative software development techniques.
Modern software product development tends to utilize Agile methodology to varying degrees. Consequently, the course is structured in weekly "sprints." Each week teams plan what they will accomplish for the next week. After a week of work teams report on their progress, reassess feasibility of future work based on the progress of last week, and revise a new plan for the following week of work. The theory of this methodology is to provide rapid feedback and iteration for software development, so that minimal time is spend on "dead-end" feature which will not enhance the product.
Collaborative software develompment is a crucial skill for any computer science major, regardless of their intended plans after graduation. This course will require students to use git, facilitated by GitHub, to add, modify, and merge code while developing their product. Additionally, and equally important, is the ability to communicate clearly and promptly with team mates to facilitate and coordinate tasks. Teams are expected to develop their own, preferred communication channels, be that email, IRC, Slack, Discord, BlackBoard, or another agreed upon medium.
Lastly, team performance is an important consideration. Prior to starting on their project, each team will author a "social contract" for their team which outliens the expectations of team members and consequences for failing to meet the expectations. This "social contract" document often includes, stating the preferred medium of communication, setting regular meeting times for collaborative work, expected number of hours each team member will devote to working on the course project each week, how to communicate if a team member cannot meet their obligations for a given week, what to do if a team member consistently doesn't meet their weekly obligations.
The capstone course can be broken up into three phases.
-
Planning (1 week)
- Students will create GitHub accounts to facilate collaboration with their peers
- Students will pitch potential project ideas for the semester
- Students will be organized into project teams, one team per viable project idea
- Viable projects will be initialized on GitHub
- Teams will develop and submit their social contracts, outlining team expectations
-
Minimum Viable Product (8 weeks)
- Each week on Mondays:
- Each team member will present their completed contibutions to the project since the last week
- Each team member will present their planned contibutions to the project for the next week
- Teams will have an opportunity to ask questions and solicit feedback from the instructor and their peers in other teams regarding issues with their project
- Each week on Thursdays:
- The scheduled class period will be reserved for teams to collaborate independently
- The instructor will be available during the scheduled class period for consultation on technical difficulties with projects
- The instructor will also be available during office hours immediately after the scheduled class period
- Teams will present their Minimum Viable Product at the beginning of November
- Teams must submit a script / slides of their presentation before class begins on 11/1
- Each team member must present an aspect of the project
- The presentation should demonstrate a minimal example of the project's functionality
- Each week on Mondays:
-
Final Product (6 weeks)
- Each week on Mondays, the same as the Minimum Viable Product phase
- Each week on Thursdays, the same as the Minimum Viable Product phase
- Teams will present their Final Product at the end of December
- Teams must submit a script / slides of their presentation before class begins on 12/13
- Each team member must present an aspect of the project
- The presentation should demonstrate the final and complete functionality of the project
| Mondays | Thursdays | Monday Activities | Thursday Activities |
|---|---|---|---|
| 08/26 | Syllabus, GitHub, project brainsorming | ||
| 08/30 | 09/02 | Group assignments, social contracts | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 09/09 | Product definition presentations | ||
| 09/13 | Project report № 1 | ||
| 09/20 | 09/23 | Project report № 2 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 09/27 | 09/30 | Project report № 3 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 10/04 | 10/07 | Project report № 4 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 10/14 | No Class, dedicated work time | ||
| 10/18 | 10/21 | Project report № 5 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 10/25 | 10/28 | Project report № 6 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 11/01 | 11/04 | MVP presentations (1/2) | MVP presentations (2/2) |
| 11/08 | 11/11 | Project report № 7 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 11/15 | 11/18 | Project report № 8 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 11/22 | Project report № 9 | ||
| 11/29 | 12/02 | Project report № 10 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 12/06 | 12/09 | Project report № 11 | No Class, dedicated work time |
| 12/13 | 12/16 | Final presentations (1/2) | Final presentations (2/2) |
| Notes: |
- 12/13 The instructor will be out of state presenting at a confrence. We will have class for the first round of final presentations and hope that there are no connectivity troubles.
- The final presentations will take place 12/16/21 from 1:45 – 3:45 pm per the registrar's posting.
Assignments are due at 11:59PM on the date specified below.
| Date | Day | Assignment |
|---|---|---|
| 08/27 | Friday | Skills and interests survey |
| 09/01 | Wednesday | GitHub account |
| 09/03 | Friday | Social contract |
| 09/08 | Wednesday | Product definition presentation |
| 10/31 | Sunday | MVP presentation script & slides |
| 12/15 | Wednesday | Final presentation script & slides |
| 12/20 | Sunday | Peer assessment |
| Course Component | Weighted Score |
|---|---|
| Skill & Interest Survey | 1% |
| GitHub Account | 1% |
| Social Contract | 1% |
| Product Definition | 2% |
| Product Reporting | 44% |
| Minimum Viable Product | 25% |
| Final Product | 25% |
| Peer Assessment | 1% |
Each week students will report on the progress of their product. Each student is expected to report on the contributions they made since the last product report, and state their planned contributions to complete for the next project report. After team members have reported on their recent and tenetive contributions, the floor will be opened up for any team member to solicit assistance or feedback on one or more technical issues they are experiencing. The instructor or their peers will attempt to provide them with assistance addressing their issue(s). Students who can provide guidance to members of another tem will be given additional consideration on their project reporting for that week.
The minimum viable product (MVP) is the state of a project in which the basic functionality can be demonstrated. The product does not need to have a polished user interface nor does it need to have a refined user experience. The core technical functionality needs to be demonstratable.
The requirements for a MVP will be discussed and refined each week of product reporting with the instructor. If a previous MVP goals appear to have been too ambitious, some functionality maybe be deferred to the final product or removed entirely. If all previously established MVP functionality has been met prior to the MVP presentation date, the instructor and team will decide on additional functionality which can be implemented before the MVP presentation.
Note that removal of significant functionality from an MVP is likely to negatively impact the scoring of the MVP repopt. Conversely, presenting additional functionality at the MVP presentation will likely result in positive scoring impact. Presenting the exact MVP specifications is considered B-grade work (20/25 points).
The final product is the state of a project in which all planned functionality can be demonstrated. The product should present a servicable user interface and a thoughtful user experience. The core technical functionality needs to be demonstratable and expanded upon from the MVP.
The requirements for a final product will be revised based on the MVP presentation and then subsequently discussed and refined each week of product reporting with the instructor. If previous final product goals appear to have been too ambitious, some functionality maybe be removed from the final product. If all previously established final product functionality has been met prior to the final presentation date, the instructor and team will decide on additional functionality which can be implemented before the final product presentation.
Note that removal of functionality from the final product is likely to negatively impact the scoring of the final repopt. Conversely, presenting additional functionality at the final product presentation will likely result in positive scoring impact. Presenting the exact final product specifications is considered B+ grade work (22/25 points).
| Grade | Score Earned |
|---|---|
| A | >= 90% |
| B | >= 80% |
| C | >= 70% |
| D | >= 60% |
| F | < 60% |
The letter grade earned by a student will be at least what is described in the table above. A plus or minus to a letter grade may be determined by the relative performance of the student to their peers in the course, their participation in helping peers in other teams with technical problems, and the team assessment at the end of the semester.
Emails to the instructor must be from a student's CUNY Hunter College email address to the instructor's CUNY email address aw2918@hunter.cuny.edu for FERPA reasons.
You must include the class number
CSCI-499in the subject line of the email!
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All computer science students can use any of the general-purpose labs throughout Hunter College. In addition, computer science majors and students enrolled in CSCI courses can an obtain an account on the Computer Science Department Network. More information can be found on the Computer Science Department's website.
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