Studying Computing at UNSW (notes)

Studying Computing at UNSW

(viewing version)

Studying Computing at UNSW

(How to succeed in COMP subjects without going mad)

(... and without turning into a complete nerd)

Overview

The F.F.D. of C O M P
How do we teach COMP subjects here?
What are COMP subjects really all about?
How to succeed in COMP subjects ...
Things not to do
Help! ... What to do when you strike problems

The F.F.D. of C O M P

Fun

... The F.F.D. of C O M P

Frustration

... The F.F.D. of C O M P

Discovery

What's Computing All About?

How do we teach COMP subjects here?

Standard Cliche #1 ... University isn't like School

Corollary: It's not so much how we teach but how you learn

And, more importantly, how you learn to learn

What do you need to learn?

concepts ... useful for your entire career/life
skills ... useful for the next couple of years

Cast of Characters

Students

should be at University because they are interested and want to learn
required to pass exams and assignments to demonstrate learning

Academic Staff

should be at University because they are interested and want to learn
required to do research, teaching, admin

Casual Tutors

should be at University because they are interested and want to learn
have valuable recent experience with the subjects + student perspective

Learning Environments

Place	Stude:Staff Ratio	Hours/Week
Lectures	500 : 1	3
Tutorials	< 20 : 1	1
Lab Classes	< 20 : 1	2
Assignments	1 : 0+	2 (bursts)
Self Study	1 : 0+	??

Note: this is a substantial time commitment; does not mix well with part-time work; consider a 3/4 load if working > 10 hours/week

Lectures

Aim: to present concepts, illustrated by examples

Lectures are not a great learning environment

they work better if you read up on the material beforehand
they are worse if the room is full of people who don't want to be there

If you're not getting "value" from lectures ...

do spend the hour in self-study
don't come to the lecture and talk to your friends

Tutorials

Aims: practise design skills; clarify lecture concepts

During each tutorial, you will solve a small number of problems related to recent lecture material

You should:

think about the questions beforehand
contribute, contribute, contribute, contribute, contribute, contribute, contribute, contribute, ...

The tutor's role is to lead discussion, clarify any confusion, suggest possible alternative solutions

Laboratory Classes

Aims: practise implementation skills and problem-solving

During each lab, you will implement one or two small programs

You should:

think about the problems beforehand (even do them beforehand)
ask the tutor for assistance when you can't work something out

When asking for help, think about the problem first and be ready to:

explain in detail precisely what's going wrong
offer your own suggestions for ways to fix the problem

... Laboratory Classes
Lab classes conducted in the same group (same tutor/students) as tute.
Your tutor will assess your laboratory exercises
They should also critique your work ... good points, bad points
They have plenty of experience ... grab as much of it as you can
Warning: tutors are very busy at the end of each lab ... assess early

Assignments
Aims: demonstrate implementation skills on large(ish) example
From your perspective:

chance to "put together" what you learn in lectures, tutes, labs
From our perspective:

check that you have developed the relevant skills
this will be checked again in the exam
(so if you don't develop it during the assignments you are doubly-penalised)

... Assignments
Whatever you do ... don't copy assignments!
We get very annoyed and give you a total mark of 0 for the subject.
Why?

because you wasted a learning opportunity that we gave you
because you committed the academic crime of plagiarism

What are COMP subjects really about?
Many COMP subjects have a number of goals:

for you to learn about some aspect of computer technology
for you to understand the theory/principles behind the technology
for you to develop skills in using this technology
for you to further develop your problem-solving skills
for you to know how to learn about new technologies like this
Our overall goal:

for all of you to be capable of being information technology innovators
for some of you to actually create the next generation of IT

Exams
Aim: to check that you've understood theory and gained skills
Typical format: half-a-dozen questions on a random selection of topics
Our plan: if you honestly attempt all of the work during session, the exam should be relatively simple
We are not impressed by marks less than 65 ...
Why not?

a mark of 50 means that you know only half of the material
most subjects lead onto others, so you've got shaky foundations
There are benefits available to people who maintain average > 65

How to succeed in COMP subjects ...

Practice, practice, practice

Explore, think, create

... and install Linux on your PC ...

Things not to do

Copy other people's work and submit it as your own
Hack into our or other people's computer systems
Download 100's of megabytes of GIFs ... and then print them
Fall behind in your laboratory exercises
Talk (or leave your mobile phone turned on) in lectures
Tell people that you think Bill Gates is a great innovator
Don't seek help when you have problems ...

Getting Help
Where to go for help depends on the kind of problem ...

Don't understand lecture material Ask the tutor in tutes, then the lecturer in consultation

Problems with my Unix account Ask at the Help Desk (3rd floor Elec Eng Building)

Problems with lab/tute enrolment, assignment submission, ... Ask the Subject Administrator (see Subject web page)

Problems with course Ask the Director of First Year Studies (Tim Lambert)

Need a form of some kind Ask at the School Office (3rd floor Elec Eng Building)

Consulting the School or Subject web pages will generally help you find out who to ask.

Want to know more?
Use the Web ... starting at http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/
Most staff members have their own web pages ... which can be revealing
E.g. jas ... databases, teaching, beaches, beer, anti-baby, ...
Subject web pages are called e.g. http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~cs1011/

Conclusion

Enjoy your computing studies at UNSW !

Produced: 25 Feb 99