This course introduces database design using the entity- relationship (ER) model, the relational database model including normal forms and functional dependencies, the SQL database query language, database management systems and security, and emerging topics and trends in databases. A major semester-long project will have student teams acting as both client and database developer.
Expect to spend on average 9 hours per week of time outside of class meetings on assignments and preparation. This is keeping with a normal undergraduate expectation of 3 hours of out-of-class work for each hour spent in class.
There will be a handful of weekly exercises early in the course to cement your knowledge of the concepts we discuss. They will be submitted through the course for CSCI 317 that is set up in Sakai. Students working on the same assigned questions may work together in order to learn from each other; however, each student will submit individual work noting the partners (if any) with whom they have worked.
Please refer to the links in the menu above for assignment details.
In addition, there will be several in-class exercises as noted in the schedule below. In-class exercises can only be made up for if an absence is noted in advance.
There will be two exams: one in Week 4 and a second in Week 9 (two weeks after Washington Break) designed to further test the database knowledge you have acquired.
The exams will be open book, note, and Web; however, you may not consult classmates or any others besides your professor through any form of communication (included but not limited to: written, spoken, electronic, telepathic, osmotic, semaphore, hand signals, or Morse code) during the period that the exam is available.
Each also will be comprehensive of all information presented up to that point. Consequently, the exams will be designed to test your ability to apply knowledge versus your capability to memorize.
Both exams will be given outside of our scheduled class meetings, and students will have ample time to complete them.
By the end of the term, you and your team members will produce a completed database with functioning, efficient queries. The database will be developed based on a design built from specifications gathered from another team. The project simulates real-world scenarios in which a company communicates with an external contractor for system development.
The majority of project work will occur after Washington Break, and throughout the second half of the term, there will be various deliverables to keep your team on track toward building a functional solution.
For additional details, please see the various deliverable assignments in the 'Assignment' menu above as they become available.
During the lecture portion of the course, you can gain participation points by engaging through asking and answering questions. While working in your project groups during class time, I expect to witness engagement in what your team is working on through any combination of active discussion, note-taking, diagramming, or coding.
I have been working with this material professionally for many years, so I know what I'm doing. I need YOU to be brave and converse with me when a concept isn't clear.
Missing class, consistently arriving late, or being unprepared for discussion of readings will negatively impact your participation grade.
Dates of activities and due dates for assignments are always subject to minor shifting. Refer to back to this schedule regularly.