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WELCOME: to the first offering of the WEB version of CS250
This course is predicated on the belief that web technology can be
used to adapt learning to your background and your interests.
The design of this course follows the learning model called the SPIRAL MODEL OF LEARNING.
If you want to read more about this model, you can read more in these two papers (spiral model and adaptive-learning)
Your Journey: Learning is a personal journey.You, the
student must make the journey.We, the instructors, can only act as a guide.Every one of
you will start with your own background of experience, will see different landmarks along
the way and will arrive at your personal understanding of this material. There is no one
"correct" way to make this journey. And there are varying levels of mastery of
this material. Our jobs as tour guides is to get you to the point that you will be
successful in your future courses and in your careers. Your job is to make the journey
meaningful for you.
And its OK to ask for help along the way. (at the bottom of every page there is an easy
link to send e-mail to Dr. Wild).
Building Blocks of the Spiral Model: In any complicated subject (such as learning C++), it takes a long time to become an expert. In the meantime, you still can do useful thigns with the knowledge you are learning if that knowledge matches the task you are trying to perform. The spiral model is based on the belief that "need to know" can drive the learning process and that the most important skill you can acquire is determining what you need to know and how to find that knowledge
We have divided information into categories based on a TOPIC and a
KEYWORD.
Each of these categories has TOPICs, EXAMPLEs, LEARNING TASKs and QUIZes. Learning Tasks
are like the exercises in a textbook. For this fall semester, your grades on thsis tasks
will NOT be counted towards your grade for the class. However, it is expected that you
will do the suggested learning tasks as well as visiting the relevant topics and examples.
There are links between TOPICs and EXAMPLEs and LEARNING TASKs so you always get more
examples or test out your understanding at any time.
We have also ranked the material into three levels of difficulty (BEGINEER, NORMAL, and
ADVANCED).
Circles of Competence. (set of topics that you need to know to perform certain tasks: If you know the circle of material - you should be competent to perform the tasks
Spiral Model we have links between the three levels of difficulty. So if you find the material too difficult, you can always try something easier (unless of course you are already at the easiest level). Conversely, if you want a deeper understandiing of the material, you can easily spiral out to a more detailed level. We call this "desire to know".
The Map: There are many ways to study the same material,
the curriculum is a map that will help you on your journey. This map is set up by the
instructor based on experience in the subject matter and based on what paths have worked
well for the students in the past. Because are many different student backgrounds and
learning styles, there can be several different maps through the material. Part of the
assessment test you will take in the beginning is to decide the best map for you.
Remember: it is your journey and you have a lot of freedom in the path you take. BUT the
curriculum is a map that will help you on that journey. AND THE TESTS ASSUME THAT YOU HAVE
COVERED THE RELEVANT PARTS OF THE MAP!
Progress Report: Your progress on your journey is
recorded along the way so that at any time you can see where you have been and where you
still need to go. There will be several ways to view your progress. In fact you can expect
that new ways to record and view your progress will be added over the course of the
semester as we gain more experience with learning on the web. YOUR SUGGESTIONS ARE ALWAYS
WELCOME.
Of course, we can also view your progress (but not other students). And we will use this
information to bug you if you are falling behind. Although the speed of journey is NOT
being graded, slow progress is a cause for concern. We want every student to be successful
and we feel it is our duty to motivate you on your journey.
Feedback: At many points in the course, we will be askng for your feedback. This information is used to weed out bad material, improve explanations of difficult material or to find that material which works best for you. So please, answer questions honestly.