FYEX 100

The COMPLETE syllabus is on the course D2L. The class policies, professionalism, and email etiquette are a necessary part of the syllabus. 

Dr. Nazli Hardy

Notes:  

  1. The class course modules on D2L are generally for listing assignments and supplementary presentations – important materials will be presented in class, so, class  attendance is critical.   
  1. If you miss any class, it is your responsibility to connect with a classmate for notes given during class/ lab, and then review that material.  
  1. Class Policies [the syllabus is not complete without the class policies] Read class policies  

Catalog Description: 

First-Year Seminar courses are designed to support students’ successful transition to university life. These courses use at least one high-impact educational practices to develop and foster skills that will lead to success in college, career, and personal life. Additionally, the intent of this course is to examine, identify, and comprehend computer science in a broader context than the process of programming. Students will examine seminal papers that both explore the philosophical foundations of computer science and provide an appreciation of the wide scope of the field. Along with exploring the roots of computer science, the future of the field will also be investigated so that students may comprehend the wide variety of applications and implications of computer science. The seminar format will allow students to actively discuss and investigate the material along with their classmates and professor. Students will acquire and utilize problem-solving strategies in a variety of assignments. Students will be expected to read computer science journal articles, reflect on the content, and participate in peer group and class discussions. As a community of computer science majors, working collaboratively in small groups and with their professor, the course will also support students’ transitions into the college experience as computer science majors academically, socially, and personally. 

3 credit hours 

Prerequisites:  a sincere interest in learning necessary skills for college (& future career) success. 

Course Outcomes:  Following successful completion of this course, the competent student will be able to: 

  1. Demonstrate autonomy and competence in planning for personal and academic goals. 
  1. Identify resources and practice strategies to support personal and academic success. 
  1. Develop effective communication, critical thinking skills and dispositions, and information literacy skills to explore academic content. 
  1. Recognize the value of diverse perspectives as a citizen of the university community. 

 

Required Textbook:  All material/ handouts/ links will be provided to students (TED Talks) 

 

Course Outline: the dates may shift a little, but we will do our best to ensure that we follow this structure. 

University Calendar for relevant university-wide dates 

 

Introduction to Class & Learning Styles [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Introduction to Department AND Class Policies and Strategies of Professionalism & Success [Dr. Nazli Hardy]  

Interactive, group activities [crest of arms & if you were not afraid of failure, what would you do? Partner drawing. 

Discuss project/  Assign Groups [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Careers in Computing [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Starfish [Mr. William Benton] 

Computational Thinking & Algorithms IRL [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Sept 13 Team building – Ropes course  

Effective Online Research [Mr. Scott Anderson] 

Success Coach [Ms. Dee Rapp] 

Time/ Stress Management [Career Office]  

Success Mindset & Data Laws/ Usage [Dr. Nazli Hardy]  

Introduction to Networks [Dr. Nazli Hardy]  

Software Development Life Cycle [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Oct 4: Exam 1 

Imitation Game 

Digital Forensics [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Digital Forensics [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Understanding the General Education Curriculum, Interpreting DARS [Dr. Lowery Woodall] 

Interpersonal Communications and Professionalism [Career Office] 

Cryptography & Digital Blueprint [Dr. Nazli Hardy] 

Nov 1: Exam 2 

Social Network 

Values/ True Colors [Career Office] 

Diversity & Inclusion [Carlos Wiley, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer] 

Campus Safety [Chief Pete Anders] 

Dec 2, 4, 6 Group work/ semester project presentation  

Dec 9: Wrap up/ review 

 

Dec 11 Exam 3 (final): 8-10 am (9 am section) 

Dec 12 Exam 3 final): 8-10 am (10 am section)  

  

The syllabus is subject to any necessary/ unavoidable changes so be sure to check in occasionally. 

All work must be submitted on the assigned date or they will not be graded – barring acceptable emergencies. Check website for important dates. 

  

Assessment  

Exam 1:  20%   

Exam 2:  20%  

Exam 3 (Final): 25%  

Group Assignment:  20% 

Attendance and Participation: 15% [class attendance 5%, meaningful participation & contribution to discussions: 4%, attendance to department or university events 6%] 

Note: all exams/ assignments are cumulative by nature 

 

Final Letter Grades are based on the following weighted scale: 

93 – 100:  A      90-92.9:  A-   86 – 89.9:  B+  82 – 85.9  B  79 – 81.9: B- 

76 – 78.9:  C+   73 – 75.9:  C  70 – 72.9 C- 

66 – 68.9:  D+   63 -65.9:  D    60 – 62.9  D-      <59.9:  Fail 

 

Keep Up With the Work Do not wait last minute to complete labs or to study for exams  

Technology Help 

IT Help Desk: 717-871-7777 

https://www.millersville.edu/infotech/ 

  

Desire2Learn is our course management system. On this website, you will find electronic resources related to this class, take exams, and view your grades. You can find the website at https://millersville.desire2learn.com/, and will need to log in using your Millersville credentials.  

 

Graded Work and Academic Honesty: 

The exams cover material from class lectures, assignments, and labs – and they are cumulative by nature.  There are NO make-up exams, so if you miss an exam you will receive zero credit, barring extenuating circumstances. 

Attendance:  All students are expected to regularly attend classes, be prepared for class by doing the assigned readings, and having completed any assignments. Only previously approved and university-recognized absences are excusable. Excessive (>3) unexcused absences may result in your course grade being lowered one letter grade. Contact me prior to any absence (if possible) in order to obtain clearance. MU Attendance Policy link: Class Attendance Policy | Millersville University 

Copying or extensive collaboration on assignments is not permitted and may result in failure of the course and expulsion from the university. You may discuss approaches to solving a problem. However, if someone else types on your keyboard or you copy code or paragraphs from someone else or somewhere else, you are committing academic dishonesty. Finding or purchasing a solution on the Internet or elsewhere and submitting it as your own work is plagiarism and may result in expulsion from the university. 

Consult MU’s Academic Policies for more details.  

Sharing:  It is the premise in this course that students learn three different ways: (1) by attentive listening during lectures; (2) by doing things themselves; and (3) by sharing information and ideas with other students. This last item is important to the learning process, but it cannot be allowed to overshadow the importance of the other two items. Students are encouraged to share ideas and to discuss common problems. Much of this course is founded on the principle of cooperative learning, meaning that you will learn from each other, generally in a team format. You are expected to be responsible to your teammates and shoulder your fair portion of the workload. This will be enforced in two ways: (1) team members will evaluate each other’s efforts with each project, and (2) students who shirk their responsibility to the team will be removed from the team and given no credit for the team’s work. 

Plagiarism:  However, the preceding policy should not in any way be taken as approval of the act of plagiarism. Plagiarism shall be treated as the serious offense that it is. Acts of plagiarism shall be dealt with as severely as is permissible by university policy, including possible failure in the course. Multiple acts of plagiarism may result in expulsion from the university. 

Plagiarism shall be regarded as any copying, in whole or in part, of material from any source, without explicit credit to the source. In addition, any copying from another student’s assignments, past or present, shall be treated as plagiarism. All students involved in an act of plagiarism shall be treated the same as concerns this policy, including any student who knowingly allows his or her work to be copied. 

Deadlines:  No late assignments will be accepted. If your assignment is incomplete, turn it in for possible partial credit. Programs must cleanly compile for any credit. Working on assignments incrementally will assure that you always have something for which you can receive some credit. 

Exams:  There are NO make-up exams – if you miss an exam, you will receive a zero. Exceptions may be made at my discretion for reasons of illness or university excused absences. 

Extra Credit:  There is NO extra credit in this class. Please schedule your time to complete the assigned work. 

Special Needs:  Anyone requiring special accommodations should contact me as soon as possible before any exams or assignments are due. If you have a disability that requires accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please present your letter of accommodations and meet with me as soon as possible so that I can support your success in an informed manner. Accommodations cannot be granted retroactively. If you would like to know more about the Millersville University Office of Learning Services-please contact the office at 717-871-5554 

 

Millersville University Policies: 

Title IX: Millersville University and its faculty are committed to assuring a safe and productive educational environment for all students. In order to meet this commitment and to comply with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and guidance from the Office for Civil Rights, Title IX requires University faculty members to report incidents of sexual discrimination, including sexual violence, shared by students to the University’s Title IX Coordinator. Accordingly, if a student shares information about any incidents of sexual discrimination or sexual violence during a classroom discussion, in a writing assignment for a class, or in other contexts, faculty must report that information to the Title IX Coordinator. This information will only be shared with the Title IX Coordinator, who is the individual on campus designated to respond to reports of discrimination or sexual violence. While the Title IX Coordinator is not a confidential source of support, they will address matters reported to them with sensitivity and will keep your information as private as possible. 

Additionally, faculty members are obligated to report sexual violence or any other abuse of a student who was, or is a child (a person under 18 years of age) when the abuse allegedly occurred, to the person designated in the University’s Protection of Minors policy. 

Information regarding the reporting of sexual violence and the resources that are available to victims of sexual violence is set forth at: www.millersville.edu/titleix 

Counseling Reminder: Students sometimes face mental health or drug/alcohol challenges in their academic careers that interfere with their academic performance and goals. Millersville University is a caring community and resources are available to assist students who are dealing with problems. The Counseling Center (717-871-7821) is an important resource for both mental health and substance abuse issues. Additional resources include: Health Services (871-5250), Center for Health Education & Promotion (871-4141), Campus Ministries, and Learning Services (717-871-5554).  

 

Email Etiquette & Professionalism Your communication reflects on you, and I expect all class communication to be professional. During Mon-Fri, I respond to email within 24 hours. Please resend your email if you do not hear back during any weekday.  

Email Format 

Dear Dr. Hardy [address recipient] 

  1. Q1 
  1. Q2 
  1. …. 

  

Name of student [sign off with your name] 

  

My “4 Cents for Students” on professionalism can be found here: https://blogs.millersville.edu/nmollah/professionalism/ 

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