Project
Design and implement two (2) practice problems, one for each topic selected earlier. Please notice, that even though implementing practice problems is relatively easy, coming up with a good practice problem is not. Use appropriate time for planning before you jump into implementation.
The topics are selected in the following manner:
Project is returned on 25.4.2008 by 23:00 as a report which is defined below. Project may be turned in late, but late penalty is 12.5% of project pp's per day. For example, if the project is 30 hours late, each student will lose 2 pp (25%) from their final project points. Start early, work on the project all the time, and finish it early!
The project is turned in as a hardcopy and via email. Project report format is defined below.
You can hand in the hardcopy in an envelope addressed to the person in charge of the course (Teemu Kerola, CS Dept.) to the downstairs porter's station. Project evaluation is mostly based on the hardcopy.
The project is also turned in via email (Teemu.Kerola (at) cs.helsinki.fi) as one zip-file (e.g., MyGroupName_PRi.zip), that contains
The reports can be made with any text-processing software, but for turning in it must be converted into a format (pdf, ps, txt, html) suitable for both Linux or Windows environments. It would be good to conform with the following normal layout specifications: font size 12, line spacing 1.5, marginals 2-3 cm.
The report should include the following information:
The evaluation is trying to achieve the following: (a) study circle is rewarded for completing the task, (b) students working more will be rewarded with slightly better grade, and (c) not so diligent students will notice it in their grade. Although it has been very difficult to formulate grading quidelines to achieve these goals, we have tried to do it.
The evaluation of the projects is made on the basis of the study circle's report and the functionality and appropriateness of the practice problems developed.
The projects yield three kinds of points:
Late projects are penalized 12.5% per day, if they are accepted at all.
For a 8 pp project, this means that a passed project yields 3 pp, and depending on the grade you can get 0-7 pp more, making a total of 0-10 pp. If the project is graded very good and the student has received extra points for it for being extra diligent, then students overall points can be up to 125% (e.g. 10 pp) of the maximum points (e.g., 8 pp).
An ordinary, good and functional basic piece of work will yield the grade 3, but to get a better grade, it has to have special merits. The project points will affect the final course grade in relation to the extent of the project.
However, the report grade as such will not be the grade of the study circle members. In their reports, the study circle will give the percentage of participation for each of their members, and this percentage will be taken into account when calculating the individual grades for the members. If a study circle cannot agree on the percentages, it should ask the instructor or the person in charge of the course for help.
A 100% involvement indicates that a student has completed 100% of his or her work in the project in question. The involvement degree is given with the 10% unit accuracy to each member of a study circle, and their average must be 100%. An involvement degree of 80-120% is normal. If any student has an involvement degree of 30% or less, that student will not pass the project. Such a student will hardly have participated in the work of the study circle at all.
The degree of involvement in a project will affect each student's grade in accordance with the following table:
Degree of involvement |
Participatio (vs. max pp) |
Example on 8 pp project |
Example on 24 pp project |
|---|---|---|---|
140% or more |
+25% |
+2 pp |
+6 pp |
130% |
+12.5% |
+1 pp |
+3 pp |
80-120% |
± 0% |
± 0 pp |
± 0 pp |
70% |
-12.5% |
-1 pp |
-3 pp |
60% |
-25% |
-2 pp |
-6 pp |
50% |
-37.5% |
-3 pp |
-9 pp |
40% |
-50% |
-4 pp |
-12 pp |
Each passing project will yield at least 37.5% of the project points (minus possible late points). Project points are counted toward your grade with their own weight. In the course bookkeeping (Kurki) the projects are shown under heading "HT".
In all examples below we are considering an 8 pp project, and study circles will receive 3 pp for project completion.
Example 1. Project is 15 hours late, so each participant will lose 1 pp. The study circle is given grade 3, and participation is as follows: Maija 110%, Ville 70% and Anne 120%. Participation points are: Maija 0, Ville -1 and Anne 0. The project points will be Maija 5 pp (3-1+3+0=5), Ville 4 pp and Anne 5 pp.
So lazy Ville will suffer one point reduction, but Maija and Anne will not gain from it.
Example 2. The study circle is given the grade 4, and participation is as follows: Maija 80%, Ville 130% and Anne 90%. Participation points are: Maija 0, Ville +1 and Anne 0. The project points will be Maija 7 pp, Ville 8 pp and Anne 7 pp.
So, the diligent Ville will get an extra point, but Maija and Anne will not suffer any point reduction.
Example 3. The study circle is given the grade 3, and participation is as follows: Maija 130%, Ville 130% and Anne 40%. Participation points are: Maija +1, Ville +1 and Anne -4. The project points will be Maija 7 pp, Ville 7 pp and Anne 3 pp.
Example 4. The study circle is given the grade 3, and participation is as follows: Maija 120%, Ville 160% and Anne 20%. Anne did not participate in this project and she should not have been counted in at all. Maija's and Ville's participations need to be re-evaluated: Maija 80% ja Ville 120%. Participation points are: Maija 0 and Ville 0. The project points will be Maija 6 pp, Ville 6 pp and Anne 0 pp.