syllabus
info
title An Introduction to Programming with Python
term Fall 2010
credits 4
time Tues/Thur 8:30 - 9:50am
place Sci 217
level Introductory
faculty Jim Mahoney
repeat no
prereq none
blurb
This is a first class in computer programming, and as
such a foundation class for further work in computer science.
Much as a competency with English grammar is required for
writing, an understanding of programming is required to
for nearly all intermediate and advanced work in computer science.
A similar course is offered every Fall, though the language
chosen varies from year to year. Python is a modern, elegant,
high level scripting language, used for scientific programming,
web servers, and all sorts of other things. It's been one of the most
popular languages at Marlboro latetly.
Topics will include program design, boolean logic,
debugging, input/output, object oriented programming,
as well as a variety of basic computer skills.
Expect weekly practice problems (for a single term grade
based on how many are turned in), a small midterm project,
and a final project.
We'll be following the text pretty closely,
so check it out for more details. (We are not
using the second edition, which is aimed at python v3;
instead, we're sticking with the one published in 2003,
which uses python v2, which is still the one commonly
installed on most computers.)
Yes, we're meeting at 8:30am. If I can get up that early,
so can you - so join the breakfast club, eh?
text
Python Programming: An Introduction to Computer Science, by John Zelle (2003 edition)
approximate schedule
month chapter
----- -----
Sep 0 - preliminaries
1 - computers
2 - writing programs
3 - numbers
Oct 4 - strings
5 - objects / graphics
6 - functions
7 - decisions
8 - loops
Nov 9 - program design
10 - classes
11 - collections
12 - object-oriented design
Dec 13 - algorithms / recursion
- final projects
