SOFT6008 Class 23

Students continued to work on the exercises. The check digits are proving to be a real test of programming skill. There is a lot of cluttered thinking about.

Interesting Article from the Irish Times

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2010/0304/1224265557558.html

SOFT6008 Class 22

Students carried on working on the various exercises

I advised students to write the FizzBuzz program just to get their brain muscles ready for the algorithms they are trying to code.
 FizzBuzz:
"Write a program that prints the numbers from 1 to 100. But for multiples of three print “Fizz” instead of the number and for the multiples of five print “Buzz”. For numbers which are multiples of both three and five print “FizzBuzz”."

SOFT6008 Class 21

We lokoed at some more check digit calculations: Euro, EAN, DNI, Finnish ID

We looked some useful JavaScript functions

CCAD

I had an interesting class in CCAD with art teachers taking a masters course. When I say interesting, I mean interesting for me. It's interesting to present what it is you do to people from a different background and see how they apply to what they do.

I talked about blogs and how they work. Then I outlined how blogs could be used in education. There were lots of interesting questions from the floor. That's always good.
CCAD01.m4v

I got each student to set up a blog. We didn't make as much progress as I would have liked because the machines were acting up a tiny bit. [My guess is something to do with the proxy server]. Some students who were not confident with IT had their confidence dented even further, even though  actually they were doing great and doing everything correctly. So students will have to customise their blogs and add the blog list from home.

Towards the end I gave a short talk on blogging for artists. My challenge to practicing artists is to share the process of their art making so that we can have a better understanding of the finished product, and to contribute something to this society that has invested a lot in their education. If art and artists are going to matter, then they are going to have to speak up. Sitting in your bedroom making nice things is just therapy.
CCAD2.m4v

Notes: CCAD-blogtalk.pdf artist-blog.pdf

SOFT6007 Class 20

There was a class going on in C170 when we arrived and the participants looked like they hadn't a notion of moving. Rather than throw them out, only to discover 2 minutes later that the projector wasn't working, I moved the class to C128. There we had a PhotoShop lab and students worked away on getting to grips with the various tools.

I reminded students about the exam on Thursday next.

Of course C128 can't hold the 40+ students in the class. But attendance on Fridays is so poor that we didn't have a problem.

We might do this again from time to time since there may be weeks when labs are more use than lectures.

SOFT6007 Assessment 1

We will have an in-class assessment on Thursday 11 March.

1100 - 1300 IT1.3 Group B
1600 - 1800 IT2.2 Group A

Students must attend their assigned lab group. Should arrive early. If there are no enough machines in the lab you may have to sit the subsequent sitting. Erasmus students and evening students may attend any sitting, provided there is room.

It will be an open book assignment to build a web page. The details of the page will be specified on the day.

Assessment 2 is worth 20%.

SOFT6007 Class 19 A

We continued our look at PhotoShop. I demonstrated the use of the clone stamp tool, and made a navigation bar.

I talked about the cost/quality tradeoff in Save for Web 

SOFT6007 Class 18 A

I was late to class. We moved to C128 and that delayed us even further. But there's PhotoShop in C128 so it was worth it.

We looed at the various tools and palletes in PhotoShop.

SOFT6007 Class 19 B

We moved to C128 and saw photoshop in action. I demonstraded the clone stamp tool at work and made a navigation bar from a collage of postage stamps.

I talked about the cost/quality tradeoff in Save for Web  

SOFT6007 Class 18 B

We had an express class in Photoshop. I quickly went through the main tools, and explained layers.

SOFT6007 EV Assessment

Assessment 1 for evening students will take place on Wednesday 24 March.

I will post more detail to this blog as soon as I have a clear picture of what form it will take.

If you cannot make that even due to work committments please contact Colin. It may be possible for you to do the assessment with the 9to5 students during the day.

SOFT6007 EV WEEK 05

 We looked at PhotoShop and went so far as to make a navigation bar.

You can download a 30 Trial version from Adobe.com

If you are interested in PhotoShop there are hundreds on online tutorials out there. It's a genre at this stage. So much so that someone even made a comedy series. Check out You Suck at Photoshop for the laugh.

I Gotta Feelin' (it might work)

Tonight I sent an email to a few heads of department proposing they chip in for a prize fund for the best CIT response to this YouTube video. The video should showcase both the college AND the students' department. I figure 500 yoyos should be enough of an incentive. It'll be interesting to see if they go for it. It's a bit mad, but it would be good fun.

SOFT6007 Class 17

We looked at how tables can be used for page layout.

We examined sample page 5 and sample page 6

SOFT6008 Class 20

We looked at some more check digit algorithms: ISBN-10 and PPS Numbers.

Students worked away on the various exercises afterwards.

Re: The Revolution will not be in B219.

Hi *******
I don't know if I could come up with the answers by myself. So far I mostly just have the question. But I imagine students spending 9 to 5 is the one large open space lab for the most part. They might have 6 projects over the semester. Maybe1 every two weeks or maybe they overlap. They might be running an online clubs' hoodies business on the side. Assessment would be by portfolio where they demonstrate that they have met each learning outcome.

We would see lecturers in this lab with students, but there would be no lectures. Lecturers would leave exhausted.

This lab would be noisey.

Perhaps we could have coffee in the art college and see the studio spaces there.

In terms of subject streams maybe we could be more thematic. Instead of architecture, and programming, and databases what about vague themes like communication, memory, logic?

Students would work in small teams that last a short time. They might use blogs, and wikis, and Scrum development techniques from day one.We would see their robots, their games, and class parties on YouTube.

The security guards would regularly send snotty emails asking us to remind students that they have to be gone by 10 every night.

And least one project would require them to work in a group with students in another country.

With a big brainstorming session we might be able to come up with more
ideas.

Colin M

Colin Manning, Dept. of Computing
Cork Institute of Technology, Ireland


On 1 Mar 2010, at 12:10, "*********" wrote:
Hi Colin
What would the revolution look like in a report format - how do we this?


Subject: The Revolution will not be in B219.

Hi Guys



When we discussed the common first year plan at last Friday's meeting I expressed disappointment it wasn't radical enough. Since we were all a bit tired I don't think the issues I raised got the attention they warranted. In the time I had I did not do a very good job of articulating what I had in mind. So I'll try again now.

If the question is "What 10 modules should all computing students study in their first year?", then the 10 modules proposed make for an excellent answer. If the question is "What is the department's radical and innovative plan for revitalizing the teaching of computing at CIT and in Ireland?" then "these 10 modules" doesn't cut it.


By concentrating on issues like in which module and which semester should students learn about loops, we are missing the point. It's more important to ask what would possess a student to ever want to know or care about loops? So far the best we have come up with is that in the exam at the end of the semester there might be a problem to solve involving loops. Instead we need to figure out what problem do loops solve? We need to give that problem to the students at the very beginning and then let them the figure out that they need loops. Only after we have generated a demand for that knowledge, should we meet it. We should not give students knowledge and then give them questions. We should give them questions and then give them knowledge. Instead of trying to figure out how best to force feed students, we should be trying to make them hungry. It is not enough to consign problem based learning to implementation and delivery detail. It must be hard-wired into the design of programmes from the get go. It's not salt to be sprinkled liberally throughout, it's the meat!


I'm attaching an article on Olin College in the US. I've circulated this two or three times already over the past few years. So I promise not to do it again. It covers a lot of the things I am thinking of. And yes, of course, they have gazillions of dollars and we feck all. And yes, there are 200 reasons why it wouldn't work for us. And yes, the way we do things now is very comfortable.


Colin M

SOFT6008 Class 19

We looked at function,  loops, and arrays.

I talked about user input validation and we looked at the Luhn formula for credit cards.

Students should see the SOFT6008 podcast for more classes covering today's material.

Notes:
JS02 PPT PDF
JS03 (we didn't do cookies yet)
JS04

Paper handout:
Checksum handout

SOFT6008 Class 18

We looked at forms.

Notes: forms.html

SOFT6008 Class 17

Students worked away on exercises.