DCS1100 - Intro to DCS

In terms of workload, Bowdoin asks for a minimum of 3 hours in class plus 9 hours of preparatory work, labs, discussion sections, film viewings, etc., for each course credit. Our estimates below of ~5-7 hours recognize that completion time varies by student.

Class Meetings (2 per week) 170 min./wk

• Discussion, construction, application, and extension of readings and activities

• Being present, staying on task, contributing to the shared documents

• Up to 2 classes can be missed without penalty. Tardiness counts towards absences. We will deduct 2 points from your final grade for each absence above the limit. Please contact the professor if you encounter any challenges. Note: the 2-class limit is built on the assumption that you will be sick/have appointments, etc., once or twice a semester. Exceptions will only be made when accompanied by a note from the dean’s office (see below).

Reading 120-180 min./wk Included below

• Includes any related lecture video

• You should take handwritten notes of the key concepts, ideas, and arguments so you can use your notes in the formative assessments.

Formative Assessments In-class 40% of the final grade

• These are in-class, low-stakes activities that are designed to help you reinforce key concepts of the course and prepare you for productive discussion in class. They bridge our readings, videos, and podcasts to our in-class discussions. There are typically three main evaluative dimensions for FAs: integration of meaningful citations from reading material (connects to theoretical sources), coherent response to all aspects of the prompt (addresses the prompt), and creative discussion of the topic based on your personal experiences (e.g., discussions/readings from other courses) (applies to your personal academic context). You can use handwritten reading notes.

Midterms  In-class individual exam 30% of your final grade. 

• These exams are designed to help you consolidate the core theoretical concepts of the course and apply them to case studies. - First Midterm - March 4th.

Final Case Study In-Class - Groups 2 or 3 30% of your final grade

• We will be using a course website to share assignment descriptions, links to materials, and the content of modules.

• You will be using a web-based DCS Organizer to share your work with professors. 

• There are no books or equipment to purchase.

• All videos, handouts, and assessment materials are the property of the instructors and are distributed for use of individual students only. They are not to be shared.

• All recordings are subject to FERPA legislation. For reasons of privacy, clips or screen captures cannot be shared outside of class.

Please contact the professors if there are any obstacles to accessing the course materials.

The comprehensive version of the policy can be found here.

Collaboration

One of the principal components of a DCS course is collaboration. However, you should always be clear on what part of the work you hand in is your own, what parts come from other sources, and what parts are collaborative. As a general rule, we distinguish between interacting with another student using any written medium (e.g. pencil and paper, email, looking at their code, screen sharing) and having broad discussions with them. Unless you work with another student in a group, you are not allowed to exchange information through a written medium with them or directly providing answers to activities such as problem sets through conversation. This is a zero-tolerance policy. You are allowed to talk about problem sets, just not give the answers.

It is permissible to use materials available from other sources such as the Internet (understanding that you get no credit for using the work of others) as long as: 1) You acknowledge explicitly which aspects of your assignment were taken from other sources and what those sources are. 2) The materials are freely and legally available. 3) The material was not created by a student at Bowdoin as part of this or another course this year or in prior years. To be absolutely clear, if you turn in someone else's work you will not receive credit for it; on the other hand, if you acknowledge it, at least you will not violate the Honor Code. All write-ups, reviews, documentation and other written material must be original and may not be derived from other sources.

Attendance Policy

You can request two excused absences due to health-related issues. If you need more accommodations, please, reach out to your academic dean, and they will work with you and your instructors on the best strategies to address your needs.

Since our in-person meetings are core components of the course pedagogical strategy, 2 points will be deducted from your final grade for each unexcused absence. To be clear, absences beyond the first two can only be excused by the dean’s office. If, for example, you tell a professor that you will be away for the next class and they say “ok” they are not excusing your absence, they are merely acknowledging it.

Grading Policies

Credit/D/F. DCS 1100 can be a requirement for the coordinate major and the minor in DCS. You retain the option to change your grading option to Credit/D/F until a few weeks into the semester. We would be glad to talk to you about this decision. For students planning a major or minor in DCS, you would then need to take DCS 1200 for a grade to satisfy the introductory course requirement. 

Late work. This semester might go smoothly for us all or it might be full of surprises for everyone. If things feel out of control, prioritize being in class and doing the reading. Be a good community member first. We can work with you on the timing of the individual responsibilities. Importantly: we can’t help if we don’t know what is going on. Please stay in touch! If we do not hear from you before the deadline, two points will be deducted from the assignment grade for each day after the due date.

No material will be considered for grading after the scheduled final for the course.

Religious Holidays

Please be in touch with the professors as soon as possible if deadlines conflict with religious holidays. We will make course materials for the week available on Fridays to allow for flexibility when completing any activities, but again, we can’t resolve a problem if we don’t know about it.

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