Late Policy
The IS211 submission system should prevent you from editing your submissions after they are due. If you wish us to replace one or more of your submission files with other versions that you modify after the deadline, you may submit to eLearn or e-mail them to the teaching staff up to 24 hours after the deadline. However, doing this will cause you to lose from 50% to 90% of your credit on the assignment (depending on how late we receive your modifications). Before you ask us to accept late work, consider whether your modifications are worth the penalty you will receive.
Collaboration Policy
It is always acceptable to talk with other students about general course content, requirements and technology issues.
While working on individual assignments, it is never acceptable to ask for assistance of any kind from other students (nor is acceptable to offer it), unless noted otherwise in the assignment.
Team assignments must always be done with your team and no one else, except for heuristic evaluations and user tests, where others may serve as evaluators and test participants.
When implementing your prototype, you are free to use reusable code (e.g., toolkits and frameworks), but you must always credit the source of any such code. In addition, the teaching staff may require you to reveal your prototype's source code, and we may require you to make changes if your prototype adds little functionality to the reusable code.
When preparing your written assignment submissions, it is never acceptable to simply copy existing content from other sources. You may, however, use existing content as inspiration for your work, as long as you cite your sources (see Assignments). Also, your prototypes may use substantial written content and images that you copy from other places, but again, cite your sources.
You may use Generative AI (eg. ChatGPT) to start your draft work but you must understand and add value to the draft. You will be questioned on the content. You may NOT use GenAI to generate user response during observation and user testing (real users are required)
SMU Academic Integrity Policy
All acts of academic dishonesty (including, but not limited to, plagiarism, cheating, fabrication, facilitation of acts of academic dishonesty by others, unauthorized possession of exam questions, or tampering with the academic work of other students) are serious offences.
All work (whether oral or written) submitted for purposes of assessment must be the student’s own work. Penalties for violation of the policy range from zero marks for the component assessment to expulsion, depending on the nature of the offense.
When in doubt, students should consult the instructors of the course. Details on the SMU Code of Academic Integrity may be accessed at http://www.smuscd.org/resources.html.
Grading Appeals
Once grades for an assignment or an exam have been distributed to the class, you have three days to appeal the grade. If you appeal for a re-grading, keep in mind that we could discover grading errors that result in a lower grade than what you originally received.
Attendance
Attendance is not mandatory in IS211, and there is no need to warn the teaching staff of your absence or to submit an MC when you are sick. However, you must be present in your own section to receive in-class participation credit. Missing class consistently could mean failing the course. (See Class Participation.) Also remember that absence from the final exam will result in an incomplete grade, as per the SMU registrar’s policy.
Readings
The course web site and slides will refer to readings that accompany many topics. You are not required to read these, but you may find that they supplement or complete your understanding of a topic when the slides are sparse.