Computer Programming and Problem Solving

Course Coordinator: Dr Vaithinathan KARTHIKEYAN, PhD

Course Developers: Kenneth Wai-shing Chu, Consultant (Units 1–4), Jenny N Lim and Wai-kong Sung, Consultants (Units 5–8)

This course, together with COMP S201, is designed to be the first course for students interested in computing. Programming is an interesting skill that will enable you to create your own programs to do work for you. The course adopts a hands-on approach that eases students into writing their first programs.

The course teaches the basics of programming using the Python programming language. Python is one of the most popular programming languages and plays an important role in many thrusts of IT development, such as data mining and artificial intelligence. Students will learn how to create programs that make a decision, repeat a task, interact with the operating system, and read and write data between programs and the file systems. The course also covers problem-solving with programming. Students will study proven ways to solve some common computational problems, including searching and sorting, and to use data structures to handle data more effectively.

Aims
This course aims to provide students with the fundamental skills and knowledge in programming and application development.

Contents
The course covers the following topics:

• Introduction to structured programming in Python
• Basic elements of programming, including variables, values, input/output, selection, repetition, etc.
• Modular programming
• Problem-solving and data structures
• Algorithms and efficiency analysis

Learning support
There will be about ten tutorials and other face-to-face sessions.

Assessment
There will be four assignments and a final examination. Students are required to submit assignments via the Online Learning Environment (OLE).

Online requirement
This course is supported by the Online Learning Environment (OLE). You can find the latest course information on the OLE. Through the OLE, you can communicate electronically with your tutor and the Course Coordinator, as well as other students. To access the OLE, students will need to have access to the Internet. The use of the OLE is required for the study of this course.

Equipment
A computer with the following minimum requirements is needed:

• 2 GB RAM or above
• Internet connection
• Windows, Mac or Linux System

Other standard features such as a keyboard, mouse and hard disk (with 200 GB of free space) are also needed.

Software
Students will need access to a computer with Microsoft Word. Other freeware needed for the course can be downloaded from the Internet.

Set book(s)
Gaddis, T (2021) Starting Out with Python, 5th edn, Pearson.

Students with disabilities or special educational needs
The audio and visual components of this course may cause difficulties for students with hearing or vision impairments. You are encouraged to seek advice from the Course Coordinator before enrolling in this course.