Grading Policy
Tiers
Grades will be assigned based on a set of minimum thresholds needed to reach each tier.
For homework assignments, these requirements are broken down by module. The following table lists the minimum number of completed homework questions for each tier. The table shows the total number of questions that must be completed (have a score of at least satisfactory) and the number of those that must have achieved a score of excellent. So, for example, looking at the Basics module, the A tier show 8/4, which means that to be a candidate for an A, a student must complete at least 8 questions from the module (a mark of satisfactory or excellent indicates completion), with at least 4 of those at the excellent level.
Note each week there will be four questions issued, so these totals are predicated on the number of weeks scheduled for each module.
| Tier | Basics | Control Flow | Data Structures | Data Representation | Objects |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| weeks | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| A | 8 / 4 | 8 / 4 | 4 / 2 | 12 / 6 | 4 / 2 |
| B | 7 / 2 | 7 / 2 | 4 / 1 | 9 / 3 | 4 / 1 |
| C | 6 / 0 | 6 / 0 | 3 / 0 | 6 / 0 | 0 / 0 |
| D | 4 / 0 | 4 / 0 | 2 / 0 | 3 / 0 | 0 / 0 |
A tier
To receive an A, a student must:
- meet the homework question requirements for the A tier across all modules as listed above
- complete three challenge questions
- complete all labs
- meet the exam question requirements for the A tier (TBD)
B tier
To receive a B, a student must:
- meet the homework question requirements for the B tier across all modules as listed above
- complete one challenge question
- complete all labs
- meet the exam question requirements for the B tier (TBD)
C tier
To receive a C, a student must:
- meet the homework question requirements for the C tier across all modules as listed above
- complete all labs
- meet the exam question requirements for the C tier (TBD)
D tier
To receive a D, a student must:
- meet the homework question requirements for the D tier across all modules as listed above
- complete five labs
- meet the exam question requirements for the D tier (TBD)
F tier
Students who fail to meet the minimum requirements for the D will receive an F.
Extra questions
In each module, there will be more questions released than are required for any tier. We would like to encourage you to do those even if you have met the minimum requirements for the tier you are targeting (learning to program is all about getting lots of practice). We also don’t want you to be in a situation where you are short a question in an early module and thus locked into a lower tier for the whole semester with no way to recover.
To that end, problems done in excess of the weekly requirements can be used to make up for late labs and missed homework questions.
If we have passed the late deadline to submit the weekly lab and you have submitted nothing, you may participate in the lab revision cycle at the cost of one extra homework problem. At the end of the semester, we will deduct these extra assignments first, since tiers A-C all require all labs to be complete.
Once we have deducted those extra problems, up to five excess problems will flow backwards to earlier modules. Note that the backwards part is important – you can’t bank them for future potential deficits (banks questions can be used for tardy labs, however).
Example: Zoe was in line for receiving an A. However, in the Data Structures module she came up short and only managed to complete 3 of the required 4 questions (2 at the excellent level). During the Data Representation module, she does a few extra questions and manages to complete 14 questions (6 at the excellent level). One of those extra questions will flow backwards to the Data Structures module to keep her in line for an A.
Extra challenges
There will be more challenge questions issued than required for the A tier. You are encouraged to do as many as possible. Any challenges completed beyond those required for a particular tier can replace missing homework questions at the excellent level.
+/- grades
Any extra homework questions, challenges and exam questions that remain after satisfying a tier and performing the above adjustments will be used to modify grades in the space between tiers.