The main textbook for the 2014 offering of ITEC800

1. (SE): Software Engineering, Somerville. I, Latest Edition (9th Edition) Pearson Education Limited, ISBN:137 035 152;

(The full set of slides for this textbook are available from Sommerville's site)

Supplementary books (highly recommended but not compulsory for students)

While the unit will be drawing from the prescribed textbook listed above, the resources listed below will also be used to supplement some of the material. The list (of some great resources) below is provided for information purposes in case students would like to refer to them, but it is NOT compulsory for students. Where available, copies have been placed in the reserve section of the Macquarie University Library so that all students have access to the below supplementary resources.

1. (BF): Systems Engineering and Analysis, Blanchard. B. S, Fabrycky. W. J, Latest Edition (5th Edition, 2011), Pearson.
2. (RIDEC): Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code, Fowler. M, and others, Latest Edition (1999, printed 2008), Addison Wesley.

Classes:

Classes for ITEC800 this semester run on selected Saturdays (Weeks 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13) throughout the semester. Please refer to the Unit Schedule for details. In week 1 we will be running a 3 hour lecture block from 9am till noon.

In weeks 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13 we will be running a 3 hours lecture block from 9am and then a 3 hours lab session from 1pm.

Be prepared to participate in discussions, ask and answer questions, and provide perspectives from your own background and workplaces. Lectures will be informative but also exploratory in nature, and so it is certainly recommended that a high participation and attendance level be maintained throughout the course.

Other resources:

Lecture material, assignment specifications and extra readings not listed above will be provided through the iLearn web page for ITEC800.

Submission methods for assessment tasks:

All soft copy assignment submissions / marks will be done through the ITEC800 page on iLearn. This will be the official form of assignment submission accepted for this course unless otherwise stated in the specification or through the discussion process of an extension (see below).

Late submission:

Late submission of individual work will incur a 20% penalty for every 24 hours it is late. So within 24 hours, the maximum mark that can be obtained is 80% of the full grade for that assessment task; between 24 and 48 hours, the maximum mark that can be obtained is 60% of the full grade; and so on. No extra documentation is required unless the student does wishes to have an extension (see below) applied.

Late submissions of group based assignments are not permitted unless under exceptional circumstances with documentary evidence provided to the unit convenor which may include medical certificates as per the Department of Computing policy. One person being sick does not mean the group cannot submit work. Students are recommended to have a backup plan for group based submissions.

Extensions:

Extensions without a grade penalty may be provided to groups or individuals who contact the unit convenor and can provide documentary evidence of illness or other misadventure. If approved, a new submission timeline and submission method will be discussed on a case by case basis.

Students are strongly advised to contact the unit convenor as early as possible if there are any issues that will not make an on-time submission possible.

Exam:

The final exam will focus on content covered in the classes throughout the semester. Please see the assessments section for details on the final exam.

Website and access to unit material:

The web page and content for this unit can be found at iLearn: https://ilearn.mq.edu.au/login/MQ/. Note that the unit content is not publicly available and requires for you to log in to access.

What has changed from last year:

This year we have added some individual tasks which make up a 20% component of this course. A 5% presentation on project progress has been added, and the final exam has been taken to 40% of the workload.

Classes for ITEC800 in 2014 Session 1 are scheduled to run on Saturdays (odd semester weeks) during the semester. The first Saturday is one 3 hour block. The weeks following week 1 are two block sessions. The timetable below is divided into the weeks where classes are scheduled. Please refer to the announcements section in iLearn for any details regarding topic, schedule or room alterations.

Four standards, namely HD, D, CR, P summarize as many different levels of achievement. Each standard is precisely defined to help students know what kind of performance is expected to deserve a certain mark. The standards corresponding to the learning outcomes of this unit are given below: 

 Standards Matrix

Grading

At the end of the semester, you will receive a grade that reflects your achievement in the unit

Fail (F): does not provide evidence of attainment of all learning outcomes. There is missing or partial or superficial or faulty understanding and application of the fundamental concepts in the field of study; and incomplete, confusing or lacking communication of ideas in ways that give little attention to the conventions of the discipline.

Pass (P): provides sufficient evidence of the achievement of learning outcomes. There is demonstration of understanding and application of fundamental concepts of the field of study; and communication of information and ideas adequately in terms of the conventions of the discipline. The learning attainment is considered satisfactory or adequate or competent or capable in relation to the specified outcomes.

Credit (Cr): provides evidence of learning that goes beyond replication of content knowledge or skills relevant to the learning outcomes. There is demonstration of substantial understanding of fundamental concepts in the field of study and the ability to apply these concepts in a variety of contexts; plus communication of ideas fluently and clearly in terms of the conventions of the discipline.

Distinction (D): provides evidence of integration and evaluation of critical ideas, principles and theories, distinctive insight and ability in applying relevant skills and concepts in relation to learning outcomes. There is demonstration of frequent originality in defining and analysing issues or problems and providing solutions; and the use of means of communication appropriate to the discipline and the audience.

High Distinction (HD): provides consistent evidence of deep and critical understanding in relation to the learning outcomes. There is substantial originality and insight in identifying, generating and communicating competing arguments, perspectives or problem solving approaches; critical evaluation of problems, their solutions and their implications; creativity in application.

In this unit, your final grade depends on your performance in each part of the assessment. For each task, you receive a mark that combines your standard of performance regarding each learning outcome assessed by this task. Then the different component marks are added up to determine your total mark out of 100. Your grade then depends on this total mark and your overall standards of performance.

In order to pass the unit, you must

• Have performed satisfactorily in the internal (assessment) components of the course.
• Have satisfactory performance in the final examination.
• This means that you may fail the unit if you do not submit satisfactory submissions for the assignments OR do not perform satisfactorily in the exam.
• Department of Computing expectations are that students have to perform satisfactorily in the final exam as well as in their internal work/assignments.

In order to get a higher grade in the unit, you must

• Obtain the required total number of marks (Credit - 65, Distinction - 75, High Distinction - 85).
• Meet the criteria outlined in the Grading section above
• Perform at the equivalent band in the standards matrix.