CIS 740 - Syllabus

Instructor

Dr. Scott A. DeLoach (sdeloach@ksu.edu, 785-532-6350)
Office - Engineering Hall (DUE) 2184
Office Hours - by appointment only.

GTA

Hongmin Li (DUE 1119, hongminli@ksu.edu, 785-532-6350)
Office Hours - Wed 8-10am or by appointment.

Please watch this first: Course Overview Lecture. This lecture provides an overview of everything we will be doing in the course as well as how the course operates. The GTA was not known at the time of the recording; however, the GTA's contact information (when known) is listed above.

Overview

CIS 740 is an independent study course designed to ensure students have the background necessary to purse studies in graduate level software engineering. This is accomplished by reviewing general software engineering concepts and then introducing students to classic problems and state-of-the-art research on a variety of software engineering issues. The course will also give students an opportunity to learn how to read software engineering literature, synthesize the information, and discuss it coherently in relation to historical and current research and practice.

This course is being offered both on campus and via distance learning. There are no class meetings or exams; grades will based on papers from four course modules.

Meeting Times

This course is being offered both on campus and via distance learning this semester. All students will take this course in an "independent study" format using K-State online and this website. There are no class meetings or exams.

Prerequisites

CIS 641 or 642, experience in software development, or familiarity with an undergraduate software engineering text (e.g. Pressman's "Software Engineering").

Purpose

Introduction to the theory of software engineering with emphasis on the current state-of-the-art and state-of-the-practice. The topics covered include: the software specification and notations, software measures, software development methodologies, testing, and reliability.

Textbook

The required readings will be available as PDF files from this website.

The following text is recommended for Module 0 exam:

Required Capabilities

To participate in this class, it is necessary for you to have:

Distance Students

Course Outline

CIS 740 is an independent study course. The student is responsible for completing each module (0 - 4) by the due dates shown at the bottom of this page. The course is designed to introduce the student to advanced software engineering issues and introduce them to professional level literature from software engineering journals. To pass the course, the student must be able to read, understand, synthesize, and discuss this literature.

Module 0: Background

This module will ensure that the student has the appropriate background to proceed with the remainder of this course and the related software engineering courses at Kansas State. The student must have a sufficient background in the following areas:

Module 0 is due at the end of the third week of the semester. Students needing to review or learn these concepts should refer to the following chapters of the recommended text: Software Engineering: A Practitioner’s Approach (8th edition) by Roger Pressman.

Chapter 1 & 2 Software & Software Engineering
Chapter 3 & 4 The Software Process Structure & Models
Chapter 5 Agile Development
Chapter 8, 9 & 10 Understanding Requirements & Requirements Modeling
Chapter 12, 13, & 14 Design Concepts, Architectural & Component Design
Chapter 16 Patterned-Based Design
Chapter 22, 23, & 24 Software Testing Strategies, Conventional & OO
Chapter 31 & 32 Project Management Concepts & Metrics

 

Assessment: The student will take a 50 question (~ 4 per chapter) multiple-choice test via K-State Online. Students may take the exam up to six (6) times, before the due date. The highest score of those six attempts will be counted in the student's final grade. Each test will be created by randomly selecting questions from a pool of related questions. Students may request that the GTA send them the questions they missed on the exam, but they will not be allowed to see the test key.

Module 1-4

The student will be required to read 3 - 4 papers and write a short paper based on specific guidelines for each of the following topics:

  1. Seminal Papers
  2. Modularity and Design
  3. Methods and Methodologies
  4. Validation & Verification

Grading

Grading for this course will be based on total points earned. If the student receives at least 90% of the total possible points, the student will receive an A in the course. Similarly, a B for at least 80% and a C for 70%.

Due Dates

The exact due dates for each module are given at the bottom of this page or under Assignments in the main menu. Basically, students have three weeks to complete each module. Module 0 may not be attempted after its due date. Failure to turn modules 1 - 3 by the due date will result in a 20% penalty on that module, with each additional week late causing another 20% reduction. Note: Module 4 must be turned in by the due date; any Module 4 papers not turned in by the due date and time will be given a zero (0).

Academic Honesty

Kansas State University has an Honor System based on personal integrity, which is presumed to be sufficient assurance that, in academic matters, one's work is performed honestly and without unauthorized assistance. Undergraduate and graduate students, by registration, acknowledge the jurisdiction of the Honor System. The policies and procedures of the Honor System apply to all full and part-time students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate courses on-campus, off-campus, and via distance learning. The honor system website can be reached via the following URL: www.k-state.edu/honor . A component vital to the Honor System is the inclusion of the Honor Pledge which applies to all assignments, examinations, or other course work undertaken by students. The Honor Pledge is implied, whether or not it is stated: "On my honor, as a student, I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this academic work." A grade of XF can result from a breach of academic honesty. The F indicates failure in the course; the X indicates the reason is an Honor Pledge violation.

Specifically for this course, the follow apply:

For more information, visit the Honor System home web page at: http://www.ksu.edu/honor

Academic Accommodations for Disabled Students:

Students with disabilities who need classroom accommodations, access to technology, or information about emergency building/campus evacuation processes should contact the Student Access Center and/or their instructor. Services are available to students with a wide range of disabilities including, but not limited to, physical disabilities, medical conditions, learning disabilities, attention deficit disorder, depression, and anxiety. If you are a student enrolled in campus/online courses through the Manhattan or Olathe campuses, contact the Student Access Center at accesscenter@k-state.edu, 785-532-6441; for Salina campus, contact the Academic and Career Advising Center at acac@k-state.eduor call 785-826-2649.

Copyright Issue:

Copyright 2016 (Scott A. DeLoach) as to this syllabus and all lectures. During this course students are prohibited from selling notes to or being paid for taking notes by any person or commercial firm without the express written permission of the professor teaching this course.

Harassment Policy:

I believe that engineers must not only be the people who know how to do things right, but also those who know the right things to do. (Quote by Dr. Joseph Bordogna, National Science Foundation). One purpose of your education is to help you develop skills, approaches, and abilities that are necessary for effective teamwork, and for your success in your profession and as a citizen. It is important that you understand your rights and responsibilities regarding the University's Sexual and Racial Harassment policies. (full text of the policies can be found on KSU's web site at http://www.ksu.edu/uauc/fhbook/fhxj.html. If you experience any situations, in or out of class, that seem inappropriate or that make you uncomfortable, a list of resources and courses of action to assist you can be found on the College of Engineering web site at http://www.engg.ksu.edu/students/statement-harassment.htm.

Expectations for Classroom Conduct

All student activities in the University, including this course, are governed by the Student Judicial Conduct Code as outlined in the Student Governing Association By Laws, Article VI, Section 3, number 2. Students who engage in behavior that disrupts the learning environment may be asked to leave the class.

Campus Safety

Kansas State University is committed to providing a safe teaching and learning environment for student and faculty members. In order to enhance your safety in the unlikely case of a campus emergency make sure that you know where and how to quickly exit your classroom and how to follow any emergency directives. To view additional campus emergency information go to the University's main page, www.k-state.edu, and click on the Emergency Information button.

Assignment Guidelines

An individual assignment means that you will not discuss the assignment with anyone. Do not ask a friend what general approach he or she is going to (or did) use. Do not talk to another person about how he or she interpreted a question. Do not ask another person what approach he or she is going to (or did) take with a specific question. Do not look at another person's paper. In short, no aspect of the assignment is open to discussion, observation, or any other type of information exchange that can in any way be interpreted as collaboration.

For Modules 1 - 4

New: All assignments must be submitted in PDF format.

The assignment will be typed, double-spaced, using left justification and one-inch margins. The title of the assignment, team name, the names of your team members (if it is a team assignment; your name if it is an individual assignment), and your class (i.e., CIS 740, Spring 2016) will be put on a separate cover page. Do not put your name, team name, title of the assignment, or any other types of headers on the first or subsequent pages of text.

Appropriate fonts is 12 point Times New Roman proportionally spaced, serif font.

Tables or figures may be single spaced. However, the table must fit within the margins and the text may be as small as 10 point Times New Roman. You also want to ensure all tables and figures are easy to read when printed in black and white.

Appropriate usage of grammar, spelling, punctuation, and writing style is expected, and will comprise a part of the overall score. (Note: if the paper is written so poorly that it is (1) incomprehensible or (2) so filled with grammar and stylistic errors that it is too distracting to ascertain content, it will receive a score of zero.) If you have any questions regarding style and/or usage, please feel free to ask. Grading of assignments in this area will be given more weight as the semester progresses.

Note: failure to follow these formatting directions will result in an unread paper with a score of zero.

All ideas or phrases used from other sources must be cited appropriately. References must be documented using the general guidelines given in my Writing Hints guide under the Bibliography section.

The finished paper will be stapled in the upper left corner. Do not enclose the paper in any type of folder, sheet protector, or any other fancy cover.

All assignments are due in class on the day noted on the individual assignments. No late assignments will be accepted.