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Bucks County Community College

Courses + Programs

  Academics  —  Courses + Programs  —  Master Course Outlines

CISC115 Computer Science I

Department of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics: Computer/Information Science

I. Course Number and Title
CISC115 Computer Science I
II. Number of Credits
4 credits
III. Number of Instructional Minutes
3000
IV. Prerequisites
MATH095 (C or better) or Math Placement Test score of 5 or higher
Corequisites
None
V. Other Pertinent Information
A significant portion of the course is dedicated to developing a hands-on proficiency with the tools and devices of computer science. Laboratory work is designed to provide the student with practical experience with the program development cycle. A comprehensive, proctored departmental final examination will be included in the course. The final will be evaluated at 15–25% of the course grade. A minimum of five laboratory assignments and exercises will be required. The laboratory grade will be comprised of no more than one-third of the course grade.
VI. Catalog Course Description
This is a first course for computer science students providing an introduction to the use and impact of computers, numbering systems, data representations, the fundamentals of structured programming, and problem solving through the use of logic design tools. Students develop programs using an object-oriented programming language.
VII. Required Course Content and Direction
  1. Course Learning Goals

    Students will:

    1. design structured solutions utilizing flowcharts and pseudocode;
    2. demonstrate a working knowledge of number systems, (binary, octal and hexadecimal), as well as of internal data representation and their significance in a computer system;
    3. recognize the function, operation, and interrelationships of the components of a computer system; and
    4. utilize systems software to implement problem solutions on a computer system.
  2. Planned Sequence of Topics and/or Learning Activities

    Course Outline:

    1. Overview - Hardware and Software - College's Computer Systems
    2. Components of a Computer System
      1. An overview of the CPU, memory, machine language, and the machine cycle
    3. Program Development Cycle
      1. Problem analysis
      2. Program design
      3. Top down, hierarchy charts
      4. Modular (functions/methods)
      5. IPO (input-process-output)
      6. Pseudocode
      7. Flowcharts
      8. Code generation; design and style
      9. Test case development
      10. Desk checking
      11. Debugging
      12. Documentation
    4. Program Development Software
      1. IDE's
      2. Text editor
      3. Compiling and executing
      4. Basic DOS/Unix commands
    5. Data Types
      1. Integer
      2. Floating point
      3. Character/String
      4. Boolean
    6. Input/Output
      1. GUI
      2. Keyboard/Screen
      3. File streams
    7. Control Structures
      1. Sequence
      2. Selection
      3. Repetition
      4. Invocation
    8. Arrays
      1. One-dimensional
      2. Using arrays
      3. Reading/Writing the elements of an array
      4. Building an array
      5. Manipulating an array
    9. Number Systems
      1. Binary (Two's complement)
      2. Octal
      3. Hexadecimal
      4. Conversions between bases
  3. Assessment Methods for Course Learning Goals

    Course-specific learning goals will be evaluated via (written) test results and problem solving, including writing, testing, and documentation of complete programs, and a departmental final exam.
  4. Reference, Resource, or Learning Materials to be used by Student:

    Departmentally-selected textbook. Details provided by the instructor of each course section. See course syllabus.

Review/Approval Date - 4/06; Revised 6/09; New Core 8/2015

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