Projects are graded with project points (pp), which will be (linearly) mapped to extra grade points. These extra grade points may help you pass the course, but usually they will just give you a better grade.

You can do both projects if you want to.

Optional Study Circle Project 1: Create 2 new practice problems, max 5 pp

Study circle size is 1-3 students. You form your own teams.

All new problems must be in English. University must be given permission to use project deliverables.

Design and implement two (2) practice problems, one for each topic selected for you. In order to have practice problems selected for you, email the instructor your willingness to do this project, including the names of all study circle participants.

Please notice, that even though implementing practice problems is relatively easy, coming up with a good practice problem is not. Use appropriate time for planning before you jump into implementation.

Project return

Project deadline: 10.12.2010 at 15:00

Project is returned via email the instructor (Teemu.Kerola _at_ cs.helsinki.fi), with practice question as separate attachments. You need to return also a paper copy. At least the email copy must be turned in on time and the paper copy next day.  No late returns.

Both returns must include a short (max 1 page) cover page (in English or in Finnish) that has the following information:

1. The identification data of the project and the date
2. The name of the study circle and its members and their student numbers.
3. Permission to use practice problems for this course material.
   "University of Helsinki may use these practice problems as it sees fit." (or the same in Finnish)
4. Link to web address, where practice questions are readily testable by clicking.

Grading

Practice problems must work in practice when clicked in browser. If electronically submitted problems do not work functionally without tweeking, work is not acceptable.

An ordinary, good, functional and usable work will yield the grade 3 pp, but to get a better grade it has to have special merits. At least one practice problem must be really good if you want 5 pp's.

Optional Independent Project 2: Learning diary, max 5 pp

Collect it continuously during the course - writing it up during the last week is too late. Learning diary (study diary) may be written in English or in Finnish. Writing a learning diary is a known method to deepen your learning.

In the learning diary one reflects each learning event (lecture, practice session, study circle meeting, text book reading session, etc) on how it supported learning related to course and your own learning goals. One can concentrate on the event as a whole, or just one theme that came up. For example, one may ponder the foundations or practical uses for some new concepts. A few paragraphs for each learning event is often sufficient. Sometimes you want to write more. Write complete sentences, not just line items.

One approach to writing your learning diary would be to concentrate on (a) "what did i learn?", (b) "what would I like to ask?", and (c) "what do I think?". You might also discuss how you learned something, or what was the learning process. Or you might critically analyze your learning. Either way, it is important that you write the learning diary during a longer time span and not just before the deadline.

A little bit more detailed guidelines on how to write a learning diary are given by Sari Lindblom-Ylänne (only in Finnish, sorry). British Council has similar instruction on how to write a study diary (in English). Also, Paul Filmore has instructions on keeping a learning diary (in English). Do not take these instructions literally - use them instead as a starting point for your own style of writing.

You can do learning diaries in a team, but each student must write their own diary. However, it is very instructive to read other students' learning diaries for your own learning as well as for giving useful feedback to the authors of those diaries.

Project return

Midterm project deadline: 19.11.2010 at 15:00  (turn in you learning diary as it is on that date, get feedback - no grading)
Final project deadline: 10.12.2010 at 15:00

Learning diary is returned via email the instructor (Teemu.Kerola _at_ cs.helsinki.fi) in an easy-to-read format (html, text, MS word, pdf). You do not need to return a paper copy. It must be turned in on time. No late returns.

Grading

A weak (grade 1/5) study diary presents mostly just time spent, but not own learning and reflection on learning. Understanding basic concepts does not come through in the diary and language may be lacking.

A satisfactory (grade 3/5) contains central  topics and it also tries to evaluate quality of learning. It shows that the student has understood most of the relevant contents for this course. Language is good.

An excellent (grade 5/5) study diary shows that the student  knows central topics well and how they relate to each other. He/she has built his/her own perception on course topics and can apply it in new circumstances. Language is excellent.