Class Announcements Spring 2016

This page is an aggregation of email announcements made to the class in Spring 2016

Please stay updated with your emails and on Piazza. A master post of email announcements is also located on Piazza.

[3/27/2016] Python Lesson Released

Most of ya'll asked for more python (edit: in the class survey). Here it is!

I just released the python lesson. It's a bit lengthier than I had hoped to make it, but it overall isn't too difficult. Much of the material is overlapped in the project so you'll either be reinforcing or relearning as opposed to learning a bunch of new stuff.

Anyway, the homework for this python lesson is due on April 28th, 2016 11:59 PM (almost the last day of class). Please don't submit before April 1st, I'm still setting up the system to accept the homework.

Again, this is mandatory for Track 3-4 and optional for Track 4. For Track 4, I will not give extra credit, but I will consider this assignment when assigning grades if you are a borderline grade (aka you should do it).

I spent quite a bit of time writing this lesson, but it's not perfect so do let me know if you see something weird. I'm sure there's some errors (be it formatting, syntax, or just English).

Hope you had a good spring break and enjoy your last day of it! And yup, I know that the solutions are breaking. I'm trying to fix that right now. Bear with me.

[3/11/2016] Extra Credit Survey + Apologies for lack of staff in class

Hello everyone,

I am extremely sorry for the lack of staff for the first hour of today's lab. Please email me (caryn.tran@berkeley.edu) if this has caused you any set backs in learning the material.

Anonymous Midsemester Survey: here ----> extra credit opportunity, closes next Friday

Anonymous Feedback Form: here --->always open for you to submit feedback

Lesson 12 is being removed; New Mini Python (+ lazy evaluation and memoization) lesson to come

Hi All,

I'm removing lesson 12. Please do not turn in the homework or take quizzes for this assignment moving forward. Lesson 12 will not be on the final either. Please bear with me as I update the course website, syllabus, and grading system.

For those of you in Track 3-4, I will have a mini python lesson out by the Sunday of Spring Break. It will get you started with python as well as lightly cover the topics of lesson 12. There will be a small homework, but no quiz.

For those of you in Track 4, Homework 12 will count as extra credit points. No one has taken quiz 12 yet so please don't take that quiz moving forward. I'm sorry I didn't remove this lesson sooner so that you all could have skipped it. Please email me if you have any concerns. The mini python lesson mentioned for Track 3-4 will not be mandatory but suggested, I will consider giving extra credit for completing that homework although I will not guarantee it.

Why am I removing lesson 12? While it is certainly teaches a valuable concepts, I don't think it's really essential to focus an entire lesson and would rather use the time to teach you some python. Given that I am pretty substantially reducing the course load for some of you, my hope is that you learn more deeply. While spring break is break, I do encourage those of you who anticipate needing more time for project 4 to work on it. It is the most difficult project of this course and should not be taken lightly.

This change only applies to enrolled units for this semester (incomplete grades must still complete lesson 12).

Adding Swanky New Homework Parties

Hey!

Homework parties are going to be on Fridays 12-2PM (right after class) in 341B Soda. (I'll be there from 12-1PM) These are not OH, so come with the mindset that you should collaborate with your classmates and learn together.

OH will be restructured to be at 9-10AM on Mondays (in 277 Soda) and 3:30-4:30PM on Tuesdays (in 277 Soda).

For all those taking Unit 3, here's a document to facilitate your collaborative effort to study for the quizzes. You should NEVER edit the document with knowledge of quiz content. Leave comments on things you don't quite understand. Fill and add things to the document. I got you started but you should do the rest. I'll keep an eye on things to make sure you don't write something that's wrong. I can see the collaborators, so do recall that participation plays a role in my decision of your final grade, especially borderline grades.

For all those taking Unit 4, here's a document to facilitate your learning. Same rules apply as above. I filled in less because Track 3-4 people will start catching up and you'll have twice the man power in just a bit.

Reward: If you read this email and contribute a good amount to either recap document, reply to me. Copy and paste your addition to the document in the email. I will reset your slip days.

Shifting things around

Hi Everyone,

Discussion 12 will be moved to Monday next week 10-11AM in class.

The deadline for HW12 [Track 4] will be consequently be extended to Wednesday 2/24 next week.

Tomorrow’s OH will be moved to Tuesday 4-5PM in 341A SODA Alcove (TENTATIVE LOCATION)

I’m going to absent tomorrow from class, but there’ll be staff on hand to approve quizzes and answer questions. Sorry for the inconvenience and late notice. Please study and do well in all your classes.

P.S. Looks like Friday 12-1PM is winning in the survey for Homework Parties. That means I am likely to add an OH on another popular day voted for.

Caryn

Should We Add Homework Parties?

Hi!

Seems like only a few of you filled out the survey (~14% of the class). I deem that too low of interest to hold a homework party. I opened the survey again on Piazza. Please vote on a date to indicate your interest. Will close on Friday and start Homework Parties next week if it passes quorum.

I will be checking in with each of you all over the next two week to gauge your attendance and where you stand in the class. As a reminder, you should be completing 1.5 hours (TRACK 4) or 3.5 hours (TRACK 3-4) of lab PER week. And you should be taking quizzes so that you have enough time to do retakes and/or corrections.

As a reward for reading this email, I'll give a day extension for the next due homework to all who reply to me either with comments, feedback, suggestions, or an update on how the class is for you. (will send out an anonymous survey for EC later)

What Happened on the First Day?

Hi everyone,

Please read this carefully if you did not come to the first section of class. Just to reiterate, here's what went down:

This is an open and welcome space for learning. Please be conscious of your words and actions. Also, remember to be respectful, kind, and understanding whenever you can. Consent is really important and encouraged. Be mindful of the space you and others take up.

Accounts are set up. If you need help, come to OH or email me ASAP.

Everyone knows everyone else. If you didn't come to first day, you have homework. Memorize everyone's names. dun dun dun

Kay. Have fun. Don't sweat. Too much. Just a little. Lemme know if you wanna get off this mailing list because you're not enrolled in the class/dropping the class.

Hey I Just Met You and This is Crazy

Welcome to the last CS61AS semester! I hope you had an amazing Winter Break.

You are receiving this message if you are enrolled in, or on the waitlist of CS61AS. As you should already know, this is our last semester offering the class and we are only supporting the unit 3-4 or unit 4 tracks. This means you all should be returning students and fairly familiar with the class format and expectations. If you are not a returning student, please reply to me immediately. If you are on the waitlist, please reply to me as well.

My name is Caryn and I will be your TA this semester. I hope that we can work together to have a productive and exciting semester. Judy, who you might have had as a TA in the past, will be your reader. I will mainly answer questions via Piazza so please register for the class piazza as soon as you can. If you prefer to email me, I can be reached at caryn.tran@berkeley.edu. Prefix the subject of your email with "[CS61AS SP16]" so that I can find it more easily. My office hours are tentatively on Mondays 9-10AM and Friday 12-1PM in 283E Soda.

Wednesday 1/20 10-12PM will be our first session of class in 277 Soda; please (mandatory) come to the first class. First day instructions are similar to previous semesters' instructions and can be found atstart.cs61as.org. To prepare ahead, you may read through the instructions and syllabus. We will be switching from Racket to Scheme for Units 3 and 4 so you may need to install a few things.

Again, welcome to 61AS. Things will begin ramp up immediately following the start of the semester so please do not fall behind. I've added a suggested schedule that is linked in the Announcements section of the website. I hope that this will assist you in passing the class, especially since you will not have a chance to repeat the course. Have a great weekend!

You can access the class materials on www.cs61as.org
You can access the class piazza on https://piazza.com/berkeley/spring2016/cs61as/

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