ECT 438 Spring 2026 - Revision history

Jkinne: /* Project Topics */

2026-03-05T17:17:30Z

Project Topics

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:17, 5 March 2026
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	==Project Topics==		==Project Topics==
	Each student is required to research and complete a software project according to a proposal approved by instructor to pursue as a final semester long project in this course. Students are expected to work in teams~~. The project proposal is approved by the instructor~~. On occasions, industry involvement facilitated by the faculty member are pre-approved but is not always available. If you have connections with industry through internships, friends, family members who know people, you can use all your networking and resources to explore these opportunities. Projects in the past have included the following types of components.		Each student is required to research and complete a software project according to a proposal approved by the instructor to pursue as a final semester long project in this course. Students are expected to work in teams. On occasions, industry involvement facilitated by the faculty member are pre-approved but is not always available. If you have connections with industry through internships, friends, family members who know people, you can use all your networking and resources to explore these opportunities. Projects in the past have included the following types of components.

	* Data scraping and analysis.		* Data scraping and analysis.
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	* Data collection from physical sensors (using raspberry pi / arduino).		* Data collection from physical sensors (using raspberry pi / arduino).
	* Machine learning.		* Machine learning.
			* Database backend.
			* Bioinformatics tools developed to be used by researchers.
			* Algorithmic solutions to computationally hard problems (e.g., in operations research).

	Course Objectives and Performance Indicators		Course Objectives and Performance Indicators
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	Students will review and research approved proposal for a semester long team-oriented based project related to their program of study		Students will review and research approved proposal for a semester long team-oriented based project related to their program of study
	# Student teams will investigate project alternatives, and propose a single complete turnkey industry-based project.		# Student teams will investigate project alternatives, and propose a single complete turnkey industry-based project.
	#Student teams will research relevant topics and issues related to their proposed design project to further gain a comprehensive understanding of the needs and deliverable.		# Student teams will research relevant topics and issues related to their proposed design project to further gain a comprehensive understanding of the needs and deliverable.
	# Student teams will re-define the project scope, objectives, constraints, criteria, specifications, and other necessary elements that will be required to successfully complete the proposed design.		# Student teams will re-define the project scope, objectives, constraints, criteria, specifications, and other necessary elements that will be required to successfully complete the proposed design.
	# Students will compose a comprehensive industry grade project proposal for approval		# Students will compose a comprehensive industry grade project proposal for approval

Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-25T14:22:17Z

Course Description and Content

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Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-25T13:37:07Z

Course Description and Content

← Older revision		Revision as of 13:37, 25 February 2026
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	==Learning Objectives==		==Learning Objectives==

			===Foundational Studies HIP===
			ECT 438 is a Foundational Studies High Impact Practice (HIP) course. The requirements for HIP courses are the following.

	'''HIP Learning Objectives'''		'''HIP Learning Objectives'''
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	* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking skills. <ref>The entire course is based on critical thinking: the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. The final report is the culminating experience where the critical thinking is clearly demonstrated, documented, and assessed.</ref>		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking skills. <ref>The entire course is based on critical thinking: the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. The final report is the culminating experience where the critical thinking is clearly demonstrated, documented, and assessed.</ref>
	* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills.		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills. <ref>Information literacy skills are developed in the required significant literature review of the final report and evidence in this document in the final report requirements of “extensive library research...” It is expected that development will be reflected in the progress reports and feedback rubric.</ref>
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research).		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research). <ref>The projects proposed and approved are akin to expectations of the major and often are involving actual industry connected projects.</ref>
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection.		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection.<ref>The progress reports are expected to be written reflections of the progress addressing the HIP learning objectives and the course objectives and performance indicators. The rubric is more focused on the feedback and comments rather than an efficient grading rubric which minimizes comments while providing standard feedback. The assignment and rubric is included at the end of this syllabus.</ref>
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve problems.		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve problems. <ref>Solving problems is the primary goal of the course. This is spelled out in the brief list of topics and is carried through to the final report.</ref>



	Program Student Outcomes addressed in this course:		===CS Major===
			Computer Science Program Student Outcomes addressed in this course:

	* SO 1: Analyze a complex computing problem and apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identify solutions.		* SO 1: Analyze a complex computing problem and apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identify solutions.
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	~~5 Information literacy skills are developed in the required significant literature review of the final report and~~
	~~evidence in this document in the final report requirements of “extensive library research...” It is expected that~~
	~~development will be reflected in the progress reports and feedback rubric.~~
	~~6 The projects proposed and approved are akin to expectations of the major and often are involving actual~~
	~~industry connected projects.~~
	~~7 The progress reports are expected to be written reflections of the progress addressing the HIP learning~~
	~~objectives and the course objectives and performance indicators. The rubric is more focused on the feedback~~
	~~and comments rather than an efficient grading rubric which minimizes comments while providing standard~~
	~~feedback. The assignment and rubric is included at the end of this syllabus.~~
	~~8 Solving problems is the primary goal of the course. This is spelled out in the brief list of topics and is carried~~
	~~through to the final report.~~

	Brief List of Topics		Brief List of Topics

Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-24T22:37:50Z

Course Description and Content

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:37, 24 February 2026
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	Unit B - Project, complete a major software project.		Unit B - Project, complete a major software project.

	~~'''~~Learning Objectives"		==Learning Objectives==

	HIP Learning Objectives		'''HIP Learning Objectives'''
	* Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to
	address a particular topic or issue. <ref>Students are expected to use multiple ways of knowing in the course and these are explicitly addressed and assessed in the progress report and grading rubric.</ref>
	* Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation
	~~to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues.2~~
	* Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively across or within a different cultural or
	~~disciplinary community context.3~~

	Skill Applied Learning Requirements		* Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to address a particular topic or issue. <ref>Students are expected to use multiple ways of knowing in the course and these are explicitly addressed and assessed in the progress report and grading rubric.</ref>
	* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking ~~skills4~~		* Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues. <ref>Adapting and applying skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning is explicitly addressed in the progress reports and feedback rubric.</ref>
	* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills		* Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively across or within a different cultural or disciplinary community context. <ref>This is assessed in various ways including the progress report rubric, the peer evaluation, and the overall teamwork rubric.</ref>
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are
	learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research)		'''Skill Applied Learning Requirements'''
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection
	* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking skills. <ref>The entire course is based on critical thinking: the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by, observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. The final report is the culminating experience where the critical thinking is clearly demonstrated, documented, and assessed.</ref>
	problems		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills.
			* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research).
			* Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection.
			* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve problems.


	~~2 Adapting and applying skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning is explicitly addressed in the progress~~
	~~reports and feedback rubric.~~
	~~3 This is assessed in various ways including the progress report rubric, the peer evaluation, and the overall teamwork~~
	~~rubric~~
	~~4 The entire course is based on critical thinking: the intellectually disciplined process of actively and skillfully~~
	~~conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing, and/or evaluating information gathered from, or generated by,~~
	~~observation, experience, reflection, reasoning, or communication, as a guide to belief and action. The final report is~~
	~~the culminating experience where the critical thinking is clearly demonstrated, documented, and assessed.~~

	Program Student Outcomes addressed in this course:		Program Student Outcomes addressed in this course:
	~~an ability to~~ apply ~~knowledge, techniques, skills and modern tools~~ of ~~mathematics, science,~~
	~~engineering,~~ and ~~technology to solve broadly defined engineering problems appropriate~~ to		* SO 1: Analyze a complex computing problem and apply principles of computing and other relevant disciplines to identify solutions.
	~~the discipline (SO 1)~~		* SO 2: Design, implement, and evaluate a computing-based solution to meet a given set of computing requirements in the context of the program’s discipline.
	~~• an ability to design systems, components, or processes meeting specified needs for broadly~~		* SO 3: Communicate effectively in a variety of professional contexts.
	~~defined engineering problems appropriate to the discipline (~~SO 2)		* SO 4: Recognize professional responsibilities and make informed judgments in computing practice based on legal and ethical principles.
	~~• an ability to apply written~~, ~~oral~~, and ~~graphical communication in broadly defined technical~~		* SO 5: Function effectively as a member or leader of a team engaged in activities appropriate to the program’s discipline.
	~~and non~~-~~technical environments; and an ability~~ to ~~identify and use appropriate technical~~		* SO 6: Apply computer science theory and software development fundamentals to produce computing-based solutions. [CS]
	~~literature (~~SO 3)
	~~• an ability to conduct standard tests, measurements,~~ and ~~experiments and to analyze~~ and
	~~interpret the results to improve processes (~~SO 4)
	~~• an ability to function~~ effectively as a member ~~as well as~~ a ~~leader on technical teams (~~SO 5)

Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-24T22:29:45Z

Course Description and Content

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:29, 24 February 2026
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	HIP Learning Objectives		HIP Learning Objectives
	* Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to		* Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to
	address a particular topic or issue.1		address a particular topic or issue. <ref>Students are expected to use multiple ways of knowing in the course and these are explicitly addressed and assessed in the progress report and grading rubric.</ref>
	* Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation		* Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation
	to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues.2		to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues.2
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	problems		problems

	~~1 Students are expected to use multiple ways of knowing in the course and these are explicitly addressed and~~
	~~assessed in the progress report and grading rubric~~
	2 Adapting and applying skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning is explicitly addressed in the progress		2 Adapting and applying skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning is explicitly addressed in the progress
	reports and feedback rubric.		reports and feedback rubric.

Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-24T22:29:14Z

Course Description and Content

Jkinne: /* Course Description and Content */

2026-02-24T18:49:12Z

Course Description and Content

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Jkinne: /* General Information */

2026-01-22T14:38:23Z

General Information

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:38, 22 January 2026
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	[https://kinnejeff.com Jeff Kinne], [http://mailto:jkinne@indstate.edu jkinne@indstate.edu] <br>		[https://kinnejeff.com Jeff Kinne], [http://mailto:jkinne@indstate.edu jkinne@indstate.edu] <br>
	''Office:'' Root Hall A-165 and in Microsoft Teams, phone 812-237-3394 <br>		''Office:'' Root Hall A-165 and in Microsoft Teams, phone 812-237-3394 <br>
	''Instructor Office Hours:'' ~~TBD~~; normally available for online meetings - MTWRF 8am-4pm, SMTWR 8-10pm if I am not in class or a meeting<br>		''Instructor Office Hours:'' normally in my office - M 8:30am-10am; 11:30am-1pm; T 9:30am-3pm; W 8:30-10am; 11:30am-1pm; R 8:30am-3pm; F 8:30am-2:45am. I am normally available for online meetings - MTWRF 8am-4pm, SMTWR 8-10pm if I am not in class or a meeting<br>
	''Meeting:'' https://cs.indstate.edu/jkinne-meeting		''Meeting:'' https://cs.indstate.edu/jkinne-meeting

Jkinne: Created page with "ECT 437 Senior Project 1: Project Management and ECT 438 Senior Project 2: Capstone together comprise the senior project for students in the ECET department. ECT 437 is taken in the fall, and ECT 438 is taken in the spring. This website is used to keep track of the sections of ECT 438 that are for the CS majors, taught by Jeff Kinne. The sections for other majors is managed separately and taught by Dr. Javaid. =General Information= '''Course website''' - https://cs.i..."

2026-01-12T01:20:50Z

Created page with "ECT 437 Senior Project 1: Project Management and ECT 438 Senior Project 2: Capstone together comprise the senior project for students in the ECET department. ECT 437 is taken in the fall, and ECT 438 is taken in the spring. This website is used to keep track of the sections of ECT 438 that are for the CS majors, taught by Jeff Kinne. The sections for other majors is managed separately and taught by Dr. Javaid. =General Information= '''Course website''' - https://cs.i..."

New page

ECT 437 Senior Project 1: Project Management and ECT 438 Senior Project 2: Capstone together comprise the senior project for students in the ECET department. ECT 437 is taken in the fall, and ECT 438 is taken in the spring.

This website is used to keep track of the sections of ECT 438 that are for the CS majors, taught by Jeff Kinne. The sections for other majors is managed separately and taught by Dr. Javaid.

=General Information=
'''Course website''' - https://cs.indstate.edu/web/index.php/ECT_438_Spring_2026

'''Your Instructor'''

[https://kinnejeff.com Jeff Kinne], [http://mailto:jkinne@indstate.edu jkinne@indstate.edu] 
''Office:'' Root Hall A-165 and in Microsoft Teams, phone 812-237-3394 
''Instructor Office Hours:'' TBD; normally available for online meetings - MTWRF 8am-4pm, SMTWR 8-10pm if I am not in class or a meeting 
''Meeting:'' https://cs.indstate.edu/jkinne-meeting

'''Graduate assistant help''' - TBD. See https://cs.indstate.edu/web/index.php/ISU_CS_People#CS_Departmental_Graduate_Assistants

'''Lecture, Exam'''

''Lecture:'' arranged meetings with project groups 
''Exams:'' none 
''Final exam:'' no exams in the course; instead there will be final project presentations

'''Prerequisites''' - ECT 437

'''CRN numbers''' - 12705 (ECT 438-002), 12706 (ECT 438-302).

'''Required text'''
For the project management content of the course, we will the the following.
* [https://www.coursera.org/professional-certificates/google-project-management Coursera Google Project Management] - should be free to take online, and can get certificate with ISU's Coursera license this term.
* Free online - [https://opentextbc.ca/projectmanagement/ Project Management – 2nd Edition] by Adrienne Watt.
* Information technology Project Management by Schwalbe (maybe not free).
Note that the other sections of the course use the following textbook. This is not required for Jeff Kinne's sections of the course.
* [https://www.pearson.com/en-us/subject-catalog/p/project-management-for-engineering-and-technology/P200000001110/9780132817523?srsltid=AfmBOorbY72RPx2VISEBqx9WhJLN3_N5KnkwO2Q-OzlVwimjnNKmgcce Project Management for Engineering and Technology] by David L. Goetsch.

'''Software/Programs'''
* TBA

'''Class notes''' - Notes during class will mostly be kept in the documents in '''[https://sycamoresindstate-my.sharepoint.com/:f:/g/personal/jeffrey_kinne_indstate_edu/EiJJbQVND3FMr25IAoHydnUBADrC7z-tZH_OTaD1h_A8Ow this OneDrive folder]'''. Note that you will need to authenticate with your ISU account to view the folder. Some files from lecture may be kept at https://cs.indstate.edu/~cs473/ which can also be seen when you are logged into the terminal by doing: <code>cd ~cs473/public_html/</code>.

=Announcements/Assignments/Quizzes/Exams=
'''HW'''
These are posted in Canvas or on the CS server. Some HWs are due the next lecture day, some are due a week after assigned. All times are Eastern US time.

'''Rules'''
Rules for HWs, quizzes, exams are in the course policies below.

'''Announcements'''
Announcements will normally be posted to the course in Canvas (and will probably be emailed to your ISU email address if you have the default settings for notifications in Canvas).

=Course Description and Content=

'''Course Description'''

The official description of this course from the catalog is

"A planned project approved by the professor and performed by the student. The project demonstrates an advanced level of design competency in the student’s major and is performed in consultation with one or more faculty consultants/advisors. Representatives of industry, government agencies, or community institutions collaboration is encouraged. "

Since these are the sections of the course for CS majors, we will be focusing our discussions and projects on software management and development. We may have some groups that work together with students in the other sections of the course if there are projects that make sense for this to happen.

'''Course Outline'''

This course outline is subject to change.

Unit A - Project Management, complete the remaining courses in the Google Project Management Coursera certificate.

Unit B - Project, complete a major software project.

=Assignments=

'''Start Assignments and Exam Studying Early''' -
I suggest attempting an assignment the day it is given, or the day after, so that if you have a problem you can ask early. If you continue to have problems in trying to complete the assignment, you will have time to ask again. Many of the assignments require thought and problem solving, which takes "time on the calendar" not just "time on the clock". By that I mean that spending an hour on 3 consecutive days is likely to be more productive than trying to spend 3 hours at once on the assignment.

'''Expected Amount of Work''' -
If you take this class seriously and get what you should out of it, some weeks you will likely be spending around '''6-10 hours or more''' on the class. The students who get A’s in their CS courses and have an easier time finding jobs do spend this much time on this course. Not everyone would need to spend this much time and not all weeks will be the same, but you should plan on putting in whatever time it takes. Note that the federal government definition of 1 credit hour as requiring 2 hours worth of time on the course for each credit hour of lecture, so you should think of this as the default for all of your courses.

'''Note - your classes in your major should ideally be more important than your part-time job.'''

'''Each week''', you will normally have at least one assignment, often more than one (in particular at the beginning when the assignments are pretty small).

=Grade Meanings=
The letter grades are intended to have the following rough meaning. For letter grades I will use the usual breakdown as a starting point (90 is A-, 80 is B-, etc.), but will raise letter grades above this if I think it is needed (e.g., if assignments, exams, and quizzes are really tough).
* A+/A: You understand everything and probably could teach the course yourself.
* B+/A-: You understand nearly everything, and should be all set to use this knowledge in other courses or in a job.
* C/C+/B-/B: Some things you understand very well and others you don't (more towards the former for a B and more towards the latter for a C).
* D-/D+/C-: You did put some effort in, and understand many things at a high level, but you haven't mastered the details well enough to be able to use this knowledge in the future.
* F: Normally, students that get an F simply stopped doing the required work at some point, or cheated on something in the course.

{{:Jeff Kinne Course Policies}}

{{:Policies}}

{{:ISU Syllabus Items}}

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:29, 24 February 2026
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	HIP Learning Objectives		HIP Learning Objectives
	• Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to		* Integrate and apply multiple (foundational studies and disciplinary) ways of knowing to
	address a particular topic or issue.1		address a particular topic or issue.1
	• Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation		* Adapt and apply skills, knowledge, experience, and ethical reasoning gained in one situation
	to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues.2		to new situations/projects to solve difficult problems or explore complex issues.2
	• Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively across or within a different cultural or		* Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively across or within a different cultural or
	disciplinary community context.3		disciplinary community context.3

	Skill Applied Learning Requirements		Skill Applied Learning Requirements
	• Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking skills4		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop critical thinking skills4
	• Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills		* Explicitly demonstrate how the curriculum will develop information literacy skills
	• Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to apply what they are
	learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research)		learning to real world scenarios (be they through applied experiences or in-depth research)
	• Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will require a written student reflection
	• Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve		* Demonstrate how the curriculum will give students the opportunity to identify and solve
	problems		problems