Module Information

Module Identifier

XC12010

Module Title

Microcredentials: Introduction to Programming

Academic Year

2024/2025

Co-ordinator

Dr Tomos Fearn

Semester

Distance Learning

Exclusive (Any Acad Year)

Credits achieved for this module will not count towards a standard Aberystywth University degree.

Reading List

View on Aspire

Course Delivery

Assessment

Assessment Type	Assessment length / details	Proportion
Semester Assessment	Weekly worksheet Weekly worksheet completed by student	30%
Semester Assessment	Weekly multiple choice quiz Each week a short multiple choice quiz will be help exploring that week's work.	30%
Semester Assessment	Mini-project A short project exploring the module concepts	40%
Supplementary Assessment	Programming task	40%
Supplementary Assessment	Worksheet Online worksheet covering all the topics from the module	60%

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:

Describe the Programming Paradigm: Programming languages, elements, concepts and types.

Explain and use the basic language elements; Language structure, conventions, variables, constants, data types, operators, expressions, statements, blocks.

Solve a computational problem

Brief description

This module aims to provide a basic grounding in computer programming skills and assumes no previous knowledge or ability. After exploring the fundamentals of computer languages you'll move on to writing your first programs. Delivery will be online through lectures, recordings and practical workshops and you will therefore require an internet connection. On successful completion you will be awarded 10 credits at first year undergraduate level.

Aims

This module will introduce students to the paradigms of procedural and object oriented programming. It is in three parts: firstly examining the fundamentals of program design - the what, why and when of programming itself. Then it will explore the use of variables, conditionals and loops to build a program. Finally we will introduce a programming language and use online tools to build working programs.
The course will be presented in a number of blocks - each will have a worksheet with linked mini-videos and an online workshop - the latter will be recorded so you can study the course at times that suit you.

Content

Using online videos, worksheets and live tutorials we will explore the following areas:
Fundamentals: why do we need programming and how do we go about doing it?
Languages: in general, what are computer languages and what do they have in common?
Key principles: what are the main components of a typical language and how can we use them in our coding?
Programming a common high level language. Time to apply the previous learning in writing your first programs to solve common problems.

Module Skills

Skills Type	Skills details
Creative Problem Solving	Students will gain problem solving skills as part of their coursework assessment and worksheet exercises.
Critical and analytical thinking	The course will introduce the concept of Computational Thinking
Digital capability	Students will be expected to make appropriate use of the Internet to access Blackboard, contribute to online workshops and discussions, and access their online programming site.
Real world sense	IT and, specifically, programming is ubiquitous in today's world - this course will give a grounding in their application in day to day activities.
Subject Specific Skills	Understand and utilise the fundamentals of programming

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 4