NSA - comp3321 NSA Python Training Document

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Updated about 2 years ago by I I in COMP 3321 i.3 144 6 1-1 python | fcs6 (U//FOUO) Instructor notes for COMP 3321.

Recommendations (b) (3)-P.L. 86-36

(U) So, you're teaching the Python class. What have you gotten yourself into? You should probably take a few moments (or possibly a few days) to reconsider the life choices that have put you in this position. (U) As mentioned in the introduction, this course is designed for flexibility. When taught in a classroom setting, a single lesson or module can be covered in a session that lasts between 45 and 90 minutes, depending on the topics to be covered. The standard way to structure the course is as a full-time, two week block.

During the first week, the ten lessons are covered with morning and afternoon lectures. During the second week, up to ten modules are covered in a similar manner, as needed or requested by the students in the class. (If the class needs are not known, take a vote). During the first few days of class, students should choose a project to work on. On the last day, students should report back on their progress and, if possible, demonstrate their work. (U) The two week block is not the only way of teaching the course. (U) The two week block is not the only way of teaching the course.

The material could be presented at a more leisurely pace, for instance during a weekly brown bag lunch that continues for several months. Alternatively, if students are already prepared (or willing to do some of the initial lessons in a self-study manner), a great deal can be accomplished in a two or three day workshop. For instance, if all students already have a basic knowledge of Python, they might well start with the lessons on tooling and writing modules and packages, then move on to cover various modules of interest. Approved for Release by NSA on 12-02-2019, FOIA Case # 108165

(U) When teaching mathematics, the common practice of the instructor writing solutions on the chalkboard is a moderating method that helps students keep up. Writing on a chalkboard is not usually helpful when teaching programming, but the same principle applies; as the instructor, you should adopt practices that help you slow down. We recommend that you have a live, interactive session displayed at the front of the room, large enough for all the students to see.

This session can either be a terminal session or a Jupyter notebook. The important detail is that in most cases the commands should not be pre-populated; e.g. you should not just execute cells from an existing Jupyter notebook. The materials are present to help you prepare, and as a reference for the students as they work on exercises; they are not an acceptable substitute for the shared experience of teaching and learning. You will make unexpected mistakes as you write code live in front of the class. Don't worry, relax, and let the students help you~it will help them learn the principles and figure out how to solve their own problems.

This is not a substitute for proper preparation; too many mistakes and fumbles will cause your students to lose interest in the course and trust in you.

.. (U//rOUO) The developers of this course believe that the current materials are sufficiently wqll.devdloped to be an effective aid for the course. However, improvements, extensions, and refinements arealways welcome. To that end,we have attempted to make it easy to contribute to the project. The documentation is based on the NSAG fork of| [original COMP 3321 materials.

If you want to make changes for your own purposes, feel free to clone that repository or fork any of these notebooks on the Juptyer Gallery. Please submit a change request on the Gallery if you'd like to make a one-off contribution, including new or improved exercises, additions to lessons or modules, or entirely new lessons or modules. If you would like to be a collaborator on all of the COMP 3321 notebooks, contact the COMP3321 GlobalMe group and ask to be added.

(U) To get the students interacting with each other as well as thinking about code at an abstract level, consider the following icebreaker. Instructor becomes human compiler to interpret written instructions to get out of the room. (U) Phase I discussion with whole class (U) Invent a programming language together, one sufficient for this task.

Clearly explain the task, showing where in the room the instructor will begin and how big a step is. (U) Take suggestions from students about what instructions they will want to use. Write each instruction on the board. Be clear that everything written on the paper must come from syntax on the board. No other syntax allowed. (U) Make sure the instructor and students agree about precisely what each instruction means.

As the instructor, be certain the list on the board is enough for you to solve the problem. Give hints until its complete. (U) Let the students come up with the syntax. But here are some syntax examples they may come up with. step(n) takes in an integer and causes instructor to take n steps. tum(d) - takes in a number in degrees and caused instructor to turn clockwise that many degrees.

Students may abuse this and put in numbers that lead to dizzyness, e.g. tum(1440) obstacle -- returns boolean indicating rather an obstacle is directly in front of instructor. Variations for checking to the left or right may be desirable as well. if < > then < > else < > first blank takes boolean (make sure boolean functions exist!). Second blanks take instructions. (U) Each team produces a piece of paper with computer instructions for the human compiler to get out of the room. (U) Each team produces a piece of paper with computer instructions for the human compiler to get out of the room.

Only allowable syntax is what is written on the board. Should take no more than 15 minutes. (U) Phase III -- demonstrations (U) One at a time, the instructor takes a team's solution and follows the instructions, literally and fairly. Does the instructor get out of the room?

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