Introduction to Python and Programming
This prepares the student for further courses, for example, in Data Science, Machine Learning, or Web Development.
Students taking this course in the past reported that they could use what they learned in summer internships as well, in particular when they worked in start-ups.
Also, many students applied what they learned when writing their Bachelor theses.
The topics introduced are:
- basic elements of a programming language
- modularization via functions
- boolean if-else logic
- flow control via for- or while-loops
- data types (lists, tuples, dictionaries, sets, arrays, dataframes)
- object-orientation
- replacing Excel with Python
- data mining with APIs (e.g., Google Maps API)
Date | Time |
---|---|
Monday, 03.02.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Thursday, 06.02.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Monday, 10.02.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Friday, 14.02.2020 | 15:30 - 17:00 |
Monday, 09.03.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Thursday, 12.03.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Tuesday, 17.03.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Friday, 20.03.2020 | 11:30 - 13:00 |
Tuesday, 24.03.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Tuesday, 31.03.2020 | 11:30 - 13:00 |
Thursday, 02.04.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Monday, 06.04.2020 | 11:30 - 13:00 |
Wednesday, 08.04.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Thursday, 16.04.2020 | 09:45 - 11:15 |
Thursday, 23.04.2020 | 13:00 - 14:00 |
- enable students to implement simple programs their own
- familiarize students with technical terms so that they can read and understand the official Python documentation
- show how easy it is to replace Excel with professional software
Exercises and case studies show how the learned concepts can be applied in the real world.
There are two90-minute class sessions per week. This is done because most students taking this course in the past suggested to have more time in between lectures to digest the contents. Also, they felt that 3-hour lectures were simply too long.
Exam (33%): Python "Theory" & Concepts
The coding assignments are done in small and randomized groups at home. They require the students to solve real-life tasks on their own. The solutions are presented in class and the students may improve their grade with active participation.
The exam focuses on the concepts taught in class. Exam-like questions are distributed after every lecture, and if the students can answer them, they are ready for the exam. There is no memorizing bullet points for this exam. Big promise!