Your knowledge of the course topics will be assessed through: quizzes, homework tasks, assignments and exams. Discussion of these components will be given in lectures (for example, hints, solutions and feedback).
| Item | Weight |
|---|---|
| Quizzes and Homework | 20% * |
| - Quiz 1 | 4% |
| - Quiz 2 | 4% |
| - HW 3 | 4% |
| - HW 4 | 4% |
| - HW 5 | 4% |
| Assignment | 15% |
| Exams | 65% |
| - Mid-term Exam | 30% |
| - Final Exam | 35% |
Short quizzes will be held during selected lectures, containing short questions (for example, multiple choice, true/false, short descriptions or diagrams). Each quiz aims to test your understanding of the lectures and compulsory readings. The majority of the quiz questions will focus on the topics covered since the previous quiz. You are required to give all the answers on the quiz sheet provided.
Homework will be given in selected lectures, with answers to be submitted for evaluation. Homework will give you an opportunity to use security software and algorithms to solve small problems. The homework tasks will be like mini individual assignments.
Assessment: There will be a total of at least 5 quiz/homework tasks during the semester (the split, i.e. the number of quizzes and number of homeworks, will be announced during the semester). Your mark for this component will be the sum of your 5 highest scores (in the case that there are more than 5 tasks). Effectively, each quiz/homework task is worth 4%, therefore worth 20% of the total course assessment.
In addition to the assessed in-class quizzes and homework tasks above, there will be online quizzes available, as well as other practice tasks. These will NOT be assessed - whether you attempt them or not, and the score you obtain if you do, will have no direct impact on your course grade. They will be available to you for practice only. However, completing the online quizzes and exercises will usually make it easy to be successful in the in-class quizzes and homeworks.
There will be one group assignment, made available before the midterm and due towards the end of the semester. The assignment will involve all group members investigating a topic and reporting on the outcomes. Details of the assignment will be announced during the semester.
Exams may include all material covered in lectures, quizzes, homeworks, assignments and compulsory readings. Some discussion of the topics to be included (or not included) will be given in the lecture leading up to the exam.
Assessment: the Midterm Exam will be worth 30% and the Final Exam 35% of the total course assessment.