Introduction to Programming

This course aims to provide an introduction to programming and algorithms, using the Python programming language. Topics to be included will be: basic syntax, variables, operators, comments, expressions, strings, input and output; conditional statements, if, nested ifs, if-else ladders, Boolean expressions; loops, for and while, nested loops; functions, parameters, return values; testing and debugging; arrays and lists, multidimensional arrays; sorting and searching; text files; and number systems.

DP requirements: 45% weighted average for practical work.

Assessment: Theory tests count for 15%, practicals count for 15%, practical tests count for 10%, June examination counts for 60% of the course mark. Subminima: 45% weighted average for practical work, 45% weighted average of tests and exams.

The University of Cape Town awards credits based on the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) to determine course and contact hour recommendations per course. 1 NQF credit represents roughly 10 notional hours of work which includes study time, assignments and examinations. Notional hours may very per courses depending on the course level and modality therefore, CEA recommends using NQF credits as a basis to determine U.S. equivalencies (1 NQF=.222 semester credits)