Honor Expectations
As a student at the University of Virginia, you are trusted to be honorable and expected to behave in ways that merit that trust. We take advantage of this trust to provide a better learning environment for everyone. In particular, students in this course are expected to follow these rules throughout the course:
I will not lie, cheat or steal. If I am unsure whether something would be considered lying, cheating or stealing, I will ask before doing it.
I will carefully read and follow the collaboration policy on each assignment. Many of the assignments in this course will require or allow you to work with others; some may require you to work on your own. The collaboration policy will be described on each assignment document. The main expectation is that you do not misrepresent others work as your own, or do things that obviously violate the intent of the stated collaboration policy. We aim to make the language describing the policy as clear and unambiguous as possible, but if anything is ever unclear about the stated policy for an assignment, please clarify with the course staff. The penalty for policy violations will be considered on a case-by-case basis, with a penalty commensurate the severity of the offense.
I will not abuse resources in ways that would be clearly detrimental to my own learning or unfair to other students. I will especially not search for solutions to assignments in this class from last semester, and if I happen to find such solutions to not look at them. It is in previous students interests to be able to share their work publicly on github, and in your and the course staff’s interests to be able to reuse parts of assignments that worked well and to adapt and improve parts that didn’t.
Community Expectations
As a member of a learning community of students, faculty, and staff, you are expected to exemplify these behaviors in this course:
I will be open minded and curious. I understand that this course may do things in ways differently from what I expect, and may sometimes buck conventions that have been followed in other courses I have taken. I will ask questions when things make me uncomfortable, but also accept that being surprised, facing uncertainty, and being challenged with problems it is unreasonable to expect me to be able to solve, are often beneficial for learning new ways of thinking.
I will actively affirm the value and dignity of others and treat my peers with decency and respect. I understand that one of the benefits of attending the University is to be part of a vibrant community that encompasses a wide range of backgrounds, ethnicities, personal and family histories, and world views. I will contribute to that community by sharing things that are unique about me with others, fighting against any biases I may have or that I observe in others, and being open to and respectful of people who are different from me. I will listen to the perspectives of others, and amplify those whose voices are not well heard.
I will not behave in ways that harrass, intimidate, diminish, or belittle others. If I observe such behaviors in others (including among my classmates, the course staff, or other University faculty), I will not tolerate them silently, but will either take it upon myself to mitigate them, or will inform one of the course instructors or another University administrator.
I will care for myself physically and emotionally. Living during an extended pandemic can make it difficult to maintain your physical and emotional well-being. I will ensure that whatever I am doing to succeed in my courses does not take priority over my needs to exercise, stay hydrated, make time to eat lunch and dinner away from your workspace, and to safely spend time outside.
I will avoid putting myself and others at unnecessary risk or discomfort. I will follow the University’s pandemic policies. If I have reason to suspect I might be infected, either due to experiencing symptoms or having close contact with someone who has symptoms or has tested positive, I will not come to class and will notify the instructor for any relevant course issues.
I will be connected with others, and look out of the well-being of others. The ongoing pandemic has resulted in much suffering and many hardships among our community, and continues to put many people under stress. We hope this class will also become a supportive community. Be creative in maintaining and reinforcing that community through the struggles caused by the pandemic, and seek out and maximize opportunities for postive interactions with fellow students and others in the university community.
I will ask for help. I will make a reasonable effort to do things on my own first, but will ask for help before getting overly frustrated. There are many ways to ask for help including the github discussions site, email, and in person during class and office hours.
I grant the course staff permission to reproduce excerpts from my submissions for teaching purposes. My work will be attributed when it is shown in a postive way, but may be used anonymously if it is used to illustrate common pitfalls or other issues.
I will provide useful feedback. I realize that this is a new course which will be attempting some new things. It is important that I let the course staff know what they need to improve the course. I will provide feedback either anonymously or by contacting the course staff directly. I will fill out all requested surveys honestly and thoroughly.