MMS2801 Database Management Systems , Unit Information Guide (Semester 1, 2006)

This unit is designed to provide students with an understanding of the principles and terminology of database management systems and database design so that they are able to design, implement and manage efficient database systems. SQL will be introduced and used for access control, data definition, manipulation and query output generation. This interactive SQL will be extended to database interactions via embedded SQL code within HTML using ColdFusion. The special issues of lock management and recovery/backup in the multi-user environment of a DBMS will also be examined.

Databases are so widely used today that they can be found in organisations of all sizes ranging from large government agencies and business corporations to small businesses and even home use. Every day activities such as using a credit card, purchasing a product at a supermarket via a scanning checkout and internet purchases, involve application programmes which consult a database to verify a credit limit, identify a Universal Product Code, list the range of products available or record an internet purchase.

• be able to describe the fundamental principles and file systems used in Relational database systems
• be able to describe the special issues pertinent to multi-user database systems such as record locking, security, backup and recovery
• be able to describe the roles and responsibilities of a Database Administrator
• be able to discuss the different programming approaches which can be used to develop database applications such as embedded SQL and server side programming approaches
• be able to describe the special issues which are involved with design and operation of distributed database systems

• an appreciation of the ethical issues relating to the privacy and security of data held in a database system

• be able to develop a conceptual database model for a particular environment using the tools of Entity Relationship modeling and normalisation
• be able to produce, from a given conceptual database design, a schema file from which an efficient database can be generated
• be able to use interactive SQL within a relational DBMS to carry out database creation, loading and querying
• be able to use embedded SQL code within HTML using ColdFusion to create application logic

• further develop their group working skills as a member of a project team

Required text(s)

'Database Systems – Design, Implementation and Management', Sixth Edition (2004) by Rob and Coronel. This is a Course Technology – Thomson Learning publication, ISBN 0-619-21372-8

Text books are available from the Monash University Book Shops. Availability from other suppliers cannot be assured. The Bookshop orders texts in specifically for this unit. You are advised to purchase your text book early.

Software requirements:

The software required for this unit is available in the PC labs at the Berwick campus. If you wish to complete parts of the unit working from home, suitable software, which you can install on your home PC, will be available from the MUSO web site under MMS2801.

Hardware requirements:

On-campus students may use the facilities available in the University computing labs. Information about computer use for students is available from the ITS Student Resource Guide in the Monash University Handbook (http://www.monash.edu.au/pubs/handbooks/srg/srg-66.html)

To be advised

Study resources for MMS2801 are:

The MMS2801 web site on MUSO, where lecture slides, weekly tutorial requirements, assignment specifications, sample solutions and supplementary material will be posted. The site also hosts newsgroups/discussion groups which support the unit.

There will be one two-hour lecture each week. To get the most out of lectures you should make sure your study is up to date and you have pre-read the relevant section of the text. There will also be one two-hour tutorial each week. You should ensure that you have appropriately booked yourself into classes using the Allocate+ System (http://allocate.cc.monash.edu.au/)

This unit, like all Monash units, is built on the assumption that you will spend twelve hours a week attending lectures and tutorials, working your way through unit study material, reading and completing assignments. PLEASE READ THIS POINT CAREFULLY – TWELVE (12) HOURS PER WEEK IS REQUIRED for success in this unit, attendance at lectures and tutorials without any reading/exercises outside of this allocated class time will not be sufficient.

The timetable for on-campus classes for this unit can be viewed in Allocate+

Assessment for the unit consists of

• Two assignments (40%)
  • one individual database design and SQL queries assignment (20%)
  • one group database system implementation project (20%)
• One three hour written examination (60%)

The exam will be a three-hour, textbook-only exam. You will be permitted to bring ONLY an unannotated copy of the text ‘Database Systems – Design, Implementation and Management’ into the examination.

Please ensure that you obtain a hard copy of your exam timetable when it is made available online via the My.Monash portal. You should check your exam timetable regularly (it is suggested well before and during the exam period for confirmation). Absenteeism at an exam due to misreading or forgetting your exam timetable is not valid grounds for a deferred examination or special consideration. Please do not take anyone else's advice on when your examination is scheduled - be sure to check for yourself in every case.

Students should note that they are, at all times, responsible for their work. All relevant material should be backed up on a regular basis to CD or Zip/memory disks. Loss of assignment work due to hardware failure, virus or theft will not be accepted as reasons for late or non-submission of work.

Students must hold an exact copy of all work which they submit for assessment; this copy should be held until your final result for the unit is released.

To pass this unit you must:

To be eligible to sit for the examination at the end of the semester you must attend 80% of your tutorials. If you are absent for more than two tutorials you must supply a medical certificate or other appropriate documentation otherwise you will be excluded from the examination. If you are finding problems with this requirement please ensure you speak to your unit adviser as early as possible.

Your score for the unit will be calculated by:

Final grade = (R*A*E)/(((R-1)*A)+E)

Where A = overall assignment percentage

Assessment Requirements

Assignment specifications will be made available MMS2801 MUSO Unit Web Site. Information about assignments will be published on the Unit's Notices Newsgroup.

Details of the assignments submission procedure will be supplied via the unit MUSO pages. Where assignments (or parts of an assignment) are submitted in person (ie. hard copy) an 'Assignment Cover Sheet' with appropriate signature/s must be attached. Do not email submissions. The due date is the date by which the submission must be received.

At the discretion of the unit adviser, students may be permitted to resubmit assignments which have not met the requirements for a passing grade. This is not an automatic right.

Late submission of assignments

Penalties are incurred from the due date at the rate of a 10 % reduction in grade for each day (including weekends) the assignment is late.

This policy is strict because comments or guidance will be given on assignments as they are returned, and sample solutions may also be published and distributed, after assignment marking or with the returned assignment. 

Extensions

It is your responsibility to structure your study program around assignment deadlines, family, work and other commitments. Factors such as normal work pressures, vacations, etc. are seldom regarded as appropriate reasons for granting extensions. 

Students requesting an extension must apply, using the standard 'Extension Request' or via email to the Unit Adviser prior to the due date. Extensions will only be granted for medical or personal reasons supported by appropriate documentary evidence. Students will be provided with a reply slip/email documenting the extension, a copy of which must be submitted with the assignment.

Grading of assessment

Assignments, and the unit, will be marked and allocated a grade according to the following scale:

We will aim to have assignment results made available to you within two weeks after the assignment due date.

You will receive feedback on your work and progress in this unit. This feedback may be provided through your participation in tutorials and class discussions, as well as through your assignment submissions. It may come in the form of individual advice, marks and comments, or it may be provided as comment or reflection targeted at the group. It may be provided through personal interactions, such as interviews and on-line forums, or through other mechanisms such as on-line self-tests and publication of grade distributions.

You will be asked to provide feedback to the Faculty through a Unit Evaluation survey at the end of the semester. You may also be asked to complete surveys to help teaching staff improve the unit and unit delivery. Your input to such surveys is very important to the faculty and the teaching staff in maintaining relevant and high quality learning experiences for our students.

It is essential that you take action immediately if you realise that you have a problem with your study. The semester is short, so we can help you best if you let us know as soon as problems arise. Regardless of whether the problem is related directly to your progress in the unit, if it is likely to interfere with your progress you should discuss it with your lecturer or a Community Service counsellor as soon as possible.

Plagiarism and cheating are regarded as very serious offences. In cases where cheating  has been confirmed, students have been severely penalised, from losing all marks for an assignment, to facing disciplinary action at the Faculty level. While we would wish that all our students adhere to sound ethical conduct and honesty, I will ask you to acquaint yourself with Student Rights and Responsibilities and the Faculty regulations that apply to students detected cheating as these will be applied in all detected cases.

In this University, cheating means seeking to obtain an unfair advantage in any examination or any other written or practical work to be submitted or completed by a student for assessment. It includes the use, or attempted use, of any means to gain an unfair advantage for any assessable work in the unit, where the means is contrary to the instructions for such work. 

When you submit an individual assessment item, such as a program, a report, an essay, assignment or other piece of work, under your name you are understood to be stating that this is your own work. If a submission is identical with, or similar to, someone else's work, an assumption of cheating may arise. If you are planning on working with another student, it is acceptable to undertake research together, and discuss problems, but it is not acceptable to jointly develop or share solutions unless this is specified by your lecturer. 

Intentionally providing students with your solutions to assignments is classified as "assisting to cheat" and students who do this may be subject to disciplinary action. You should take reasonable care that your solution is not accidentally or deliberately obtained by other students. For example, do not leave copies of your work in progress on the hard drives of shared computers, and do not show your work to other students. If you believe this may have happened, please be sure to contact your lecturer as soon as possible.

Cheating also includes taking into an examination any material contrary to the regulations, including any bilingual dictionary, whether or not with the intention of using it to obtain an advantage.

Plagiarism involves the false representation of another person's ideas, or findings, as your own by either copying material or paraphrasing without citing sources. It is both professional and ethical to reference clearly the ideas and information that you have used from another writer. If the source is not identified, then you have plagiarised work of the other author. Plagiarism is a form of dishonesty that is insulting to the reader and grossly unfair to your student colleagues.

You may communicate with the staff involved in this unit during your scheduled tutorial time, by speaking to the lecturer at the end of the lecture, by attending your tutors or lecturers consultation times or by making an appointment outside these times to talk to the staff member. MUSO discussion groups are also available for student-student and student-staff contact. As on-campus students you are encouraged to use these resources, please only use email as a last resort (we are unable to guarantee a given turn around time if you commmunicate via email).

Notices related to the unit during the semester will be placed on the Notices Newsgroup in the Unit Website. Check this regularly. Failure to read the Notices newsgroup is not regarded as grounds for special consideration.

Consultation Times

Consultation times will be published on the MMS2801 MUSO site

If direct communication with your unit adviser/lecturer or tutor outside of consultation periods is needed you may contact the lecturer and/or tutors at:

Mr Lindsay Smith
Deputy Head of School
Phone +61 3 990 47201
Fax +61 3 990 47089

Mr Kwang-Hoon Oh

All email communication to you from your lecturer will occur through your Monash student email address. Please ensure that you read it regularly, or forward your email to your main address. Also check that your contact information registered with the University is up to date in My.Monash.