Assignment workshop: research, planning and referencing

This week’s topics

Assignment workshop: research, planning and referencing

1. Unpacking the assignment brief and criteria
2. Finding and evaluating sources
3. Planning and referencing

What you will be able to do

• 1.1 Describe a data structure.
• 1.2 Explain a range of linear and non-linear data structures.
• 1.3 Analyse the impact of the choice of data structure on algorithmic performance.
• 2.1 Demonstrate an ability to write Big O and little o notation to describe algorithmic complexity.
• 2.2 Explain the impact of algorithmic design choice on computational complexity for a variety of examples.
• 2.3 Explain the difference between P and NP.
• 2.4 Evaluate open problems in problem classification and the impacts of future technologies on the difficulty in solving different classes algorithms.
• 3.1 Use recursion and memoisation as tools to design solutions to problems.
• 3.2 Describe a range of sort, search, and pathfinding algorithms.
• 3.3 Explain the trade-off between memory and computational complexity in algorithmic design.
• 3.4 Critically analyse algorithmic paradigms such as the greedy approach and divide and conquer approach.
• 3.5 Evaluate sort, search, and pathfinding algorithms in terms of their space and time complexity.
• 4.1 Explain how to write pseudo-code for algorithmic design.
• 4.2 Implement pseudocode in a programming language.
• 4.3 Evaluate the correctness and speed of an algorithm.
• 4.4 Use debugging to correct errors in algorithmic implementation.

Activity

Plan the unit assignment against every criterion; source and reference the evidence.

Study materials

Further resources

• Foundations of Information Systems, 9.2: Project objectives and schedule · PDF · OpenStax Foundations of Information Systems (2025), 9.2 on defining objectives, deliverables and scope and developing a schedule (a step up), pp. 348–349 · for registered students
• Writing Guide, 14.1: Primary, Secondary and Tertiary Sources · PDF · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook (2021), 14.1 on primary and secondary sources (CRAAP test on p. 458), pp. 451–455 · for registered students
• Questioning CRAAP: a comparison of source evaluation methods with first-year undergraduat… · Open-access article · Lowe et al. (2021), Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. Tests the CRAAP checklist against other source-evaluation methods. · for registered students