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Online Course

Computing in Python I: Fundamentals and Procedural Programming

All-Time Top 100

Georgia Institute of Technology via edX

(56)
2.1k
Found in Python, Programming Languages
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  • Provider edX
  • Cost Free Online Course (Audit)
  • Session Upcoming
  • Language English
  • Certificate $99 Certificate Available
  • Effort 9-10 hours a week
  • Duration 5 weeks long
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Overview

This course starts from the beginning, covering the basics of how a computer interprets lines of code; how to write programs, evaluate their output, and revise the code itself; how to work with variables and their changing values; and how to use mathematical, boolean, and relational operators.

By the end of this course, you'll be able to write small programs in Python that use variables, mathematical operators, and logical operators. For example, you could write programs that carry out complex mathematical operations, like calculating the interest rate necessary to reach a savings goal, recommending apparel options based on weather patterns, or calculating a grade based on multiple percentages.

Structurally, the course is comprised of several parts. Instruction is delivered via a series of short (2-3 minute) videos. In between those videos, you'll complete both multiple choice questions and coding problems to demonstrate your knowledge of the material that was just covered.

Syllabus

Chapter 1: Computing. The fundamentals of how computers work, what program code is, and how to get setup for the rest of the course.

Chapter 2: Programming.  The basic principles of computer programming: writing and running code, evaluating results, and compiling vs. executing.

Chapter 3: Debugging. The common results of running program code, and how to use those results to inform revision of your code.

Chapter 4: Procedural Programming. The fundamental approach to program code: writing sequences of lines of code that run in order to accomplish an objective.

Chapter 5: Variables. Creating and modifying variables, tracing how their values may change as a program runs, and understanding the role of data types.

Chapter 6: Logical Operators. Working with relational (greater than, less than, equal to) and logical (and, or, not) operators to make decisions in code.

Chapter 7: Mathematical Operators. Adding addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, modulus, and exponents to your code, and seeing how they work with unexpected data types.

Taught by

David Joyner

Tags

python core

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Reviews for edX's Computing in Python I: Fundamentals and Procedural Programming Based on 56 reviews

  • 5 stars 80%
  • 4 stars 14%
  • 3 stars 4%
  • 2 star 0%
  • 1 star 2%

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  • 1
Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
This course does a great job of breaking down topics into smaller concepts so you can absorb them as you go. I also appreciate the questions sprinkled throughout the videos and the smartbook. The programming challenges are great because it gives you multiple tries to figure it out, though the error messages are not always enough. There were a few times I used a separate REPL to identify the typo or other minor issue. I'll be starting the next course next week!
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WL
Wim L
by Wim completed this course, spending 35 hours a week on it and found the course difficulty to be easy.
I have programmed - without taking any course - in Python 2.x more than 10 years ago (and I forgot most of it). I am interested in data science and was looking for a Python course as a first step up. I was also looking at an introductory programming course suitable for my kids; Python is perfect for that.

I have followed all 4 "Computing in Python"- courses, and I feel ready now to take on more advanced Python courses or books.

Each course is divided in 4 chapters, each chapter ends with an "exam", the course ends with a final exam. Each course took about a week to …
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I am a super beginner at coding. This made me want to pull my hair out at times, but like boolean logic puzzles, keeping at it paid off. I have no real coding support network to fall back on, but I figured things out eventually, occasionally searching the web for answers on specific tasks, such as how to turn a single digit number into a double digit by adding zeros in front. Downloading the book and running it through an application to add a table of contents to the book was really helpful. I tried a couple of different methods of answering the online book questions, but ultimately ran thro…
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I took this course on edX as someone almost completely new to programming languages. I've learn basic C++ and HTML around 8 years ago, but I've forgotten all of it. The progress of the course is very comfortable and is really helpful to set a good foundation for new programmers. The practices along the way also helps solidify concepts that they teach. I am looking forward to subsequent python courses! For someone who is working part-time, just an hour everyday is sufficient to complete this course in a few weeks. For people who can commit a couple days, I believe 4 days would be enough to cover the entire course.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I took this course on the audited track so did not have access to the full practice problems nor final proctored test. I found the material very well explained, clear and easy to follow. I enjoyed the class very much and found it a very good intro into computing and python.

My only points for improvement would be to have more code writing exercises to do as these were the most interesting and meant we were really practicing.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I really enjoyed this class - the use of the interactive textbook, coding challenges, and multiple-choice quizzes were perfect. I'm also a big fan of how Georgia Tech does not do terribly long video instruction - they break it up into bite-sized chunks of information that make it easier to consume information and stay engaged with the material. Highly recommend the class and look forward to taking more in the Python CS1301 series.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
After taking another Python course by Microsoft I truly appreciated the GREAT detail that was given in this course. I took the free version because $99 is awfully steep for such a short course with no real human interaction IMHO. Unlike the Microsoft course which gave you access to all of the same content (just without answers or grades) this course hid any of the coding exercises or problem sets unless you paid for the verified course (with the exception of a practice exam at the end)... which also probably explains why there is little to no assistance out on the interwebs for this course.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
The combination of instruction via videos and reading, partnered with many assessments along the way help this course stand above many others that teach the same or similar content. Great Class!
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
This was a great way to revise and learn some python skills, videos are informative, questions are interesting, I don't see why not to take this course!
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
My goal with this course was to gain some basic programming skills in Python. This course has an academic bottom-up approach, lots of theory. I used external resources such as Head First Python, Learn Python the Hard Way, and Crash Course in Python, all of these offer more useful study aids (flash cards to help memorize truth tables, as one example). They also offer more practical problems which I found to be more useful for grasping the concepts, and being able to apply them in a meaningful way.

There are typographical and grammatical structure errors in some of the online prob…
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I have found in this course what I was looking for - I was playing with a thought about changing my career path to programming in my head for a while, but didnt know where to start? I think this was really good choice. It is selfpaced (for employed person it is necessary), well explained (really, probably the best learning material I have met in my life structurally, explanatory, comprehensive, fluently building on preceding chapters, well - everything it should have, almost fun to go through...) course with lot of practise excercises (you actually program most of the time on real life problems). Also you get the idea where to move next from the exercises topic orientation. I have done all 4 courses from the profesional certificate and I thing it was really well spend money, 5 star, recommending!
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I tried this course after trying another introduction to Python course first (microsoft). I found that this course gave me a far better UNDERSTANDING of what I was actually doing, instead of just replicating instructions. This makes the course a bit more slow paced, but in my opinion it's worth the effort. I will certaintly be following the next classes.

As room for improvement - I thought the problems on a whole were a bit too easy. These are good to start with and improve your confidence. But over time I would have enjoyed bigger challenges. Coding challenges that you can really sit on and think about. I think that would have completed the learning experience for me!
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
There's always something new to learn no matter how much you've developed on a programming language one has used in the past. This course filled in a few knowledge gaps or wonders from the instructor's perspective that demands continuous attention on every detail, through tricky short exercises. It's my firm opinion that's how one will learn any language, hence the 5/5 on the review.

The pace is totally time affordable, in fact, if you've programmed in Python before you can complete the class at half of the time allotted by the course, just as it's mentioned at course's start.

Highly recommended to all levels.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
The course is well thought out and implemented. The delivery is clear and understandable. The only area for improvement would be how some of the questions are worded. Sometimes the questions were difficult to follow when multiple variables were used and labeled vaguely, such as "a", "b", "c" and then had to be referenced for multiple questions. A possible improvement would be to 'build' the variable. Example: Instead of using "a", "b", "c", use "apple" for "a", "bike" for "b", "cat" for "c". That way it's easier to follow along as they 'build'.
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DS
Danica S
by Danica completed this course.
If you have any programming background this is a pretty easy course to move through. While I've never used python before, I currently use SQL on a regular basis for work. Because of this, I already understood many of the core principals of programming, so it was a matter of me learning how to apply it using python. Would definitely recommend this course for those looking to get their feet wet in python. Even without any programming experience, I feel the way in which the content is explained makes learning the tool pretty accessible.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
I began this course with programming experience in JavaScript. While a lot of the concepts were the same, it was really nice reviewing them in such an accessible format. The videos were clear with well thought-out analogies and the textbook really allows you to skim and answer questions at your own pace. This course is great for beginners or those interested in learning Python syntax. I'm looking forward to taking the remaining courses.
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Neville C
Neville completed this course, spending 4 hours a week on it and found the course difficulty to be very easy.
This is a very easy way to learn how to program using Python. This is not a crash course for learning Python. This is a very good introduction to programming. I tried several times to learn Python and failed because many programmer like "the hard way", which may be good if you already know how to program. I highly recommend this series from David Joyner and Georgia Tech. It is well explained and have good exercises.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
The class covered a lot of material for an into class. I felt that the combo of the videos and the smart book really allowed you to digest the information. Unlike most online class questions, they were very challenging at times and really made you think and do research if necessary to come to the proper conclusion. I would definitely recommend this to other students interested in learning more about computing & python.
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Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
This course taught me important fundamental programming concepts in Python.

I feel quite accomplished having completed it!

I'm excited to begin the next course in this series and I know these skills will help me achieve my future goals and develop my computer science abilities!

Thanks to all who helped develop these courses, offering such valuable resources in an open, accessible, and affordable platform!
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
Anonymous
Anonymous completed this course.
Without trying very hard, just a few hours here and there, you should be able to complete this course in under 2 weeks. It was straight-forward and easy to follow. Since I have some familiarity with programming in Java at least, most of what was included was review (or how to do it in this setting).

The videos were broken up into nice chunks (most were under 5 minutes), and the concepts were clear.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
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