The rubric for how I grade labs is presented below. Each lab is worth 10 points, with the grade broken down into four categories. Most labs follow this structure very nicely, but there will be occasional labs that do not (e.g. the Hello World! lab). For those, I will adjust the rubric on a case-by-case basis.

Grading Item Points Percent
Code Passes All Acceptance Criteria (Instructor Specs) 3 30%
Code is Well Tested 3 30%
Clean and Organized Code 2 20%
Assignment-Specific Requirements 2 20%

Note that the Thought-Provoking Questions included with each lab are graded separately on a ten point scale.

Code Passes All Acceptance Criteria (Instructor Specs)

When I grade the lab assignments, I test your code via a combination of automated tests, manual checks, and code review.

Earned Description
0 The code does not compile, run, or pass any of my tests / checks.
1 The code compiles and runs, but it has substantial problems. It does not pass the majority of the automated tests, manual checks, or code review.
2 The code compiles, runs, and passes more than half of the automated tests, manual checks, and code review.
3 The code compiles, runs, and passes all of the automated tests, manual checks, and code review with no issues.

Code is Well Tested

You are expected to thoroughly test your code for each assignment. There are a variety of strategies we might use, including assert statements, driver programs, and testing frameworks. In some assignments, I will write all of the tests whereas in others, you will be responsible for writing tests.

Earned Description
0 The code is not tested, the program does not compile, or the tests do not run.
1 The code has a test suite or driver function, but there are many glaring holes in the tests. Alternatively, the tests are largely manual rather than automated if the assignment specified that they should be automated.
2 The code has a test suite that covers most of the cases outlined by the ZOMBIES acronym.
3 The code has a test suite that covers all of the cases outlined by the ZOMBIES acronym.

Clean and Organized Code

There are many things that I look for when assessing clean and organized code. For example:

  • Is the code well-written, well-organized and easy to follow?
  • Are different functions / classes split up into separate files, where appropriate?
  • Is the execution of the problem easy to understand and follow?
  • Are comments kept to a minimum and describe why something is implemented in a certain way, rather than how it is implemented?
  • And more…
Earned Description
0 The code is very difficult or impossible to follow due to the project organization or formatting choices.
1 The code has some organization and is readable with some effort. The student uses canonical Java formatting guidelines most of the time.
2 The code is well-organized and easy to follow. The student uses canonical Java formatting guidelines.

Assignment-Specific Requirements

Most assignments have additional requirements included within them. For example, I might specify that students perform a code-review on their classmate’s work, pair program on a given problem, use a particular library, or avoid the use of certain functions. Most of the time, this is a binary “you accomplished the task or not” part of the grade. I might give partial credit in this section on a case-by-case basis.

Earned Description
0 Student has not accomplished the assignment-specific requirements as outlined in the problem statement.
1 Student has partially completed the assignment-specific requirements as outlined in the problem statement.
2 Student has fully accomplished the assignment-specific requirements as outlined in the problem statement.