CPSC 1710 · Fall 2026

What you told us in Homework 4

53 of you answered the last question. Thank you for being candid. Here is what we heard, without names, and what we are doing about it.

What is working

  • 19 Small steps: running code, going line by line, working something out by hand and then checking it.
  • 13 Knowing what is inside. Tokens and neural networks feel less like a black box.
  • 8 Using AI as a tutor to read code.

Also named: building things with vibe coding, Tuesday lectures, starting homework in lab, the interactive explainers.

What is hard

  • 25 Too much code, or too fast, for someone new to programming. Reading a whole program alone was the hardest part of HW4.
  • 15 Instructions unclear, or materials in too many places.
  • 9 Leaning on AI, and not sure where the line is.
  • 8 Wanting a walkthrough before working alone.

What changes this week

  1. A guide before the code. HW5's notebook comes with a step-through tour. Do the tour first.
  2. One place. The Lab 5 page and the HW5 handout link everything you need.
  3. A label on every question saying what AI may and may not do.
  4. More by-hand work like Q1, and a lab session on what good pseudocode looks like.

What you can get today, from your own AI

Several requests are things your assistant can do right now, adjusted to your background:

  • “Explain this file one block at a time. I am new to Python. Before each block, ask me to guess what it does.”
  • “Make a one-page cheat sheet of the Python in this file: each function, what goes in, what comes out.”
  • “I work in finance. Give me two places this idea matters in my field.”