Uncle Sam’s America
Fall 2003 Status Report
Project Number Ongo8c
Client: Ames Community Schools
Faculty Advisors:
Professor John Lamont
Professor Ralph Patterson
CprE/EE 492 Team Member:
Ricky Tze-Hua Tan, CprECprE/EE 491 Team Members:
Laura Longoria, EE / Li-Wei Low, CprENov. 18, 2003
Ongo8c Status Report CprE/EE 492 Revision 1.0
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Executive Summary 1
Acknowledgements 1
Problem Statement 1
General Problem Statement 1
General Solution Approach 2
Operating Environment 2
Intended Users and Uses 2
Assumptions and Limitations 3
Expected End Product and Other Deliverables 4
Project Accomplishments and Status 5
Previous Accomplishments 5
Present Accomplishments 6
Future Required Activities 10
Recommendation for Continued Effort 12
Documentation of Current Efforts and Results 13
Project Definition Activities 13
Research Activities 13
Implementation Activities 13
Testing and Modification Activities 13
Resources and Schedules 14
Personnel Effort Requirements 14
Other Resource Requirements 14
Financial Requirements 15
Schedules 17
Closure Materials 17
Lessons Learned 17
What Went Well 17
What Did Not Go Well 17
Technical Knowledge Gained 18
Non-technical Knowledge Gained 18
What Would Be Done Differently 18
Risks and Risk Management 18
Project Team Information 20
Client Information 20
Faculty Advisor Information 20
Team Member Information 20
Closing Summary 20
List of Figures
Figure 1: Previous Uncle Sam’s America Main Page 5
Figure 2: Previous Uncle Sam’s America State Detail Page 6
Figure 3: Current Uncle Sam’s America Main Page 7
Figure 4: Current Uncle Sam’s America State Detail Page 8
Figure 5: Uncle Sam’s America Comparison Page 9
Figure 6: Uncle Sam’s America Blank Map Page 10
Figure 7: Chart of Current Semester’s Progress 17
List of Tables
Table 1: Recommended Project Completion Timeline 7
Table 2: Estimated Personnel Effort 10
Table 3: Revised Personnel Effort 11
Table 4: Other Required Resources (Estimated) 11
Table 5: Other Required Resources (Actual) 12
Table 6: Estimated Financial Budget 12
Table 7: Actual Financial Budget 13
Definition of Terms
The following table will help to define technical terms and project-specific terms used throughout this document.
Table 1: Definition of Terms
Term / DefinitionACS / Ames Community Schools
Apache / A software product that serves web pages to clients requesting them. Apache can be used in conjunction with PHP in order to produce dynamic web pages that are built and delivered to the requesting client on the fly.
GUI / Graphical user interface – what the user looks at and interacts with while using the software
LAMP / A development environment utilizing Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP
Linux / An open-source operating system that is optimized for use as a web application server
HTML / Hyper-Text Markup Language – the language used to describe the formatting and presentation of a web page
MTSS / An acronym for Mathematical Teaching Software System, one of the subprojects of the Ongo8 project.
PHP / Pseudo-acronym for Hypertext Preprocessor. A computer language that enables Apache web server to dynamically generate HTML documents.
SQL / Structured Query Language – a language used to retrieve information from SQL-compliant databases.
MySQL / An open-source implementation of an SQL server
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Ongo8c Status Report CprE/EE 492 Revision 1.0
Introduction
This section will briefly describe the project and the reason it is needed, the scope of the actual project undertaking, results to date, and work to be completed. A general problem statement will also be found further down accompanied by a general solution approach. The operating environment will also be discussed, and the intended users and uses will be laid out along with the assumptions and limitations used to lay the groundwork for the project.
Executive Summary
Ames Community Schools has recognized a need for software to enhance instruction in the areas of geography and mathematics. As a part of this effort, Team Ongo8c was formed to create a web application to act as a reference tool for United States geography data. With the tool, students would be able to click on a state in a United States map, which would lead to another page containing information about that state.
The actual scope of the project has been expanded beyond the stated premise to include mathematics problem solving as well. When the project is complete, it will include a reference tool to view state data, a comparison tool to compare one item of data across multiple states, a tool to update the data stored in the database, and a Find Uncle Sam game. The game will integrate mathematics problem solving by presenting the student with a math problem to solve. A correct answer will yield a geographical clue that, when used with the reference tool, will help the student locate where Uncle Sam is hiding.
To date, the reference tool and comparison tool portions of the application has been completed. The entire interface of the software was improved for easier navigation and visual attractiveness. In the coming semesters, the team will integrate the code with the brand new PHP Application Framework from the Ongo8d team, as well as code the data administrator and game portions of the application.
Acknowledgements
It is only fitting to extend thanks to Professor John Lamont and Professor Ralph Patterson, the faculty advisors for the project, for the guidance they have given and will continue to give throughout this project. Also, thanks go to the client, the teachers of the Ames Community School District, whose needs serve as guidance toward the final product.
Problem Statement
A general problem statement will be found within this subsection. In addition, a general solution approach statement will be included in order to provide a foundation upon which to build the rest of the report around.
General Problem Statement
Ames Community Schools (ACS) has been concerned with the performance of their students in problem solving on a nationally standardized exam. While ACS traditionally scores in the 90+% range on traditional math skills, results from the problem-solving section were closer to 40%. The purpose of this project is to provide software that supplements classroom learning, particularly in the areas of mathematics and geography, while stressing the improvement of problem-solving skills. The software must be easy to use, as the target audience lies in the upper elementary and lower middle school years, and provides a means by which the teacher can enter the program and check on student progress.
General Solution Approach
To this end, a suite of web applications will be produced. The final product will allow students to solve problems, and allow teachers to view the results. The scope of Team Ongo8c’s involvement in this task will be to produce a geographic program based on the United States named Uncle Sam’s America. Students will be able to log onto the program through an internet-connected computer and research facts about the individual states in the United States of America. The student will also have the option of completing mathematics-based questions comparing certain state data to that of other states. The final project step will be to produce a game in which the user is sent “around the country” searching for clues to find where Uncle Sam is hiding. By utilizing the software to extend classroom learning, the students of ACS will be better prepared for standardized tests, ultimately resulting in higher test scores.
Operating Environment
Uncle Sam’s America runs on LAMP (Linux – Apache – MySQL – PHP) architecture. The web application code is written in PHP, which runs as a module to the popular and powerful Apache web server. The software uses MySQL as its database backend and runs on the Linux operating system. This provides a powerful open-standards environment for the web applications to run in, which will also allow for easy expansion in the future.
Intended Users and Uses
The program shall be designed for three user types: elementary school students (primarily in grades 3-6), teachers, and school or computer administrators.
The students shall be the primary users of the system, so most of the application’s interface has been designed with them in mind. They will access the program through a basic web browser. In this way, they may be able to access the program at school, at home, or anywhere else that they have access to an Internet-enabled system. The student can then navigate through the program using a point-and-click interface. In using the program, the student should learn different facts about the states of the US, and see the differences from state to state. The program will be appealing and entertaining enough to keep a young student’s attention for some time.
Teachers shall be able to track a student’s progress when using the program and review the results of their activities. They will also make suggestions to the administrator regarding anything that they would like to be changed in order to make the program more complete and useful.
Administrators will be involved in database maintenance. They will be able to update or correct the actual data values. They will also be responsible for managing user information.
Assumptions and Limitations
Assumptions made in the development of the software design include the following:
· Clients are operating Internet Explorer or Netscape (Version 5.0 or later).
· Team members have write-access to the server.
· All client computers are connected to the Internet.
· The software will eventually run on top of an infrastructure supporting common functionality across multiple applications.
· There will be adequate supervision with computer experience to assist the students when they are operating the system.
· The students have been exposed to relevant topics in mathematics and geography.
· This software shall be a supplement to classroom instruction.
· Integration of mathematics will best be achieved using a game-style interface in order to keep the user from getting bored with the software.
Challenges and limitations to development include the following:
· Team members must learn and become comfortable with PHP and MySQL.
· Primary students may not have much prior experience using computers. The client software must be easy to understand.
· The software can only do what it has been coded to do, but needs to be “alive” as possible in order to retain the interest of the intended users.
· Internet connection and internet bandwidth.
· Computer/processor speed of the client machines.
· Capabilities of target database. (MySQL)
Expected End Product and Other Deliverables
At project completion, Team Ongo8c will deliver to ACS a cohesive web application that will include the following:
· A navigable map of the United States that will retrieve information about any state that may have been selected
· A “compare” function allowing users to select certain states and aspects and compare the values between those states.
· An administration utility, to be implemented either using the May03-01 software framework or in conjunction with the framework, that will allow the addition and deletion of teachers, students, and school administrators. The utility should also include gradebook functionality to keep track of student success; it should track each problem’s rate of success, and should allow for the addition and deletion of problems.
· A “Find Uncle Sam” game that will allow the user to go on a virtual trip around the United States solving problems to obtain clues to determine the location of Uncle Sam.
Project Accomplishments and Status
This section will highlight in further detail the accomplishments met this semester, those remaining to be completed, a brief outline for total project completion, as well as a recommendation of work beyond the scope of the project.
Previous Accomplishments
Team Ongo8c was created at the beginning of Fall Semester 2002. Thus, the only accomplishments prior to this semester involved conception, design, and documentation of the project for future semesters to use. Main accomplishments during Fall Semester 2002 were the conception, finalization and acceptance of database schema and the completion and acceptance of the general design behind Uncle Sam’s America. The main accomplishments for Spring 2003 semester are the population of the database with state information and the completion of a working reference tool, which allows users to click on an active map of the United States and call up information pertaining to that state.
Figure 1 (below), shows a screenshot of the main page of the reference tool, in which a student can select a state from the United States.
Figure 1: Previous Uncle Sam’s America Main Page
Figure 2 (below) shows a screenshot of a state detail page (in this case, Delaware) from the application, which is obtained by clicking on Delaware in Figure 1 (above) or by selecting Delaware from the drop-down menu and clicking the Go button.
Figure 2: Previous Uncle Sam’s America State Detail Page
Present Accomplishments
This semester of work for Ongo8c was one of success. The project is now completed enough to be demonstrated to its client, the Ames Community Schools. Its visual design has been improved for visual attractiveness, keeping in mind that its primary users are elementary school students in grades 3 to 6. The database was refined until it was fully complete and error-free. The reference tools for the main country page and state detail pages were improved. Finally, the state comparison tools were coded and implemented, allowing users to compare up to ten states’ information side-by-side on one page.
Figure 3 (below), shows a screenshot of the current main page of the reference tool, in which a student can select a state from the United States.
Figure 3: Current Uncle Sam’s America Main Page
Figure 4 (below) shows a screenshot of a state detail page (in this case, Iowa) from the application, which is obtained by clicking on Iowa in Figure 1 (above) or by selecting Iowa from the drop-down menu and clicking the Go button.