CS170: Programming for the World Around Us - Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level (100 Points)

Assignment Goals

The goals of this assignment are:
  1. To implement a mathematical formula in Python or on the micro:bit

The Assignment

The Flesch-Kincaid Reading Level is a measurement of the writing level of text. It calculates the recommended grade level for the reader of the text using the following formula:

\(gradeLevel = 0.39 \times wps + 11.8 \times spw - 15.59\)

Where wps is the number of words per sentence, and spw is the number of syllables per word in the text. In this lab, you will write a program either in Python or using the micro:bit to implement this formula.

What to Do

Write a program to input the wps and spw variables and implement the formula using Python.

If you are Using Python

In python, you can input a floating point value (a decimal value like 4.5) like this:

wps = input("Enter the number of words per sentence:") 
wps = float(wps) # convert from text to a floating point number

Calculate the Flesch-Kincaid reading level and display it as output. To do this, you can first calculate a variable gradeLevel (just like the wps variable above), and set it equal to the formula given above. The + and - operators exist in Python, and multiplication is performed using the * character. Otherwise, you can enter this formula just as you see it on this page!

You can print the variable and some descriptive text by typing print("The answer is: ", gradeLevel). Feel free to revise this to something that makes sense to you!

Questions to Answer in your README

  1. What inputs would give you a grade level between 4 and 5?

  2. What grade level do you think a typical newspaper targets? Count a few sentences of a news article and try it out! Write down which article you used and what results you obtained.

Extra Credit (10%): Calling the Program with Real Text

These functions will count the number of words per sentence and syllables per word of a text variable. Paste these into your python program and modify your program to input a few sentences of text from the keyboard to compute the reading level. Specifically, you can compute the wps and spw values by setting them equal to numWordsPerSentence(text) and numSyllablesPerWord(text), respectively (instead of setting them to input commands which obtain the values from the keyboard!). You can create and set a new variable text equal to an input that allows you to type some text of your own to measure.

def numSyllables(s):
  return sum(list(map(lambda x: 1 if x in ["a","i","e","o","u","y","A","E","I","O","U","y"] else 0,s)))

def numWords(s):
  return len(s.split(" "))

def numSentences(s):
  return sum(list(map(lambda x: 1 if x in [".", "!", "?"] else 0,s)))

def numWordsPerSentence(s):
  if numSentences(s) == 0:
    return 0
  else:
    return numWords(s) / numSentences(s)

def numSyllablesPerWord(s):
  if numWords(s) == 0:
    return 0
    
  syllables = 0
  for word in s.split(" "):
    syllables += numSyllables(word)

  return syllables / numWords(s)

Extra Credit (10%): Re-Write this Program Using micro:bit

For extra credit, implement your program using the micro:bit language! With the micro:bit, you can enter the values as variables in the on start block. Be sure to submit both versions.

What to Turn In

When you’re done, write a README for your project, and save all your files, before exporting your project to ZIP. Using micro:bit, you can right-click in your code space, and choose the Snapshot menu to save a screenshot of your code to ZIP and submit. In your README, answer any bolded questions presented on this page. In addition, write a few paragraphs describing what you did, how you did it, and how to use your program. If your program requires the user to type something in, describe that here. If you wrote functions to help solve your problem, what are they, and what do they do? Imagine that you are giving your program to another student in the class, and you want to explain to them how to use it. What would you tell them? Imagine also that another student had given you the functions that you wrote for your program: what would you have wished that you knew about how to call those functions?

Submission

In your submission, please include answers to any questions asked on the assignment page, as well as the questions listed below, in your README file. If you wrote code as part of this assignment, please describe your design, approach, and implementation in a separate document prepared using a word processor or typesetting program such as LaTeX. This document should include specific instructions on how to build and run your code, and a description of each code module or function that you created suitable for re-use by a colleague. In your README, please include answers to the following questions:
  • Describe what you did, how you did it, what challenges you encountered, and how you solved them.
  • Please answer any questions found throughout the narrative of this assignment.
  • If collaboration with a buddy was permitted, did you work with a buddy on this assignment? If so, who? If not, do you certify that this submission represents your own original work?
  • Please identify any and all portions of your submission that were not originally written by you (for example, code originally written by your buddy, or anything taken or adapted from a non-classroom resource). It is always OK to use your textbook and instructor notes; however, you are certifying that any portions not designated as coming from an outside person or source are your own original work.
  • Approximately how many hours it took you to finish this assignment (I will not judge you for this at all...I am simply using it to gauge if the assignments are too easy or hard)?
  • Your overall impression of the assignment. Did you love it, hate it, or were you neutral? One word answers are fine, but if you have any suggestions for the future let me know.
  • Using the grading specifications on this page, discuss briefly the grade you would give yourself and why. Discuss each item in the grading specification.
  • Any other concerns that you have. For instance, if you have a bug that you were unable to solve but you made progress, write that here. The more you articulate the problem the more partial credit you will receive (it is fine to leave this blank).

Assignment Rubric

Description Pre-Emerging (< 50%) Beginning (50%) Progressing (85%) Proficient (100%)
Algorithm Implementation (60%) The algorithm fails on the test inputs due to major issues, or the program fails to compile and/or run The algorithm fails on the test inputs due to one or more minor issues The algorithm is implemented to solve the problem correctly according to given test inputs, but would fail if executed in a general case due to a minor issue or omission in the algorithm design or implementation A reasonable algorithm is implemented to solve the problem which correctly solves the problem according to the given test inputs, and would be reasonably expected to solve the problem in the general case
Code Quality and Documentation (30%) Code commenting and structure are absent, or code structure departs significantly from best practice, and/or the code departs significantly from the style guide Code commenting and structure is limited in ways that reduce the readability of the program, and/or there are minor departures from the style guide Code documentation is present that re-states the explicit code definitions, and/or code is written that mostly adheres to the style guide Code is documented at non-trivial points in a manner that enhances the readability of the program, and code is written according to the style guide
Writeup and Submission (10%) An incomplete submission is provided, or the README file submitted is blank The program is submitted, but not according to the directions in one or more ways (for example, because it is lacking a readme writeup or missing answers to written questions) The program is submitted according to the directions with a minor omission or correction needed, including a readme writeup describing the solution and answering nearly all questions posed in the instructions The program is submitted according to the directions, including a readme writeup describing the solution and answering all questions posed in the instructions

Please refer to the Style Guide for code quality examples and guidelines.