Overview
Relational databases are pervasive in information technology; designing and building these databases is a challenging yet rewarding occupation. This unit will introduce you to data modelling, relational database theory, and normalisation. These are essential skills for the design and implementation of relational databases. The problems associated with poorly designed and implemented databases are demonstrated. The important database language Structured Query Language (SQL) is taught in sufficient depth to allow you to appreciate its potential and limitations. In this unit, you will design and implement a small database application. The unit aims to give you a solid theoretical foundation while also providing you with an opportunity to apply the theory.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Anti-Requisite: COIT12167 Database Use and Design
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Staff observation
The lack of supervision in online quizzes increases the risk of academic misconduct, compromising the integrity of the assessment in the unit.
Replace the online quizzes with an invigilated examination.
- Differentiate database applications, systems, and their role in supporting business processes
- Develop Structured Query Language statements
- Design and develop relational database models
- Implement database designs using a relational Database Management System (DBMS)
- Identify database issues related to ethical data management, concurrency, security and backup and recovery in a multi-user database environment.
The Australian Computer Society (ACS) recognises the Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA). SFIA is adopted by organisations, governments and individuals in many countries and provides a widely used and consistent definition of ICT skills. SFIA is increasingly being used when developing job descriptions and role profiles. ACS members can use the tool MySFIA to build a skills profile at https://www.acs.org.au/professionalrecognition/mysfia-b2c.html
This unit contributes to the following workplace skills as defined by SFIA 8 (the SFIA code is included):
- Database Design (DBDS)
- Programming/Software Development (PROG)
- Database administration (DBAD)
- Data management (DATM)
- Security administration (SCAD)
- Data modelling and design (DTAN).
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||
| 3 - Examination - 40% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - First Nations Knowledges | |||||
| 11 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Textbooks
DATABASE CONCEPTS
- Edition: 9th edn (2019)
- Authors: David M. Kroenke, David J. Auer, Scott L. Vandenberg, Robert C. Yoder
- Pearson Higher Education
- Hoboken Hoboken , New Jersey , USA
- ISBN: 9780135188149
- Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- MySQL Community Server 8 (https://www.mysql.com/downloads/)
- MySQL Workbench 8 (https://dev.mysql.com/downloads/workbench/)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
g.galea@cqu.edu.au
Week 1
Begin Date: 10 Mar 2025Module/Topic
Introduction to Databases
Chapter
Chapter 1 Getting Started
https://dev.mysql.com/doc/mysql-getting-started/en/
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 2
Begin Date: 17 Mar 2025Module/Topic
Structured Query Language (SQL) Part 1
Chapter
Chapter 3 Structured Query Language
Events and Submissions/Topic
Read specifications for Assessment 1.
Week 3
Begin Date: 24 Mar 2025Module/Topic
Structured Query Language (SQL) Part 2
Chapter
Chapter 3 Structured Query Language
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 4
Begin Date: 31 Mar 2025Module/Topic
Entity-Relationship Diagram Part 1
Chapter
Chapter 4 Data Modeling and the Entity-Relationship Model
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 5
Begin Date: 07 Apr 2025Module/Topic
Entity-Relationship Diagram Part 2
Chapter
Chapter 4 Data Modeling and the Entity-Relationship Model
Events and Submissions/Topic
Break Week
Begin Date: 14 Apr 2025Module/Topic
There are no scheduled classes this week, but your local tutor may advise of any rescheduled classes or activities.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Enjoy the break.
Week 6
Begin Date: 21 Apr 2025Module/Topic
Relational Model and Normalization
Chapter
Chapter 2 The Relational Model
Events and Submissions/Topic
Read the specifications for Assessment 2.
Week 7
Begin Date: 28 Apr 2025Module/Topic
Database Design
Chapter
Chapter 5 Database Design
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 8
Begin Date: 05 May 2025Module/Topic
Database Administration Part 1
Chapter
Chapter 6 Database Administration
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 9
Begin Date: 12 May 2025Module/Topic
Database Administration Part 2
Chapter
Chapter 6 Database Administration
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 10
Begin Date: 19 May 2025Module/Topic
Big Data, Data Warehouses, and Business Intelligence Systems
Chapter
Chapter 8 Data Warehouses, Business Intelligence Systems, and Big Data
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 11
Begin Date: 26 May 2025Module/Topic
Cloud Databases
Chapter
Chapter 7 Database Processing Applications
Chapter 8 Data Warehouses, Business Intelligence Systems, and Big Data
Events and Submissions/Topic
Complete the unit and teaching evaluation.
Week 12
Begin Date: 02 Jun 2025Module/Topic
Exam Preparation
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Prepare for the exam.
Complete the unit and teaching evaluation.
Review/Exam Week
Begin Date: 09 Jun 2025Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Exam Week
Begin Date: 16 Jun 2025Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Written Assessment
Students will be assessed on material covered in lectures and tutorials in the first three (3) weeks of the unit. Assessment 1 consists of the following database related activity:
- writing SQL queries to perform various processing and to retrieve data from the given database(s)
For further information, please refer to the assessment specification and marking guide/criteria available on the unit website.
Week 5 Friday (11 Apr 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Online via Moodle
Week 6 Friday (25 Apr 2025)
Within 2 weeks from the due date or within 2 weeks of submission (whichever is later).
Students will be assessed on developing SQL statements that solve the business requirements and involve the following:
- using appropriate clauses such as SELECT, FROM, WHERE, GROUP BY, HAVING and ORDER BY
- selecting relevant tables and joining them appropriately
- creating other SQL queries such as UPDATE
Students will also be assessed on understanding the role of database applications in business.
- Differentiate database applications, systems, and their role in supporting business processes
- Develop Structured Query Language statements
2 Written Assessment
Assessment 2 consists of the following types of database related activities:
- designing databases to satisfy the requirements of the given case study(s)
- developing conceptual data model diagram(s)
- performing logical design, normalization and physical design
- implementing the database(s) by using MySQL server
For further information, please refer to the assessment specification and marking guide/criteria which will be available on the unit website.
Week 10 Friday (23 May 2025) 11:45 pm AEST
Online via Moodle
Week 12 Friday (6 June 2025)
Within 2 weeks from the due date or within 2 weeks of submission (whichever is later).
Your assessment solution will be assessed mainly on your ability to:
- create appropriate Entity Relationship model diagrams using proper symbols
- develop Relations by mapping ERDs and normalizing them
- provide column specifications for the developed Relations
- create tables and make appropriate relationships among them
- Design and develop relational database models
- Implement database designs using a relational Database Management System (DBMS)
- Identify database issues related to ethical data management, concurrency, security and backup and recovery in a multi-user database environment.
Examination
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
