Course overview 
In this course students develop knowledge on relational database design. The course focuses on practical concepts and examples. Activities include using appropriate design tools to design a relational database system for a substantial problem, understanding and being able to normalize a database using the first 3 normal forms of database normalization, developing a fully functional relational database system based on an existing system design, and testing the system against user and system requirements.
Participants in piloting
This is an obligatory course conducted to 3rd year students. Approximately105 students enrolled in the course in the 1st semester of the 2020 – 2021 academic year, from September 2020 to January 2021.
Timeframe
September 2021 – January 2021
Use of ALIEN services and tools
This course was delivered in the ALIEN problem-based learning laboratory instead of a typical classroom in which teacher-centered activities take place. Thanks to the flexible design of the laboratory the lesson plan focus on a specific concept as usual but was enriched with diverse activities for engaging students. Students built knowledge on many concepts of relational database management systems deploying fun and attractive methods including games delivered through Quizlet® or Kahoot®. During practical activities related to physical design students were required to work in groups to solve problems posted on the ALIEN problem-based learning platform.
Example of problems used in this course are available at https://virtual-campus.eu/alien/problems/enhanced-entity-relationship-diagram/ and https://virtual-campus.eu/alien/problems/enhanced-entity-relationship-diagram/ .
