COS4840/101/0/2022

Tutorial Letter 101/0/2022

Ontology Engineering
COS4840

Year Module

Computer Science Department

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Please register on myUnisa, activate your myLife e-mail account and
make sure that you have regular access to the myUnisa module
website, as well as your group website.

Note: This is a fully online module. It is, therefore, only available on myUnisa.

BARCODE
 CONTENTS

Page

1  INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................ 3 
1.1  Getting started ................................................................................................................................ 3 
2  OVERVIEW OF COS3711 .............................................................................................................. 4 
2.1  Purpose .......................................................................................................................................... 4 
2.2  Outcomes ....................................................................................................................................... 4 
3  CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION ............................................................................................ 4 
4  LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS .................................................................................... 4 
4.1  Lecturer ........................................................................................................................................... 4 
4.2  Department ..................................................................................................................................... 5 
4.3  University ........................................................................................................................................ 5 
5  RESOURCES ................................................................................................................................. 5 
5.1  Joining myUnisa ............................................................................................................................. 5 
5.2  Prescribed material ......................................................................................................................... 6 
5.3  Recommended sources .................................................................................................................. 6 
5.4  Prescribed software ........................................................................................................................ 6 
5.5  Library services and resources ....................................................................................................... 6 
6  STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES ................................................................................................. 7 
6.1  First-Year Experience Programme @ Unisa .................................................................................. 7 
7  HOW TO STUDY ONLINE ............................................................................................................. 8 
7.1  What does it mean to study fully online? ........................................................................................ 8 
7.2  myUnisa tools ................................................................................................................................. 8 
8  ASSESSMENT ............................................................................................................................... 9 
8.1  Assessment plan ............................................................................................................................ 9 
8.2  Assignment weights ........................................................................................................................ 9 
9  ACADEMIC DISHONESTY ............................................................................................................ 9 
9.1  Plagiarism ....................................................................................................................................... 9 
9.2  Cheating ....................................................................................................................................... 10 
9.3  More information ........................................................................................................................... 10 
10  STUDENTS WITH DISABILITY ................................................................................................... 10 
11  IN CLOSING ................................................................................................................................. 10 

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1 INTRODUCTION

Dear Student

Welcome to Ontology Engineering (COS4840), which is the study of what ontologies are (from a
computer science perspective), and how to go about building them. We trust that you will find this
module stimulating and interesting and wish you a successful year.

Do not hesitate to contact us (by email or telephone; the details are on the home page of the
COS4840 Ontology Engineering myUnisa site) if you are experiencing problems with the content
of this tutorial letter or any aspect of the module. We sincerely hope that you find this module, as
well as your online learning experience, interesting and rewarding and trust that you will complete
the module successfully.

Because this is a fully online module, you will need to use myUnisa to study and complete the
learning activities for this module. Visit the website for COS4840 Ontology Engineering on
myUnisa frequently.

1.1 Getting started

Owing to the nature of this module, you can read about the module and find your study material
online. Go to the website at https://my.unisa.ac.za and log in using your student number and
password. Click on "myModules" at the top of the web page and then on the module that you want
to access.

All study material for this module will be available on myUnisa. It is thus very important that you
register on myUnisa and access the module site on a regular basis. You must be registered on
myUnisa to be able to access your learning material, submit your assignments, gain access to
various learning resources, “chat” to your lecturer/e-tutor and fellow students about your studies
and the challenges that you might encounter, and to participate in online discussion forums.
Importantly, myUnisa contains the lessons which contains the study material for this module.

Some of the study materials are provided in PDF format for downloading from myUnisa. This will
allow you to read the study materials, even if you are not online. You can find a copy of the online
lessons on myUnisa in PDF format (TL102). While the PDF materials may appear slightly different
from the online study materials, the content is exactly the same. Note that no tutorial matter will
be printed and these will only be available on myUnisa.

Please activate your myLife email address as well as obtain access to the myUnisa module site.
Remember that the University will use your myLife email account to contact you, and we will also
use it to send you important updates to material in COS4840. It may be a good idea to set up
forwarding of emails sent to your myLife account to your primary email account or some other
account that you access regularly.

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We wish you every success with your studies!

2 OVERVIEW OF COS4840

2.1 Purpose

The purpose of this module is to provide an overview of ontologies, their uses, their languages,
and the tools and techniques (methodologies) for developing and debugging them. Qualifying
students will have a basic knowledge of ontology engineering and an understanding of its
principles. Students will be able to critically analyse and evaluate existing ontologies according to
these principles, and be able to apply appropriate techniques to develop, update or adapt simple
ontologies. This module forms part of the BSc Honours in Computing degree.

2.2 Outcomes

After completing this module, you should be able to:

 Demonstrate an understanding of ontologies and their uses
 Critically analyse and evaluate existing ontologies
 Demonstrate an understanding of techniques and methodologies for developing ontologies
 Use ontology development tools to develop new ontologies and adapt existing ones

3 CURRICULUM TRANSFORMATION

Unisa has implemented a transformation charter based on five pillars and eight dimensions. In
response to this charter, we have placed curriculum transformation high on the teaching and
learning agenda. Curriculum transformation includes the following pillars: student-centred
scholarship, the pedagogical renewal of teaching and assessment practices, the scholarship of
teaching and learning, and the infusion of African epistemologies and philosophies. These pillars
and their principles will be integrated at both programme and module levels as a phased-in
approach. You will notice a marked change in the teaching and learning strategy implemented by
Unisa, together with how the content is conceptualised in your modules. We encourage you to
embrace these changes during your studies at Unisa in a responsive way within the framework
of transformation.

4 LECTURER(S) AND CONTACT DETAILS

4.1 Lecturer

You are welcome to contact the COS4840 lecturer. The name and telephone number of the
lecturers will be supplied in a COSALL tutorial letter and can also be found on the module site on
myUnisa. You should also check the home page of the COS4840 site on myUnisa to see if there
have been any changes to the lecturing staff for this module.

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When you contact the lecturers, please do not forget to include your student number and module
code. This will help the lecturers to assist you.

4.2 Department

Should you have difficulty in contacting your lecturers, you may phone the general number of the
School of Computing. Your message will then be conveyed to the relevant lecturer. Remember
to provide your student number together with the relevant module code. You can contact the
Department of Computer Science at:
Telephone number: 011 670 9200
E-mail: [email protected]

4.3 University

To contact the University, follow the instructions on the Contact us page on the Unisa website.
Remember to have your student number available whenever you contact the University.
Whenever you contact a lecturer via e-mail, please include your student number in the subject
line to enable the lecturer to help you more effectively.

5 RESOURCES

5.1 Joining myUnisa

The myUnisa learning management system is the University's online campus which will help you
communicate with your lecturers, other students, and the administrative departments within
Unisa. To claim your myUnisa account, please follow the steps below:

1. Visit the myUnisa website at https://my.unisa.ac.za/portal

2. Click on the "Claim Unisa login" link on the top of the screen under the orange user ID box.
3. A new screen will load, prompting you to enter your student number. Please enter your
student number and click "continue".
4. Enter your surname, your full name, your date of birth and, finally, your South African ID
number (for South African citizens) OR your passport number (for foreign students). Then click
"continue". Remember to enter either an ID number or a passport number, NOT both.
5. Please read through the guidelines and click all the check boxes to acknowledge that you
have read all the information provided. Once you are done, click the "Acknowledge" button
to redirect you to the final page in the process.
6. The final page will display your myLife e-mail address, and your myLife AND myUnisa
password. This password will also be sent to the cellphone number displayed on the page for
safekeeping.
7. Please note that it can take up to 24 hours for your myLife e-mail account to be created.

Remember, the password provided is your myUnisa AND myLife password.

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5.2 Prescribed material

The prescribed material for COS4840 is:

Keet, C.M. (2020). An Introduction to Ontology Engineering.
DeBellis, M. (2021). A Practical Guide To Building OWL Ontologies Using Protégé 5.5 and Plugins

You do not need to purchase these as they are open educational resources and will be made
available on myUnisa under Additional Resources.

5.3 Recommended sources

Further recommended sources, which can be used as a starting point for further reading, can be
found in the Sources lesson on myUnisa.

5.4 Prescribed software

Details of the prescribed software, Protégé, can be found in the details for Lesson 2 on myUnisa.
This software is open-source, which you are free to download and install under the relevant open-
source license.

5.5 Library services and resources

The Unisa Library offers a range of information services and resources:

 For a general Library overview, go to
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/About-the-Library
Library @ a glance
 For detailed Library information, go to
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library
 For research support and services (eg personal librarians and literature search services), go
to
https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/corporate/default/Library/Library-services/Research-support

The Library has created numerous Library guides to assist you: http://libguides.unisa.ac.za

Recommended guides:
 Request recommended books and access e-reserve material:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request
 Requesting and finding library material: Postgraduate services:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/postgrad
 Finding and using library resources and tools (Research Support):
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/research-support
 Frequently asked questions about the Library:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/ask

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 Services to students living with disabilities:

https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/disability
 A-Z databases:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/az.php
 Subject-specific guides:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/?b=s
 Information on fines & payments:
https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/request/fines

Assistance with technical problems accessing the Unisa Library or resources:

https://libguides.unisa.ac.za/techsupport
[email protected] (insert your student number in the subject line please)
General library enquiries can be directed to [email protected]

6 STUDENT SUPPORT SERVICES

The Study @ Unisa website is available on myUnisa: www.unisa.ac.za/brochures/studies

This website has all the tips and information you need to succeed at Unisa.

6.1 First-Year Experience Programme @ Unisa

For many students, the transition from school education to tertiary education is beset with anxiety.
This is also true for first-time students to Unisa. Unisa is a dedicated open distance and e-learning
institution. Unlike face-to-face/contact institutions, Unisa is somewhat different. It is a mega
university and all our programmes are offered through a blended learning mode or fully online
learning mode. It is for this reason that we thought it necessary to offer first-time students
additional/extended support so that you can seamlessly navigate the Unisa teaching and learning
journey with little difficulty and few barriers. In this regard we offer a specialised student support
programme to students entering Unisa for the first time. We refer to this programme as Unisa’s
First-Year Experience (FYE) Programme. The FYE is designed to provide you with prompt and
helpful information about services that the institution offers and how you can access information.
The following FYE programmes are currently offered:
 FYE website: All the guides and resources you need to navigate through your first year at
Unisa can be accessed using the following link: www.unisa.ac.za/FYE
 FYE e-mails: You will receive regular e-mails to help you stay focused and motivated.
 FYE broadcasts: You will receive e-mails with links to broadcasts on various topics related to
your first-year studies (eg videos on how to submit assignments online).
 FYE mailbox: For assistance with queries related to your first year of study, send an e-mail to
[email protected]

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7 HOW TO STUDY ONLINE

7.1 What does it mean to study fully online?

Studying fully online modules differs completely from studying some of your other modules at
Unisa.
 All your study material and learning activities for online modules are designed to be
delivered online on myUnisa.
 All your assignments must be submitted online. This means that you will do all your
activities and submit all your assignments on myUnisa. In other words, you may NOT post
your assignments to Unisa using the South African Post Office.
 All communication between you and the University happens online. Lecturers will
communicate with you via e-mail and SMS, and use the Announcements, the Discussion
Forums and the Questions and Answers tools. You can also use all of these platforms to
ask questions and contact your lecturers.

7.2 myUnisa tools

The main tool that we will use is the Lessons tool. This tool will provide the content of and the
assessments for your module. At times you will be directed to join discussions with fellow students
and complete activities and assessments before you can continue with the module.

It is very important that you log in to myUnisa regularly. We recommend that you log in at least
once a week to do the following:
 Check for new announcements. You can also set your myLife e-mail account so that you
receive the announcement e-mails on your cellphone.
 Do the Discussion Forum activities. When you do the activities for each learning unit, we
want you to share your answers with the other students in your group. You can read the
instructions and even prepare your answers offline, but you will need to go online to post your
messages.
 Do other online activities. For some of the learning unit activities you will have to post
something on the Blog tool, take a quiz or complete a survey under the Self-Assessment
tool. Do not skip these activities because they will help you complete the assignments and the
activities for the module.

We hope that by giving you extra ways to study the material and practise all the activities, this will
help you succeed in the online module. To get the most out of the online module, you MUST go
online regularly to complete the activities and assignments on time.

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8 ASSESSMENT

8.1 Assessment plan

From 2022, COS4840 Ontology Engineering is a continuous assessment module. This has
several implications:
1. All assignments count towards the final module mark for the year.
2. There is no formal exam, although one of the assignments will take the format of a practical
and theory test.
3. There is also no supplementary exam (as there is no final exam). This means that if you are
not successful, there is no retake of an exam, and you will have to repeat the whole year and
redo all the assignments.

The following formal assessment activities make up the final mark.

 3 theory assignments
 2 practical assignments
 1 blogging assignment
 1 formal test with both practical and theory components

The assignments and due dates are not provided in this tutorial letter; they will be provided online
on myUnisa.

8.2 Assignment weights

The table below sets out the weight that each assignment will carry towards the final module
mark.
Assessment Type Weight
Assignment 1 Theory assignment 15%
Assignment 2 Practical assignment 18%
Assignment 3 Theory assignment 10%
Assignment 4 Practical assignment 7%
Assignment 5 Theory assignment 10%
Assignment 6 Practical and Theory test 30%
Assignment 7 Blogging assignment 10%
Total 100%

9 ACADEMIC DISHONESTY

9.1 Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the act of taking the words, ideas and thoughts of others and presenting them as
your own. It is a form of theft which involves several dishonest academic activities, such as the
following:
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 Cutting and pasting from any source without acknowledging the source.
 Not including or using incorrect references.
 Paraphrasing without acknowledging the original source of the information.

9.2 Cheating

Cheating includes, but is not limited to, the following:

 Completing assessments on behalf of another student, copying from another student during
an assessment or allowing a student to copy from you.
 Using social media (e.g. WhatsApp, Telegram) or other platforms to disseminate assessment
information.
 Submitting corrupt or irrelevant files.
 Buying completed answers from “tutors” or internet sites (contract cheating).

9.3 More information

More information about plagiarism can be downloaded on the link below

https://www.unisa.ac.za/sites/myunisa/default/Study-@-Unisa/Student-values-and-rules

10 STUDENTS WITH DISABILITY

The Advocacy and Resource Centre for Students with Disability (ARCSWiD) provides an
opportunity for staff to interact with new and returning students with disabilities.

 If you are a student with a disability and would like additional support or need additional time
for assessments, you are invited to contact your lecturer so that you can be assisted.

11 IN CLOSING

Do not hesitate to contact us by e-mail if you are experiencing problems with the content of this
tutorial letter or with any academic aspect of the module.

We wish you a fascinating and satisfying journey through the learning material, and trust that you
will complete the module successfully.

Enjoy the journey!

COS4840 lecturers
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE

© 2021
Unisa

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