Overview

This course provides you with the opportunity to learn about relational database design. You will be provided an in-depth understanding of the design principles and methodologies involved in creating well-structured, normalized, and efficient relational databases to manage data for small, medium, and large-scale enterprises. Possessing database design skills will enable you to excel in careers such as Database Administrators, Data Analysts, Software Developers, Data Engineers, and Business Intelligence Developers; capitalizing on the ability to create robust and efficient data solutions for any organization. These are one of the top sought-after careers across many industries today. At the end of this course, you will be able to: - Describe the process and the design aspects involved in relational database design. - Interpret the main components of an Entity-Relationship diagram (ERD) using unified modeling language (UML) notation. - Develop entity-relationship diagrams using basic and extended Entity-relationship features in relational design. - Translate Entity-Relationships diagrams into logical schemas (relation schemas). - Describe the theory and practical application of functional dependencies in relational database design. - Use the theory to recognize candidate keys and primary keys. - Derive minimal and canonical covers of functional dependencies. - Describe the principles of database normalization. - Identify and apply normalization techniques.

Syllabus

Module 1: Design Overview

Welcome to Relational Database Design! This course expounds upon the concepts covered in the course, Introduction to Relational Database, where you learned the fundamentals. In this course, you will focus on the design aspects of databases and explore practical examples to help you apply the concepts to real world scenarios. To help you concentrate on effective design, this course will be more theoretical and conceptual. You will not actually build the databases with software applications. You will do that in the course, Relational Database: Implementation and Applications. Sounds exciting, right? Let's begin with an overview of database design covering three main lessons: 1) Entity-Relationship (E-R) modeling, 2) E-R diagrams, and 3) Extended ER features and relation schemas. Please review the module learning objectives below and refer them as a guide for your learning.

Module 2: Functional Dependency (FD)

This module explores the theory and practical application of functional dependencies in relational database design, providing students with the knowledge and skills to identify and enforce data relationships, ensuring data integrity and optimization in database systems. This module is organized into three lessons: 1) Functional dependency theory, 2) Finding candidate keys and attribute closure, and 3) Deriving canonical (minimal) covers of functional dependencies. The learning objectives of this module are presented below. Please refer to the enrichment activities at the end of each lesson.

Module 3: Database Normalization

The database normalization module demonstrates the principles and techniques of organizing data into well-structured tables through normalization, ensuring data integrity and reducing redundancy for efficient and scalable database systems. This module is organized in three lessons: 1) Normal Forms (NFs), 2) more Normal forms, and 3) DB Design example (applying ER modeling + Normalization). The learning objectives of this module include are presented below. Refer to the enrichment activities at the end of each lesson.

Summative Course Assessment

This module contains the summative course assessment that has been designed to evaluate your understanding of the course material and assess your ability to apply the knowledge you have acquired throughout the course. Be sure to review the course material thoroughly before taking the assessment. A learning guide is also provided to help you prepare for the assessment. Please review prior to launching the assessment. You will only have one attempt to take it, so please plan accordingly. Best wishes to you for success!