DESIGNING
DATABASES
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Identify the relational database model’s basic components.
The relational database model stores information in the form of
logically-related two-dimensional tables.
Entities
Attributes
Entity identiffers
Constraints
Primary keys
Foreign keys
2. Explain the importance of documenting entity relationship diagrams.
An entity is a person, place, thing, transaction, or event about which
information is stored. A customer is an entity, as is a merchandise item.
Entities are not necessarily tangible, such as an appointment to see the doctor
is an entity. Attributes are characteristics or properties of an entity. For
example, a CUSTOMER entity can be described by have attributes such as a
Customer Number, First Name, Last Name, Street, City, State, Zip Code, Phone
Number, Credit Card No, and Credit Card Exp.
3. Explain the need for an entity-relationship diagram in a database
management system.
An entity-relationship diagram (ERD) is a technique for documenting the
entities and relationships between entities in a database environment.
The Chen model uses rectangles to represent entities, diamonds for
relationships, and lines with arrows to show the type of relationship between
entities.
CORE MATERIAL
The core chapter material is covered in detail in the PowerPoint slides. Each slide
contains detailed teaching notes including exercises, class activities, questions,
and examples. Please review the PowerPoint slides for detailed notes on how to
teach and enhance the core chapter material.
Designing Databases Page 1 of 8
C
APPENDIX
