15 th conference on software engineering education and training foundation software engineering...

1515thth Conference on Software Conference on Software Engineering Education and TrainingEngineering Education and Training

Foundation Software Engineering Practices for Capstone Projects and Beyond

Annegret Goold and Peter Horan

School of Computing and Mathematics

Deakin University

Melbourne and Geelong

Australia

CSEE & T 2002 School of Computing and Mathematics Slide 2

IntroductionIntroduction

Foundation practices required for effective studies and for later life

Our curriculum The first-year SE course and its

enhancements Evaluation of the course over a number

of years Group behaviour in the capstone course Some implications for teaching and

further research


The need for foundation practicesThe need for foundation practices

Industry expectations of graduates – skills and knowledge in Problem solving Communication – verbal, presentation, written

and interpersonal Critical thinking Working within a team Time management/ project management

Capstone projects expose students to a variety of experiences in these areas – but can they cope?


Curriculum developmentCurriculum development

Framework Three year undergraduate degree (24 courses) Twelve courses as core Majors in Computer science,

Info. systems and Multimedia technology Software Engineering – minimum of 3 courses

Philosophy of the SE Courses Our definition ‘the application of engineering to

software development’ Developing a software solution not just writing

software A disciplined process


Concept Map of Software EngineeringConcept Map of Software Engineering

Software Engineering

Software Development

Discipline of Engineering

Problem Solving

Project Management

Process Planning, Estimating Monitoring

is a kind of has

is derived from is derived from

is is

of


Analysis of the Concept MapAnalysis of the Concept Map

Problem solving – theory as well as practice

Working in groups – theory and an awareness of group dynamics

Writing software involves group processes, especially communication

How best to teach this?1. Lecture and private study2. Project work in groups


Concept Map of Software DevelopmentConcept Map of Software Development


Implementation

Requirements

Client

for

Specifications

Design

is composed of


Skills and Software DevelopmentSkills and Software Development


Management

Design & Implementation

Requirements &

Specifications

Technical Skills

Problem Solving

Working in Groups

Communication

Concepts

Representations

Client

requires requires

with

is composed of

needs

depends on uses requires

of

of

of


Introductory Software EngineeringIntroductory Software Engineering


Management

Design & Implementation

Requirements &

Specifications

Technical Skills

Problem Solving

Working in

Groups

Communication

Concepts

Representations

Client

requires requires

with

is composed of

needs

depends on uses requires

of

of

of


Undergraduate Programme at First YearUndergraduate Programme at First Year

Semester One

Semester Two

Intro to IT Introductory Programming

Elective Elective

Intro to S.E. Elective Course (for major)

Database

Concepts and Practices for Software Engineering


Course DetailsCourse Details

Lectures Working in teams Software development processes Problem Solving

Tutorials Groups of 4 or 5 allocated by staff Assignments and team building activities Presentations

Assessment Examination and assignments (both 50%) Minimum 60% for group work to ‘pass’


Group Work and AssignmentsGroup Work and Assignments

All have a SE focus but emphasis is on process, successful group work and presentation

Some examples – Personal styles assessment Research of SE topics Interview of a user (usability) Writing a proposal Project management activities Evaluation of user manuals (for quality) Evaluation of problem-solving software


Assignment Cover SheetAssignment Cover Sheet

Assignment Number:

Assignment Name:

Assignment issued on (day) at (time) on (date)

Group Name:

Membership details

Family Name ID Signature Agreed Allocation

Mark Awarded

1

2

3

4

5


Enhancements to our CourseEnhancements to our Course

Continuous improvement

Closer connection between lecture theory and tutorial work

Use of industry standards and practice

Visual Basic component removed

Guest lecturers

Improvement in assessment of individuals


Evaluation ResponsesEvaluation Responses

Rating

No.

Statement 1995

n = 34

1996

n = 22

2000

n = 35

2001

n = 44

1 I believe that students should be allowed to form their own groups

3.43 3.09 2.85 3.07

2 I have learnt from other members in my group 3.66 3.64 3.65 3.61

3 I consider that the group I have worked with have functioned well and I would work with the members again

3.46 3.86 3.50 3.33

4 I consider that the experience gained will be useful in my future employment

3.83 3.91 4.26 3.73

5 I consider that the workload has been allocated fairly in the group I have been in

3.31 3.50 3.53 3.93


The Capstone course The Capstone course

Undertaken in last semester of

programme

Combines all areas of previous study

Opportunity to work on ‘real-life’ software development projects

Strong emphasis on group work

‘Real’ client with staff as supervisor


Changes to the Capstone courseChanges to the Capstone course

Larger teams

Sub-teams in specialisations

Greater emphasis on project management activities

Greater emphasis on presentationStaff consensus: Students had ‘better’ skills in

communication (verbal, written, presentation, interpersonal); working in a team and (perhaps) problem solving.


ConclusionsConclusions

Our first-year SE course

Emphasis on group process and the learning environment

Less technical content but solid grounding in practices

Smooth ‘transition’ to other courses and to industry (?)

Implications for teaching practice

Research directions

15 th conference on software engineering education and training foundation software engineering...

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