Challenges implementing the SimProgramming approach in online software engineering education for promoting self and co-regulation of learning

High academic failure rates in computer programming are significant transitioning from initial to advanced stages. In online higher education, challenges are greater since students’ autonomy requires greater skills for self-regulation and co-regulation of learning. The SimProgramming approach develops these skills and is being adapted to e-learning for this transitioning phase. In this paper, we describe the dynamics and outcomes of student participation and task development in a first iteration of the adapted e-SimProgramming approach, which took place during a 2nd year-2nd semester course for the Informatics Engineering program at Universidade Aberta in the 2018/2019 academic year. We identified pedagogical and technical challenges, requiring changes for subsequent attempts of adopting SimProgramming for online education contexts: target audience and teaching context aspects; self and co-regulation of learning dimensions of e-learning courses; pedagogical design recommendations; and requirements for software tools for learning management.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

On the Presence of Green and Sustainable Software Engineering in Higher Education Curricula

Nowadays, software is pervasive in our everyday lives. Its sustainability and environmental impact have become major factors to be considered in the development of software systems. Millennials-the newer generation of university students-are particularly keen to learn about and contribute to a more sustainable and green society. The need for training on green and sustainable topics in software engineering has been reflected in a number of recent studies. The goal of this paper is to get a first understanding of what is the current state of teaching sustainability in the software engineering community, what are the motivations behind the current state of teaching, and what can be done to improve it. To this end, we report the findings from a targeted survey of 33 academics on the presence of green and sustainable software engineering in higher education. The major findings from the collected data suggest that sustainability is under-represented in the curricula, while the current focus of teaching is on energy efficiency delivered through a fact-based approach. The reasons vary from lack of awareness, teaching material and suitable technologies, to the high effort required to teach sustainability. Finally, we provide recommendations for educators willing to teach sustainability in software engineering that can help to suit millennial students needs.Comment: The paper will be presented at the 1st International Workshop on Software Engineering Curricula for Millennials (SECM2017

Managing evolution and change in web-based teaching and learning environments

The state of the art in information technology and educational technologies is evolving constantly. Courses taught are subject to constant change from organisational and subject-specific reasons. Evolution and change affect educators and developers of computer-based teaching and learning environments alike – both often being unprepared to respond effectively. A large number of educational systems are designed and developed without change and evolution in mind. We will present our approach to the design and maintenance of these systems in rapidly evolving environments and illustrate the consequences of evolution and change for these systems and for the educators and developers responsible for their implementation and deployment. We discuss various factors of change, illustrated by a Web-based virtual course, with the objective of raising an awareness of this issue of evolution and change in computer-supported teaching and learning environments. This discussion leads towards the establishment of a development and management framework for teaching and learning systems

Raising awareness for potential sustainability effects in Uganda: A survey-based empirical study

Copyright © 2019 for this paper by its authors. In July 2019, we ran the 3rd International BRIGHT summer school for Software Engineering and Information Systems at the Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. The participants developed a group project over the course of the week, which included the application of the Sustainability Awareness Framework. The framework promotes discussion on the impact of software systems on sustainability based on a set of questions. In this paper, we present the educational evaluation of the Sustainability Awareness Framework in a country in Sub-Saharan Africa. The results indicate that the framework can provide supportive guidance of the societal and environmental challenges in the given context

Using Computer Technology Tools to Improve the Teaching-Learning Process in Technical and Vocational Education: Mechanical Engineering Subject Area

This paper discusses the integration of computer assisted instructions (CAI) with traditional class room teaching. It describes a teaching method to bring real-world of industrial work into the classroom that underscores the need to learn fundamental principles while adding excitement and relevance to the experience. This paper presents results of a case study undertaken to understand the effect of computer assisted teaching methodology on learning effectiveness in classroom environment. The effects of computer assisted instructions on different levels of cognition of individual learners have also been evaluated. The computer aided drawing (CAD), computer aided manufacturing (CAM) and computer numerical control (CNC) courses at the Bahrain institute are an integral part of this attempt. These courses emphasize the development of a 3-D geometric computer model and application of this digital database to all phases of the design process. The students make freehand sketches, build computer models, mate assemblies of parts, perform various analysis, create kinematics simulations, generate final design drawings, import engineering drawing as DXF file, generate NC file to build rapid prototypes as shown in the table 1 below. Keywords: Computer Technology, C.N.C and AutoCad Softwar

A Competency-based Approach toward Curricular Guidelines for Information Technology Education

The Association for Computing Machinery and the IEEE Computer Society have launched a new report titled, Curriculum Guidelines for Baccalaureate Degree Programs in Information Technology (IT2017). This paper discusses significant aspects of the IT2017 report and focuses on competency-driven learning rather than delivery of knowledge in information technology (IT) programs. It also highlights an IT curricular framework that meets the growing demands of a changing technological world in the next decade. Specifically, the paper outlines ways by which baccalaureate IT programs might implement the IT curricular framework and prepare students with knowledge, skills, and dispositions to equip graduates with competencies that matter in the workplace. The paper suggests that a focus on competencies allows academic departments to forge collaborations with employers and engage students in professional practice experiences. It also shows how professionals and educators might use the report in reviewing, updating, and creating baccalaureate IT degree programs worldwide