A systematic literature review of capstone courses in software engineering

Context: Tertiary education institutions aim to prepare their computer science and software engineering students for working life. While much of the technical principles are covered in lower-level courses, team-based capstone courses are a common way to provide students with hands-on experience and teach soft skills. Objective: This paper explores the characteristics of project-based software engineering capstone courses presented in the literature. The goal of this work is to understand the pros and cons of different approaches by synthesising the various aspects of software engineering capstone courses and related experiences. Method: In a systematic literature review for 2007–2022, we identified 127 articles describing real-world capstone courses. These articles were analysed based on their presented course characteristics and the reported course outcomes. Results: The characteristics were synthesised into a taxonomy consisting of duration, team sizes, client and project sources, project implementation, and student assessment. We found out that capstone courses generally last one semester and divide students into groups of 4–5 where they work on a project for a client. For a slight majority of courses, the clients are external to the course staff and students are often expected to produce a proof-of-concept level software product as the main end deliverable. The courses generally include various forms of student assessment both during and at the end of the course. Conclusions: This paper provides researchers and educators with a classification of characteristics of software engineering capstone courses based on previous research. We also further synthesise insights on the reported course outcomes. Our review study aims to help educators to identify various ways of organising capstones and effectively plan and deliver their own capstone courses. The characterisation also helps researchers to conduct further studies on software engineering capstones.Context: Tertiary education institutions aim to prepare their computer science and software engineering students for working life. While much of the technical principles are covered in lower-level courses, team-based capstone courses are a common way to provide students with hands-on experience and teach soft skills. Objective: This paper explores the characteristics of project-based software engineering capstone courses presented in the literature. The goal of this work is to understand the pros and cons of different approaches by synthesising the various aspects of software engineering capstone courses and related experiences. Method: In a systematic literature review for 2007–2022, we identified 127 articles describing real-world capstone courses. These articles were analysed based on their presented course characteristics and the reported course outcomes. Results: The characteristics were synthesised into a taxonomy consisting of duration, team sizes, client and project sources, project implementation, and student assessment. We found out that capstone courses generally last one semester and divide students into groups of 4–5 where they work on a project for a client. For a slight majority of courses, the clients are external to the course staff and students are often expected to produce a proof-of-concept level software product as the main end deliverable. The courses generally include various forms of student assessment both during and at the end of the course. Conclusions: This paper provides researchers and educators with a classification of characteristics of software engineering capstone courses based on previous research. We also further synthesise insights on the reported course outcomes. Our review study aims to help educators to identify various ways of organising capstones and effectively plan and deliver their own capstone courses. The characterisation also helps researchers to conduct further studies on software engineering capstones.Peer reviewe

Investigating transparency in collaborative learning and its delivery through Scrum

Collaborative learning is widespread in higher education and all evidence points to it continuing to grow in importance as a teaching and learning strategy. Collaborative learning is central to constructive education, a paradigm with historical roots in Dewey (1929), Vygotsky (1962) and Piaget (1978) that focuses on student-centred learning, with the learner as an active agent in the process of knowledge acquisition. Its potential advantages have been widely reported, yet evidence suggests that many students are still finding collaborative learning a negative, rather than a positive experience. In searching for ways to address this, the concept of transparency was uncovered as a potential means for improving collaboration, a view also backed by students, though what was meant by transparency in this context was not explained, nor were there any suggestions for how it might improve collaborative learning processes or outcomes. Initial investigations suggested that transparency was an under-researched area in the domain of collaborative learning. At the same time, an examination of successful projects in the computing industry highlighted the central role of Agile processes, and particularly Scrum, in delivering these successes. Scrum promotes transparency and continuous improvement, and this prompted the question of whether it could be adopted for collaborative learning in Higher Education, in order to provide positive outcomes in this domain. The main aim of this thesis is therefore to investigate whether the outcomes of collaborative learning in Higher Education can be improved through transparency, and to examine whether using Scrum for the management of student collaborative learning can produce high levels of transparency and therefore better outcomes for students. The study used a mixed methods approach, drawing on the strengths of both qualitative and quantitative research. Research instruments included questionnaires, peer reviews and focus group discussions. An initial study used means-end analysis to define the attributes, consequences and higher order values that students associated with transparency in the context of collaborative learning. This was then followed by an exploratory study which introduced Scrum into the second part of a student group project to compare a cohort’s experience of using both ‘conventional’ and Scrum project management. Students reported high levels of transparency and a preference for using Scrum, however the results revealed that Scrum had only been partially implemented. The final empirical study then investigated the degree to which the student centric view of transparency obtained from the initial study was supported in a collaborative project using a full implementation of Scrum. In addition, the collaborative project was based on a creative task outside Scrum’s traditional domain of software engineering, to establish whether it could be used successfully for projects of any type and perhaps become a standard for managing collaborative learning in higher education. The findings showed transparency to be a complex and multi-dimensioned concept. Although universally concerned with information disclosure, providing too much information can be counterproductive, leading to a reduction in transparency, or ‘transparency paradox’. Appropriate visibility and awareness of information was found to be important in this context. The means-end analysis study provided a student view of transparency in the form of attributes that students associated with the concept. Scrum was found to provide high levels of support for these attributes, as well as visibility and awareness through its face-to-face meetings and Product Backlogs. Students rated the transparency provided by Scrum highly, but although it contributed to better process outcomes and more satisfied students, the effect on grades was limited. Nevertheless, the overall findings of this study confirm that Scrum has potential for improving groupwork transparency, student experience and outcomes. The thesis adds to the body of knowledge on efforts to improve collaborative learning, providing a rare empirical study showing how students perceive Scrum to contribute to overall transparency, and how Scrum can be used successfully in projects outside its traditional domain. A theoretical contribution of the study is an examination of a value-oriented approach to students’ perceptions of transparency in the context of collaborative learning

2023-2024 Course Catalog

2023-2024 Course Catalo

Using open ended, ill formed problems to develop and assess Engineering Mathematics competencies.

The purpose of this paper is to report upon how an engineering mathematics class was used to provide a vehicle for students to develop mathematical competencies and hence higher order thinking skills within the broader field of engineering education. Specifically it provided students with the opportunities to think mathematically, reason mathematically, pose and resolve mathematical problems, to use technology to model resolutions, interpret and handle mathematical symbolism and to communicate their resolutions to peers and staff. Using the report produced by the Mathematics Working Group of SEFI (European Society for Engineering Education), which details a framework for mathematics curricula in engineering education (SEFI, 2013), a methodology was identified. This methodology was also based on work previously undertaken by the author (Peters, 2017; Peters, 2015). In section 2.1 (p 13) the report lists and describes a set of eight mathematical competencies: (1) Thinking mathematically, (2) reasoning mathematically, (3) posing and solving mathematical problems, (4) modelling mathematically, (5) representing mathematical entities, (6) handling mathematical symbols and formalism, (7) communicating in, with, and about mathematics and, (8) making use of aids and tools. The report also points out the importance of developing assessment procedures pertinent to competency acquisition (p7). The evidence from this investigation concludes that the majority of students found the experience challenging but worthwhile. They considered they had learnt important skills including the ability to form assumptions, persistence, time management, project management and an enhancement of their mathematical skills in relation to engineering

2020-2021 Course Catalog

2020-2021 Course Catalo

2021-2022 Course Catalog

2021-2022 Course Catalo

Evolving as a Digital Scholar

"What does it take to become a digitally agile scholar? This manual explains how academics can comfortably navigate the digital world of today and tomorrow. It foregrounds three key domains of digital agility: getting involved in research, education and (community) service, mobilising (digital) skills on various levels, and acting in multiple roles, both individually and interlinked with others. After an introduction that outlines the foundations of the three-dimensional framework, the chapters focus on different roles and skills associated with evolving as a digital scholar. There is the author, who writes highly specialised texts for expert peers; the storyteller, who crafts accessible narratives to a broader audience in the form of blogs or podcasts; the creator, who uses graphics, audio, and video to motivate audiences to delve deeper into the material; the integrator, who develops and curates multimedia artefacts, disseminating them through channels such as websites, webinars, and open source repositories; and finally the networker, who actively triggers interaction via social media applications and online learning communities. Additionally, the final chapters offer a blueprint for the future digital scholar as a professional learner and as a “change agent” who is open to and actively pursues innovation. Informed by the authors’ broad and diverse personal experience, Evolving as a Digital Scholar offers insight, inspiration, and practical advice. It equips a broad readership with the skills and the mindset to harness new digital developments and navigate the ever-evolving digital age. It will inspire academic teachers and researchers with different backgrounds and levels of knowledge that wish to enhance their digital academic profile.

2022-2023 Course Catalog

2022-2023 Course Catalo

Challenges for engineering students working with authentic complex problems

Engineers are important participants in solving societal, environmental and technical problems. However, due to an increasing complexity in relation to these problems new interdisciplinary competences are needed in engineering. Instead of students working with monodisciplinary problems, a situation where students work with authentic complex problems in interdisciplinary teams together with a company may scaffold development of new competences. The question is: What are the challenges for students structuring the work on authentic interdisciplinary problems? This study explores a three-day event where 7 students from Aalborg University (AAU) from four different faculties and one student from University College North Denmark (UCN), (6th-10th semester), worked in two groups at a large Danish company, solving authentic complex problems. The event was structured as a Hackathon where the students for three days worked with problem identification, problem analysis and finalizing with a pitch competition presenting their findings. During the event the students had workshops to support the work and they had the opportunity to use employees from the company as facilitators. It was an extracurricular activity during the summer holiday season. The methodology used for data collection was qualitative both in terms of observations and participants’ reflection reports. The students were observed during the whole event. Findings from this part of a larger study indicated, that students experience inability to transfer and transform project competences from their previous disciplinary experiences to an interdisciplinary setting