Investigating Secure Agile Requirements Engineering Practices in Software Development

The aim of this research study was to assess Agile RE practices in the South African software development industry and investigate secure Agile RE initiatives towards developing secure products. This qualitative research study was contextualized in seventeen South African software development companies. The researchers used structured interviews and document reviews as the primary data collection instruments. Qualitative data was analyzed inductively using content analysis. Emanating from the research were recommendations to guide a regular software developer on good Agile RE practices. The study concluded that although Agile Software Development is practiced in the South African software industry, there needs to be stricter adherences to the Agile Manifesto and Agile Security Manifesto in requirements engineering

The technology and operational readiness of students for mobile learning at a South African Higher Education Institution

Recent accessibility drives and price wars between the major South African (SA) cell phone companies suggest that the landscape for the adoption of mobile learning (m-learning) at the Higher Education Institution (HEI) level may be changing. As such, there is a need to gauge the current mobile readiness of students for m-learning. Mobile technology readiness refers to the extent to which students have access to mobile devices (not only handsets), and can afford data bundles that meet or exceed the requirements of a base set of currently available m-learning applications (Naicker and Van der Merwe 2012). Mobile operational readiness refers to students’ awareness of, attitude towards, support and training that is required for m-learning. This study conducted an assessment of the technology and operational readiness of students at a SA HEI. An in-depth literature survey was undertaken to delineate technology and operational readiness of students for m-learning. For technology readiness, an investigation was conducted on m- learning applications that are currently available and the technology requirements of these mobile applications. This was undertaken to determine the extent that the current student mobile handset profile match these requirements. The literature review also included a search for mobile opeeratratiioonnaall ffaactorctorss ssuuchch aass ssttuuddeennttss’’ aawwaarenerenessss ooff aanndd aattttiittuuddee ttoowwaarrddss mm--lleaearrnininngg as well as m-learning support and training that students require. The philosophical underpinning of this study was based on Activity Theory. The strategy of inquiry employed was a case study approach. Data was collected from students at the Durban University of Technology, a resident based SA HEI. A mixed methods data collection strategy was employed. The researcher used a field survey questionnaire as the primary research instrument to assess mobile technology and operational readiness. Focus group interviews were used as a secondary data gathering tool to triangulate and strengthen the results. The results were presented using descriptive and inferential statistics and were analyzed using the lens of activity theory. In terms of technology readiness, despite a high level of ownership and reasonable compliance with application requirements, data costs remain prohibitive. In assessing operational readiness, despite a positive attitude, the majority of the students require awareness, ongoing support and training. Several recommendations based on the findings are offered. For example, one of the findings showed that mobile connectivity affordability was low amongst students and it is recommended that the HEI work around exorbitant connectivity costs by combining m-learning technologies to form meaningful m-learning approaches at a minimum cost. Another finding showed low awareness of m-learning at the HEI. A recommendation advanced to combat this finding is for the HEI to encourage and support dialogue among key stakeholders. This study concludes that any m-learning endeavour to implement m-learning at this HEI is bound to fail as only a small percentage of students are aware of m-learning and can afford data bundles to implement m-learning in its true sense. As an implication of this study to other HEI’s, the researcher suggests that regular mobile readiness surveys be conducted.Science and Technology EducationM. Sc. (Information Systems

Secure requirements engineering in a constrained agile environment.

Doctoral degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.Requirements Engineering (RE) is a software engineering process that takes place early in the software development life cycle namely, during the planning phase of software development. A list of highly refined requirements that is the blueprint for the system, is the output of this process. It is vital to address critical issues such as security within RE, to prevent patching and hot fixing later. Exorbitant losses can be prevented through secure systems development. The purpose of this research study was to delineate the Agile RE practices through a sequential explanatory mixed methods study approach to explicate the relationship between RE practices and the security of an application. An in-depth literature review was undertaken to understand RE processes and security approaches during application development. This mixed methods research study was contextualised at seventeen software development companies in South Africa. Data was collected in three phases. In the first phase, the researcher used a field survey questionnaire as the primary research instrument to gather data on Agile RE practices such as elicitation, security approaches and requirements prioritisation. In phase two of the data collection, interviews were used as a qualitative data gathering tool to explain, triangulate and strengthen the survey results. The security of live Agile Software Development artifacts were then randomly evaluated using a dynamic analysis security testing (DAST) tool. To contribute to the body of knowledge, the researcher used fuzzy logics and fuzzy sets to develop an automated fuzzy tool that assists requirements engineers to control client requirements. The Design Science Research Methodology, an Information Systems (IS) theoretical framework, guided the development of the automated fuzzy software tool. The automated fuzzy tool was evaluated in phase three of data collection and showed positive results for ranking client requirements in Agile RE. The major finding of this study was that although Agile RE practices in the real world are aligned to mainstream RE, proper security approaches are lacking. The problem is exacerbated by the lack of web application security knowledge and insufficient application security training by requirements engineers. The study concludes that poor security practices in Agile RE are having a negative impact on the security of the Agile Software Development product. As an implication of this study, the researcher suggests stricter adherences by practitioners to Agile Software Development principles and values as outlined in the Agile Manifesto and Agile Security Manifesto

Designing and Developing ICT Curriculum in the 21st Century using a Modernistic Curriculum Model in Contemporary Higher Education

The design and development of ICT curriculum at higher education institutions in recent times is highly complex. The aim of this paper is to present a product model for the design and development of a variety of three year ICT programme types. This is achieved by conducting an in-depth study into existing ICT product models as well as extrapolating the critical skills for students in the 21st century from the extant of literature. The strategy of inquiry employed was a case study of curriculum renewal in the Department of Information Technology at the Durban University of Technology. The research study was qualitative with Participatory Action Research and Focus Group Interviews employed for data collection. The findings resulted in the creation of a best practice product model for the renewal of ICT curriculum. This model impacts how ICT programmes are designed and developed at higher education institutions in the 21st century. As an implication of this study the researchers suggest that this model be reviewed and updated regularly to accommodate the dynamic nature of ICT. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n23p117

Dimensionality Reduction of Social Media Application Attributes for Ubiquitous Learning Using Principal Component Analysis

Ubiquitous learning is anywhere and anytime learning using e-learning and m-learning platforms. Learning takes place regularly on mobile devices. School-based instructors and learners have capitalised on ubiquitous learning platforms in unprecedented times such as COVID-19. There has been a proliferation of social media applications for ubiquitous learning. There are a vast number of attributes of the social media applications that must be considered for it to be deemed suitable for education. Further to this, mobile and desktop accessibility criteria must be considered. The aim of this research study was to determine the high impacting and most pertinent criteria to evaluate social media applications for school-based ubiquitous learning. Data was collected from 30 experts in the field of teaching and learning who were asked to evaluate 60 criteria. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was the method employed for the dimensionality reduction. PCA was implemented using singular value decomposition (SVD) on R-Studio. The results showed loading values from principal component one for the top 40 educational requirements and technology criteria of the 60 criteria used in the study. The implications of this research study will guide researchers in the field of Educational Data Mining (EDM) and practitioners on the most important dimensions to consider when evaluating social media applications for ubiquitous learning