A report on development and implementation of the ISDP (master) course

1. A report on development and implementation of the ISDP (master) course D. Todorić-Vukašin, M. Ivanović, Z. Budimac Department of Mathematics and Informatics, Faculty of Science, Novi Sad

2. This presentation is based on paper : Ivanović, M., Todorić-Vukašin, D., Budimac, Z, “INFORMATION SYSTEM TOPICS FOR STUDIES IN SOFTWARE ENGINEERING”, Proceedings of International Conference on COMPUTER SYSTEMS and TECHNOLOGIES CompSysTech’09, ACM International Conference Proceeding Series, (in print)

3. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

4. 1. Introduction Characteristics of the course It is developed under the project “Joint MSc Curriculum in Software Engineering” The course established a regional wide master’s software engineering curriculum with international recognition The ISDP master course is realized jointly by staff from two countries

5. 1. Introduction The course approach • The proposed approach takes into account circumstances in Serbia in education and market • Industry and academia have recognized the need for adjustment in IS and SE education, to effectively train the future IT professionals • History: • different courses were introduced at master studies • courses give students only a general knowledge in different modern ICT topics • Today: • master studies focus on appropriate technologies, methodologies and tools in particular domain

6. 1. Introduction Don’t forget: • Integration trends in European area • Intensive international student mobility • Orientation to European-wide labour market for ICT graduates

7. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

8. 2. ISDP Course Characteristics Curricula development • Difficult and complicated task was to decide what is to be taught and how it will be taught considering teaching and assessment methods • Many aspects should be taken into account including labour market needs and career tracks • Available university staff with adequate experience is very important • Acceptable solution under the project was to accumulate resources of the partners and implement the courses jointly using some kind of students’ and teachers’ mobility

9. 2. ISDP Course Characteristics ISDP master course • Master course is was designed to cover advanced IS topics • It covers a few important aspects of information system development: • the selection of methodology • the evaluation of methodology • the management of the systems development process

10. 2. ISDP Course Characteristics Master course topics • Information System Development (ISD): • review of major concepts; • lifecycles; • definition of a ‘methodology’; • the factors influencing methodology use; • A variety of ISD paradigms and methodologies: • object-oriented methodologies (Rational) Unified Process • structured methodologies (SSADM) • ‘soft’ methodologies e.g. Soft system methodology • participative approaches e.g. DSDM, ETHICS • integrated approaches e.g. Multiview

11. 2. ISDP Course Characteristics Master course topics • Specialist applications and their methodology requirements e.g. Web information systems • Issues concerning the introduction of and use of methodologies • Framework for methodology evaluation • Ethical aspects of ISD

12. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

13. 3. Something About Project Management Students learn that: • Successful deliver of a computer-based information system to a customer requires proper planning: • an analysis of the project; • its potential as an investment; • the benefits; • the risks; • The manager should be convinced that: • the project will succeed; • the project is controllable; • resources will be forthcoming; • should carry out planning.

14. 3. Something about project management What else students learn? • Success of a project depends on: • more than just technical issues; • commitment from the users; • ‘ownership’ of the system; • effective communications; • clear identification of benefits; • managing the delivery. • Various project management approaches are examined and critically evaluated in the context of methodological approach: • SSADM; • PRINCE; • Agile development.

15. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

16. 4. The Delivery of the Course Upon successful completion of the course students will be able to: • Discuss the merits and drawback of a variety of ISD methodologies; • Justify the selection of a methodology appropriate for a given ISD project; • Identify the major planning and stuffing issues; • Recommend appropriate techniques and methods for a given project; • Discuss the need for awareness and sensitivity in managing organizational relationships; • Discuss the importance of reporting structures and communication; • Recommend appropriate ways in which the benefits of a system can be evaluated.

17. 4. The Delivery of the Course The realization of the course • In the last three years course was realized jointly by staff from two countries • The professors and assistants from both countries divide the course topics based on their expertise, professional and research orientation • The lectures were delivered in English and Serbian languages using the .ppt presentations in English

18. 4. The Delivery of the Course Practical part of the course • Examples from real environments were discussed • The suitable tools for the concrete methodologies and project management were presented during the practical classes • Students became familiar the advantages and disadvantages of the tools and learn how to use them

19. 4. The Delivery of the Course Final mark: • 40% was obtained through the team project • 30% was formed on the basis of individual work within the team • 30% was obtained for individual achievements during oral examination

20. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

21. 5. The Team Project Characteristics of team project • It concerns the experiences which the students have gained while working on projects during the studies or during the work in their companies • Projects were solicited in advance from on-campus and off-campus customers • Students were expected to develop a particular information system

22. 5. The Team Project The organization of the project team • The teaching team selects team leader based on: • project characteristics; • student’s experience (resume); • academic standing (transcript). • The team leader selects the team members together with a teaching team • Some of the team members can be from other country (Serbia, and FYR Macedonia)

23. 5. The Team Project Realization of the project • The development methodology can be selected: • by team members; • by teaching assistant. • The teaching team takes the role of the customer • Special classes were organized for defending team work projects

24. 5. The Team Project Good sides of the team project • Students learned about the compromise between time and quality • They learned how to adapt and deal with unexpected situations • The team project provide students with the opportunity for integration and reflection on value of knowledge and skills acquired in previous courses • This approach makes students more active and prepare them for future working environment

25. 5. The Team Project Evaluation process • Students were required to address the following issues: • team dynamics; • tools and methodologies used; • risks; • issues and challenges faced by the team; • lessons learned. • The evaluation was conducted: • through monitoring of student teams in laboratory; • meeting with the teams; • through examination of artifacts produced by the team. • Exam questions will ask only the topics covered in the lectures

26. AGENDA • Introduction • ISDP Course Characteristics • Something About Project Management • The Delivery of the Course • The Team Project • Conclusions

27. 6. Conclusions Good sides of the course • Good experiences in the delivering of the master course: • students had a possibility to cooperate in teams; • they had a possibility to work with colleagues from a different country; • the team mates communicate using foreign language (English); • they experienced many of the CASE and project management tools for the first time. • Communication between the teaching team and the students based on e-mail functioned very well

28. 6. Conclusions Problems and repairing possibilities for the course • Main problems of the course: • small number of classes (only during weekends); • students did not have enough time and opportunity to work with real customers. • There are some local software companies that are interested in participation in these projects in next school year • Some interviews will be developed as part of the course improvement process • The feedback of students participating in course in the last two years will be used for adjusting the course to the student’s needs

29. A report on development and implementation of the ISDP (master) course D. Todorić-Vukašin, M. Ivanović, Z. Budimac Department of Mathematics and Informatics, Faculty of Science, Novi Sad