Project-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered and learn-by-doing approach that organizes learning around projects. While entrepreneurship and PBL in SE education are thrilling research topics, there seems to be very little work focusing on the pros and cons of involving external stakeholders to support real demands in software engineering education. Working on real projects also supports students to acquire leadership skills, such as communication, project management, and teamwork. This paper describes a case study integrating students from different Software Engineering programs and involving external stakeholders, underpinned by PBL concepts. We present how this study was designed and implemented in a large institution, in four steps, summarized as follows: (I) requirements gathering and design; (II) information system development and implementation; (III) integration tests and deployment process; (IV) support and maintenance activities. The study had the participation of 59 students from a professional technical course in step one, working in teams, and 10 undergraduate students from a Bachelor's program in Information Systems in the following steps, working in pairs. Overall, the feedback from stakeholders and students exceeded expectations, although it increased the workload of teachers. We were able to distill a new set of lessons learned, and we expect that at least some of them will be useful for anyone implementing a similar course. As a consequence of this study, we plan to institutionally formalize the PBL course improvement process by defining specific outcomes and measurements.
翻译:以项目为基础的学习(PBL)是围绕项目组织学习的以学生为中心的、边做边学的方法。虽然创业和SE教育中的PBL是令人兴奋的研究专题,但似乎很少注重外部利益攸关方参与支持软件工程教育实际需求的利弊。在实际项目上开展工作,还有助于学生获得领导技能,如交流、项目管理和团队合作。本文描述了一个案例研究,吸收不同软件工程方案的学生和外部利益攸关方参与,并以PBL概念为基础。我们介绍了这项研究是如何在一个大型机构设计和实施的,分为四个步骤,概括如下:(一) 需求收集和设计;(二) 信息系统的开发和实施;(三) 整合测试和部署过程;(四) 支持和维护活动。研究有59名来自第一阶段专业技术课程的学生、团队合作和10名来自信息系统学士方案的本科生参与以下步骤,以双对工作为基础。总体而言,利益攸关方和学生的反馈超出了预期,尽管这增加了教师的工作量,但总结了以下四个步骤:(二) 整合测试和部署程序,我们能够确定一个类似的机构学习结果。