Process and product in a software engineering course: simulating the real world

This paper describes a software engineering course which applies the planning aspects, cost estimates, project development activities and deliverables for a software product to all aspects of the course. Students negotiated a course contract outlining timelines, deliverables and grades (budget) as part of the Software Development Plan. The class was viewed as a software company managed by the instructor who, at alternate times, played the role of the client, reviewing activities at appropriate stages of the development life cycle and delivering payment in the form of the course grade. All aspects of the course, with the exception of exams, were done by student teams. Assignment to teams simulated the job application process with the submission of a letter of application and resume. Each team was assigned to serve as software quality assurance group for another team. Using a large project with partial implementation of the design and implementation phases is compared to using a smaller project requiring the full implementation of all phases of the life cycle model. Use of visual languages to support the rapid prototyping model is discussed. Student reactions to the course are included.