Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter VIII
Conceiving
Architectural Aspects for
Quality Software
Education through the
Constructivist Perspective
Kam Hou Vat
University of Macau, Macau
ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the initiative to incorporate the practice of quality software
education (QSE) into our undergraduate curriculum concerning the engineering of
software. We discuss how the constructivist's method of problem-based learning (PBL)
helps develop this QSE practice in our students' daily learning. We also expound the idea
of an architectural context to building information systems (IS) solutions, supported by the
industry's emerging consensus that architecture provides the kind of thinking and methods
we need to develop today's complex systems. Our QSE approach focuses on designing
problems, which require the building of a sensible IS architecture characterized by objects
of different services. Our QSE approach is outlined in terms of a state-of-the-practice
management philosophy called action learning, modified for educational scenarios, so
that our students could learn to acquire their collaborative software engineering and
management experience in the practice of architected applications development. To
conclude, the criteria used to evaluate the working of our learning scenario and the
challenge in combining action learning with PBL in innovating different QSE experiences
for our students is discussed.
