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Annals of Computer Science and Information Systems, Volume 15

Proceedings of the 2018 Federated Conference on Computer Science and Information Systems

What Can Go Wrong in a Software Project? Have Fun Solving It

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15439/2018F300

Citation: Proceedings of the 2018 Federated Conference on Computer Science and Information Systems, M. Ganzha, L. Maciaszek, M. Paprzycki (eds). ACSIS, Vol. 15, pages 995–1004 ()

Full text

Abstract. Providing stimulating and real-life experiences is a key component in teaching software project management in Computer Science or Software Engineering programs. The diversity of topics that need to be addressed and restrictions that should be considered in university courses make a challenging task of it. This paper presents a serious game, called ``White Crow PM'' whose objective is to make students aware of the risks they might face during software development projects. The paper describes the game design steps and provides results of its validation in Computer Science programs in two Mexican universities. The collected data showed that the participants had fun playing the game and its content is relevant for software project management courses. Although the game needs to be validated in other settings with more participants, we conclude that it fulfills the goal of motivating discussion and increasing awareness of project management concerns among students.

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