Teaching Software Testing On-line

Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University, Blacksburg VA

Investigators

Abstract

Software Engineering (34) Defective, or "bug-riddled," software is a serious problem in the software industry, costing U.S. companies as much as $100 billion last year. Software testing is a critical tool for addressing this issue, but unfortunately, it is viewed as boring and uncreative by practitioners and receives little formal treatment in undergraduate programs. The objective of this project is to develop a series of on-line education modules covering software testing that will be integrated at several levels across the undergraduate computer science curriculum. Module content will allow the instructor to adjust the coverage assigned to students, and assign module content in parallel with ongoing class programming assignments. The result will be an array of services with an easy-to-use web interface, allowing students to use the tool in many different classes, allowing instructors to incorporate tool-based testing in their own assignments, and supporting use by students and educators at multiple institutions. As an integral part of the project, summer research interns from Virginia Tech's Minority Academic Opportunities Program will participate in both research and educational aspects of the proposed work.