Establishing an Early Foundation in Software Engineering: Framework,Experiences and Results*

In the fall of 1994 we reorganized the content of our three-course introductory computer science sequence in order to introduce software engineering concepts early and provide a consistent software engineering focus from one course to the next. To implement these changes, we established detailed documentation and design standards. These standards would serve as a framework for teaching the software engineering principles and techniques that we considered appropriate and essential to novice software developers. In an attempt to assess the impact of this new teaching approach, we examined student performance in upper-level, project-oriented courses with respect to early exposure to software engineering concepts. This paper describes the documentation and design standards, as well as how these standards have been used as a framework for teaching software engineering concepts early in the curriculum. It also reports on what we have learned through assessment of this approach. Results indicate that students exposed early to software engineering concepts are indeed better prepared for upper-level project-oriented courses.