Agile and Lean Concepts for Teaching and Learning (eBook)

Dr David Parsons is National Postgraduate Director of The Mind Lab by Unitec, where he runs a digital and collaborative learning programme for in-service teachers. He holds a PhD in Information Technology (IT) and has extensive experience in academia and the IT industry in the UK and Australasia. He is the founding editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning and the author of numerous books, chapters and articles on various aspects of technology-enhanced learning and the teaching of software engineering. He also has substantial experience in agile and lean software development, and provides industry training on applying these techniques. Associate Professor Kathryn MacCallum (PhD) has over 10 years’ experience in teaching and research, and a passion for technology and education. Her research focuses on digital and educational technology, and as a former practitioner in the Information Technology (IT) industry she has a strong desire to align these professional IT skills with teaching. With a PhD in Information Systems and a history of research within the education technologies sector, she has authored a broad range of journal papers, book chapters and conference articles in this area. She also serves as an editor for three academic education journals. 

Foreword 5
Preface 7
Introduction: The Motivation for This Book 7
The Selection Process 8
Book Structure 8
Part I: Agile and Lean Concepts in Education 9
Part II: Agile Methods in the School Classroom 10
Part III: Reconceptualising Learning Environments Using Agile and Lean Approaches 10
Part IV: Agile and Lean Learning Processes 11
Part V: Using Agile and Lean Methods to Teach Software Development 12
Part VI: Agile and Lean Activities and Games for the Classroom 13
Acknowledgements 15
International Review Board 15
Contents 17
Contributors 19
Part I Agile and Lean Concepts in Education 22
Agile Education, Lean Learning 23
1 Introduction 23
1.1 Using Agile to Teach Agile and Lean to Teach Lean 24
1.2 Agile and Lean Education 24
2 Agile Methods 25
2.1 Agile in Education 25
2.2 Mapping Agile Methods to Classroom Practice 26
3 Reinterpreting Agile Practice for Teaching and Learning 27
3.1 Agile Values 27
3.2 Agile Processes 29
3.3 Agile Techniques 30
4 Making Learning Agile 31
5 Lean Manufacturing 31
5.1 From the Toyota Production System to Lean Software Development 32
5.2 Lean Concepts in Education 32
6 Reinterpreting Lean Thinking for Teaching and Learning 33
6.1 Value, the Value Stream, and Perfection 33
6.2 Lean Processes 34
6.3 Lean Techniques 35
7 Making Learning Lean 37
8 Agile Education, Lean Learning 38
9 Conclusion 40
References 41
Agile Methodologies in Education: A Review 44
1 Introduction 44
2 Search Strategy 45
2.1 Search Goals 46
2.2 Source Engines and Search Keywords 46
2.3 Selected Papers 47
3 Agile 47
3.1 Agile in Education 50
4 eXtreme Programming 53
4.1 XP in Education 55
5 Scrum 57
5.1 Scrum in Education 58
6 Conclusions 60
References 60
Practices of Agile Educational Environments: Analysis from the Perspective of the Public, Private, and Third Sectors 65
1 Introduction 65
2 Agile Anywhere 66
3 HOT—Three Perspectives of Agile Environments 66
4 MERge—Management, Education, Research 69
5 Application of Agile Teaching Practices in the Three Sectors 71
5.1 First Sector: School Principal 72
5.2 Second Sector: Team Leader 73
5.3 Third Sector: Faculty Member 75
6 Sub-practices 75
7 Conclusion 78
References 78
Kaizen and Education 80
1 What Is Kaizen and Lean? 80
1.1 Defining Kaizen and Lean 81
1.2 A Brief Perspective on Recent History 82
1.3 The Purpose of Kaizen 84
1.4 Defining What ‘Change-for-the-Better’ Is in Education 85
2 Foundational Principles of Kaizen 89
2.1 Create Customer Value 89
2.2 Remove Inefficiencies or Waste 91
2.3 Engage and Develop People 94
2.4 Focus on Gemba 96
2.5 Manage Visually 97
2.6 Process and Results 98
2.7 Pull and Flow 100
3 Kaizen and Education 101
3.1 Where and How to Start with Kaizen in Education? 102
4 Conclusion 106
References 106
Part II Agile Methods in the School Classroom 110
Transforming Education with eduScrum 111
1 Introduction: Change, Education, and Agile Methods 111
1.1 The Origins of eduScrum 112
1.2 What Is eduScrum? 113
2 An Outline of eduScrum 114
2.1 Teams 114
2.2 The Teacher as Product Owner and Servant Leader to the Student Teams 115
2.3 Start with the Why 115
2.4 Framework and Process 116
2.5 eduScrum Sprint 116
2.6 Planning Meeting 117
2.7 Stories 117
2.8 Celebration Criteria 118
2.9 Working Agreements/Definition of Doing and Fun 118
2.10 Stand-up 118
2.11 Review 119
2.12 Personal and Team Retrospective and Reflection 119
2.13 Team and Personal Development 120
3 The Flap 120
3.1 To Do, Busy and Done 120
3.2 Run-Up Chart 121
3.3 Impediments 122
4 The Pillars of eduScrum 122
4.1 Transparency 122
4.2 Investigation 123
4.3 Adaptation 123
5 eduScrum Principles and Values 123
5.1 Trust 124
5.2 Communication 124
5.3 Commitment 124
5.4 Accountability 124
5.5 Result 124
6 Challenges of eduScrum 125
7 Practitioner Report from Alisa Stolze 125
8 Student Experiences 127
8.1 Lars’ Student Experience with eduScrum 127
8.2 Marente’s Student Experience with eduScrum 128
9 Summary 129
References 130
Getting Agile at School 131
1 Introduction 132
1.1 The Agile Mindset 132
1.2 The Core of Agile in Education 133
1.3 Our Context 133
2 Ten Actionable Practices 135
2.1 Exploration 135
2.2 Growth Mindset 136
2.3 Trust 137
2.4 Transparency 139
2.5 Adaptability 140
2.6 Smallify 141
2.7 Value 141
2.8 Collaboration 143
2.9 Redo 144
2.10 Uplift 145
3 Conclusion 146
References 147
Bringing the Benefits of Agile Techniques Inside the Classroom: A Practical Guide 149
1 End-User Software Engineering in K-12: Introduction 149
2 End-User Software Engineering in K-12: State of the Art 151
3 Bringing Agile to K-12 Education 152
3.1 Why Agile? 152
3.2 Why Extreme Programming? 154
4 Mapping XP Practices to K-12 Practices: A Toolbox ? 155
4.1 User Stories 156
4.2 Small Releases 159
4.3 Metaphors 159
4.4 Coding Standards 160
4.5 Collective Ownership 160
4.6 Simple Design 160
4.7 Refactoring 161
4.8 Testing 161
4.9 Pair Programming 162
4.10 Continuous Integration 162
4.11 On-site Customer 163
5 Getting the Right Practice from the Toolbox: A Selection Strategy 163
6 Conclusion? 164
References 166
Part III Reconceptualising Learning Environments Using Agile and Lean Approaches 169
Lean and Agile Higher Education: Death to Grades, Courses, and Degree Programs? 170
1 Introduction 170
2 Lean and Agile as a Departure from Plan-Based Education 172
2.1 Meaning of Lean and Agile 172
2.2 Key Differences from Plan-Based Education 173
2.3 Pursuing the Minimum Viable Competence 174
3 Obstacles to Lean and Agile 175
4 IT as an Enabler for Lean and Agile Education 177
4.1 E-learning and Crowdsourcing 177
4.2 The Future of Grades and Grade Transcripts 179
4.3 Ontologies of Learning Outcomes 180
5 Conclusion: Death to Grades, Courses, and Degree Programs? 181
References 182
Leveraging Agile Methodology to Transform a University Learning and Teaching Unit 185
1 Introduction 186
2 Case Study Context 189
2.1 Working Group 189
2.2 The Agile Methodology Framework 190
3 Process of Agile Methodology 193
4 Agile Methodology Projects Within Organisational Culture 194
5 Professional Learning Needs 195
6 Unexpected Gains in Staff Self-confidence 195
7 Implications for Practice 196
8 Conclusion 197
References 198
Lean and Agile Assessment Workflows 200
1 Introduction 200
2 Kernel for Educational Assessment 202
2.1 Area of Concern ‘Content’ 203
2.2 Area of Concern ‘People’ 206
2.3 Area of Concern ‘Logistics’ 209
3 Sample Workflow Definitions 212
4 Tool Support 215
5 Summary and Discussion 216
References 217
Part IV Agile and Lean Learning Processes 218
Criterion-Based Grading, Agile Goal Setting, and Course (Un)Completion Strategies 219
1 Introduction 219
2 Agile Course Setting 221
2.1 Versatile Needs 221
2.2 Practical Arrangements 222
2.3 Grading 223
2.4 Individual Learning Goals and Learning Paths 225
3 Research Questions and Methodology 227
3.1 Research Questions 227
3.2 Data 227
3.3 Methods 228
4 Results 228
4.1 Comparison of Grades and Targets 229
4.2 Students’ Strategies 230
4.3 Student Feedback 236
5 Discussion 236
5.1 Criterion-Referenced Grading with Automated Feedback 237
5.2 (Un)Selecting the Assignments 237
5.3 Learning the Necessary Skills 238
5.4 The Requirements of Passing the Course 238
5.5 Over Performing 239
5.6 Summarizing Different Student Strategies 239
5.7 Further Observations 239
6 Conclusions 240
References 241
Teaching and Fostering Reflection in Software Engineering Project Courses 243
1 Introduction 244
2 Background 245
2.1 Reflection and Education 245
2.2 Reflection in Software Engineering 246
3 Methodology 248
3.1 Action Design Research Applied to Education 248
3.2 Data Collection and Analysis 250
3.3 Threats to Validity 251
4 The Old Course Design 252
4.1 Intended Learning Outcomes 252
4.2 Learning Activities 253
4.3 Assessment 254
4.4 Constructive Alignment and Student Perception 254
5 A Toolkit for Reflective Practice 255
5.1 Model of Reflective Practice 256
5.2 Course Structure 257
5.3 Learning Activities 258
5.4 Assessment Tasks 259
5.5 Professional Practices 260
6 The New Course Design 260
6.1 Intended Learning Outcomes 260
6.2 Learning Activities 261
6.3 Assessment 263
6.4 Constructive Alignment and Student Perception 264
7 Reflections on the Toolkit 266
7.1 Student Lens 266
7.2 Teacher Lens 268
7.3 Theoretical Lens 269
8 Applying the Toolkit Outside SE Education 271
9 Conclusions 271
References 272
Lean Learning of Risks in Students’ Agile Teams 275
1 Introduction 276
2 Background and Related Work 277
3 Software Engineering Courses 278
4 Results and Analysis 279
4.1 Collaborative Nature of Risks 280
4.2 Lean Nature of Risks 282
4.3 Collaborative Meets Lean 287
5 Discussion 288
6 Conclusion 291
References 291
Part V Using Agile and Lean Methods to Teach Software Development 294
Applying Lean Learning to Software Engineering Education 295
1 Introduction 295
1.1 Perspectives on Teaching 296
1.2 The Rest of This Chapter 297
2 Lecture Courses 297
2.1 Reducing Cycle Time 299
2.2 Peer Coaching 300
2.3 Automation 301
2.4 Summary 303
3 Project-Based Courses 303
3.1 Second Year—Web Application Development Projects 304
3.2 Third Year—Software Engineering Group Projects 305
3.3 Sustainable Pace 306
3.4 Customer Relationships 308
3.5 Lecturing Versus Coaching 308
3.6 Checkpoints 309
3.7 Summary 310
4 Future Directions 311
References 311
Developing a Spiral Curriculum for Teaching Agile at the National Software Academy 313
1 Introduction 313
2 Related Work 314
3 Programme Overview 315
4 Developing Spiral Learning for Teaching Agile 317
4.1 Our First Year—2015–16 319
4.2 Our Second Year—2016–17 320
5 Summer Placements 324
5.1 First Cohort—Summer 2016 325
5.2 First and Second Cohorts—Summer 2017 325
6 Reflection 326
6.1 Pedagogical Constraints on Teaching Agile 326
6.2 Individuals and Interactions over Processes and Tools 327
6.3 Working Software over Comprehensive Documentation 328
6.4 Customer Collaboration over Contract Negotiation 329
6.5 Responding to Change over Following a Plan 330
7 Conclusions 331
References 332
Agile Approaches for Teaching and Learning Software Architecture Design Processes and Methods 334
1 Introduction 335
2 Key Dimensions of Agile Learning 337
2.1 Key Elements and Roles in an Agile Process 337
2.2 Correspondence of Agile Education to Key Agile Elements and Roles 338
2.3 Structure of a Software Engineering Course for Agile and Lean Learning 339
3 Agility, Software Architecture and Lean Learning 339
3.1 Activities of the Software Architects in Agile Projects 341
3.2 Impact of Agility on Architecture Quality 342
3.3 Impact of Distribution of Agile Teams on Software Architecture 343
3.4 Impact of Complexity and Domain of the Projects on Agile Processes 343
4 Methodology for Agile and Lean Software Architecture Education 343
4.1 Key Elements of the Agile Software Architecture Course and Students' Activities 345
4.2 Iterative Delivery of the Course Contents Combined with Short Hands-On Exercises 346
4.3 Using Digital Platform(s) for Communication, Collaboration and Feedback 348
4.4 Incremental Deliverables and Rapid Feedback 348
4.5 Learning Software Architecture Design 349
4.6 Learning Agile Software Architecture Evaluation 350
4.7 Learning Agile Software Architecture Evolution 350
5 Case Studies on Application of the Proposed Methodology 351
5.1 Course Structure and Distribution of the Roles 352
5.2 Digital Platform Structure 352
5.3 Weekly Architecture Analysis and Design Sessions Using Drawing Boards and CASE Tools 353
5.4 Deliverable and Feedback Cycles 354
5.5 Architecture Design Sessions 354
5.6 Architecture Evaluation Sessions 355
5.7 Using Architecture Meta-models and a Reference Architecture to Support Architecture Evolution 356
6 Students Feedback and Discussion on Application of the Proposed Methodology on General Software Engineering Education 356
7 Related Work 358
8 Conclusions 359
References 359
Part VI Agile and Lean Activities and Games for the Classroom 361
A Practical Approach to Teaching Agile Methodologies and Principles at Tertiary Level Using Student-Centred Activities 362
1 Introduction 362
2 Agile Methodologies and Principles 363
2.1 Scrum Methodology 364
2.2 User Stories 365
2.3 Extreme Programming 366
2.4 Lean 367
2.5 Kanban 368
2.6 Test-Driven Development 369
3 Practical Approaches 370
3.1 Classroom Activities 371
3.2 Lab Activities 385
4 Student Feedback 392
5 Conclusion 392
References 394
Using Agile Games to Invigorate Agile and Lean Software Development Learning in Classrooms 397
1 Introduction 397
2 Background and Related Works 399
2.1 Agile and Lean Software Development 399
2.2 Learning Agile and Lean Through Games 401
3 Research Context and Design 404
3.1 The Course Context 404
3.2 The Challenge 405
3.3 Introducing Games 405
3.4 Data Collection and Analysis 407
4 Findings 407
4.1 Classroom Observations 408
4.2 Games Survey Results: Specific Games 409
4.3 Games Survey Results: General Questions 410
4.4 Games Survey Results: Open-Ended Questions 412
5 Discussion 414
5.1 Limitations and Future Work 416
6 Conclusion 417
Appendix: Survey Questions 417
References 419
Red-Green-Go! A Self-Organising Game for Teaching Test-Driven Development 421
1 Introduction 422
2 Teaching Test-Driven Development 424
2.1 Background 424
2.2 The Challenges of Teaching TDD 426
2.3 Approaches to Teaching TDD 428
3 Information Radiator: The Red-Green-Go! Game Board 430
4 Self-Organisation and Trust in Red-Green-Go! 433
5 Reflections on Red-Green-Go! in Practice 439
5.1 The Game Board 439
5.2 The Guidance/Feedback Mechanisms 440
5.3 The Lecturer’s View 442
5.4 Limitations/Data Gathering 443
6 Conclusions 444
References 446