Building a Model Software Development Curriculum

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Building a Model Software Development Curriculum

• Pam Rostal David West

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Background

• At Agile 2005, an Apprenticeship Pedagogical
  Patterns Workshop was held to define the types of
  patterns that would be needed to build a
  successful apprenticeship program.
• This document shows the results of that workshop
  and suggests that the patterns discussed there
  actually relate to each other by means of a model
  based on systems thinking.
• By categorizing the patterns/pattern languages
  according to the aspects required to build a
  healthy organization, the practitioner can
  diagnose which patterns might be helpful in
  creating or improving any Software Development
  curriculum or addressing issues that are limiting
  such creation or improvement.

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Improvement Model

• Improvement requires balancing investments in
  three areas. Culture, Organization, and Action
  function like the legs of a three legged stool.
  When any leg becomes too long or too short it
  prevents the stool from supporting its
  objectives.
• A holistic approach to improvement avoids the
  problems encountered when too narrow of an
  emphasis on process, methods, and tools fails due
  to larger issues in the culture and/or
  organization.
• The Improvement Model allows for description of
  the current state, diagnosis of unsupported
  aspects, and prescription of the patterns that
  might address those aspects.

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9 Aspects of Improvement
(Shared Heritage)
(Shared Beliefs)
(Shared Goals)
(Shared Composition)
(Shared Commitment)
(Shared Focus)
(Shared Plan)
(Shared Responsibility)
Action
(Shared Approach)
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Improvement Model
Improvement moves from the lower left to the
upper right. It needs to be balanced across the
9 aspects.. If any aspect gets out of balance,
the entire system needs to be brought back into
alignment by reflective adjustment. (Getting out
of balance isnt bad it prompts the system to
reflective adjustment that can accommodate
emergent opportunities.).
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Apprenticeship Patterns - Learning
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Apprenticeship Patterns Social Interaction
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Apprenticeship Patterns Community Development
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Problem to be Solved
Can these patterns be rationalized over a
Software Development Curriculum improvement model
so that practitioners can be directed to the
right set of patterns to address their deliberate
improvement or diagnostic adjustment needs? Are
there necessary patterns or pattern languages
that have not yet been discovered?