1. D. Monett
The future?
Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

2. Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Joint Software Engineering
to support STEM Education
Experiences before, during and after a Children’s University
Talk at the Global Conference on Learning and Technology “The Local Global Conference”
Global Learn 2015
Dagmar Monett, Josephine Greifenberg, Anne Krautz,
Maximilian Stöhr, Rico Ulbricht
dagmar@monettdiaz.com
monettdiaz

3. D. Monett
Our motivation
3Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
How do children actively participate in the
software development cycle in academic settings
by testing software that is being produced by
undergraduate students (e.g. as end users
conducting acceptance tests) and by enriching
the requirements engineering process for
further course project developments tailored to
them (as real customers defining new or changing
requirements)?

4. D. Monett
Our motivation
4Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
How do children actively participate in the
software development cycle in academic settings
by testing software that is being produced by
undergraduate students (e.g. as end users
conducting acceptance tests) and by enriching
the requirements engineering process for
further course project developments tailored to
them (as real customers defining new or changing
requirements)?

5. D. Monett 5Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Topics

6. D. Monett
Topics
6Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Some initiatives:
■ Global: CS, STEM, Children’s Universities
■ Local: The Children’s University 2013
■ The joint Software Engineering experience:
■ STEM with Agile
■ Local: The Children’s University 2014
■ Test stations
■ Test evaluation criteria
■ Results. Discussion
■ Lessons learned and Conclusions

7. D. Monett 7Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Some initiatives
– Global –

8. D. Monett
Computer Science
8Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Hour of Code http://code.org
“Every student in every school should have the opportunity
to learn computer science.”
(110+ million participants as at April 15, 2015)
Screenshot from http://studio.code.org/hoc/1

9. D. Monett
STEM
9Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics
■ In German: MINT
■ Creating a future for STEM
- Reducing the existing STEM gap in Germany
Logo © https://www.mintzukunftschaffen.de/

10. D. Monett
Children’s Universities
10Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Professors give lectures to children
■ First in UK: Birmingham, 1993
■ First in Germany: Tübingen, 2002
■ First at the Kiefholz primary school in Treptow,
Berlin: 2007
■ Today: Hundreds of thousands of children
participating across Germany.

11. D. Monett 11Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Experiences from the
Children’s University 2013
– Local –

12. D. Monett
At the school…
12Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Look at the
female vs. male
body language…
- Is “technophobia”
(fear/dislike of technology)
by female an issue?
- Dominant male exposure?

13. D. Monett
Engagement depends on the
activity and on the instructor
13Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

14. D. Monett 14Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
The Joint
Software Engineering Experience

15. D. Monett 15Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
STEM with Agile

16. D. Monett
Agile course: 2013
16Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Agile practices and methods in block course
■ Multidisciplinary Lab, 3rd Sem. Computer Science
■ 44 Semester Credit Hours (1 SCH = 45 Min. of
teaching time)
■ Soft and hard skills on Agile and beyond
■ Student-centered learning, Service learning
■ Project-based learning, coaching sections
■ 11 teams of undergraduate students ( 4)
■ Topic: Sudoku program for children

17. D. Monett
Agile course: 2013
17Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Agile practices and methods in block course
■ Multidisciplinary Lab, 3rd Sem. Computer Science
■ 44 Semester Credit Hours (1 SCH = 45 Min. of
teaching time)
■ Soft and hard skills on Agile and beyond
■ Student-centered learning, Service learning
■ Project-based learning, coaching sections
■ 11 teams of undergraduate students ( 4)
■ Topic: Sudoku program for children

18. D. Monett
App: 2013-14
18Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ Sudoku version for mobile devices (Android)
■ Undergraduate student research project
■ 4 undergraduate students from former Agile
course
■ Exhaustive evaluation of all 11 programs
■ Baseline for mobile app
■ Support at the Children’s University, June 2014

19. D. Monett 19Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
The Children’s University 2014
– Local –

20. D. Monett
At the school…
20Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
- All children together
- Cultural activity at the
beginning

21. D. Monett
“We test software programs!”
21Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ 14 children aged between 8 and 10
■ 2 female, 12 male
■ At the university! (PC-Lab, BSEL)
■ Duration: 2-3 hours
■ Session:
■ Introduction: Differences Hardware/Software
■ Hardware: PC parts and components
■ Software: Testing the Sudoku programs

22. D. Monett
At the university…
22Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
No “technophobia” at all! Children engagement depends on
the activity and on the instructor!

23. D. Monett 23Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Test stations

24. D. Monett
Test stations
24Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Images © http://www.iconsmind.com and http://icons8.com
11x 1x
…
+

25. D. Monett
Distribution of resources
25Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Images © http://www.iconsmind.com and http://icons8.com
Desktop PC Tablet Support Materials

26. D. Monett 26Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Qualitative evaluations

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Test evaluation criteria
27Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Id. Desktop questionnaire Id. Mobile app questionnaire
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
C8
The mascot is attractive.
The color scheme is
attractive.
I understand the text and the
help.
Solving tasks is easy.
The program runs without
errors.
The program is easy to use.
I was able to change the
colors.
I like the program very much.
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Q6
How do you like the Sudoku
app?
How do you like the colors?
How do you like the
mascot?
Is the font size big enough?
Were there any errors in the
app?
Was the Sudoku too easy?
Rated with stars (up to 5 stars) Rated with smileys (, , )

28. D. Monett
Test evaluation criteria
28Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Id. Desktop questionnaire Id. Mobile app questionnaire
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
C8
The mascot is attractive.
The color scheme is
attractive.
I understand the text and the
help.
Solving tasks is easy.
The program runs without
errors.
The program is easy to use.
I was able to change the
colors.
I like the program very much.
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Q6
How do you like the Sudoku
app?
How do you like the colors?
How do you like the
mascot?
Is the font size big enough?
Were there any errors in the
app?
Was the Sudoku too easy?
Rated with stars (up to 5 stars) Rated with smileys (, , )

29. D. Monett
11x Sudoku: desktop PC
29Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

30. D. Monett

31. D. Monett
PC stations
31Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

32. D. Monett
Test evaluation criteria
32Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Id. Desktop questionnaire Id. Mobile app questionnaire
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
C8
The mascot is attractive.
The color scheme is
attractive.
I understand the text and the
help.
Solving tasks is easy.
The program runs without
errors.
The program is easy to use.
I was able to change the
colors.
I like the program very much.
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q5
Q6
How do you like the Sudoku
app?
How do you like the colors?
How do you like the
mascot?
Is the font size big enough?
Were there any errors in the
app?
Was the Sudoku too easy?
Rated with stars (up to 5 stars) Rated with smileys (, , )

33. D. Monett
1x Sudoku-App on Tablet
33Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

34. D. Monett
App on tablet
34Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

35. D. Monett 35Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Results. Discussion.

36. D. Monett
Main results
36Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
■ 14 children evaluated the desktop versions (-1)
■ 7 children evaluated the app
■ General feedback:
■ 12 out of 14 thumbs up
■ no thumbs down

37. D. Monett
Evaluation ( stars)
37Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
0
1
2
3
4
5
A B C D E F G H I J K
Stars(avg)
Sudoku Program
General evaluation by the children
■ Girls (resp. Boys)
■ Gave higher evaluations (fewer stars coloured)
■ No signs of tiredness (some “Sudoku is boring”)
■ Always on track (some refused to evaluate)
■ Highly focused in testing (some wanted to play other
games)

38. D. Monett
What children liked most
38Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015

39. D. Monett 39Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Lessons learned

40. D. Monett
Lesson 1
40Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Faculty should make the first move in
a school-university relationship!
Image © patrisyu @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 School-university
partnerships!

41. D. Monett
Lesson 2
41Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Schools can be real customers of
university course projects!
Image © Supertrooper @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 Service Learning

42. D. Monett
Lesson 3
42Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Children should
be involved in the
software cycle,
as a minimum
during software
testing!
Image © Stuart Miles @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 Shaping software

43. D. Monett
Lesson 4
43Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
The pursuit of CS by interested female
students is not such a distant dream!
Image © supakitmod @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 It depends on the
activity and on
the instructor!

44. D. Monett
Lesson 5
44Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Independent rotation
through the test stations
keeps children more
motivated and less tired!
Image © photostock @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 Help needed (students,
school instructors)

45. D. Monett
Lesson 6
45Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Children are very
honest and express
their opinions freely!
Image © Stuart Miles @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 It is what you
want. Isn’t it?

46. D. Monett
Lesson 7
46Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Secondary activities should be planned in advance!
Image © Gualberto107 @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/

47. D. Monett
Lesson 8
47Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
One single raindrop could make
a rainbow in future!
Image © tigger11th @ http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/
 School-university partnership!
 New student research projects
 New course projects

48. D. Monett 48Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Conclusions

49. D. Monett 49
Generated with http://www.jasondavies.com/wordcloud/
Topics covered

50. D. Monett
Our motivation
50Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
How do children actively participate in the
software development cycle in academic settings
by testing software that is being produced by
undergraduate students (e.g. as end users
conducting acceptance tests) and by enriching
the requirements engineering process for
further course project developments tailored to
them (as real customers defining new or changing
requirements)?

51. Berlin, Germany, April 16-17, 2015
Joint Software Engineering
to support STEM Education
Experiences before, during and after a Children’s University
Talk at the Global Conference on Learning and Technology “The Local Global Conference”
Global Learn 2015
Dagmar Monett, Josephine Greifenberg, Anne Krautz,
Maximilian Stöhr, Rico Ulbricht
dagmar@monettdiaz.com
monettdiaz