Student software engineering learning via participation in Humanitarian FOSS projects

Abstract

Software engineering education has long sought to provide students with real-world software development and professional experience. The use of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) projects is one attractive approach for providing students with easy access to a complex, ongoing project of size that is supported by a professional community. Humanitarian FOSS (HFOSS) projects hold the additional appeal to students of developing software that will benefit the human condition. However, student involvement in HFOSS projects can be somewhat unpredictable and less controllable than the development of home-grown projects or projects with an industry partner. Student participation in an HFOSS project means that students are dependent, at least somewhat, on the goals, schedule, and constraints of the HFOSS project itself. Therefore, learning is somewhat reliant on the progress of the HFOSS project. This paper presents results of a multi-year study of student perceptions of learning related to software engineering knowledge and skills while involved in an HFOSS project. The paper includes a background of work in student participation in HFOSS, an outline of the study approach and an explanation of the results. Implications of the results and future directions are also described. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.