Developing a Framework to Document and Assess Individual Contributions to Team Software Projects

About This Grant

This project aims to serve the national interest by improving teaching and assessment methods used for team projects in undergraduate computing education. By requiring students to collaborate in the development of a software product, team projects provide students with authentic learning experiences that prepare them for careers in the computing profession. In undergraduate education, a key challenge is to assess individual contributions to team projects. This project plans to develop a novel teaching and assessment approach in which students compile individual portfolios documenting and reflecting on their completed project tasks relative to the outcomes they address. Instructional staff and peers then assess a sample of each student’s portfolio entries against appropriate performance indicators associated with the learning outcomes targeted by the team project. Since the framework will be readily adaptable to any team project, the approach can be used for team projects in any STEM degree program. This Level 2 Engaged Student Learning project will thus help advance undergraduate STEM education by improving the ability to assess students engaged in team projects. Using a rigorous empirical approach that involves computing instructors at multiple institutions, computing students, software professionals, and a learning scientist, this project will iteratively develop and validate (a) an assessment framework to gauge attainment of student learning outcomes targeted by collaborative software development projects; and (b) a pedagogical approach that integrates the assessment framework into computing courses. By aiming to improve assessment methods for team projects, the framework will contribute to the development of exemplary practices in undergraduate STEM education. Through their participation in the framework, students will enter the workforce with better self-knowledge and documentation of their skills, thus helping employers to integrate new hires into positions that align with those skills. The framework will be designed to be flexible enough to facilitate its adoption across a broad range of STEM courses. Moreover, the framework aims to assess students' attainment of a variety of learning outcomes in addition to those captured by traditional assessments. In so doing, it aims to help broaden the participation of STEM students from different backgrounds. By documenting, reflecting on, and receiving feedback on their individual attainment of learning outcomes in team projects, students will be better prepared for employment in the professional workforce, where team projects are a central activity. The NSF IUSE: EDU Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.