On successful completion of the module, students will be able to: Carry out a substantive review of a key project and associated team operations; Collaborate effectively in a team to deliver a project to a specified brief; Interpret a project brief to plan for delivery, including use of appropriate tools and within appropriate professional standards; Apply best practices to enable automated testing, continuous integration and continuous deployment.
The module provides a complement to COM5003 Further Software Development and COM5013 User-Centred Design with focus on the management and delivery of software projects.
Using output from COM5013 to inform the design, students will build and test and deploy a product in an iterative development process. Emphasis is placed upon continuous delivery, critical review and key performance indicators such as client communication, control of deadlines and cost management.
When planning and executing their project, students must demonstrate knowledge in 2 key areas:
- Development practices: e.g. DevOps practices, testing tools and methods, collaborative development practices, version control;
- Project management: e.g. user requirements and critical success factors (CSF), customer collaboration, planning and scheduling, agile principles and frameworks.
The first half of the module will consist of a series of workshops in which a variety of active learning strategies will be deployed. In Semester 2 students use the knowledge and skills acquired in Semester 1 to tackle the team project.
Workshops
Hours: 60
Intended Group Size: Cohort
Guided independent study
Hours: 240
Further details relating to assessment
Artefact: The ‘artefact’ is the product that responds to the given brief, and it is evaluated in terms of the KPIs. The mark given is not limited to the product; emphasis is placed on work processes, qualities of communication and professional/critical attitudes involved in creating the artefact. Employers supply appropriate briefs and serve as clients during the project. They advise on the completed project with reference to the KPIs and the customer service.
Commentary: Students must independently submit a reflective commentary on the project process. The contents should include (the breakdown by word count is merely illustrative):
- Project outline (200 words)
- Description and rationale of process methodologies e.g. collaborative tools, frameworks, project management approaches (700 words)
- Description and rationale of development approaches e.g. resources used, programming language, development practices and known problems (e.g. bugs) (300 words)
- Evaluation: SWOT analysis, plan for improved future performance, evaluation of personal performance and motivation (300 words).
In this module, formative assessment will be used to support the skills that contribute to the assessment. Formative assessment may include coding labs, design and modelling tasks, enquiry-based and problem-based activities, case study presentations, short quizzes, or specific research tasks. Formative feedback will be an ongoing process within class sessions.
Full details are available in the Module Handbook.
For students studying at Leeds Trinity campus, there are variations to the Taught Programme Academic Regulations, as required by the accrediting body, and these variations are contained within Additional Regulations.
001 Artfact; 1,500 words equiv; end semester 2 50%
003 Commentary; 1,500 words; end semester 2 50%
Module Coordinator - Aliyu Lawal Aliyu
Level - 5
Credit Value - 30
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 5YL