Collaborative Research: LEGO-Based Active Learning Activities for Software Engineering Education

软件工程在培养学生成为专业劳动力的一部分方面扮演着重要的角色，它需要将深入的学科知识与一套强大的软技能相结合，比如团队合作和沟通能力。考虑到该学科的工程性质，学习软件工程原理的最佳方法之一是将它们应用于主动学习环境中，例如案例研究或实践练习。在对本科生进行教学时，在这些学习情境和相关理论材料之间建立清晰的联系是至关重要的，同时以学生容易产生联系的方式设计积极的学习活动。这个项目的目标是开发和建立使用动觉学习模块的有效性，利用乐高作为一个有形的操作来提高学生在本科软件工程教育中的学习和参与。该项目将证明，与传统的课堂教学技术相比，使用乐高有形教具将提高学生在软件工程方面的知识，并通过使用主动学习活动的框架提高学生对课程作业的参与度。该项目将为大学和高中的教育工作者开发课程支持材料，通过主动学习模块将软件工程主题纳入他们的课程。研究设计将采用测试前后控制组设计，不随机分配学生到课程组。两个参与机构将使用相同的研究设计和相同的仪器。

Software engineering, which plays a significant role in preparing students for becoming a part of the professional workforce, requires the pairing of in-depth disciplinary knowledge with a robust set of soft skills, such as teamwork and communication abilities. Given the engineering nature of the discipline, one of the best ways to study software engineering principles is to apply them in active learning contexts, such as case studies or hands-on exercises. When teaching undergraduates, it is crucial to make a clear connection between these learning contexts and related theoretical material, while designing active learning activities in a way that students would find easy to relate to. The goal of this project is to develop and establish the effectiveness of using kinesthetic learning modules leveraging LEGO as a tangible manipulative to improve student learning and engagement in undergraduate software engineering education. This project will demonstrate that compared to traditional classroom instructional techniques, the use of LEGO tangible manipulatives will improve student knowledge in software engineering and improve student engagement with coursework by using a framework of active learning activities. This project will develop curricular support materials for educators at universities and high schools to incorporate software engineering topics into their courses via the active learning modules. The study design will utilize a pre-post test control group design without random assignment of students to course sections. The same study design and the same instruments will be used at both participating institutions.