A Novel Interdepartmental Approach to Teach Cross-Functional Collaboration in Software Engineering.

In recent years, the development of software products has become increasingly complex and involves a variety of professionals from different disciplines. Software engineers need to be able to communicate and collaborate across teams, departments, and organizations. Although interdepartmental course collaborations are not a new pedagogical approach, linking concepts from different subject areas creates a holistic learning experience that is often lacking in software engineering courses and is needed to effectively mirror industry software development. The collaborative approach to course delivery has the advantage of allowing software engineers to work together with less technical project managers to gain a broader understanding of the software industry. This experiential paper will describe two approaches implemented in technology management and software engineering courses: a novel interdepartmental active learning environment for undergraduate and graduate students and a discipline-specific application of an Agile Scrum project framework. The undergraduate course Introduction to Technology Management is a three-hour per week project-based class with the goal of introducing students to the challenges and rewards of managing complex technical projects with budget and time constraints. The graduate course Software Engineering Leadership is a three-hour per week project-based class designed for computer science graduate students to identify important roles and success in software project deliverables. The primary goals of both courses are to provide technical students with engaging activities related to developing skills like teamwork, communication, and following a development framework that involves both synchronous and asynchronous communication and collaboration with non-technical teams in a distributed environment. The traditional classroom instructional approach to teaching management and software engineering typically includes lectures, discussions, and group activities. For this study, the interdepartmental collaboration experimentation identified strategies essential for the novel coordination of efforts to align course content between two skilled disciplines. The research was designed with the intention that the course should prepare, motivate, and engage students in collaborative project outcomes that focus on project frameworks, documentation, and intentional outcomes. Course design commenced with a volunteer interdepartmental partnership between two professors within the College of Engineering and Technology and was delivered in one semester during separate times and class locations. Undergraduate and graduate students were compelled to interact for project success. The advantage of practical experience through collaboration provides students with insights into interpersonal relationships. This study focuses on the effectiveness of interdisciplinary teaching on engineering student project outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]