Computer Science (COMP) 688
Software Testing and Quality Assurance

Overview | Course Objectives | Learning Outcomes | Outline | Evaluation | Course Materials - Textbook | Course Materials - Other | Special Course Features | Special Note | Course Fees | Course Availability

Overview

Computer Science 688: Software Testing and Quality Assurance studies the state-of-the-art and main research challenges of two important aspects of software engineering: testing and quality. The course also examines various approaches and methodologies used in software testing and quality assurance. Course topics are defined and illustrated by examples and papers from current peer-reviewed research literature in the area under study. The course will prepare students to independently conduct research in software testing and quality assurance, and to apply that knowledge in their future research and practice.

COMP 688 focuses on the widely-adopted and emerging principles and knowledge of software testing and quality assurance, and provides the knowledge of and research skills in these areas of study. This course is designed for those who are about to start research in software testing and quality assurance, and for practitioners and managers of any aspect of software development. The knowledge of, and research skills in the area of software engineering will enable new researchers to apply their knowledge of software testing and quality assurance when identifying research topics, solving research problems, and addressing various research challenges. Practitioners and those with managerial responsibilities in software development will be able to apply the knowledge of the state-of-the-art in software testing and quality assurance. Software developers will also be able to apply the skills gained in this course in everyday practice by adding novel and more innovative approaches to their knowledge areas.

Course Objectives

• Study the state-of-the-art and main research challenges of selected topics in software testing and quality assurance.
• Introduce various approaches, techniques, technologies, and methodologies used in software testing and quality assurance.
• Illustrate the above-mentioned topics with examples and papers from current peer-reviewed research literature on software testing and quality assurance
• Prepare students to conduct independent research on software testing and quality assurance and to apply that knowledge in their future research and practice

Learning Outcomes

After completing the course, students should will be able to

• research the state-of-the-art, and apply their findings to software testing and quality assurance;
• analyze different approaches to software testing and quality assurance, and select optimal solutions for different situations and projects;
• conduct independent research in software testing and quality assurance and apply that knowledge in their future research and practice;
• evaluate the work of peers constructively by following proven methods of peer-review, and by using the principles of research ethics.

Prerequisites

1. Understanding credible research resources verified through methodological software engineering research processes.
2. Previous experience in presenting a peer-reviewed paper, writing a peer-reviewed software engineering research paper, and participating in the peer-review of presentations and papers.
3. Software Testing Techniques, Measures, and Process
4. Experience in conducting a software engineering research project based on peer-reviewed research literature, and ,following sound research methodologies.

Outline

Unit 0 - Using Your Study Guide

Unit 1 – Introduction to Software Testing and Quality Assurance

Unit 2 – Software Testing Fundamentals and Test Levels

• Software Testing Fundamentals
• Software Testing Levels

Unit 3 - Software Testing Techniques, Measures, and Process

• Testing Techniques
• Test-Related Measures
• Testing Process

Unit 4 - Software Quality Assurance

• Software Quality Fundamentals
• Software Quality Management Processes
• Practical Considerations of Software Quality

Evaluation

• Tutor Marked Assignment
• TMA 2 asks students to select a research topic in software testing and quality assurance, conduct a comprehensive literature review, write a literature review paper, and review the papers of the peers in their group.
• TMA 3 assesses the theoretical part of the course through the use of blogs.
• TMA 4 is a research project based on the research literature review paper done in TMA2. It includes the presentation of the project to the group, and extends the literature review paper done in TMA2.
• Student participation is evaluated from their contributions to the discussions surrounding the presentations in TMA 1 and TMA4, as well as comments on blogs in TMA3.

To receive credit towards the Master of Science in IS, for IS Elective/Career Track, students must achieve a course composite grade of at least C+ (67%). The weighting of the composite grade is as follows:

TMA 1 - Presentation of a software testing and quality assurance research topic	15%
TMA 2 - Peer-reviewed literature review paper on a software testing and quality assurance topic	25%
TMA 3 - Journal Papers Readings	15%
TMA 4 - Project	30%
Participation	15%
Total	100%

Course Materials - Textbook

All materials of Computer Science 688 will be made available through a link guide on the course Web site. These materials include

1. Abran, A., Moore, J.W., Bourque, P., and Dupuis, R. (Eds.) (2004), "Guide to the Software Engineering Body of Knowledge (SWEBOK)," IEEE Computer Society, Washington DC.
2. Relevant peer-reviewed software engineering papers from the most important software engineering publications (e.g., Software Quality Journal, Software Testing, Verification and Reliability; as well as the published proceedings from international conferences, such as ICST, ISSTA, ESEM, and QSIC, published by ACM, IEEE, Springer, Elsevier, Wiley, etc.).

Course Materials - Other

The remainder of the learning materials for Computer Science 688 is also distributed in electronic format. At this time, those materials include

1. Computer Science 688 Study Guide;
2. detailed descriptions of the requirements for the individual assignments
3. a course evaluation form
4. links to a variety of resources of the World Wide Web

Additional supporting materials of interests to students of Computer Science 688 will be made available through a link guide on the course Web site.

Special Course Features

COMP688 will be offered in paced electronic mode. Electronic paced study is facilitated through a variety of computer-mediated communication options, and can be completed at the student's workplace or home.

Special Note

Students registered in this course will NOT be allowed to take an extension due to the nature of the course activities.

Athabasca University reserves the right to amend course outlines occasionally and without notice.
Courses offered by other delivery methods may vary from their individualized-study counterparts.


Athabasca University
1 University Drive
Athabasca, AB T9S 3A3
(780) 675-6111, (800) 788-9041
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