From Student to Software Engineer in 8 Weeks

First things first, this is not a post about how much our education system needs to change; the speech by Dr Warrican at the St Vincent & the Grenadines Community College already spoke to that. Rather, this is a post about how much CAN be done within the existing system. Our students, given the little resources we have and the right amount of encouragement can produce great things. Keep reading to see how.

When I began lecturing CAPE Computer Science at the CFB College I was excited, to say the least. Computer Science is a field that holds much promise for our region, if we leverage it right, and it felt good to know that I would be helping to shape some of our region’s future computer scientists. My first session with the students was great as well; as we got through the introductions I could see that they were enthusiastic about the subject, which made me even more excited. It all felt good.

Then, I looked at the syllabus.

Disappointment. Compared to (1) the students’ interests and knowledge, (2) what was happening in industry, and (3) the limitless possibilities one gets from combining (1) and (2), the content was lacking. The foundation that CAPE’s syllabus provides IS important, yes, but it doesn’t need TWO YEARS to get it done. These students could do all that, AND MORE in 6 months.

I’ll be honest in saying I am not a teacher, I am a practitioner. It’s fun and exciting to see students get concepts in class, and to feel my jaw drop when students ace tests and assignments. But, as someone who has spent most of his life as a student, I know the real test comes AFTER the exams. The real test comes when the former student now has to parlay that piece of paper into a job. I don’t know how it works in other industries, but the hands-on world of computer science calls for not only qualifications, but for skills, practical, marketable skills. And, long story short, sticking to the syllabus meant the students got great grades, but also meant they would be leaving my classroom without those skills.

Maybe it was my youth, too young to fear risks. Maybe it was the thought of getting locked into the cycle of teaching the same material over and over again, and never learning anything new. And maybe it was the fact that what I was being paid to do was not a challenge, and I feel dead if life has no challenges. Whatever the motivation was I sat down, thought about it all and put a plan together.

I had a group of students before me, all excited about the possibilities of computer science. And I fanned the flames of that excitement. We discussed in class articles about the newest advances in computer science. Every week I sent them home to research topics outside the syllabus, and teased them with the thought of their future as a hotshot programmer, software engineer, or whatever career they were looking forward to.

Then, it was October 2012, after much stoking and teasing, that I walked into class. I looked them in the eye and saw that they were ready. That day we wouldn’t have the normal lessons. That day, I put the plan into motion. In the most somber and serious tone I could muster, I stood at the front of the class and presented them with a challenge.

“Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to build an original and addictive game for the Android platform.”

This was quickly followed up with the warning “This is not a class assignment; you will not be graded for it”. You must think I’m a madman, giving a bunch of students work that would not be graded. They could have said they wouldn’t do it, and had every right to, but to me they weren’t just students. They were computer scientists, practitioners, software engineers whose performance is judged not by how well they answer a question, but by how well they satisfy the customer. I made myself their customer, and was pleased that after some discussion they agreed to it; challenge accepted.

By the end of class a team leader was picked, roles were assigned and deadlines for deliverables were set out. They had eight weeks, to think up a game concept, get the resources, learn the language, develop the app and present at Coffee House. Note well that they would be doing all this (1) without my help, (2) while handling other assignments for the course. There wouldn’t be any break from classes. No, they would be doing this all in their spare time.

During development timetables were shifted slightly, dozens of features were discussed; some discarded. This is when they learnt about ‘requirements creep’. My heart lifted when they reached a milestone early, and dropped whenever progress seemed to come to a halt. There were times deadlines needed to be pushed back and the plan adjusted, but that’s no problem. Change is inevitable, and they managed it well. The only hard deadline was December 14th, the date of Coffee House. CH is an event where they would present their apps to the big shots in education, CFBC’s own CES, and that date could

not be shifted (more on Coffee House in a subsequent post).

After eight weeks they delivered Basket Turnover. Players earn points for getting fruits into the correct baskets, all while tapping their feet to a nice beat. In eight weeks, they went from being students to being software engineers.

Now the question is, how well have they delivered? I leave that for you to answer. Download their free app from the Play Store using this URL. Play and enjoy.