The acquisition of expertise in software engineering education

The authors' goal in this paper is to examine the nature of expertise in software development and then to analyze the components of process education necessary to promote its development. This analysis includes three aspects of expertise: (a) declarative knowledge ("knowledge that"); (b) procedural knowledge ("how to knowledge"); and (c) metacognitive knowledge (self-monitoring, agency, reflection). These "flavors" of knowing play an integral role in software development. Traditional education, with its emphasis on textbooks and lectures as its primary pedagogical tools, can teach declarative knowledge, but that knowledge is not automatically connected with doing. The major impact of process education has been to provide a more effective learning environment that focuses on the development of procedural knowledge. It has become clear that procedural and declarative knowledge alone are not sufficient for the development of expertise. Students need to learn how to reflect on both the problem at hand and on the ways they are solving the problem if they are to become agents for their own improvement. Although process educators are often aware and desirous of facilitating metacognitive knowledge, it is rarely addressed explicitly. In this paper, the authors connect issues of metacognitive knowledge to the evolution of software development skill. Their analysis leads to recommendations for structuring software engineering education activities throughout the students' program of study to maximize the development of all three components of expertise. They include examples from their work on integrating process activities in undergraduate computer science instruction.