Michelle Purcell

An approach for evaluating FOSS projects for student participation

Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) offers a transparent development environment and community in which to involve students. Students can learn much about software development and professionalism by contributing to an on-going project. However, the number of FOSS projects is very large and there is a wide range of size, complexity, domains, and communities, making selection of an ideal project for students difficult. This paper addresses the need for guidance when selecting a FOSS project for student involvement by presenting an approach for FOSS project selection based on clearly identified criteria. The approach is based on several years of experience involving students in FOSS projects.

Towards a model of faculty development for FOSS in education

Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) has become an important segment of the computing industry and a source of innovation in software development. The open culture of FOSS projects where all project artifacts are accessible and communication is visible provides computing educators with an array of unique opportunities for student learning. However, FOSS projects can also present hurdles to instructors desiring to take advantage of these opportunities including the learning curve for FOSS culture, infrastructure and processes, difficulties in designing appropriate assignments, and more. This paper presents a model for faculty development based on experiences with prior academic and FOSS approaches to faculty development.

Project selection for student participation in humanitarian FOSS

Student involvement in Free and Open Source Software projects provides rich potential for learning. However, the selection of such projects for use within a class can present difficulties due to the large number of available projects, and the wide range of size, complexity, domains, and communities in those projects. This workshop will provide guidance and hands-on experience in selecting a project based on a known methodology for project selection.

Teens, Libraries, and Social Media: Myths and Reality

This article presents a brief overview of research relating to teens, libraries, and social media. It also summarizes a recent multimethod study of how public and school libraries fit into U.S. teens’ increasingly online information lives. The study results debunk five popular myths about teens and social media and reveal many positive ways that teens are using social media to connect with peers and adults and to seek and share information. The article concludes with a discussion of the role that libraries can play in designing services and programs to encourage teens to engage in positive social media use.

Teaching with HFOSS to provide students with real world experience: an introduction (abstract only)

Have you ever wanted your students to contribute to or learn from a real-world software project that benefits society? Want some help getting started? Many students find involvement in Humanitarian Free and Open Source Software (HFOSS) projects engaging and motivating. As a first step, this workshop will introduce faculty to FOSS tools and culture. Through a virtual field trip into the world of HFOSS you will learn how to find a project, discern characteristics of a good project for student participation and understand how to use IRC, a communication tool used by FOSS developers. The use of version control to support project development will also be discussed. Along the way, you will learn how to support student learning in such projects. All topics will be covered at an introductory level. Participants will take away exercises that can be used in the classroom. Additionally, participants will have access to support in the creation of assignments or curriculum and their implementation from teachers experienced in supporting students in HFOSS participation. Additional information at: http://www.foss2serve.org/index.php/SIGCSE_2014_Workshop Laptop required.

Project selection for student involvement in humanitarian FOSS

Student involvement in Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) holds the potential to support a wide range software engineering education topics from requirements to design to testing and more. In addition, participation in a FOSS project exposes students to large, complex software projects and real-world development teams and environments like those that they will typically see after graduation. However, identifying a project appropriate for student involvement can be a difficult task. There are a huge number of possible FOSS projects with a wide range of sizes, complexity, and domains. The presenters of this workshop have developed an approach to FOSS project identification [1] which is based on several years of experience with student participation in FOSS projects. The approach is based on humanitarian FOSS (HFOSS) as those projects have been shown to motivate students [2]. During the workshop, key criteria for evaluating a FOSS project will be presented, along with a rubric. This workshop will interactively walk participants through the process of identifying and evaluating a project appropriate for their classes based on the criteria and rubric.