Integrating agility in the cs curriculum

Abstract

Agile software development is gaining popularity in industry. Anecdotal evidence to support this includes the emergence of agile practitioner journals and increasing attendance at agile-focused conferences. Many organizations are using agile methods because previously used techniques were not effective.Pair programming is probably the best known agile practice. Although controversial in both industry and academe, its use in education has been increasing, particularly in CS1. While some instructors fear that students may get a 'free ride' when pairing, empirical evidence shows that this is not the case. CS1 students who pair do as well in CS2 as students who worked by themselves in CS1, even when working alone in CS2 [1]. Pairing in CS1 leads to greater retention in the CS major, and also shows promise at reducing the gender gap in computing -the increase in retention among paired students is greater for women than it is for men [2].