Software Quality Management
CS 773 – Class syllabus
Mary Alix
mealix@bu.edu
SPRING 2016
Course Description:
MET CS773 - Software Quality Management
Theory and practice of quality assurance and testing for each step of the software development cycle. Verification vs. validation. Test case design
techniques, test coverage criteria, and tools for static and dynamic analysis. Standards. Test-driven development. QA for maintenance and legacy
applications.
Courseware:
Required reading and research, project artifacts, presentations are instructor-supplied on BlackBoard Learn
Coursework:
Individual work: all presentations both in-class and assignments posted on Blackboard are preceded by instructional goals; the student is
responsible for being able to meet all of the instructional goals, as all quizzes and exams are designed to test those goals.
Team work: a class project is a major part of the course, and all students are expected to participate fully on a team.
Quizzes: weekly or bi-weekly quizzes may form a major part of the course evaluation; quizzes are designed to ensure that students have
completed the assignments prior to class, and that they have understood the basic concepts presented so that they can make meaningful
contributions to the class and team project which depend on knowledgeable contributors to complete the class work.
Exams: a mid-term and/or final may be scheduled, depending on the class work and the progress made by the class as a whole.
Policies:
Academic Code of Conduct: Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in any Metropolitan College course. They will result in no credit for
the assignment or examination and may lead to disciplinary actions. Please review the Student Academic Conduct Code at
http://www.bu.edu/met/metropolitan_college_people/student/resources/conduct/code.html
Grading Criteria:
Students accumulate points for all assigned work. Points are aggregated and at the end of the course, the student total is divided by the total
possible for the course and the resulting % determines the letter grade according to the BU/Met College grading system. The student may
request his/her total points from the instructor at any time to determine the current grade; the instructor will share a student’s point totals with
the student at various times during the semester as a means of ensuring that the instructor has correctly accounted for all points earned by the
student, and the student is aware of his/her current standing.
Class meeting times, topics, & assignments:
Topic
1
Introductions
Class/Course rules
SMART Goals;
Requirements as SMART goals
Assignment
SMART goals – for quality characteristic
Defining biz problems
Specifying use cases
Prelim project goals
Interview questions
2
Team Work:
Define class project
Interview for scope & understanding
Document use cases, goals
Organize team responsibilities
Use cases
Biz vs System use cases
Metrics for project success
Interview questions for refinement: biz vs sys
3
Finalize project success metrics
Add’l interview questions
Finalize use cases
Document add’l biz & sys reqs
Implicit vs Explicit reqs
Req prioritization
Relationship bet reqs & testing
Testing types
Prelim testing scenarios
25-JAN
1-Feb
8-Feb
16-Feb
4
22-Feb
5
29-FEB
6
Add’l reqs specs, if necessary
Req prioritization
Functional areas
Review testing scenarios
Organize reqs mgmt. & testing among group
How to do a paper mock-up POC
Creating & writing test cases
Test case documentation
Prep paper mock-up of software
Formalize reqs
Paper POC presented / feedback
Review & revision of project goals/metrics
Test case discussion/additions/revisions
Test documentation discussion
Defect handling/attributes
Defect classification
Paper POC of defect handling
Update paper POC of software based on feedback
Organize test case documentation, responsibilities,
assignments
Updated paper POC of software
POC: defect handling
Formalize test cases to group/responsibilities
Defect mgmt. responsibilities
Research test case coverage & prepare metrics for each
testing area
Write 3-4 perceived defects for each test area
Mid-term
7
Review/categorize defects
Respond to instructor-submitted questions/issues
Decide on fixes/deferrals
Finalize project documentation
Research “lessons learned” techniques
Final paper POC for release 1
Finalize project documentation/updates
Metrics measurements research
Begin list of what went well/what didn’t for Lessons
Learned
8
21-Mar
Final paper POC to instructor
Instructor does UAT testing
Acceptance
Complete evaluation of project metrics
Lessons Learned: organize responsibilities
Lessons Learned results posted
Research SW maintenance
Research regression testing; select cases for test sets
Research testing automation: pro vs con
Create short list of maintenance/deferred reqs
28-Mar
Finalize maintenance issues to be included
Organize responsibilities
Create regression test set
Present case for/against testing automation
Make all decisions for maintenance phase
Research test automation tools
Defining enhancements vs maintenance
Interview questions for Rel 2
Decide on testing tool
Q&A regarding release 2
Rel 2 goals & metrics to be used
Rel 2 use cases
Decide on new Reqs for enhancements, if any
Prioritize reqs & discuss potential test cases for new reqs
Create all documentation
Create first paper POC of rel 2
Paper POC of release 2 / feedback
Formalize revisions to goals, metrics, reqs, regression & testing for
rel2
Select testing scenarios for rel 2
Select and formalize new test cases for Rel 2
14-Mar
9
10
11
4-Apr
11-Apr
Review new test cases for rel 2
Formalize test cases
Make changes/revisions to defect handling based on lessons learned
Write 2-3 defects for each area of testing/fix decisions
12
20-Apr
BU Course evaluation
Present POC for Release 2
Present documentation
13
25-Apr
Finalize release 2 project metrics
Final: Compare Class work documentation with stated course goals
Prepare Final Paper POC for Release 2
Finalize all project documentation