student internationally published

A paper has been accepted for publication at The 2012 China-Europe International Symposium on Software Engineering Education (CEISEE’2012), with an finalist student from 2011 as one of the co-authors.

To avoid potential bias for work on student experience during a problem-solving module; from tutors and to get honest feedback, the survey data collection and some of the analysis was carried out by an undergraduate computing student (one of the co-authors Kumuditha Achini Kariyawasam) under an URB@N funded project. URB@N stands for 'Undergraduate Research Bursaries at Northampton'. It is a bursary scheme that offers undergraduate students an opportunity to participate in a pedagogic research project taking place at the University of Northampton

Is it Visual? The importance of a Problem solving Module within a computing course

K A Kariyawasam

S J Turner

G J Hill

ABSTRACT
This paper looks at student’s view of the usefulness of a problem solving and programming module in the first year of a 3-year undergraduate program. The School of Science and Technology, University of Northampton, UK has been investigating, over the last seven years the teaching of problem solving. Including looking at whether a more visual approach has any benefits (the visual programming includes both 2-d and graphical user interfaces). Whilst the authors have discussed the subject problem solving and programming in the past this paper considers the students perspective from research collected/collated by a student researcher under a new initiative within the University.

All students interviewed either had completed the module within the two years of the survey or were completing the problem-solving module in their first year.

Is it visual?

Done by: Kumuditha Achini Kariyawasam (Email: kakariyawasam@gmail.com) and Scott Turner as part of an URB@N project

1.Introduction

The school of Science and Technology has been investigating over the last few years problem-solving within the Computing division. Looking at whether a more visual approach has benefits and this project built on the work have been done within the school to increase recent publications in this area

2. Aims and Objective

qTo capture the students’ view about the effectiveness of the visual nature of the Lego robots approach within the problem-solving module

qTo evaluate the work done within the school on problem-solving

qTo expect to publish this work with the student as a co-author

qTo develop and looking at the effectiveness of the module.

3. Results

üThe majority students of the research sample outlined that the visual impact helps to develop their skills and when the author analyses the feedback, the majority sample has increased with the year group. This situation explains when the academic level is getting higher the students realise the importance of the problem solving skills with its’ visual nature.

üThere is a significant impact of the visual nature to the other modules of the division.

SELF SERVING SOFTWARE FOR THE FAST FOOD INDUSTRY

Kumuditha Achini Kariyawasam

As the consumers, we are expecting the best quality products and services
from the every customer focused industry and when we are considering the
fast food industry, it has not achieved the full potential of the technological development. After completing the ethnographical research, the developer has realised that the self-serving software model can only achieve the existing and upcoming challenges of this industry.

Therefore this project based on designing and developing the customer focused self-serving software model for the fast food restaurant. A Large fast food company providede the key system for the entire project and the developer mainly focused the human computer interaction techniques to enhance the usability of the developing system according to the Agile Methodology and Rapid Application Development Methods.


The final output of the project is the fully functional self-serving software model for the fast food restaurant.  The implementation of the new system development could theoretically improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the industry as well as the high standard customer satisfaction.

BSc and HND Computing Provision (click on the links below for more details of the courses)

• BSc (Hons) Computing (also available part-time)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Computer Networks Engineering)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Computer Systems Engineering)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Graphics and Visualisation)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Internet Technology and Security)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Mobile Computing)
• BSc (Hons) Computing (Software Engineering)
• BSc (Hons) Computing - One Year Top-up
• BSc  Computer Games Development
• HNC Computing (part-time)
• HND Computing (Computer Networks Engineering)
• HND Computing (Computer Systems Engineering)
• HND Computing (Graphics and Visualisation)
• HND Computing (Internet Technology and Security)
• HND Computing (Mobile Computing)
• HND Computing (Software Engineering) 
• HND Computing
• HND Computer Games Development

The University of Northampton's, Department of Computing and Immersive Technologies offers five courses within the MSc Computing postgraduate provision (shown below) all available either part-time or full-time. 

• MSc Computing
• MSc Computing (Internet Technology and Security)
• MSc Computing (Computer Networks Engineering)
• MSc Computing (Software Engineering)
• MSc Computing (Immersive Technologies)