Analysing the emphasis of usability in software engineering Syllabus in Malaysian higher institutions

Usability is an important attribute in determining the quality of software. Nonetheless, quite a large number of IT practitioners seem to take lightly the emphasis of usability in the software development process. Therefore, it is important to equip the Software Engineering (SE) students with necessary usability knowledge before they step into the industry. This study discovers the current syllabus of SE, by focusing on the content of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) through course outlines of local institutions. The study also analyses the implementation of emphasizing usability in classrooms and its practice by surveying the lecturers and the students. It is found that what is currently lacking is the explicit method of assessing usability and making this crystal clear to students when developing software and system. Recommendation to strengthening the role of usability is provided at the end of study.

[1]  David Benyon,et al.  Scenarios and the HCI-SE design problem , 2002, Interact. Comput..

[2]  Leonard J. Bass,et al.  Bridging the gaps between software engineering and human-computer interaction , 2003, 25th International Conference on Software Engineering, 2003. Proceedings..

[3]  Ahmed Seffah,et al.  The obstacles and myths of usability and software engineering , 2004, CACM.

[4]  Lucia Vilela Leite Filgueiras,et al.  Usability in Brazil , 2011, Global Usability.

[5]  Mohd Naz'ri Mahrin,et al.  Investigating Factors Affecting the Usability of Software Process Descriptions , 2008, ICSP.

[6]  Leonard J. Bass,et al.  Identifying gaps between HCI, software engineering, and design, and boundary objects to bridge them , 2004, CHI EA '04.

[7]  Devanandham Henry,et al.  Master's Degrees in Software Engineering: An Analysis of 28 University Programs , 2009, IEEE Software.

[8]  Naki Chiam,et al.  A Systematic Literature Review on The Role of Usability in Software Engineering Education , 2022 .

[9]  Wanchai Rivepiboon,et al.  Software practices in five ASEAN countries: an exploratory study , 2006, ICSE '06.

[10]  Carlos Flavián,et al.  The role of perceived usability, reputation, satisfaction and consumer familiarity on the website loyalty formation process , 2008, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[11]  Liam J. Bannon.  Approaches to Software Engineering: A Human-Centred Perspective , 2010, HCSE.

[12]  Stéphanie Bernonville,et al.  Integrating the SE and HCI models in the human factors engineering cycle for re-engineering Computerized Physician Order Entry systems for medications: Basic principles illustrated by a case study , 2010, Int. J. Medical Informatics.

[13]  Idyawati Hussein,et al.  Usability in Malaysia , 2011, Global Usability.

[14]  Masitah Ghazali,et al.  Usability in software development: Frameworks comparison between IKnowU and user behavior analysis framework (UBAF) , 2011, 2011 Malaysian Conference in Software Engineering.

[15]  Azizah Jaafar,et al.  Usability in practice: Perception and practicality of management and practitioners , 2011, 2011 International Conference on Pattern Analysis and Intelligence Robotics.

[16]  Orit Hazzan,et al.  Putting Human Aspects of Software Engineering in University Curricula , 2010, IEEE Software.

[17]  Jorge L. Díaz-Herrera,et al.  Improving software practice through education: Challenges and future trends , 2007, Future of Software Engineering (FOSE '07).

[18]  David Lorge Parnas,et al.  Software Engineering Programs Are Not Computer Science Programs , 1999, IEEE Softw..

[19]  Murni Mahmud,et al.  HCI practices in Malaysia: A reflection of ICT professionals' perspective , 2010, 2010 International Symposium on Information Technology.

[20]  Pearl Brereton,et al.  Systematic literature reviews in software engineering - A systematic literature review , 2009, Inf. Softw. Technol..

[21]  Murni Mahmud,et al.  Barriers and drivers of Human-Centered ICT design: the missing elements in Malaysia , 2009 .

[22]  Volker Gruhn,et al.  Analyzing the Architectural Support of Usability , 2010, 2010 36th EUROMICRO Conference on Software Engineering and Advanced Applications.

[23]  Marcin Sikorski.  Transferring usability engineering to software houses: some practical experiences , 1997, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[24]  Murni Mahmud,et al.  Perceptions on Interaction Design in Malaysia , 2009, HCI.

[25]  Natalia Juristo Juzgado,et al.  Analysing the impact of usability on software design , 2007, J. Syst. Softw..

[26]  Natalia Juristo Juzgado,et al.  Guidelines for Eliciting Usability Functionalities , 2007, IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering.