Abstract:

Software development projects are often developed by geographically separated, international teams scattered across the globe. IT students need to learn the organizational skills to manage distributed projects conducted simultaneously in different time zones.

Even more important are the intercultural communication skills necessary to work together effectively with team members from different countries with differing values on cultural dimensions, such as power distance, individualism vs. collectivism and uncertainty avoidance. Different views on time in monochromatic vs. polychromatic cultures, as well as long-term vs. short-term orientation can doom a project to failure. Variations in high-context vs. low-context cultures can cause additional misunderstandings in communication and conflicts between off-site team members.

In the past, one of the best methods to gain international experience has been for students to spend a semester abroad working or studying in a foreign country. The current COVID-19 pandemic has made these student exchanges almost impossible. Mitigation measures, such as contact and travel restrictions, have been imposed world-wide.

The research question explored in this paper is: “How can IT students be taught international project management and intercultural communication skills without leaving their home countries?”

A hybrid, collaborative course to teach global software engineering which was conducted during the pandemic is presented. Two universities took part: one in Japan and one in Germany. A project-based learning method was employed, to enable students to gain real-world experience. Students worked together in cross-site teams to generate their own creative ideas to solve a currently relevant problem: Use of machine learning to detect anti-social behavor. Students were reponsible for self-organization of their teams, for the requirements elicitation, system design and for the development of a working prototype. Each cross-site team held a joint project presentation at the end of the semester.

Results of project retrospectives at the end of the semester are evaluated. Technical, logistical and administrative problems are discussed. Lessons learned, best practices and future plans are presented.

Keywords:

Hybrid, global, international, intercultural, project-based, software, engineering.