Teaching Test-First Programming: Assessment and Solutions

Abstract

Developing high quality software is a major industry concern, since programs that "just work" may not be suitable to contemporary technological challenges. Agile practices, such as Test-First development (TFD), may help in this direction. However, in our experience this technique is introduced late (if ever), when programmers' habits are already set and difficult to change. Early exposure to TFD in formal education could be an answer to that, but putting the principle into practice poses unexpected challenges. In this work we examine the short-and long-term impact of young programmers' exposure to TFD, highlighting its limits and proposing a reinforced teaching approach.