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Improvement of Software Development Practices in a University R&D&I Context

10.24050/reia.v22i44.1885
Published 2025-07-17
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Abstract

This paper presents a case study framed in a participatory research, focused on the analysis of the software design and development activities of a group of teachers and students belonging to a research, development and innovation laboratory in the area of computer science and applied computing at the Faculty of Engineering of the National University of Entre Ríos. Based on information from a set of software projects carried out by the group and the opinions collected through a survey to the members of each team, this study –of a mixed nature– aims to recognize learnings, identify areas for improvement and propose actions to strengthen the software engineering practices of the group. The data analysis combines quantitative approach, based on the assignment of scores and generation of project valuation indicators from the closed single-choise responses of the survey, with a qualitative content analysis of the open-ended responses through a filtering and synthesis process assisted with generative artificial intelligence. The results obtained from the survey reflect important learnings and areas for improvement that are discussed with technical and methodological contributions, among which are the incorporation of architectural decisions records, topics proposals for the training of the members of the group, a form of public-private collaboration in which the group can contribute to technological innovation in companies and reflections on software development at the university. The analysis carried out in this work on the group’s software engineering practices is one more contribution to the set of efforts that give importance and value to the software developed in universities.

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References

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