SVG research group has been merged with Learning + Technology Group. These pages will no longer be updated.
Software Visualization (SV) is an active research field in software engineering that uses graphics and animation to illustrate different aspects of software. SV systems can be utilized in program development, research, and teaching to help programmers and learners understand the structure, abstract and concrete execution as well as the evolution of software.
The mission of the Software Visualization Group (SVG) at the Helsinki University of Technlogy is to develop advanced software visualization methods for algorithm animation and simulation, visual testing and debugging, and information retrieval systems. In addition, we design and implement visualization tools for educational purposes. Especially we want to promote interaction between the learner and the system as well as give meaningful feedback for the learner by means of automatic assessment. We also research the usefulness of such software in various applications. The Software Visualization Group is also very active in supporting the use of the tools across other institutions in Finland as well as internationally, thus we have active collaboration with many scientists and research groups within this field.
Current Activity
Projects
- The group acts as an umbrella organization for different SV projects conducted in Department of Computer Science and Engineering, including research projects funded by external sources, M.Sc. and D.Sc. thesis projects as well as independent projects related to courses, seminars, etc. In addition, the group members organize seminars and courses on Software Visualization and related topics as well as employ the SV tools in their teaching.
- See projects for more information.
Education
- SVG supervises independent projects on topics related to its research especially for B.Sc. and M.Sc. students in the Software Technology. See, for example, available M.Sc. theses topic.
- Course T-106.5800 Seminar on
Software Technology (Ohjelmistotekniikan seminaari):
- Seminar on Front-End Web Development with JavaScript (3-4 cr/op), spring 2010
Current Collaboration and Guests
- The Edge at Tampere University of Technology is a group of people that are interested in developing their own teaching. Hence, the "products" of the group are quite versatile, since many systems have used to be implemented to solve a single, acute problem. The ultimate aim is to share the tools that have already been implemented, thus preventing to invent the wheel again and again. However, a single tool cannot solve everything, thus the group also studies how to best utilize them together. The first solutions are seldom optimal neither technically or pedagogically. All this has led to the idea of forming a group that is specialized in programming education.
- The MirrorWolf project in the University of Joensuu develops reflective tools for learning communities. These tools are designed to help users monitor and improve both their individual and collaborative work processes. The methods developed in MirrorWolf consist of semi-automatic tools for essay writing and assessment, visual tools for representing web-based group work and detection tools for collaboration vs. plagiarism. Currently SVG is collecting data for new experiments in which their automatic and semi-automatic essay grading method is applied in one of our mass courses.
- See also Staff page for more collaborators.
Related Conferences, Research Groups and Web Sites
- Organizing 9th Koli Calling International Conference on Computing Education Research, October 29th - November 1st, 2009, Finland
- COMPSER (Computer Science Education Research Group) develops new web-based tools for supporting Computer Science education. We have provided the Matrix application framework on top of which the many applications for the virtual learning environment of data structures and algorithms are built. Thus, the current projects include, for example, the development of the TRAKLA2 exercises.
- In preparation for their SIGCSE 2007 conference presentation Algorithm Visualization: A Report on the State of the Field, a group of authors have put up their Data Structure And Algorithm Visualizations Wiki. The Algoviz Wiki includes a catalog that now contains approximately 450 links to individual algorithm visualizations, the beginnings of an annotated bibliography of the relevent literature, and various other information and community resources.
Former Activity
- 8th Koli Calling International Conference on Computing Education Research, November 13-16, 2008, Finland
- Course T-106.5800 Seminar on
Software Technology (Ohjelmistotekniikan seminaari):
- Seminar on CS Learning Environments (Tietotekniikan oppimisympäristöjen tutkimusseminaari) (5 cr/op), spring 2008
- Graduate Seminar on Evaluation of the Educational Impact of Visualization - Interaction and Engagement in CS Learning Environments (period I, 2007)
- T-106.6200 Special Course in Software Techniques: Advanced Data Structures and Algorithms (period II, 2007) by Thomas L. Naps, Dept. of Computer Science University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh, US
- Prof. Thomas L. Naps from University of Wisconsin - Oshkosh, US, visited us in his Sabbatical in autumn 2007. He gave two courses (see above) related to his research interests. He is an expert on Algorithm Visualization, i.e., the study of increasing understanding how to design visualizations to provide effective educational explanations of algorithms (see, e.g., JHAVÉ).
- Course T-106.850 Seminar on
Software Technology:
- Adaptive Learning Environments (Adaptiivisten oppimisympäristöjen työseminaari), autumn 2006.
- Visual Programming (Visuaalinen ohjelmointi), spring 2006.
- Software Visualization (Ohjelmistojen havainnollistaminen), spring 2005.
- Advanced Visual Interfaces (AVI-seminaari), spring 2003.
- An Introduction to Roles of variables (Muuttujien roolit ja niiden käyttö ohjelmoinnin opettamisessa) by Prof. Jorma Sajaniemi from University of Joensuu in May 2006
- A short course on Autamating Assessment by EurIng Dr Mike Joy from University of Warwick in January 2006
- Professor Mordechai Ben-Ari from Weizmann Institute of Science visited the Laboratory of Information Processing Science between July and December 2005 to collaborate with COMPSER and Software Visualization Group. See also M.Sc. thesis positions.
- Hypertextbooks - Next Generation Education. A short course by R.J. Ross: The Integration of Dynamic, Active-Learning Models into Comprehensive Web-Based Teaching and Learning Resources. Helsinki University of Technology, August 16-20, 2004.
- Kolin Kolistelut - Koli Calling 2004, October 1-3, 2004, Finland
- Third Program Visualization Workshop at Warwick, July 1-2, 2004, UK
- Survey about creating and using algorithm visualization (AV) in an educational context