{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,12,16]],"date-time":"2025-12-16T08:26:10Z","timestamp":1765873570215,"version":"3.48.0"},"reference-count":82,"publisher":"Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)","issue":"1","funder":[{"name":"ENACTEST (European iNnovation AllianCe for TESTing education), ERASMUS+","award":["101055874, 2022-2025"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101055874, 2022-2025"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["dl.acm.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["ACM Trans. Comput. Educ."],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Context.<\/jats:italic>\n                    Software testing is a critical aspect of the software development lifecycle, yet it remains underrepresented in academic curricula. Despite advances in pedagogical practices and increased attention from the academic community, challenges persist in effectively teaching software testing. Understanding these challenges from the teachers\u2019 perspective is crucial to aligning education with industry needs.\n                  <\/jats:p>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Objective.<\/jats:italic>\n                    To analyze the characteristics, practices, tools, and challenges of software testing courses in higher education, from the perspective of educators, and to assess the integration of recent pedagogical approaches in software testing education.\n                  <\/jats:p>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Method.<\/jats:italic>\n                    A structured survey consisting of 52 questions was distributed to 143 software testing educators across Western European universities, resulting in 49 valid responses. The survey explored topics taught, course organization, teaching practices, tools and materials used, gamification approaches, and teacher satisfaction.\n                  <\/jats:p>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Results.<\/jats:italic>\n                    The survey revealed significant variability in course content, structure, and teaching methods. Most dedicated software testing courses are offered at the master\u2019s level and are elective, whereas testing is introduced earlier in less specialized (NST) courses. There is low adoption of formal guidelines (e.g., ACM, SWEBOK), limited integration of non-functional testing types, and a high diversity in textbooks and tools used. While modern practices like Test-Driven Development and automated assessment are increasingly adopted, gamification and active learning approaches remain underutilized. Teachers expressed a need for improved and more consistent teaching materials.\n                  <\/jats:p>\n                  <jats:p>\n                    <jats:italic toggle=\"yes\">Conclusion.<\/jats:italic>\n                    The study highlights a mismatch between academic practices and industry expectations in software testing education. Greater integration of standardized curricula, broader adoption of modern teaching tools, and increased support for teachers through high-quality, adaptable teaching materials are needed to enhance the effectiveness of software testing education.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1145\/3772090","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,22]],"date-time":"2025-10-22T16:06:59Z","timestamp":1761149219000},"page":"1-36","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1145\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Teachers\u2019 Perspective on Software Testing Education"],"prefix":"10.1145","volume":"26","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7116-019X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Anna Rita","family":"Fasolino","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8025-0023","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Beatriz","family":"Mar\u00cdn","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Universitat Polit\u00e8cnica de Val\u00e8ncia, Valencia, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6003-9113","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tanja E. 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