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The paper proposes a framework for the certification of free/libre open source software FLOSS projects. The process is two-fold and is based on our experience over the last four years of using FLOSS for teaching software engineering in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The premise of the paper is that students' engagement with real open source projects, and more specifically with the respective open source communities, can be an effective instructional method for skill development. We argue that through such a process, the students are able to get familiar with tools and technologies used in FLOSS and receive certification as FLOSS participants. On the other hand, the students can also review and evaluate the FLOSS project they use during the learning activity from different perspectives. In more advanced learning activities, this evaluation can be based on certification standards, providing in that way a valuable source of feedback to the open source community.

This paper presents a comparative analysis of Free/Libre Open Source Software FLOSS Learning Management System LMS. Following a selection process we analyze the functionalities and characteristics of 8 tools commonly used in formal and informal education. More specifically we focus on the availability of different tools concerning communication and assistance, such as, forum, email, calendar, portfolios, etc. Our analysis showed that despite their similarities, the appropriateness of different FLOSS LMSs can be greatly affected by the specific needs of students, instructors and institutions.

This work explores the role of students' motivation and metacognitive skills as moderating factors that influence the impact of an instructional method in the ill-structured domain of Software Project Management (SPM). In order to teach aspects of the SPM domain, we developed a web environment for case-based learning and implemented additionally a questioning strategy to help students focus on important parts of the case material. The paper presents the results from three studies revealing how students' motivation and metacognitive awareness influenced their engagement in the cognitively challenging situations induced by the method. The implication for instructors and designers is that implementing a promising method, to help students efficiently process the complex material in an ill-structured domain, might not always lead to the desired learning outcomes. Students' motivation and metacognitive skills should also be addressed, in order to maximize the potential benefits of instruction.

Supporting students’ awareness of the complex way that contextual issues affect knowledge application in authentic situations is a critical instructional mission and can lead to improved problem solving in the workplace. In this work we present the design of e-CASE (Context Awareness Supporting Environment), which is a case based learning environment for supporting instruction in the domain of software development. In designing e-CASE we employ a model for context which further guides the use of script and narrative control techniques as external representations for enhancing students’ context awareness. Our system applies an appropriate metadata scheme for connecting various pieces of information and creating crossing paths for the learner, in the web of authentic application cases. It also provides functionality for updating and extending its content allowing people from the workplace to become content providers. Thus, we argue, e-CASE can help bridging the contextual distance, supporting the development of an extended learning community by establishing flexible and instructionally efficient links between the traditional educational settings and the workplace.