Enhancing MBSE Education with Version Control and Automated Feedback

TL;DR

This paper describes an innovative MBSE course that integrates version control, automated feedback, and collaborative tools to improve student engagement and learning outcomes in systems engineering education.

Contribution

It introduces a novel combination of tools and workflows, including LemonTree, SmartGit, and GitHub, to enhance MBSE teaching with automated feedback and collaborative modeling.

Findings

High student satisfaction with the new approach

Effective use of automated checks for continuous feedback

Streamlined manual feedback process

Abstract

This paper presents an innovative approach to conducting a Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) course, engaging over 80 participants annually. The course is structured around collaborative group assignments, where students utilize Enterprise Architect to complete complex systems engineering tasks across six submissions. This year, we introduced several technological advancements to enhance the learning experience, including the use of LemonTree, SmartGit, and GitHub. Students collaborated on shared repositories in GitHub, received continuous feedback via automated checks through LemonTree Automation, and documented their progress with pre-rendered, continuously updating diagrams. Additionally, they managed 2-way and 3-way merges directly in SmartGit, with merge issues, updates, and model statistics readily available for each Work-in-Progress submission. The process of correcting and providing manual feedback was streamlined, thanks to accessible changelogs and renders in GitHub. An end-of-course feedback form revealed high student satisfaction.