This paper examines the process and outcomes of a final project given to students at the end of their third course in Java programming. The purpose of the project was to assess the students' knowledge of program design and the various Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) concepts covered throughout the three-course sequence. This project required the students to work in teams of two then interact with all the other teams in the class. A communication protocol was specified to ensure that each team’s program could work with every other team's program. At the end of the course each team had to present their results and experiences to the class. Every team's response was positive, but the surprising result was the overwhelming response from the students extolling the benefits and strengths of preliminary design, following established protocols, the use of core OOP concepts, and how it helped them create good, stable programs. This project surpassed our expectations and this paper discusses the details of the assignment, the student's progress throughout the project, and the final results.
A Project Designed to Assess Overall Programming Skills
