Learning Scrum: A LEGO®-Scrum Simulation

Introduction

In recent years, the Agile Manifesto (Beck et al., 2001) and agile software development approaches, such as Extreme Programming (XP), Kanban, Crystal and Scrum (Boehm, 2002; Meyer, 2018), have spread and changed how software is developed and how projects are realized. From these various agile approaches, Scrum is the most common approach used by agile practitioners and by project managers (68%) (Allisy-Roberts, 2017). In this context, graduate students enrolled in computing and engineering disciplines, as well as practitioners who need to understand and implement Scrum should be exposed to and learn the opportunities and challenges associated with this key agile methodology. Students and practitioners should understand what the main characteristics of Scrum are and its impact on, for instance, project phases, team dynamics, relationships with clients, and on roles and responsibilities, etc. Today, as information technologies (IT) are more and more prevalent in organizations (Ko & Kirsch, 2017), it becomes essential that both students and practitioners in IT and in software development be trained to cope with and develop competencies in Scrum, as this agile approach is the most used in organizations and has a positive impact on projects’ success (Hayat, Rehman, Arif, Wahab, & Abbas, 2019).

In both the academic and practitioner literature, different approaches for teaching agile methods have been proposed (e.g. McAvoy & Sammon, 2005; Sharp & Lang, 2019), while a limited number focused on teaching the Scrum framework (e.g. Rodriguez, Soria, & Campo, 2015; Von Wangenheim, Savi, & Borgatto, 2013). Furthermore, even if the idea of using LEGOs for teaching and learning is not new, and it has been used in a variety of teaching contexts (e.g. Cantoni, Botturi, Faré, & Bolchini, 2009; Freeman, 2003; James, 2013; Paasivaara, Heikkilä, Lassenius, & Toivola, 2014; Peabody & Noyes, 2017; Pike, 2002), the idea of using LEGOs to teach Scrum has been used to a limited extent (City, 2009; Krivitsky, 2017; Paasivaara et al., 2014) and, to the authors’ knowledge, no study has evaluated the relevancy and usefulness of using LEGOs to teach and learn Scrum.

To enhance the acquisition of Scrum-related competencies, a LEGO^®-Scrum simulation-based training (SBT) was developed. A SBT is a teaching/learning method defined as “any synthetic practice environment that is created in order to impart competencies (i.e., attitudes, concepts, knowledge, rules, or skills) that will improve a trainee’s performance” (Salas, Wildman, & Piccolo, 2009, p. 560). SBT are developed to reproduce realistic representation of “real-world” contexts in which participants realized various tasks, play different roles and learn by doing (Stainton, Johnson, & Borodzicz, 2010). Thus, as a SBT unfolds, participants analyze the simulation’s context and objectives, solve problems, collaborate with each other, make decisions, and take actions. Typically, during and/or after a SBT, periods are devoted to sharing experiences between participants and for debriefing on the decisions made, the actions taken and, finally, for making links with theoretical concepts (Tiwari, Nafees, & Krishnan, 2014). Several researchers have shown that experiential learning approaches, such as SBTs: 1) offer realistic, complex, and challenging learning environments; 2) let reality be simplified and manageable; 3) bridge the gap between the “real world” and the classroom; 4) provide a risk-free and safe environment, 5) engender greater motivation; 6) improve team development and; 7) render the understanding, integration, and retention of knowledge more profound than so-called traditional methods (Clem, Mennicke, & Beasley, 2014; Dekkers & Donatti, 1981; Léger, 2006; Salas et al., 2009; Tiwari et al., 2014).