Investigating reading techniques for object-oriented framework learning

The empirical study described in this paper addresses software reading for construction: how application developers obtain an understanding of a softw are artifact for use in new system development. This study focuses on the p rocesses that developers would engage in when learning and using object-ori ented frameworks. We analyzed 15 student software development projects usin g both qualitative and quantitative methods to gain insight into what proce sses occurred during framework usage. The contribution of the study is not to test predefined hypotheses but to generate well-supported hypotheses for further investigation. The main hypotheses we produce are that example-bas ed techniques are well suited to use by beginning learners while hierarchy- based techniques are not because of a larger learning curve. Other more spe cific hypotheses are proposed and discussed.