Using Problems to Learn Service-Oriented Computing

Service-oriented computing and the ensuing science of services represent significant challenges to academia. As we come to grips with its many implications, we are slowly beginning to realize the challenges of introducing service-orientation in research. The change also requires a rethinking of strategies used for educating computing professionals. Service-orientation questions the traditional vision of the IT professional as a toolsmith. Instead, it requires shifting the role of the IT professional to that of a participant in a multidisciplinary team of diverse professionals. We describe one specific strategy that is a core part of an ongoing experiment to support such pedagogical practices, and reflect on its usefulness and limitations.