DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE AND
ENGINEERING
DIT084 Testing, Debugging and Verification, 7.5 credits
Testning, felsökning & verifiering, 7,5 högskolepoäng
First Cycle
Confirmation
This course syllabus was confirmed by Department of Computer Science and
Engineering on 2021-11-15 to be valid from 2022-08-29, autumn semester of 2022.
Field of education: Science 100%
Department: Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Position in the educational system
The course Testing, Debugging and Verification, 7.5 higher education credits, is a part
of the Computer Science Bachelor´s programme. It is also a single subject course at the
University of Gothenburg.
The course can be part of the following programmes: 1) Computer Science, Master's
Programme (N2COS), 2) Applied Data Science Master's Programme (N2ADS), 3)
Computer Science, Bachelor's Programme (N1COS) and 4) Software Engineering and
Management Master's Programme (N2SOF)
Main field of studies Specialization
Computer Science G1F, First cycle, has less than 60 credits in
first-cycle course/s as entry requirements
Entry requirements
To be eligible for the course students should have successfully completed 45 hec of an
education aiming at a bachelor degree within Computer Science, Software Engineering
or equivalent.
Within these 45 hec, the student should have successfully completed:
• A 7.5 hec course in discrete mathematics (such as DIT980)
• A 7.5 hec course in imperative/object-oriented programming (such as DIT012 or
DIT953)
2/ 4
Learning outcomes
After completion of the course the student is expected to be able to.
Knowledge and understanding
• Describe the possibilities and limitations of both informal and formal techniques for
the discovery, analysis, and resolving of program errors.
• Describe the concept of precise specifications of software units.
• Discuss the principles of software verification.
Competence and skills
• Express precise specifications of software units.
• Systematically discover inputs on which a program fails.
• Locate, analyse, and fix the error which caused the failure.
• Formally reason about simple programs for guaranteeing correctness.
Judgement and approach
• Judge the various error removal and prevention practices that one can encounter in
a working context.
• Contribute to the development and improvement of error removal and prevention
techniques in a given context.
• Follow up on, and take advantage of, conceptual and technical developments in the
area of testing, debugging, and verification that go beyond the exact techniques
covered in the course.
Course content
The main aim of the course is to provide a basic understanding of techniques that cope
with errors in programs. Recurring themes are a) the identification of errors, b) their
analysis, and c) their removal. The course also provides an understanding of systematic
ways to convince oneself that a program unit really does what it should.
The course covers formal and informal methods, testing (terminology, coverage, unit
tests, a unit test framework), debugging (control, workflow, localisation, tools), formal
specifications (pre-/postconditions, invariants), formal verification (logics, tool support).
Throughout, the course is concerned with imperative programs in general, and object-
oriented programs in particular.
After the course, student have understood - and are able to employ - the methods testing
(trying to reveal the presence of errors in a systematic way), debugging (the act of
isolating and fixing errors), and verification (reasoning about programs in order to
guarantee correctness). All these methods only make sense in the presence of a
DIT084 Testing, Debugging and Verification, 7.5 credits / Testning, felsökning & verifiering, 7,5
högskolepoäng
First Cycle
3/ 4
specification of what the program is supposed to do.
Sub-courses
1. Written hall examination (Skriftlig salstentamen), 5 credits
Grading scale: Pass with distinction (5), Pass with credit (4), Pass (3) and Fail (U)
2. Laboratory work (Laboration), 2.5 credits
Grading scale: Pass (G) and Fail (U)
Form of teaching
The course consists of lectures, exercise classes and laboratory work.
Language of instruction: English
Assessment
The course is examined by a final individual written hall examination 5.0 hec at the end
of the course, and laboratory work (hand-ins) 2.5 hec. The laboratory work (hand-ins) is
usually done in groups of 2-3 students. In case a hand-in is not passed in the first
attempt, the student is granted a second try.
If a student, who has failed the same examined element on two occasions, wishes to
change examiner before the next examination session, such a request is to be submitted
to the department in writing and granted unless there are special reasons to the contrary
(Chapter 6, Section 22 of Higher Education Ordinance).
In the event that a course has ceased or undergone major changes, students are to be
guaranteed at least three examination sessions (including the ordinary examination
session) over a period of at least one year, though at most two years after the course has
ceased/been changed. The same applies to work experience and VFU, although this is
restricted to just one additional examination session.
Grades
The grading scale comprises: Pass with distinction (5), Pass with credit (4), Pass (3) and
Fail (U).
To pass the course, students must receive a passing grade in both modules. The grade
for the entire course will be determined by the written exam.
Course evaluation
DIT084 Testing, Debugging and Verification, 7.5 credits / Testning, felsökning & verifiering, 7,5
högskolepoäng
First Cycle
4/ 4
The course is evaluated through meetings both during and after the course between
teachers and student representatives. Further, an anonymous questionnaire is used to
ensure written information. The outcome of the evaluations serves to improve the
course by indicating which parts could be added, improved, changed or removed.
Additional information
The course is a joint course together with Chalmers.
Course literature will be announced at the latest 8 weeks prior to the start of the course.
The course replaces the course DIT083 Testing, debugging and verification, 7.5credits.
The course cannot be included in a degree which contains DIT083. Neither can the
course be included in a degree which is based on another degree in which the course
DIT083 is included.
The course cannot be included in a degree which contains DIT635. Neither can the
course be included in a degree which is based on another degree in which the course
DIT635 is included
DIT084 Testing, Debugging and Verification, 7.5 credits / Testning, felsökning & verifiering, 7,5
högskolepoäng
First Cycle
