Parts of Capstone Project Document

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

PARTS OF CAPSTONE PROJECT DOCUMENT Title Page Approval Sheet Dedication Acknowledgement Capstone Project Abstract Table of Contents List of Tables List of Figures

Chapter 1 – THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND Introduction   

It should contain situation analysis presented from macro to micro understanding of existing scenario or situation It includes information necessary to justify the existence of a problem situation/ need/gap like statistical data from authoritative source/s. There should be a clinching statement to link the situation analysis to project problem

Project Framework   

Link the study with existing theories that are useful devise for interpreting, criticizing and unifying established scientific laws or facts that serve as guide in discovering new generalizations. Use a conceptual framework that will present specific and well-defined constructs, assumptions, expectations and beliefs that support the research study. Project Paradigm – a diagram that illustrates the relationship of the variables of the study. It may take the form of (a) Input-Process-Output; (b) true system approach; (c) flow chart system

Statement of Objectives   

Present a perplexing situation/phenomenon that challenges a solution of a felt need which can reflect contribution to knowledge, discipline and/or theory and within the proponent’s skills and competence, interest and resources as to time, budget and workability. Indicate the direction/guideline of the study and answer the what, where, when and from whom the data will be gathered in the general problem to establish delimitation. Present the sub-objectives in a logical sequence from factual to analytical along mutually exclusive dimensions (no overlaps) with the exclusion of the overview, expected conclusions, implications and recommendations of the project.

Importance of the Project 

Describe general contribution of the project to new knowledge, society and or to development in general.

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 

Cite significance of the project to specific groups, programs, projects, beneficiaries in the specific performance.

Definition of Terms  

Only important terms from the title, statement of the problem or objectives and paradigm should be defined. Define terms operationally or how you use such term in the project.

Chapter 2 – REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE AND SYSTEMS Foreign Literature Local Literature Foreign Systems Local Systems The Review of Literature and systems/studies showcases previous studies and publications relevant to the project. This chapter gives light as to what motivated the proponent/s in pursuing the specific field of study. Include a combination of literature and studies within the last 10 years except for theories. Organize thematically to conform to the variables of the specific problems. Follow proper documentation using parenthetical citation with author and date. Only articles with dates are allowed as e-references. Highlight major findings and how one’s project would fit in the body of knowledge on the subject matter and make a critique per topic as to whether the results cohere or differ from each other. The last part should be a clinching paragraph to show how the literature/system has assisted the project proponent in the present study. Proposed Literature Distribution:  2 foreign books  2 local books  1 foreign journal/thesis  1 local journal/thesis  2 web site articles Proposed System Distribution:  3 local systems/capstone project  3 foreign systems/capstone project

Chapter 3 – TECHNICAL BACKGROUND It contains description what the readers should expect in the project. It must be written in narrative form. E.g. discussion on hardware requirements of your proposed project, operating system requirements, user requirements when the proposed project would be implemented. All technical terms and concepts related to the analysis, development and implementation of the project should be discussed in layman’s terms so that readers will comprehend the succeeding chapters.

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Chapter 4 – PROJECT DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY Project Design and Analysis 

Specify, describe and justify the appropriate project design congruent with the purpose of the study. It may include a use case diagram, DFD, Activity Diagram, ERD, structure chart or HIPO of the processes covered by the project. Introductory Paragraph Sub-Chapters:  User Requirements Analysis(Use Case)  Process Analysis(DFD, AD, FC)  Data Storage Requirements (ERD) o Describe each entity  Structure Chart o Describe each module

Population and Locale of the Project 

Describe the population of the respondents/end-users of the project. If there are two groups or more, present it in a tabular form. Describe the place or location where the project development is conducted and rationale of the choice.

Data Instrumentation  

Identify and describe the instrument or approach to use for each descriptive problem, cite sources, to whom it will be administered, how it will be administered and how to interpret. Identify and describe the process of measuring and proving the reliability of the instrument. If the instrument is made by the project proponent, a pilot test should be done with the respondents whose characteristics are parallel to those of the main respondents. If the instrument is adopted, acknowledge the source and present/describe the level of reliability.

Data Analysis   

Identify and justify the statistical treatment of the data instruments. Present and justify the scale of values used and the descriptive equivalent ratings, if any. In case of an IT project, e.g. software/systems development, present and discuss the software/systems development process used. Include justification why such is used.

Development Model 

It may include any of the following models: Conventional waterfall-type, Incremental, Throw-away prototyping, Evolutionary prototyping

Development Approach 

Discuss whether programmers will use structured or object-oriented programming.

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Software Development Tools 

It should contain the discussion about the programming language tools to be used specifically on: Front and Back-end; Reuse or not; Open vs. licensed software; Criteria of selecting it such as maintainability, support, capability, database connectivity, simplicity, learning.

Schedule and Timeline 

It may contain Gantt Chart, Activity Graph, Critical Path Analysis and other scheduling techniques that will list the activities to be done in order to achieve the objective. Usually it includes the phases and its sub-phases of the systems development life cycle.

Responsibilities 

Discuss responsibilities of each member of the team that includes what activities or modules that each member should accomplish.

Budget and Cost Management 

It should contain a detailed budget proposal and how each cost is to be managed effectively in the conduct of the study.

Verification, Validation and Testing 

Discuss the strategies for testing, verifying and validating the system.

Chapter 5: SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION System development is a process that comprises a set of activities, methods, deliverables and tools that the student researchers/developers may use to develop the proposed system. The documentation of the systems development from system analysis to actual deployment provides the reader an understanding on how the system was analyzed, designed and implemented. Student developers should provide a detailed documentation of each activity done during the analysis, design and implementation phases. These presentations are in the form of tables, figures and other similar diagrams. Below are the recommended sections for this chapter:   

Functional Requirements Analysis (How did the developers come up with the functional requirements needed by the capstone project) Program Design (A narrative on how the system was designed in order to meet the functional requirements. It may include Interface Design and Process Design) Testing and Implementation (Contains details/documentation on how the system was tested and implemented.)

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Chapter 6: RESULTS, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS The chapter on conclusion and recommendation is the last chapter of the capstone project documentation. In this chapter, a summary of the results and recommendations for a more extensive work are written. For an undergraduate capstone project, the results of the usability tests/software evaluation tests are worth mentioning. Which parts of the overall system are now software-driven? Did the use of custommade software improve the overall performance of the system? Measurements of the performance should be highlighted and presented unambiguously. In terms of percentage, how many target users accept the system? What is the level of satisfaction they have on the system? Is the amount of software development effort commensurate to the eventual level of user acceptance of the developed software? Which parts of the system need automation or further software support? The proposed system should be plausible and should clearly answer the needs of the client if ever the system gets implemented. Implementation requirements and deployment plan should be part of the list of recommendations.

REFERENCES The References/Bibliography Section typically appears at the end of the paper. All references appear alphabetically by the lead authors last name and are numbered consecutively. Below are the appropriate formats for some of the usual reference types used in most articles: 

 



Journal Article o Author Last Name, Abbreviated First Name. Article Title. Journal Name Volume, Number (Date Published), Inclusive Pages. Web Article o Author Last Name, Abbreviated First Name (If available). Title. Source. Access Date. URL. Book o Author Last Name, Abbreviated First Name. Book name, (Edition if needed), Publisher name, Address of Publisher, Year of Publication. Interview o Author Last Name, Abbreviated First Name. Interview Topic, Place of Interview, Date of Interview.

UNIVERSITY OF LA SALETTE Santiago City COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

APPENDICES Appendices are blocks of relevant data and information presented at the end of the documentation. In the capstone project documentation, the following are typically included in the appendix area: 

   



Complete or relevant source code. Aside from source code, this should include the source code comments and compilation commands. The source code listing must show a line number at its leftmost side. Accomplished usability instrument forms and summaries. The usability instrument must be subjected to reliability assessment and standardization procedures. Documentation of interviews. This should include the interview date, venue, names, complete transcripts, photographs and relevant communications. Software User’s Manual. The user’s manual should include information on how a typical user would use the software. Software Installation Procedure. This chapter should provide the superuser or systems administrator with relevant procedures on how to install software successfully in a computer system. This should include typical installation problems and suggestions on how to solve them. CV