VCE Software Development U4O1 Definitions Worksheet: Project plans, progress and effectiveness (Modules 186–198)
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Key terms
Write what each term means, in your own words.
1
scope creep
2
personnel changes
3
technical issues
4
project journal
5
actual vs expected duration
6
adjusting tasks
7
Adjusting time frames
8
annotation
9
number of changes
10
Reason for change
11
impact of changes
12
Project plan effectiveness judgement
Answer Key
VCE Software Development U4O1 · Modules 186–198 · Student wording will vary for definitions
1scope creep — The uncontrolled growth of a project's features beyond the original scope, which adds extra time and cost unless changes are controlled.
2personnel changes — When a team member leaves or is absent, their skills are lost and tasks must be reassigned, which can disrupt task allocation and delay the timeline of a project plan.
3technical issues — Problems like bugs, tool failures or lost files that delay tasks and force changes to a project plan. Contingencies (backups, spare time) reduce their impact.
4project journal — A dated record of progress, decisions, problems, solutions and reasons for changes, written as development happens and kept as evidence for evaluation.
5actual vs expected duration — Progress is tracked by recording how long each task really took, comparing it with the planned time, and noting any milestone achieved.
6adjusting tasks — Changing a project plan's tasks by adding, removing, reordering or reassigning them when circumstances change, so the plan stays realistic and the project stays on track.
7Adjusting time frames — Changing a task's start date or duration when work takes longer or shorter than planned, then moving any dependent tasks and deadlines to match.
8annotation — A short dated note added to a project plan that explains a change, giving the date and the reason, or describes how far a task has progressed.
9number of changes — A plan that needed few changes was likely more effective. Count the changes made during the project and compare that count with the size of the plan, such as its total tasks.
10Reason for change — The cause of a plan change, classed as scope creep, personnel, technical issues or poor estimates. Patterns in these causes show how effective the original plan was.
11impact of changes — Judging how changes to a project plan affected completion, such as delays, dropped features and quality, and whether the project finished on time.
12Project plan effectiveness judgement — A judgement of how well a plan worked, using evidence from the number, reasons and impact of changes, plus improvements for next time.