Layered Learning: Teaching CI/CD and Software Testing through Storytelling

Testing is an essential part of the development process, and the importance of educating on software testing concepts is recognized more than ever. This paper explores storytelling and layered abstraction as a pedagogical tool to teach complex software engineering (software testing) concepts, specifically Continuous Integration (CI), Continuous Delivery (CD), and testing cycles. By employing the prototype of a custom-made educational framework based on storytelling, students map abstract technical processes onto familiar real-life scenarios, making the subject matter more tangible and reducing cognitive load. The study involved administering questionnaires before, during, and after the storytelling-based lecture to evaluate students' understanding and engagement. The results showed that the narration significantly improved comprehension, with 84% of students indicating that the narrative made the content more relatable and understandable. Statistical analysis confirmed a positive impact on learning outcomes. The findings suggest that this method can be highly effective in technical education, offering an innovative way to teach abstract concepts in software engineering.