一句话：比较检查清单、ChatGPT 及二者结合对 42 名学生单元测试学习的影响，并给出教学建议。
单元测试教育中，已有轻量检查清单能改善学习结果，却难以帮助学生写出符合意图与设计的测试代码；生成式 AI（如 ChatGPT）被视为新的辅助工具。本文以 42 名学生为对象，比较检查清单、ChatGPT 及二者结合对单元测试表现的影响。结果显示，单独或组合使用这些工具对学生表现的影响相当；学生更偏好检查清单，但认可 ChatGPT 能加速任务完成并帮助解决编程语言问题。ChatGPT 虽具潜力，却未解决此前发现的实现挑战；对其依赖还可能使学生浅层处理 AI 生成内容、缺乏批判性评估，阻碍深入理解新概念。作者据此为学生和教师提出适应 AI 时代学习与教学的建议。
Testing is widely practiced in software engineering, and many tools have been developed to support students in learning testing. Prior research suggests that a lightweight testing checklist improves learning outcomes but doesn't address students' challenges in writing test code that matches their intentions or design. Meanwhile, generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT) bring new promise as another form of software assistance tool. In this study, we examined the impact of various support tools (checklist, ChatGPT, or both) on unit testing among 42 students. Our results indicated that using these tools individually or in combination produced a comparable effect on student performance in unit testing. Students preferred using the checklist but acknowledged ChatGPT's effectiveness in accelerating task completion and addressing programming language challenges. While ChatGPT demonstrated potential benefits for testing education, it did not overcome the implementation challenges identified in the previous study. Moreover, reliance on ChatGPT may hinder students' deeper engagement with new concepts, which is crucial for comprehensive learning, as they often interact superficially with AI-generated responses without employing the critical thinking necessary to evaluate the information provided. Therefore, we proposed recommendations for both students and instructors on adapting to learning and teaching in the AI era and offer insights into the evolving role of AI in education.
@inproceedings{paperbot9083,
title = {A Comparative Study on ChatGPT and Checklist as Support Tools for Unit Testing Education},
author = {Zihan Fang and Jiliang Li and Anda Liang and Gina R. Bai and Yu Huang},
booktitle = {FSE},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1145/3696630.3727244}
}