Teaching data modeling
Paul J. Wagner · 2005
While competition for scarce space in a Database Systems course curriculum increases, the amount of time spent in many such courses on data modeling decreases. We instead recommend increasing the amount of time spent in the study of data modeling and encourage data model study beyond formalism syntax. We do this in an attempt to help computer science students better understand complex data domains and to help develop higher-level skills that serve them well in a job market threatened by the increased outsourcing of lower level programming jobs. We further recommend the study of process skills as part of data modeling, and develop the idea of data patterns to assist students in the development of advanced data modeling skills.