CTAL-ATT Certified Tester Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester Questions and Answers

 Acceptance Test-Driven Development (ATDD) is a collaborative approach that involves customers, developers, and testers to define acceptance criteria before development begins. This practice helps ensure that all stakeholders have a shared understanding of the requirements and can prevent misunderstandings like those experienced in the first release. By using examples in ATDD, the team can clarify what the software should do, which aligns with the user stories and supports the Test-Driven Development (TDD) process12.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents and resources from Software Testing Help discuss the benefits of ATDD in aligning team members and stakeholders on the expected outcomes of user stories, which is particularly useful when there have been previous misunderstandings34.

Given the high risk level and the need for a regression-averse strategy due to potential changes in screen design and functionality, the best test approach would involve a strong emphasis on test automation to ensure that new changes do not break existing functionality. Exploratory testing is neutral as it can be useful but is not the primary focus. Manual black-box testing is recommended to verify that the system meets the requirements from an end-user perspective.

Therefore, the option that aligns with these needs is:

Test Automation: ♦+ (highly recommended)

Exploratory Testing: o (neutral/optional)

(manual) Black-box testing: ♦♦ (recommended)

This corresponds to Option 1, which suggests a heavy reliance on automated testing to manage regression risks efficiently, while still incorporating manual black-box testing to cover user experience aspects.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents and training resources emphasize the importance of test automation in Agile projects, especially when dealing with high-risk levels and the need for regression testing1. Additionally, the resources available at Software Testing Help provide insights into Agile testing strategies and best practices that support such an approach2.

In Agile development, requirements engineering techniques are crucial for understanding and defining user needs and system requirements. The issues identified in the user story suggest the use of Personas and Storyboards. Personas are fictional characters created based on user research to represent different user types within a targeted demographic, attitude, and behavior set. They help in understanding various user needs and experiences, which is reflected in issue 1 and 2. Storyboards, on the other hand, are visual representations of a user’s interaction with the product, providing a narrative of how the product is used. They help in visualizing the process and identifying any missing elements, such as the lack of specified acceptance criteria for the booking process speed (issue 3) and the details on how confirmation is sent (issue 4). The need for a stub to test the payment method (issue 5) also aligns with the storyboard technique, which can help visualize the integration points and dependencies.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus and study resources provide insights into various requirements engineering techniques and their application in Agile environments12. These resources emphasize the importance of understanding user stories and acceptance criteria, which are key to uncovering the issues mentioned34567.

The mnemonic FIRST is used to describe good unit tests in Agile software development. Each letter stands for a quality that the tests should possess:

F - Fast: Tests should run quickly.

I - Isolated: Tests should not depend on each other.

R - Repeatable: Tests should yield the same results every time.

S - Self-Validating: Tests should have a boolean output (pass or fail).

T - Thorough: Tests should cover every part of the code.

Option D correctly states the meanings of the letters IRST in the context of the FIRST mnemonic.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents outline the importance of the FIRST principles in creating effective unit tests within Agile projects. These principles ensure that the tests are reliable and can be used in continuous integration and deployment processes12.

 For a Medium risk mission- or safety-critical system, a combination of automated, exploratory, and manual black-box tests is recommended. Automated tests ensure consistent and efficient coverage of known scenarios, while exploratory tests allow testers to investigate and discover unknown issues. Manual black-box tests are important for verifying the system from an end-user perspective without knowledge of the internal workings, which is crucial for safety-critical systems. References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus and materials emphasize the importance of a comprehensive testing approach that includes various techniques suitable for the system’s risk level and criticality123

After identifying test cases that require refactoring, the next task is to analyze the impact of the current iteration’s functionality on the existing regression tests. This involves assessing how the new changes will affect the tests and determining if the tests still cover the necessary aspects of the software. The goal is to ensure that the regression tests remain relevant and effective in light of the recent changes made to the application.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus and related materials emphasize the importance of maintaining the relevance and effectiveness of regression tests throughout the development iterations, which includes analyzing the impact of new functionalities on existing tests12.

The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus emphasizes the importance of optimizing Continuous Integration (CI) processes in Agile environments. Option C suggests reducing the extent to which automated tests interact with the user interface and instead using technical interfaces, which is often faster as it bypasses the GUI layer. Additionally, running a subset of tests during the day and the rest overnight can help manage the CI process without overloading the system during peak hours. These strategies align with the best practices for maintaining efficient CI cycles and ensuring that the CI process remains sustainable as the number of tests grows with the product.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents and training resources provide guidelines on test automation approaches and continuous deployment and delivery, which are relevant to optimizing CI processes12. Moreover, best practices for continuous testing in Agile suggest prioritizing tests that provide fast feedback and running extensive test suites outside of peak hours3.

 In the context of Agile Technical Testing, when a test class fails, the immediate next step is to repair the failing code. This aligns with the Agile principle of fast feedback and continuous improvement. The failing test indicates that the current implementation does not meet the specified criteria, hence the need to correct the code. Once the code is repaired, it should be re-executed to verify that the test now passes, ensuring that the validation criterion is met.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester materials emphasize the importance of quick iterations and prompt responses to test failures. This approach helps maintain the momentum of the development process and ensures that issues are addressed as soon as they are identified1

The epic described is broad and encompasses a system that involves multiple stakeholders and vehicle types, indicating that it is not a small piece of work that can be completed in a short iteration. This violates the ‘Small’ criterion of INVEST, which states that stories should be the smallest piece of work that delivers useful functionality to fit within an iteration12. Additionally, the epic’s acceptance criteria apply to all user stories derived from it, suggesting that the stories are not independent of each other, as changes to one could affect the others. This goes against the ‘Independent’ criterion, which emphasizes that stories should be self-contained to avoid delays caused by dependencies12.

References = The INVEST criteria are a set of guidelines used to evaluate the quality of user stories and epics in Agile development. They ensure that the stories are well-defined and suitable for Agile practices, focusing on creating value through independent, negotiable, valuable, estimable, small, and testable stories123.

The TDD process, as described, seems to lack comprehensive testing that covers all the acceptance criteria. Specifically, the tests provided by the developers do not address the full range of input validation, such as ensuring that names with up to 30 characters are accepted and that standard error processing is in place to limit user errors. This indicates that the tests are insufficient and need to include more options to fully validate the feature against its acceptance criteria. The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus emphasizes the importance of creating testable acceptance criteria within an Agile team and implementing various Agile test approaches using appropriate techniques12. It also highlights the need for supporting and contributing to test automation activities in an Agile project12, which includes ensuring that all acceptance criteria are met and that tests are sufficiently robust to catch potential errors.

References =

ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester Syllabus1

ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester Learning Objectives2

The main flaw in the proposed test charter is that it does not cover the main functionality of the user story. The user story focuses on the customer wanting to be informed about the delivery time of their items so they can plan to be home. The proposed charter only tests for the absence of a shipping fee and does not address whether the system provides the customer with the delivery time information.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus emphasizes the importance of aligning test charters with the user story’s main functionality to ensure that tests provide adequate coverage12. It is crucial in Agile methodologies to create and evaluate testable acceptance criteria that reflect the user story’s objectives12.

 Refactoring of test cases in agile projects is primarily done to ensure that the test cases remain relevant and effective as the functionality of the product evolves. This process involves updating and improving the test cases to match the current state of the product’s functionality. The main benefits of this practice include enhancing the quality and effectiveness of regression test cases and ensuring that the tests continue to align with the code base and product functionality. This alignment is crucial for maintaining the integrity of the testing process and ensuring that the tests accurately reflect the product’s requirements and behavior.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus and related materials emphasize the importance of refactoring test cases in agile projects. It is highlighted as a necessary activity to adapt to changes in functionality and to maintain the relevance and effectiveness of the test suite1.

 The BDD test scenario provided describes a customer performing a withdrawal transaction after entering the correct PIN and having sufficient funds in their account. The outcome is the customer receiving money and a receipt. This aligns with the user story in option C, which focuses on the customer’s desire to withdraw money for a specific purpose, which is to buy a present. The other options do not match the actions described in the BDD test scenario.

References = The answer is verified based on the ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents which emphasize the importance of aligning BDD scenarios with the corresponding user stories to ensure that the tests reflect the user’s needs and interactions with the system12.

The increase in automated test coverage allows for more frequent and extensive testing of the software, which in turn provides more up-to-date information about the current state of the system. This enables testers to apply reactive strategies effectively, as they can focus manual testing efforts on areas that are most likely to be affected by recent changes or that are identified as high-risk. Reactive strategies are adaptive and context-dependent, making them well-suited for the dynamic and iterative nature of Agile projects.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester syllabus and study materials emphasize the importance of integrating automated testing within the Agile process to support continuous integration and delivery. It also highlights the need for manual testing to complement automated tests by focusing on areas that require human judgment and exploratory testing skills12.

Continuous testing facilitates continuous delivery by ensuring that every change made to the codebase is tested automatically and immediately, which helps in identifying defects as early as possible. Automated testing in the delivery environment is crucial as it validates the success of the delivery process by ensuring that the software operates as expected in the production-like environment before the actual release.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester certification highlights the importance of technical testing skills in Agile development, including test automation approaches and continuous deployment and delivery1234.

The testable acceptance criteria for the user story are those that can be verified through testing to ensure they meet the user’s needs and the system’s functionality. In this case:

Criterion (i) is testable because you can verify the payment methods.

Criterion (ii) is testable as you can check if the acknowledgement email is sent after form submission.

Criterion (iv) is testable by confirming that the information is stored in the database correctly.

Criteria (iii) and (v), while important, are not explicitly testable from the user story’s perspective without further clarification on how spam protection is measured and what constitutes ‘incorrect’ user inputs.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester materials emphasize the importance of creating testable acceptance criteria that are clear, measurable, and verifiable within the context of the user story12. This ensures that the developed feature meets the user’s requirements and functions as intended2.

 In Agile settings, the availability of resources is indeed a challenge for test automation. Agile projects require rapid development and frequent changes, which means that the test suite must be continuously updated and maintained. This requires dedicated resources that can quickly adapt to these changes and ensure that the test automation is effective and up-to-date. Without sufficient resources, the test automation efforts can become a bottleneck, hindering the Agile team’s ability to deliver quality software at speed.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents discuss the challenges of test automation in Agile settings, including the need for resources to support test automation activities12. It emphasizes the importance of having a well-maintained test suite that can keep up with the pace of Agile development3.

One of the fundamental characteristics of unit tests is that they should be independent of other system components. This means that a unit test should only cover the functionality of a single component or unit of code, without relying on or interacting with external systems or modules. This independence ensures that the tests are focused, reliable, and can be run quickly, providing immediate feedback on the code quality of the unit being tested.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents outline the importance of unit test independence as a key aspect of technical testing in an Agile context. This characteristic is crucial for maintaining the effectiveness and efficiency of the testing process within Agile development cycles1.

Working with the product owner to elicit examples of usage is a key aspect of Agile methodologies. This collaborative approach ensures that the acceptance tests are relevant and based on real-world scenarios that reflect the product owner’s vision. By combining these examples with testing techniques, testers can create a comprehensive set of acceptance criteria that are directly tied to the user’s needs and the functionality of the software. This method aligns with the principles of Agile testing, where communication and collaboration are essential for understanding requirements and creating effective acceptance tests.

References = The ISTQB Advanced Level Agile Technical Tester documents emphasize the importance of collaboration between testers and product owners to define testable requirements within an Agile team. It also highlights the need to create and implement various Agile test approaches using appropriate techniques, which include eliciting examples from the product owner12.

Safety-Critical Testing Requirements:Safety-critical projects demand high levels of traceability to ensure every test is linked to its corresponding requirement and outcome.

Automation Goals:While automation can support regression testing and other approaches, the primary focus in safety-critical projects is to meet compliance standards, which include traceability.

Conclusion:Option B is correct because it highlights traceability, a critical aspect of process-compliant safety-critical testing.

Understanding the Objective:

The team needs to prioritize and select user stories for the first sprint.

A tool or technique that aligns stories with user value and development goals is essential.

Why User Story Mapping?

Definition: User story mapping visually organizes user stories according to workflows and business value.

Purpose: It helps teams:

Break down epics into smaller stories.

Prioritize stories based on importance and dependencies.

Focus on delivering incremental value in each sprint.

Eliminating Other Options:

A. Create Personas: Personas provide insights into target users but do not directly aid in sprint planning or story prioritization.

C. Consult with a Usability Expert: This addresses specific design concerns, which are not relevant for sprint planning.

D. Create UML Artifacts: Diagrams like state transitions are more relevant for system design and architecture, not backlog refinement or sprint commitment.

References:Aligned with ISTQB Advanced Agile Technical Tester syllabus, which emphasizes the use of user story mapping for prioritizing and planning work in Agile projects.

Definition of "Atomic" in Unit Testing:

An atomic test focuses on a single, isolated piece of functionality.

This ensures clarity and simplicity in verifying the behavior of that specific functionality.

Analyzing the Options:

A: Describes a deterministic test, not an atomic one.

B: Atomic tests do not verify all details but rather focus on a specific area.

D: Speed is a desirable characteristic but does not define atomicity.

C: Testing only the targeted functionality aligns with the definition of atomicity.

References:Aligned with ISTQB Agile Technical Tester objectives regarding unit test properties like scope and focus.

Common Test Automation Challenges:As test suites grow, execution time often increases, leading to delays in feedback cycles. This can make it challenging to run tests frequently, especially in continuous integration pipelines.

Scalability Concerns:Longer execution times can affect productivity and may require optimization or selective test execution strategies.

Conclusion:Option B is correct as it describes a common scalability problem in automation suites.

Understanding ATDD (Acceptance Test-Driven Development):

ATDD focuses on defining clear acceptance criteria collaboratively between the team and the product owner before development begins.

It ensures alignment between the team’s understanding and the product owner's expectations.

Addressing the Problem:

The root issue is unclear or incomplete requirements, leading to dissatisfaction during showcases.

ATDD involves the product owner, developers, and testers in defining precise acceptance tests to avoid misunderstandings.

Analyzing Options:

A: TDD focuses on unit-level testing and does not address acceptance criteria.

B: BDD is useful but focuses on behavior; ATDD is more suitable for collaboratively defining requirements.

D: Combining TDD and BDD does not directly solve the issue of unclear requirements.

References:Aligned with ISTQB Agile Technical Tester syllabus highlighting ATDD as a technique for improving requirement clarity and alignment.

Aligning the BDD Test with the User Story:

The BDD test specifies a withdrawal operation, including entering a PIN, checking account balance, dispensing cash, and providing a receipt.

The user story must describe the behavior and motivation of a customer performing this action.

Analyzing Options:

A: Describes a deposit operation, which does not align with the BDD test.

B: Too vague and describes the ATM’s role, not the customer's perspective.

C: Correctly matches the behavior and motivation of the withdrawal process.

D: Focuses on the bank teller, which is irrelevant to the BDD test.

References:Aligned with ISTQB principles emphasizing the importance of user stories that closely match BDD test scenarios.

Understanding Refinement Needs in Acceptance Criteria:

Well-defined acceptance criteria must be clear, measurable, and testable.

Criteria that lack specificity or are too broad need refinement to ensure they can be implemented and tested effectively.

Analyzing the Options:

A: "The backend system must respond to the mobile app within 3 seconds" is clear, measurable, and testable.

C: "The mobile app must detect when the phone does not have Internet connectivity and display a warning message" is actionable and measurable.

D: "The payload delivered by the backend system must use JSON formatting" is specific and testable.

B: "The communication between the two systems must be secure" lacks details. Security requirements should specify the protocols or methods (e.g., TLS encryption) to make the acceptance criteria clear and actionable.

References:Aligned with ISTQB Agile Technical Tester principles emphasizing clear, testable acceptance criteria for Agile stories.