Cem Kaner, J.D., Ph.D.

This year’s Workshop on Teaching Software Testing is focused on designing and teaching advanced courses in software testing. It is in sunny Florida, in late January 2014. Right after WTST, we will teach a 5-day pilot of the Domain Testing course. You can apply to attend either one.

We expect the WTST discussion to flow down two paths. At this point, we are not sure which will dominate:

1. What are the characteristics of a genuinely “advanced” testing course?

What are people teaching or designing at this level and what design decisions and assessment decisions are they making? What courses should we be designing?

2. What should the characteristics be for an advanced certification in software testing?

I’ve been criticizing the low bar set by ISTQB’s, QAI’s, and ASQ’s certifications for over 15 years. From about 1996 to (maybe it was) 2003, I worked with several colleagues on ideas for a better certification. As I pointed out recently, those ideas failed. We couldn’t find a cost-effective solution that met our quality standards. I moved on to other challenges, such as creating the BBST series. Some others adopted a more critical posture toward certification in general.

Looking back, I think the same problems that motivated thousands of testers (and employers) to seek a credentialing system for software testers are still with us. The question, I think, is not whether we need a good credentialing system. The question is whether we can get a credentialing system that is good.

From some discussions about advanced course design, I think we are likely to see a discussion of advanced credentialing at WTST. The idea that ties this discussion to WTST is that the credential would be based at least partially on performance in advanced courses.

I don’t know whether this discussion will go very far, whether it will be a big part of the meeting itself or just the after-meeting dinners, or whether anyone will come to any agreements. But if you are interested in participating in a constructive discussion about a very hard problem, this might be a good meeting.

To apply to come to WTST, please send me a note (kaner@cs.fit.edu).

For more information about WTST, see http://wtst.org/. For more on the first pilot teaching of the Domain Testing course, which we will teach immediately following WTST, see http://bbst.info.

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