Seite - 58 - in The Future of Software Quality Assurance

58 P.Gerrard 4 TheFuture 4.1 EngagingCompetentTrainingProviders toDeliver TSP One of the deliverables of the scheme is a template ‘Invitation to Tender’ for the Foundation level training. it@cork Skillnet require a means of inviting training providers to build and deliver classes against the TSP Syllabuses. In this way, companies can compete to deliver training, and this should ensure prices are competitive. One of the shortcomings of the certification schemes is the sheer size of the syllabuses. The ISTQB Foundation and Advanced Test Analyst documents add up to 142pages. The TSP Foundationsyllabus––roughlyequivalent in duration, if not content,will be less than10%of that length. One of the reasons the ISTQB syllabuses are so over-specified is that it allows non-testing professionals to deliver certified training. The thrust of the TSP is that the materials are bound to be delivered by experienced testing professionals (who may have left their testing career behind but are nevertheless qualified to deliver goodtraining).TheTSPFoundationallows trainers to teachwhat theyknow,rather than‘what iswritten’andmeans trainersare inagoodposition toanswer the tricky questions that arebuilt intomanyof theassignments. 4.2 Could theTSPBe theBasis ofCertification? Thiscurrentlyisn’tontheagendaintheProgramMembership.However,theISTQB schemewhichreliesentirelyonmultiplechoiceexamsandrequiresnoemployeror peer revieworpracticalexperiencecouldbe improvedupon. TSP at least attempts to engage peers and managers in the support of learners. Certainly, the assignments could be compiled into a ‘workbook’ which could containasummaryof theassignments,verifiedbyapeer,managerormentor.These coulddemonstrate that learnershavedone theirhomeworkat least. In common with professional engineering bodies, a formal certification scheme would require some proof of relevant work experience and perhaps some original workrelating to theexperienceor furtherstudy inasubject related to theTSP topic areas.Themechanical,civilor electrical engineeringprofessionalbodies in theUK (or elsewhere) could be examined perhaps to derive a scheme that would go some way towardsmaking testinga real profession.