ISTQB Syllabus
Back to the table of contentLearning Objectives/ Cognitive Level of Knowledge
The follo wing learnin g objectives are defined as applying to this sylla bus. Each topic in the syllabus will be examined acc ording to th e learning ob jective for it .
Level 1: Remember (K1 )
The candidate will re cognize, re member and recall a term or concept.
Keywords: Remem ber, retrieve, recall, reco gnize, know
Example
Can rec ognize the d efinition of “failure” as:
o “No n-delivery of service to a n end user or any other s takeholder” or
o “Actual deviation of the comp onent or sy stem from its expected delivery, service or result”
Level 2: Understand (K2)
The candidate can select the reasons or explanations for statements related to the topic, and can summarize, compar e, classify, c ategorize and give examples for the testing conc ept.
Keywords: Summarize, generalize, abstract , classify, compare, map , contrast, ex emplify, inte rpret,translate , represent, infer, conclu de, categorize, construct models
Examples
Can explain the reas on why test s should be designed as early as pos sible:
o To find defects when they are cheaper to remove
o To find the most important defects first
Can explain the similarities and differences between inte gration and system testing:
o Similarities: testing more than one comp onent, and can test non-functional aspects
o Diffe rences: integration testi ng concentra tes on interfaces and interactions, a nd system te sting conc entrates on whole-system aspects, such as end- to-end proc essing
Level 3: Apply (K3)
The candidate can select the correct application of a con cept or techn ique and apply it to a given context.
Keywords: Implement, execute, use, follow a procedure, apply a pro cedure
Example
o Can identify boundary value s for valid and invalid partitions
o Can select test c ases from a given state transition di agram in order to cover a ll transitions
Level 4: Analy ze (K4)
The candidate can separate info rmation related to a procedure or technique into its constituen t parts for better understand ing, and ca n distinguish between fac ts and infer ences. Typical application is to analyze a document, software or project situ ation and pro pose appro priate actions to solve a problem or task.
Keywords: Analyze, organize, find coherence, integrate, outline, par se, structure, attribute,deconstr uct, differentiate, discrim inate, distinguish, focus , select
Example
o Analyze product risks and propose preve ntive and co rrective miti gation activities
o Describe which portions of an incident report are factual and whic h are inferred from results