CTFL-AT — Agile Tester (Foundation) glossary
21 terms the exam expects you to know, defined in plain language.
A
- Agile Development(agile)
- A development approach with evolving requirements, continuous testing, and frequent small releases.
C
- CTFL testing principles(ctfl testing principles)
- A set of seven foundational principles for software testing, including early feedback, which reinforce Agile testing values.
- Context-Dependent Best Practices(context-dependent best practices)
- Principle that testing practices depend on project context, not universal application.
- Cost of defects(cost of defects)
- The principle that defects become more expensive to fix the later they are found, motivating early testing and feedback.
D
- Developers' testing responsibilities(developers testing)
- Developers own unit tests, integration tests, code reviews, and refactoring for testability in an Agile team.
E
- Early feedback principle(early feedback)
- An Agile value and CTFL testing principle emphasizing tight feedback loops to minimize defect cost and enable cheap course correction.
F
- Feedback cadences(feedback cadences)
- Multiple feedback loops in Agile ranging from minutes (unit tests) to releases (production telemetry) that enable rapid learning.
H
- Hybrid Development Approaches(water-scrum-fall, agile-fall)
- Combinations of waterfall and agile practices, such as Water-Scrum-Fall or Agile-fall.
I
- Iterative Development(iterative)
- A development approach using repeated cycles, which overlaps with but is not identical to Agile.
O
- Order of Activities in a Process(order of activities, order of activities in a process)
- Concept that the sequence of process steps is critical and commonly reversed in recall.
P
- Project Context for Methodology Selection(project context)
- Factors such as scope stability, regulation, and feedback needs that determine whether sequential or Agile is appropriate.
Q
- QA gate anti-pattern(qa gate at end of sprint, qa gate)
- An anti-pattern where testing is performed only at the end of a sprint, creating a bottleneck and missing Agile principles.
R
- Retrospective action(retrospective action)
- The practice of acting on insights from retrospectives to close feedback loops and improve the process.
S
- Sequential Development(sequential, waterfall)
- A development approach with fixed early requirements, detailed upfront design, and late testing.
- Severity vs. Priority(severity vs. priority)
- Distinction between the impact of a defect and the urgency for its resolution, often used in defect triage.
T
- Test Level vs. Test Type(test level vs. test type)
- Distinction between development phases (e.g., unit, integration) and testing objectives (e.g., functional, performance).
- Test Manager vs. Test Management Role(test manager vs. test management role)
- Distinction between a specific job title and a broader set of responsibilities or functions.
- Testers' role in Agile(testers contribute)
- Specialist contributions by testers including story refinement, pairing, coaching, test infrastructure, and business-aware testing.
- Three-amigos sessions(three-amigos sessions)
- A collaborative meeting involving developers, testers, and business representatives to refine acceptance criteria and explore test scenarios.
V
- Validation vs. Verification(validation vs. verification)
- Distinction between ensuring the product meets user needs and confirming it meets specified requirements.
W
- Whole team approach(whole team approach)
- An Agile testing practice where quality responsibility is shared by all team members, not delegated to a separate QA group.