ISTQB Foundation 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following BEST defines 'test coverage'?
- The number of defects found divided by the total number of test cases
- The degree to which specified coverage items have been exercised by tests (Correct answer)
- The percentage of the project budget spent on testing activities
- The number of test environments used during the test cycle
Correct answer: The degree to which specified coverage items have been exercised by tests
Test coverage measures how much of the defined coverage items (e.g., requirements, code statements, branches) have been exercised by the test suite.
Question 2: According to ISTQB, which of the following is a BENEFIT of early testing?
- It guarantees that no defects will reach production
- It reduces the cost of fixing defects found later in development (Correct answer)
- It eliminates the need for user acceptance testing
- It always shortens the overall project timeline
Correct answer: It reduces the cost of fixing defects found later in development
Defects found early in development are significantly cheaper to fix because fewer dependent artifacts and code changes are involved.
Question 3: Which testing approach examines the internal structure or code of a component without knowledge of its specifications?
- Black-box testing
- Grey-box testing
- White-box testing (Correct answer)
- Experience-based testing
Correct answer: White-box testing
White-box testing (also called structural or glass-box testing) bases tests on the internal implementation, code paths, and logic of the system.
Question 4: A tester groups all valid and invalid input values into classes where every value in a class is expected to be processed the same way. This technique is called:
- Boundary value analysis
- State transition testing
- Equivalence partitioning (Correct answer)
- Decision table testing
Correct answer: Equivalence partitioning
Equivalence partitioning divides input data into partitions where all values within a partition are expected to trigger the same behavior.
Question 5: Which of the following statements about the V-model is TRUE?
- Testing activities only begin after all development is complete
- Each development phase has a corresponding testing phase (Correct answer)
- The V-model is only suitable for agile projects
- Testing and development phases overlap completely in the V-model
Correct answer: Each development phase has a corresponding testing phase
The V-model maps each development phase (requirements, design, coding) to a corresponding test level (acceptance, integration/system, unit) on the right side of the 'V'.
Question 6: Which role is PRIMARILY responsible for defining the overall test approach and allocating resources for testing?
- Test analyst
- Test manager (Correct answer)
- Developer
- Business analyst
Correct answer: Test manager
The test manager is responsible for overall test planning, strategy, resource allocation, and reporting on testing progress and quality.
Question 7: Which of the following BEST describes 'state transition testing'?
- Testing every possible path through the source code
- Testing a system's behavior as it moves between different states based on events (Correct answer)
- Testing boundary values at the edges of input ranges
- Testing error messages when invalid data is entered
Correct answer: Testing a system's behavior as it moves between different states based on events
State transition testing models a system as a set of states and transitions triggered by events, then derives tests to cover those transitions.
ISTQB Foundation 5
Which of the following BEST defines 'test coverage'?