I’ve been fortunate enough to once again attend the RST class run by Michael Bolton. Once again it’s been a rollercoaster and has got my testing grey matter in overdrive!
It turned out to be an interesting experiment…
The last RST I attended in 2011 was a public class, this time it was a private class. I was interested to see how the classes might play out, as well as how the content had changed.
Both classes provided great insights for me - obviously, the first time I attended I was learning all the content for the first time. Studying with strangers has its advantages; new contexts, new relationships and different problems all lend themselves to a rich learning experience, especially when the guy running the class makes it such a safe learning environment.
These advantages could also be seen as disadvantages, disadvantages which are not evident in the private class; Everyone in the group knew everyone else, most had worked with each other in some regard. We shared the same context and there was a large overlap in our problems.
This meant that the conversations and interactions between the class attendees themselves and Michael were focussed (some might say selfishly) around the attendees and our problems. Really selfishly, it was great to discuss some of the problems I’d been having applying the stuff I’d learned in the 2011 class (for the benefit of my team).
I did wonder if there would some reservations about speaking out in the private class (seeing as we knew each other & had worked with each other in some regard). This didn’t appear to be a problem - the whole group got stuck in and contributed. I see this as a result of careful facilitation by Michael of a close group of people who were all similarly motivated and open to new ideas (participants instead of prisoners or passengers).
As for the content; yes, it’s been built upon, tweaked & refined but it’s still gold. It’s great to see how the content is being kept relevant, demonstrating how the RST methodology can support and not hinder the current development trends of the day.
Once again, an energising and thought provoking 3 days which has provided us with some insights to help us tackle some of our testing related challenges.
Now to take those ideas back to the shop floor & try out some experiments!
Duncs