I\'ve been given the task to train our manual testers to become developers in te

Question

I've been given the task to train our manual testers to become developers in test (write test automation!).

Some have basic programming knowledge (either dabbling in PHP or reading stuff) and some who have no experience. Note that I do have teaching experience, but with real students, not employees, and one concern is that they will not put extra hours except the 20% management gave them for the transition.

Language to be taught and used: C#

We have 8 hours per week to do this and should decide if they will make it in 2 months. I am thinking of a combined approach:

use a manual such as Head First C# (although I'm not happy with the labs, they're mostly games and I don't want to add UI complexities)
have them read from the manual
do labs with them, solving more and more difficult problems and explain the theoretical stuff as well
have them do a bigger project towards the end
Some questions:

do you have a better suggestion as far as manuals go?
do you have a better approach? Focus less on labs?
what kind of assessments should I use and how often?
should I let them do a bigger project (bank system or small game) and how much time should I invest in that?
ideas on labs?
other resources ?
Any other tips would be most welcomed!

Thanks!

Explanation / Answer

Make the whole "class" project-based, not just the end.

Figure out what you want the project to be, and then piece it apart into sections you can turn into lessons. Each lesson having an assignment which ends up being used directly, or involved in the final project.

For each area, Do not provide them with all of the necessary info, at least easily (aka make sure they learn that google is their friend). Give them enough so they don't feel overwhelmed, not but enough so that they can complete all of the assignments/projects using the information you provide. It is very important that they pick up the same skills we use everyday in our work (knowing when to check manuals, forums, SO, etc...)

Also, consider making at least the final project a group project. People think differently. Group members can help fill each other's gaps in terms of their knowledge.

Good luck! I've taught programming in various roles during my time in uni and it had a very big impact on how I approach the subject matter.

Oh! and students-are-students, the only different here being that your student's motivation might be more directly financial than the norm (which is not to say regular students motivation's aren't financial; I attended uni during the dot-com boom)

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