How do you test a website and judge whether it meets its requirements?
Testing a website against its requirements (links, forms and scripts), checking usability and browser compatibility, and evaluating it for fitness for purpose.
An SQA Higher Computing Science answer on testing and evaluating a website, covering functional testing of links, forms and scripts, usability and browser compatibility, and evaluating fitness for purpose against the requirements.
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What this key area is asking
The SQA wants you to test a website against its requirements (checking links, forms and scripts work), to check usability and browser compatibility, and to evaluate the finished site for fitness for purpose. This mirrors the testing and evaluation you do in software, applied to the web.
Testing against the requirements
The testing is largely functional: confirming that each required feature actually works. The three things to check at Higher are links, forms and scripts.
Functional testing: links, forms and scripts
- Links. Click every link, in the navigation bar and in the content, and confirm each loads the correct page. Broken or wrong links are the most common web fault.
- Forms. Enter input and submit, confirming the form accepts the data and behaves as required (for example showing a confirmation or storing the input). Test with sensible and with empty or invalid entries.
- Scripts. Trigger each JavaScript event (click the button, hover the element) and confirm the page responds correctly, for example the right text appears.
Usability
A site can work perfectly yet still be hard to use (confusing menus, tiny text), so usability is tested separately, often by watching real users try to complete a task.
Browser compatibility
Evaluating for fitness for purpose
The evaluation judges the finished site overall, chiefly for fitness for purpose: does it meet its requirements? It has the required pages, the links work, the forms and scripts function, and it serves its stated purpose and audience. A complete evaluation also weighs usability (can people actually use it well?), so a site is only truly successful when it both meets the requirements and is easy to use.
Examples in context
Professional web teams test exactly these things, often automatically: link checkers crawl a site for broken links, forms are tested with valid and invalid input, and tools run the site across many browsers and devices (cross-browser testing) before launch. Accessibility (a part of usability) is increasingly a legal requirement. In the SQA assignment you supply a test plan with expected and actual results and an evaluation against your requirements, so this key area is examined in both the coursework and the question paper, mirroring software testing and evaluation.
Try this
Q1. State the most common type of fault to test for in a website's links. [1 mark]
- Cue. Broken links (a link that does not load the correct page).
Q2. State what compatibility testing checks. [1 mark]
- Cue. That the site displays and works correctly across different browsers (and screen sizes).
Q3. Explain the difference between usability and fitness for purpose. [2 marks]
- Cue. Usability is how easy the site is to use; fitness for purpose is whether it meets its requirements. Both are needed for a good site.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of SQA exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
SQA Higher (style)4 marksDescribe a test plan for a three-page website with a navigation bar and a contact form. State four specific tests you would carry out.Show worked answer →
A test plan lists each test, what is expected, and what actually happened, checking the site against its requirements.
Four specific tests:
- Click every link in the navigation bar and confirm each loads the correct page (no broken links).
- Submit the contact form with valid data and confirm it behaves as required (for example a confirmation appears).
- Test any JavaScript by triggering the event (for example clicking a button) and confirming the page responds correctly.
- View the site in more than one browser (and at different screen sizes) to confirm it displays and works consistently (compatibility).
Markers reward a structured set of specific, checkable tests covering links, the form, the script, and compatibility, each with an expected outcome.
SQA Higher (style)3 marksExplain what is meant by the usability and the fitness for purpose of a website, and why both matter in an evaluation.Show worked answer →
Usability is how easy the website is to use: clear navigation, readable text, obvious links and a logical layout, so visitors can find what they need without confusion.
Fitness for purpose is whether the website does what it was meant to do, judged against its requirements: it has the required pages, the links work, and the features (such as a form) function as specified.
Both matter because a site can be fit for purpose (it technically works) but still hard to use, or easy to use but missing required features. A good evaluation checks both: that the site meets its requirements and that visitors can actually use it effectively.
Markers reward usability = ease of use (navigation, readability, layout), fitness for purpose = meets the requirements, and the point that both are needed for a genuinely good site.
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