Why has the Scrum Alliance added a Certified ScrumMaster evaluation?
Training is an important part of the certification process—all certification candidates must complete a training course in the domain for which they seek certification—but it would be very difficult to standardize training and impossible to provide adequate oversight to ensure trainers are adhering to a single standard. Likewise, using the judgments of trainers to determine if individuals meet the minimally acceptable standards for certification introduces subjectivity and unreliability into the mix. However, we can provide trainers with course objectives, offer teaching guidelines, and recommend course materials. The objectives that are provided to trainers and the recommended reading found here are used to develop the evaluation content. Those who took a course after 1 October 2009 will have to take the evaluation to receive their CSM credentials. Those who took a course before 1 October 2009 will be required to take the evaluation when they renew their certifications.
