Understanding RSpec Failure - ruby-on-rails

Question

I'm getting these failures when running rspec spec/. The spec that is failing is was auto-generated with the scaffolding. I'm trying to understand RSpec but I don't know where to begin looking for the cause other than it feels like some method is missing?!? Yet, app appears to be working fine. Nothing about these failures appears in test.log. Is there another place I should be looking for hints to track this down?
$ rspec spec/
.....................F.F.
Failures:
1) clowns/edit.html.haml renders the edit clown form
Failure/Error: render
undefined method `to_sym' for nil:NilClass
# ./app/views/clowns/_form.html.haml:4:in `block in _app_views_clowns__form_html_haml__3590088286240866241_2176114460_3896491916910336970'
# ./app/views/clowns/_form.html.haml:1:in `_app_views_clowns__form_html_haml__3590088286240866241_2176114460_3896491916910336970'
# ./app/views/clowns/edit.html.haml:3:in `_app_views_clowns_edit_html_haml___574620942879655923_2176081980_599706797287605391'
# ./spec/views/clowns/edit.html.haml_spec.rb:13:in `block (2 levels) in <top (required)>'
2) clowns/new.html.haml renders new clown form
Failure/Error: render
undefined method `to_sym' for nil:NilClass
# ./app/views/clowns/_form.html.haml:4:in `block in _app_views_clowns__form_html_haml__3590088286240866241_2176114460_3896491916910336970'
# ./app/views/clowns/_form.html.haml:1:in `_app_views_clowns__form_html_haml__3590088286240866241_2176114460_3896491916910336970'
# ./app/views/clowns/new.html.haml:3:in `_app_views_clowns_new_html_haml__1085372210838170129_2159651900_599706797287605391'
# ./spec/views/clowns/new.html.haml_spec.rb:12:in `block (2 levels) in <top (required)>'
Finished in 1.03 seconds
27 examples, 2 failures, 2 pending
And here is the spec that apparently fails (edit.html.haml_spec.rb). It was auto-generated by rails g scaffold Clown name:string balloons:integer:
#spec/views/clowns/edit.html.haml_spec.rb
require 'spec_helper'
describe "clowns/edit.html.haml" do
before(:each) do
#clown = assign(:clown, stub_model(Clown,
:name => "MyString",
:balloons => 1
))
end
it "renders the edit clown form" do
render
# Run the generator again with the --webrat-matchers flag if you want to use webrat matchers
assert_select "form", :action => clown_path(#clown), :method => "post" do
assert_select "input#clown_name", :name => "clown[name]"
assert_select "input#clown_balloons", :name => "clown[balloons]"
end
end
end

Answer 1

Are you also using simple_form (or perhaps even formtastic)? I get the same error when I convert the scaffold forms from standards forms to simple_form forms (form_for(#user) => simple_form_for(#user)).
It still works, as you say, so I'm not sure it's worth worrying about. I think you'd be better off just letting Cucumber worry about it. Sarah Mei says view specs are a waste of time. :-)