Course

Course Summary

Credit Type:

Exam

ACE ID:

CAIE-0013

Organization's ID:

Computer Science AS & A Level 9618

Organization:

Cambridge Assessment International Education

Location:

International

Length:

3.5 hours AS; 4 hours AL

Dates Offered:

Credit Recommendation & Competencies

Level	Credits (SH)	Subject
Lower-Division Baccalaureate	7	Computer Science

Credit is recommended for examinees scoring "E" or higher for either the AS or A level exams. This exhibit is being recommended for a total of seven semester hours for students who complete both the AS and A level exams. For examinees only completing the AS level exam, three semester hours in Computer Science is recommended.

Description

Objective:

The AS Level Computer Science exam consists of two components. Paper 1 assesses theory fundamentals through short-answer questions over 1 hour and 30 minutes. Paper 2 then assesses fundamental problem-solving and programming skills. Students will need to write answers in pseudocode.
The A Level Computer Science exam requires an additional two components. Paper 3 covers advanced theory over 1 hour and 30 minutes, and Paper 4 is a practical exam over 2 hours and 30 minutes. Students will submit complete program code and evidence of testing using either Java, VB.NET or Python programming languages. All Paper 4 questions will be answered on a computer without internet or email facility. Marks from Papers 1 and 2 from the AS Level are carried forward and combined with Papers 3 and 4 to comprise the complete assessment at the A Level.

Skills Measured:

The exam covers three assessment objectives, requiring students to 1) Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation; 2) Apply knowledge and understanding of the principles and concepts of computer science, including to analyze problems in computational terms; and 3) Design, program and evaluate computer systems to solve problems, making reasoned judgements about these.

Instruction & Assessment