Computer Science

WHY SHOULD I STUDY A-LEVEL COMPUTER SCIENCE?

You will develop an understanding of, and the ability to apply, fundamental principles and concepts of computer science. These include: abstraction, decomposition, logical thinking, algorithms and data representation. You will analyse problems in computational terms through writing programmes to solve a problem. You will need the capacity to think creatively, innovatively, analytically, logically and critically and be able to see relationships between real life experiences and computing problem solving.

WHAT WILL I LEARN ABOUT?

You will study a range of concepts including the structure of a computer processor, software types and development,programming languages (Python), as well as legal, moral and ethical issues. You will carry out your own programming project for a real end-user and will engage with different types of thinking from computational to abstract.

HOW WILL I BE ASSESSED?

You will sit two examinations at the end of Year 13 accounting for 40% each of the total marks. A programming project accounts for the final 20% of the overall grade and involves a personal choice of developing a real-life programming solution.

WHAT SKILLS WILL I DEVELOP?

This course will allow you to develop: essential problem solving and practical programming skills; personal experience of evaluating situations and making key decisions to affect outcomes; logical intelligence through data manipulation; numeracy and ICT skills; the ability to design systems and explore the limits of human; and machine intelligence.

WHERE COULD THIS SUBJECT TAKE ME IN THE FUTURE?

The skills will make you an excellent candidate for degrees in computing, computer science, engineering and mathematics. Some of the highest starting salaries are found for careers in the computing industry.

Exam Board: OCR | Course Code: H446