Computing AS/A Level

COMPUTING AS/A LEVEL

Examination Board: OCR Syllabus AS H047 A2 H447

CSAS

How long is the course?
The course is divided into AS and A2. Students can take AS over one year or both AS & A2 modules over two years to make up a full A Level.

Cost:
Textbooks are currently being revised, it is anticipated that the main text will be approximately £25. Detailed course notes are available.

Is there an interview?
Yes

What can I progress to?
Higher Education
Employment
This course should be preferred over Information and Communications Technology AS/A2 Level if you are considering a career in computing.

Possible Subject Combinations
This course combines well with a variety of other Advanced Level courses.

Extra Curricular Activities
All students can add to their main programme of study by taking part in a wide range of clubs, groups, societies and courses. Not only are the activities fun, they also develop skills and provide new and fulfilling experiences, as well as enhancing applications to Higher Education and employment

What is the course about?

AS Level - Year 1
Unit 1(50% of AS, 25% of A Level): This units covers computing fundamentals, including hardware, software, the presentation, structure and management of data, how data is transmitted and networked, the life cycle of systems development, the characteristics of information systems, and the implications of computer use.

Unit 2(50% of AS, 25% of A Level): This unit covers designing solutions to particular problems, how procedural programs are structured, the types of data and data structures, the common facilities of procedural languages, how to write maintainable programs, and how to test and run solutions.
If students wish to progress to the A2 Level, they must obtain a grade D or above at AS Level.

A2 Level - Year 2
Unit 3(30% of A Level): This unit covers the function of operating systems, the function and purpose of translators, how computer architectures are structured, how data is structured, represented and manipulated, high level language programming, low level languages and how databases function.

Unit 4 Computing project (20% of A Level): Through coursework candidates gain an understanding of definition, investigation and analysis, system design, software development and testing, documentation, evaluation and how to produce written reports.

Computing Resources
Students use industry-standard hardware and software including Pentium PCs within a Microsoft Windows XP professional environment. Students can expect to utilise the MS-Office Professional suite of packages as well as more specialised software. Access to the internet is widely available and all students have personal logins and user areas. All computer rooms have free laser printing.

Programme Languages
Students learn Visual Basic 6 and Visual Basic for Applications. An additional hour is added to the course at the end of the day for this purpose. Prolog is also studied in the second year.

Learning Centre
All students have free and open access to the Learning Centre to utilise the computer facilities.

Study Skills
As part of Stanmore Sixth Form College's excellent support network, Literacy and Numeracy support is available to any student enrolled on a course, depending on the student's individual needs (determined during Induction by an assessment). Support is provided through the Skills for Life Study Plus Programme. Students can attend either one-to-one or group sessions in a friendly, stimulating and supportive environment.

What are the course outcomes?

How will you be assessed?
The course is assessed by two written papers of 1 hour 30 minutes duration and course work each year.

AS Level: 2 written papers of 1 hour 30 minutes duration each. Students undertake a set of directed tasks worth 40% of the marks.

Requirement
7 GCSEs at grade C or above, including English and preferably Mathematics. Computing at grade B or above if taken at GCSE. How long is the course? The course is divided into AS and A2. Students can take AS over one year or both AS & A2 modules over two years to make up a full A Level. Cost: Textbooks are currently being revised, it is anticipated that the main text will be approximately £25. Detailed course notes are available.