Programme of Study & Syllabus
Contents
The Syllabus, Examinations and Assessment
How Your Work is Assessed on the Course
The Transition from (I)GCSE to AS Level - Some Tips
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Welcome to your Wolsey Hall Cambridge AS Level Computer Science course. Please take the time to read carefully through this page as it explains how the course is structured, how to get the most out from your studies and how your work will be assessed. At the end of this page, you will find details of the reading you will need to do from your textbook and also how each module links to the CAIE syllabus and the final examinations.
This course will lead you step-by-step through the syllabus by way of video links, resources, assignments and, of course, the textbook, so that by the end, you will be confident and fully prepared for your final examinations.
‘Whether you want to uncover the secrets of the universe, or you want to pursue a career in the 21st century, basic computer programming is an essential skill to learn.’ Stephen Hawking.
How we use computers and computer programs has utterly defined the world we live in today and it is computer scientists who connect the abstract with reality creating the products we use daily. With its foundations in maths, computer science spans hardware and software engineering, the user interface, and computer technology's expansion into new areas. A Level Computer Science encourages learners to meet the needs of Higher Education courses in computer science as well as 21st century digital employers. It encourages learners to think creatively, through applying practical programming solutions, demonstrating that they are effective users of technology. They will also be able to appreciate the ethical issues that arise with current and emerging computing technologies.
Computing offers rewarding and challenging possibilities for a wide range of people regardless of interests. It requires and develops capabilities in solving deep, multidimensional problems using your imagination. Computing will provide you with knowledge, problem solving skills and logical thinking capabilities that will serve as a competitive advantage to you in any career. Creating high-quality computing solutions is a highly creative activity, and computing supports creative work in many other fields. Computing jobs are among the highest paid and have high job satisfaction. Computing is often associated with innovation, and those at the front of innovation make the most money. Computer Science allows access to any good job that uses technology extensively, which in the modern world, is pretty much all of them. This puts you in a very flexible position. Particular jobs include IT consultant, database administrator, games developer, media programmer, network engineer, systems analyst, IT trainer and teacher. ‘Everybody in this country should learn to program a computer because it teaches you how to think.’ Steve Jobs
The aims of this course are to enable students to develop:
- Computational thinking skills.
- An understanding of the main principles of solving problems using computers.
- An understanding of the component parts of computer systems and how they interrelate, including software, data, hardware, communication and people.
- An understanding of the different methods of communication and the functionality of networks and the internet.
- The skills necessary to apply this understanding to develop computer-based solutions to problems.
The Syllabus, Examinations and Assessment
This Wolsey Hall course is designed to prepare you for the Cambridge AS Level Computer Science examinations which you will sit at a Cambridge exam centre.
It is vitally important that you become familiar with the syllabus which can be found below:
READ - Syllabus 2024-25 (CAIE) Download READ - Syllabus 2024-25 (CAIE)
READ - Syllabus 2024-25 Update (CAIE) Download READ - Syllabus 2024-25 Update (CAIE)
READ - Syllabus 2026 (CAIE) Download READ - Syllabus 2026 (CAIE)
READ - Syllabus 2027-29 (CAIE) Download READ - Syllabus 2027-29 (CAIE)
The examination code for AS and A Level Computer Science is: 9618
For the AS Level in Computer Science you will sit two papers:
- Paper 1: Theory Fundamentals – This paper is worth 50% of your AS grade and 25% of your overall A Level grade. Length: 1 hour and 30 minutes. This paper carries 75 marks in total and will assess sections 1 to 8 of the syllabus content. Candidates answer all questions.
- Paper 2: Fundamental Problem-solving and Programming Skills – This paper is worth 50% of your AS grade and 25% of your overall A Level grade. Length: 2 hours. This paper carries 75 marks in total and will assess sections 9 to 12 of the syllabus content. Candidates will need to write in pseudocode. Candidates answer all questions.
All components are externally assessed. The syllabus is examined in the June and November examination series.
Assessment Objectives
The assessment objectives (AOs) for AS and A Level Computer Science are as follows:
- AO1: Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the principles and concepts of computer science, including abstraction, logic, algorithms and data representation.
- AO2: Apply knowledge and understanding of the principles and concepts of computer science, including to analyse problems in computational terms.
- AO3: Design, program and evaluate computer systems to solve problems, making reasoned judgements about these.
Wolsey Hall offers a unique model of offline and online resources to our homeschooling students – a model which we have developed based on our many years’ experience of providing homeschooling courses to students.
Textbook
Each subject specialist team carefully selects the best textbook for you to use as you study. The textbook for the AS and A Level Computer Science course is:
Cambridge International AS and A Level Computer Science, by Sylvia Langfield and Dave Duddell, (Cambridge University Press, 2019); ISBN: 9781108733755
Throughout the course, we recommend that you complete all of the questions and exercises in the textbook – the table below will highlight which pages you should read for each module.
Resources
In addition to your textbook, we have sourced a range of additional resources to support your learning. The resources are clearly marked out in the module pages and you should make use of these alongside your textbook to ensure that you get the very best out of your course.
You will also find a range of key resources in the General Resources section of the course. These are items which relate to the course as a whole, rather than to specific modules, and as such, you should make regular use of them. For AS and A Level Computer Science, these include:
- Learner Guide for AS and A Level Computer Science (9618) (CAIE Support Materials)
- Scheme of Work (CAIE Support Materials)
- Pseudocode Guide for Teachers (CAIE Support Materials)
- Textbook Answers (Textbook)
- Command Words (Syllabus)
- Optional Further Reading List
- Useful Websites
- Specimen Papers, Answers and Mark Schemes
You should also make use of the exam preparation material at the end of the course to help you to prepare for your final examination.
All the files required for your course are uploaded onto our Learning Management System, Canvas. Once you have read through this page and downloaded the Programme of Study (POS) then you are ready to begin the course.
The course is divided into thirteen modules: There are eight theory modules, four problem solving and programming modules and one revision module. These modules will help you to get the most out of your textbook. Each module is subdivided into topics so that you can study the course in manageable chunks. Each topic contains some or all of the following:
- Introduction – This section provides a brief synopsis of the topic and lists the learning objectives.
- Watch – This section provides links to videos that will help you understand the concepts covered.
- Read and Make Notes – This section includes page references for the textbook. You should read, make notes and complete the activities.
- Read and Practice – Similar to the above but found in the problem solving and programming topics.
- Tasks – Specific tasks that you must complete.
- Further Reading – Here there are links to additional resources to supplement and increase your understanding of the topic.
- End of Topic Review – Test yourself by answering the exam type questions in the textbook and checking your answers.
- Top Tip – Key ideas that you must understand.
- Key Terminology – Keep track of new terminology in each module by adding it to your glossary.
- Extended Learning – Additional activities that will increase your understanding.
Once you have completed all the topics in each module and are fully prepared and feel confident with the material, you should be able to complete your assignment and move on to the next module.
How Your Work is Assessed on the Course
Your progress will be assessed by completing an assignment at the end of each module. We recommend that you do NOT look at the assignments until you've studied all the topics in the module. This will ensure that you focus on everything you need to know for the exam. If you focus only on what you need to know to do well in the assignment, you will miss important elements in each module that you need to know and understand.
The assignments have been designed to help you prepare for your final examination – many of the questions are based on past exam papers. Answering exam-style questions is crucial in developing your exam technique, understanding exactly what the examiner is looking for in each case and ensuring you are confident when you tackle the real exams. We do not expect you to complete your assignments without referring to your notes or textbook, however, we encourage you to rely less on these as you progress through the course. By your final assignment you should be able to work without reference to any additional notes.
The assignments allow you to think critically about what you have learned and will enable your tutor to see how well you are progressing. Your tutor will mark your assignments and provide you with detailed feedback. Once you have had your marked assignment returned, you will be able to access the mark scheme and/or a specimen answer (an A-grade piece of work). You should always reflect carefully on your tutor’s feedback and apply it in your future assignments.
You should read the assignment questions carefully and answer them to the best of your ability, providing relevant examples where necessary. If you don’t do well in your first assignment, don’t worry; your tutor is there to provide advice.
We ask that you do not submit multiple assignments at the same time. For you to see a steady improvement in your marks, it is very important that you reflect on your tutor’s feedback before beginning each new assignment, so that you can incorporate their tips for improvement into each new piece of work.
To get the best out of your course, before submitting each new assignment, you must:
- Complete all the reading, notes and activities in the preceding module;
- Read carefully through all of your tutor’s comments on your last assignment;
- Use the mark scheme and/or any exemplar or specimen answers provided to help you plan for the next assignment.
We cannot guarantee that tutors will be able to mark multiple assignments within the 3-5 working day window and your work may be returned to you to complete again in light of more recent feedback.
All assignments are submitted via Canvas – you should consult the Canvas Guide for more information.
The Transition from (I)GCSE to AS Level - Some Tips
This change is one of the most difficult for students, even more so than the transition from A Levels to university. One of the biggest differences is the expectation that you will be able to learn and write more efficient algorithms and construct better solutions to problems. As a computer scientist you learn to theorise, design, develop and apply software and hardware for the programmes we use day in and day out.
The transition from working at IGCSE level to A Level is significant, including an increasing emphasis on technical context, extended answers and research. It is not necessary to have in-depth computer science knowledge to start the A Level course, as the course begins by covering the basics. However, you will be expected to develop your problem-solving skills further. You will continue to learn python and will need to learn at least one more programming language.
You are also expected to write in a lot more detail than at the IGCSE level. Some questions are quite straightforward, and test core knowledge. Others are chosen to give you a chance to extend your thinking and writing skills and to further demonstrate your creativity in solving problems. As information technology is continually evolving and developing, you will be encouraged to look out for new elements and future trends as there are stages where you will have to give your opinion and argue a case.
When you study a Wolsey Hall course, you are never alone. There are lots of people who are willing to help you. Everyone is on your side!
- Tutors: At Wolsey Hall, all our tutors are friendly and knowledgeable. They are subject experts and you should not be shy about asking them questions about your course. You will meet your tutor at the start of your course and you should contact them via Canvas messaging if you have any questions.
- Student Progress Managers: You have already been assigned a Student Progress Manager who can help with your Assignment Schedule.
- Exams Officers: Wolsey Hall’s Exams Officers are here to help students with any queries regarding exam centres.
- Canvas Help Desk: Canvas is a great virtual learning environment, but we understand that sometimes, even the best things can go wrong! If you have any problems with Canvas (e.g. uploading assignments or unable to access resources) you should submit a Canvas Help Ticket.
For information about how to create and submit a Help Ticket, please refer to the Canvas Guide.
We hope you’ll enjoy your course and studying at Wolsey Hall. We wish you the best of luck in your studies and success in your examinations. Please do let us know how you get on when you receive your examination results!
The Wolsey Hall Team