Computer Science

Unit Focus: Our School System

During the first half term, students concentrate on understanding how to do some of the key things they need to do on the school computers, including setting up folders, accessing and searching the web, and using Microsoft Office.

Unit Focus: Computers - input/output and memory

During the second half term, students will look at how computers work, including hardware and software, input and output devices, and memory. They will also look at how computers process information and instructions.

Assessment method: 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Data Representation - Excel

During the first half term, students will look at how data is managed using databases. They are introduced to flat file databases using Excel, and how to turn raw data into useful information.

Unit Focus: IT - Graphic Design and Copyright

During the second half term, students look at how to use a variety of applications to manipulate images and text to design magazine covers. They are introduced to Photoshop and Fireworks, as well as the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act.

Assessment method: 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Computational Thinking - Algorithms and Decomposition

Unit Focus: Programming - Basic Programming Techniques (Scratch)

During this term, students look at how to create games in Scratch. As part of this unit they are introduced to algorithms and problem solving, as well as how to use Scratch and understand task requirements.

Assessment method: 1 project, 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Data Representation - how data is represented in computers

During the first half term, students look at how data is represented in computers. In particular, how a computer is able to store so much information (images, sound, text) using binary.

Unit Focus: Networking - Networking Basics

During the second half term, students look at how computers are joined together using networks. They cover how data is sent across networks, examples of networks including local and wide-area networks, the rules for sending messages on the Internet and some examples of why network security is important.

Assessment method: 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Data Representation - Excel

During the first half term, students will look at how data is managed using databases. They are introduced to flat file databases using Excel, and how to turn raw data into useful information.

Unit Focus: Text-based Programming and Algorithms

During the second half term, students look at some examples of algorithms, including how they use iteration and selection to achieve specific tasks. Students will look at how to use Python, a text based programming language, to program text-based games.

Assessment method: 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Computers - Software and Hardware

Unit Focus: IT - Using Technology Safely

During this term, students look at the social, moral and environmental impact of technology on their day to day lives. They are introduced to a range of software, before being asked to research how to use them, and then complete their own independent project to create media, including graphics and a website.

Assessment method: 1 project, 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: The Internet

This unit begins exploring the technical challenges and questions that arise from the need to represent digital information in computers and transfer it between people and computational devices. In the second half of the unit, students solve problems similar to ones that had to be solved to build the real Internet. Students design their own version of protocols, each one layered on the previous one, in a process that mimics the layered sets of protocols on the real Internet.

Unit Focus: Digital Information

This unit further explores the ways that digital information is encoded, represented and manipulated. In this unit students will look at and generate data, clean it, manipulate it, and create and use visualisations to identify patterns and trends.

Assessment method: 4 online assessments, 2 presentations

Unit Focus: Algorithms and Programming

This unit introduces students to programming in the JavaScript language and creating small applications that live on the web. This introduction places a heavy emphasis on understanding general principles of computer programming and revealing those things that are universally applicable to any programming language.

Unit Focus: Big Data and Privacy

The data rich world we live in also introduces many complex questions related to public policy, law, ethics and societal impact. The major goals of the unit are for students to develop a well rounded and balanced view about data in the world around them and both the positive and negative effects of it; and to understand the basics of how and why modern encryption works.

Assessment method: 4 online assessments, 2 presentations

Unit Focus: Building Apps

This unit continues to develop students' ability to program in the JavaScript language, using Code.org's App Lab environment to create a series of small applications that live on the web, each highlighting a core concept of programming. Students transition to creating event-driven apps.

Unit Focus: Algorithms and Programming

During this term, students will be introduced to the GCSE specification.

Assessment method: 2 online assessments, 1 presentation, 1 exam paper

Unit Focus: Algorithms

Students will gain a thorough knowledge of how algorithms can be used to solve complex problems and how they can be displayed using flowcharts and pseudocode.

Unit Focus: Iteration

Students will understand iteration in depth and know how to analyse algorithms using trace tables. They will learn how to design algorithms and incorporate iteration.

Assessment method: Exam paper - when taken in June 2018, will contribute to Paper 1, worth 40% of final grade; practice NEA - when completed in year 11, worth 20% of final grade

Unit Focus: Data Types and Structures

Students will explain different data types and learn how to create and work with different data structures.

Unit Focus: Searching and Sorting Algorithms; Input and Output

Students will learn how to sort and search digitally using algorithms. Additionally, students will explain why user input is needed and describe ways in which data input can be validated.

Assessment method: Exam paper - when taken in June 2018, will contribute to Paper 1, worth 40% of final grade; practice NEA - when completed in year 11, worth 20% of final grade

Unit Focus: Problem Solving; Computer systems

Students will create algorithms to solve problems they have analysed, using computational thinking, abstraction and decomposition. Students will learn about the hardware needed in computer systems and discover system software.

Unit Focus: Representing numbers; Representing text, graphics and sound

During this term, students will discover how data is represented by computer systems, including binary and hexadecimal. Students will also learn how text, graphics and sound are represented in binary.

Assessment method: Mock exam paper - when taken in June 2018, worth 40% of final grade; practice NEA - when completed in year 11, worth 20% of final grade