OCR GCSE in Computing
Computer Systems
Fundamentals
State the main elements of a computer system
State the commonalities between different types of computer devices ( tablets, phones, games consoles and
laptop/desktop)
Paper Based
Online
Resource 1
GCSE Revision Booklet:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/RevisionComputing-Computer-SystemsProgramming/dp/1444193848
http://www.cambridgegcs http://www.compedonli
ne.org.uk/GCSEComputin
ecomputing.org/
g/
Page 1 - Page 9
Chapter 1
Page 10 - 19
Chapter 2
Week
Beginning
Be able to explain how computer systems have affected the way we go about daily tasks, giving at least 4 examples
Be able to explain the importance of computers in our world. Giving four examples of the impact of failure such as banking
systems
Relate the importance of computing in society to to need for reliability. Be able to give 2 examples of how reliability could
be improved.
I can state five standards that are in use in computer systems today
30/01/2017
I can give an example of what the impact would be if hardware and software was not developed using standards
I can give two examples of how environmental consideration should be taken into account when developing and disposing
of computer systems
I can give two examples of how computer system have raised ethical considerations
I can give examples of two laws that must be adhered to within the computing industry
I can combine my examples of legal, ethical and environmental considerations into a 3/4 page essay
Hardware
I can give a full explanation of how important the CPU is to the computer system and what it's main purpose is
I can state, using bullet points, how the CPU fetches and executes instructions from RAM
CPU
I can explain the effect on the computer system of increasing and decreasing the processor speed
I can explain the effect of increasing and decreasing the CPU cache size
I can state what a mutlicore CPU is
I can give two examples of how increasing the number of cores in a CPU will effect performance
I can explain using three points why binary is used to represent data in binary systems
I can draw an AND gate and document the truth table for this gate
Binary Logic
I can draw an OR gate and document the truth table for this gate
06/02/2017
I can draw a NOT gate and document the truth table for this gate
I can give two examples of a combination circuit with AND, OR and NOT gates and work out what the output would be
I can state what RAM stands for, I can explain what RAM is used for in a computer system
I can state what ROM stands for, I can explain why ROM essential for a computer system
I can state the difference between RAM and ROM
I can explain the effect on performance of increasing or decreasing RAM in a computer system
Memory
I can explain why increasing RAM in a computer system might not improve the perfromance as expected
I can state what virtual memory is
I can explain what virtual memory is used for and when it is used
I can state what cache memory is and when it is used
Memory
Page 10 - 19
Chapter 2
Page 22-32
Chapter 3
Page 34 - 42
Chapter 4
I can state what flash memory is and in what situations it is used
I can explain how the fact, that memory is getting cheaper and smaller, affects computer design including desing of
hand-held devices
IOSS
IOSS
I can state what an input device is used for
I can state what a output device is used for
I can state what the effect would be if there was no input or output devices
Input and
I can state input devices used for games consoles, tablets, computer controlled devices ( sensors), mobile phones and
Output Devices at least one household device
13/02/2017
I can state output devices used for games consoles, tablets, computer controlled devices ( sensors), mobile phones and
at least one household device
I can state the device ( or software feature) and use of at least five input and output devices for users with specific
needs.
I can state the need for secondary storage
I can explain what optical storage devices and media are and when it would be used.
Secondary
Storage
I can explain what magnetic storage devices are and when it would be used
I can explain what solid state devices are and when it would be used
I can decide, based on the situation what type of storage should be used based on speed, portabilty , durability and
reliability.
know and recognise a range of synonyms
I can state the functions of an operating system (user interface, memory management, peripheral management, multitasking and security)
I can give an example of the features of the user interface of an operating system
I can explain why an operating system is required to manage memory
I can explain what peripheral management is and why it is needed in an operating system
I can explain what multi-tasking is and why an operating system is required to be able to perform this function
I can explain what the main security features of an operating system are
Software
I can state three utility programs ( one for system maintenance, one for security and one for disk organisation) that
would be needed on a computer system and what they are needed for
27/02/2017
I can state what custom written software is and when it would be used. I can state two advantages and two
disadvantages of this software. I know when it would be needed.
I can state what open sources software is and when it would be used. I can state two advantages and two
disadvantages of this software. I know when it would be needed.
I can state what proprietary software is and when it would be used. I can state two advantages and two disadvantages
of this software. I know when it would be needed.
Data Representation
I can define bit, nibble, byte, kilobyte, megabyte, gigabyte, terabyte
Units
I can explain why data needs to be converted into binaryfor use in a computer
I can convert denary whole numbers into eight bit binary and vice versa
I can add to 8 bit binary numbers together and explain overflow
Number
I can convert a denary whole number to two digit hexadecimal and vice versa
I can convert between 2 digit hexadecimal and eight bit binary and vice versa
I can explain why we use hexadecimal to represent binary numbers
I can explain how binary is used to represent characters
Character
06/03/2017
I can state what a character set is
Character
I know what ASCII stands for and can give three examples of how it is used to represent characters
06/03/2017
I know why Unicode was introduced and can explain why it was introduced following ASCII
I know the differences in the character sets between ASCII and Unicode
Page 34 - 42
Chapter 4
Page 44 - 50
Chapter 5 - Databases
I can explain how pixels are represented in RAM and how they make up an image
I can state three items of metadata
Images
I can explain what metadata is used for
I understand how colour depth means more data in RAM and a bigger file size and why plus vice versa
I understand a higher resolution means more data in RAM and a bigger file size and why plus vice versa
I can explain, using an example what sampling is
I can explain how samples are stored in RAM
Sound
Instruction
I can explain how more samples mean more data, a bigger file size and better quality playback size plus vice versa
I can explain how the more binary digits used to represent the sample means better quality playback, a bigger file size
and vice versa
I can explain that instructions are coded as bits
I can explain how computers distinguish between instructions and data
DataBases
13/03/2017
Database
Concept
I can describe what a database is and can use the term persistant store of data
I can define a data handling software using the term create, maintain and interrogate
I can explain how the DBMS results in seperation of the data from the application
The DBMS
I can explain why seperation of the data from the application is desirable
I can state the main features of a DBMS
I can explain how the features of the DBMS can be used to create a custom solution for a customer
I can state what an entity is
I can link the relationship between entities and tables and explain this
I can state that the main components of a relational database are tables, forms, queries, reports and modules
I can build, through examples queries using greater than, less than, AND, OR and NOT
Relational
Databases
I can define the primary key
I can identify the primary key given a table
20/03/2017
I can explain what the primary key should be when given the entity
I can explain how a primary key can connect tables and avoid redundancy
I can define data redundancy
I can define data validation
I can give three examples of how data can be validated using a DBMS
Networks and the Internet
I can explain what the benefits are of networking stand alone computers into a LAN
I can explain the difference bewteen a switch, a hub and a router and a WAP
I can define what hardware is needed to network stand alone computers
I can define what a client server network is
I can explain what a peer to peer network is
I can explain the roles of the computers in a peer to peer or client server network
27/03/2017
Networks
27/03/2017
I can draw a diagram representing a ring network and state two advantages and two disadvantages of this network
Networks
I can draw a diagram representing a bus network and state two advantages and two disadvantages of this network
I can draw a diagram representing a star network and state two advantages and two disadvantages of this network
I can define what a local area network is
I can define what a wide area network is
I can describe three differences between a WAN and a LAN
I can explain the terms: IP addressing, MAC addressing, packet and protocol
I can explain why security is needed within networks using the terms, user access levels, suitable passwords and
encryption techniques
Page 56-68
Chapter 6 - Computer Communication and Networking
Page 71-81
Chapter 7 - Programming
I can state four items that should be present on an acceptable use policy
I can state four items that should be present on adisaster recovery policy ( backup, failover, archiving)
I can define the internet as a network of networks
I can define two pieces of hardware needed to connect computers to the internet
03/04/2017
I can explain through an example what an IP address is
I can explain why IP addressing is needed for the internet to work
I know what DNS stands for
I can explain that a DNS server converts a domain name to an IP address
The Internet
I can explain how DNS servers work
I can explain why HTML is an important standard for web pages and I can explain why it would be very different if
there was no standard for this, such as HTML
I know what type of files are associated with: JPG, MP3, GIF, PDF and MPEG. I understand why documents are
converted to PDF before being placed on a website
I know why files should be compressed before transmitted on the internet and can explain this
I can define lossy and lossless compression and what the implications are of both
Programming
I can interpret what an algorithm does when I am given it in pseudo code or as a flowchart
24/04/2017
I can create detailed flowcharts and pseudo code for algorithms showing assignment, iteration and selection
I can define high level code
I can define machine code
I can explain the difference between high level code and machine code
Programming
Fundamentals I can explain the function of a translator and how it relates to high level code and machine code
I can explain what an assembler does
I can explain what a compiler does
I can explain what a interpreter does
I can state four tools available to developers who use an IDE
I can describe what a syntax error is and give an example
I can describe what a logic error is and give an example
I can confidently use case statements, if statements, nested if statements, conditional and counting loops
02/05/2017
I can use booleans, reals, integer's, characters, and strings in my programs
I can use variables and constants appropriately
Programming
Skills
I can define the term variable and constant
I can select appropriate variable and data types for use in my program
I can use arrays
08/05/2017
Programming
Skills
I can describe what a syntax error is and give an example
I can describe what a logic error is and give an example
Past Papers
I can create a test table and identify the tests that are required
Past Papers - June 2015
Past Papers - June 2014
Past Papers - June 2013
Past Papers - June 2012
08/05/2017
15/05/2017
22/05/2017
29/05/2017
05/06/2017
Exam Wednesday 7th June
1.30pm
http://www.ocr.org.uk/qualifications/gcse-computing-j275-from-2012/