Software Development Examination Advice & Criteria Content All outcomes in Unit 3 and 4 will be examined. All of the key knowledge and skills are examinable. Both Units 3 & 4 will contribute approximately equally to the examination. 1 2 Format - Section A Section A will comprise 20 multiple choice questions worth 1 mark each. The content from all outcomes undertaken throughout the year will be covered. There will be as much emphasis and coverage of the course content as possible in this section. Section A None of the questions in this section will be related to a case study. Answers are to be recorded on a multiplechoice answer sheet. Section A is worth 20% of the exam. 3 4 1
Section B Section B will comprise short answer questions. The content from all outcomes undertaken throughout the year will be covered. There will be as much emphasis and coverage of the course content as possible in this section. Section B Most of the questions will be worth 1 or 2 marks, but there will be a few 3 mark questions. This section will start with the least complex questions and move to more complex questions. 5 6 Section B Some questions will address the analysis component of the SDLC. None of the questions in this section will be related to a case study. Questions are to be answered in the spaces provided in the question an answer book. Section B is worth 20% of the exam. Section C Section C will be a case study, the overall weighting of the relevant outcomes will be respected in this section. As the Analysis phase is covered in part in Section B it will not comprise a large component of this section. 7 8 2
Section C Section C will be along the lines of past exams but not as big as it is only worth 60% of the exam. Questions are to be answered in the spaces provided in the question and answer book. Format cont. The examination paper may include questions which may refer to design briefs, case studies and visual images. All questions are compulsory. Exam will be in the form of a question and answer booklet. 9 10 Approved materials Normal stationary requirements - pens, pencils, highlighters, erasers, sharpeners and rulers. One scientific calculator. No liquid paper. Areas of study: Unit 3 Systems Analysis and Design Unit 3 Software Development Unit 4 Software Engineering Unit 4 Systems Engineering: Development, implementation and evaluation 11 12 3
Criteria 1 1. Knowledge of the types, purposes and components of networked information systems used in organisations Students should expect questions that will deal with the theory and practical application of networked information systems. Students can expect short answer questions that focus on basic theory, followed by short and extended answer questions that relate to brief case studies or diagrams. 13 14 Criteria 2 This criterion refers to the key knowledge and skills related to Outcome 1 of Unit 3 2. Understanding of the stages of software development and the stages of the systems development life cycle. 15 16 4
Students should be familiar with all the stages and expect theory and practical questions that are possibly related to a case study. This criterion refers to skills and knowledge related to Outcomes 2 of Unit 3 and Outcome 1 of Unit 4 17 18 Criteria 3 3. Understanding of the functions of, and the relationships between, the components of networked information systems and their environments. Students should be familiar with the basic functions of a range of processing, input, output and communications components. Students should also be familiar with the relationships between these components. 19 20 5
Criteria 4 This criterion relates to Outcome 1 of Unit 3 4. Application of skills, techniques and strategies to propose purpose-designed software solutions and to propose solutions to information system problems. 21 22 It is important that students are familiar with a range of algorithms and can write and debug algorithms. This criterion relates to Outcome 2 of Unit3 and Outcome 1 Unit 4. Students should be familiar with the basic tools used to outline a solution. 23 24 6
Criteria 5 5. Evaluation and justification of software solutions and solutions to information system problems. Students should be familiar with the typical implementation strategies and be able to justify a choice to suit a case study. Students should also be familiar with a range of evaluation techniques and be able to justify the selection of a suitable evaluation strategy This criterion relates to Outcome 2 Unit 4 25 26 7