Full A-Level coverage: data representation, communication, hardware, software, databases, algorithms, OOP, and further programming.
Level: Advanced
Grade band: 9–12
Time: about 60 hours
Outcomes
- Apply advanced data representation including floating-point and compression
- Analyse processor architecture, OS functions, and security mechanisms
- Design and query relational databases using SQL
- Implement complex algorithms and data structures in code
- Develop object-oriented programs applying inheritance and polymorphism
Paper 1 — Theory Fundamentals
1.1 Information Representation
- Number systems and base conversion — 30 min
- Signed integers: two’s complement and BCD — 30 min
- Floating-point representation and normalisation — 35 min
- Error detection: parity, checksums, and CRC — 25 min
- Compression algorithms: RLE and Huffman coding — 30 min
1.2 Communication and Networking
- Transmission media and bandwidth — 25 min
- Network protocols and the TCP/IP stack — 30 min
- Circuit switching vs packet switching — 25 min
- Network security: encryption, firewalls, VPNs — 30 min
- The Internet: DNS, HTTP, and web technologies — 25 min
1.3 Hardware and Virtual Machines
- Processor architecture: Harvard vs von Neumann — 30 min
- Instruction sets: RISC vs CISC — 30 min
- Pipelining and parallel processing — 30 min
- Virtual machines and emulation — 25 min
1.4 Logic and Boolean Algebra
- Boolean algebra laws and De Morgan’s theorem — 35 min
- Karnaugh maps and circuit simplification — 35 min (coming soon)
- Flip-flops and sequential logic — 30 min (coming soon)
1.5 Processor Fundamentals
- The fetch-decode-execute cycle in detail — 30 min (coming soon)
- Interrupts and interrupt handling — 25 min (coming soon)
- Assembly language programming — 35 min (coming soon)
1.6 System Software
- Operating system functions and types — 25 min (coming soon)
- Memory management: paging and segmentation — 30 min (coming soon)
- Scheduling algorithms: FCFS, SJF, Round Robin — 30 min (coming soon)
- Translation software: assemblers, compilers, interpreters — 25 min (coming soon)
1.7 Security, Privacy, and Ethics
- Cybersecurity threats and attack vectors — 25 min (coming soon)
- Encryption: symmetric, asymmetric, and hashing — 30 min (coming soon)
- Digital certificates and PKI — 25 min (coming soon)
- Ethics, privacy law, and intellectual property — 25 min (coming soon)
Paper 2 — Fundamental Problem-Solving and Programming
2.1 Algorithm Design and Problem-Solving
- Computational thinking: decomposition and abstraction — 25 min (coming soon)
- Structure diagrams and top-down design — 25 min (coming soon)
- Pseudocode: Cambridge exam standard — 30 min (coming soon)
- Trace tables and algorithm verification — 25 min (coming soon)
2.2 Data Structures
- Arrays: 1D and 2D — 25 min (coming soon)
- Linked lists: singly and doubly linked — 30 min (coming soon)
- Stacks and queues: implementation and use — 30 min (coming soon)
- Binary trees: traversal and BST operations — 35 min (coming soon)
- Hash tables: hash functions and collision handling — 30 min (coming soon)
2.3 Algorithms
- Sorting: bubble, insertion, merge, and quicksort — 35 min (coming soon)
- Searching: linear, binary, and hash-based — 25 min (coming soon)
- Recursion: base cases and recursive algorithms — 30 min (coming soon)
- Big-O notation and algorithm complexity — 30 min (coming soon)
2.4 Programming Paradigms
- Procedural programming principles — 20 min (coming soon)
- Object-oriented programming: classes and objects — 30 min (coming soon)
- OOP: inheritance, polymorphism, and encapsulation — 35 min (coming soon)
- Functional programming concepts — 25 min (coming soon)
- Declarative programming and logic programming — 25 min (coming soon)
Paper 3 & 4 — Advanced Theory and Practical
3.1 Further Programming
- File organisation: serial, sequential, random — 25 min (coming soon)
- Databases: relational model and SQL — 35 min (coming soon)
- Database normalisation: 1NF, 2NF, 3NF — 35 min (coming soon)
- Transaction processing and ACID properties — 30 min (coming soon)
3.2 Computational Thinking and Problem-Solving
- Backtracking algorithms — 30 min (coming soon)
- Divide and conquer strategies — 30 min (coming soon)
- Dynamic programming — 35 min (coming soon)
- A-Level exam technique and past paper practice — 45 min (coming soon)