A2 Agreement Trial ICT November 2010

AGENDA  New Specification Principal Moderator’s Report Exemplar Materials  Lunch  1.00 Exemplar Materials

The majority of students have completed AS coursework before A2 begins Some students take AS and A2 in one year Some students repeat AS coursework during A2 year All options are valid

Key Points from Moderation  What happens at Moderation?  Centre sends in sample requested  Centres are allocated to Moderators  Moderator will sub sample each centre  (N/2) + 1 including top and bottom  If sub sample is fine, process finishes  If sub sample is not fine, then the whole sample is moderated

Key Points from Moderation  Majority of centres applied the assessment criteria successfully  Tasks selected and the majority of solutions were suitable across centres.  Majority of solutions involved a relational database.  Some students were able to build on their AS task(s) to produce an A2 project  Teacher guidance helped the process

 The range and quality of work is excellent  Good candidates are focussing on relevant documentation, which can reduce the bulk  Analysis, Design and Testing have improved since Software Development was removed as a written section  Better candidates included appropriate diagrams in their documentation  Candidates should be encouraged to use their knowledge from A2 examination paper Key Points from Moderation

 Administration from centres is good.  Teacher comments/annotation makes the process of moderation more meaningful.  Letters referring to special consideration must be sent separately to CCEA  These can not be considered during Moderation

 Project should be submitted as a number of sections as indicated in the CCEA specification.  Loose pages can cause a problem  Teachers must sign individual candidate record sheets otherwise the centre will be contacted during the moderation process.  This is an Ofqual requirement. Key Points from Moderation

A2 Coursework  Centres receive a TAC 6 and you can request follow up  Need to consider moderator comments:  “…just within tolerance…”  “ …slightly generous in ….”  “…lenient in the higher range of marking..”  “…slightly severe across all assessment criteria…”

AS Coursework AS Systems Life CycleData ProcessingMulti-media AnalysisYY DesignY Software DevelopmentY TestingY EvaluationY User GuideY

AS coursework is task driven A2 coursework involves “real end user” A2 is a more detailed “Systems Development Life Cycle” approach A student can use their AS scenario(s) as a basis for A2 provided there is sufficient scope within the user requirements Teacher/Student need to decide! Moving from AS to A2

Approach to A2 Coursework Solution should incorporate skills and knowledge developed in Module 3(A21) Problems selected should have scope for full system development, allowing the Candidate to use advanced features of the chosen software package

Students need guidance at each stage Teacher can guide their candidates through each stage of the solution. Total Mark is 80 50% weighting of A2 Approach to A2 Coursework

No Software packages stated in the specification Can use the same software as in AS Focus on developing an information system using systems life cycle approach Approach to A2 Coursework

Content from A2 Theory Databases Data modelling including ER models and database normalisation Internal and external sources of information System development life cycles Roles of the developer and the end user Difference between technical and user documentation

Methods used in software production Testing and Software maintenance User interfaces User support and ICT training. Legal issues affecting ICT Implications of ICT within an organisation Content from A2 Theory

Coursework Weightings SectionMark Analysis20 Design20 Implementation and Testing20 Documentation10 Evaluation10 Total Mark 80

Define the nature of the problem to be solved Fact finding methods to investigate the problem Identify data sources Gather sample documents currently used Identify the current user activities Investigate the tasks carried out by the user Specify limitations of the current system Describe information requirements of a system State the objectives of new system. Analysis

ANALYSIS Mark Range A detailed coherent analysis has been produced for a demanding problem. Full discussion of information requirements including fact finding. Demonstrates an in-depth understanding of structured analysis techniques in the investigation and effective use of structured analysis tools in specifying the system A good analysis has been produced for a demanding problem or a detailed analysis has been produced for a less demanding problem. A discussion of information requirements including fact finding. Demonstrates good understanding of structured analysis techniques in the investigation and reasonable use of structured analysis tools in specifying the system A good analysis of a simple problem or a limited analysis of a difficult problem. Requirements specification included but with little or no justification. Limited use made of structured methods in investigating and specifying A simple problem with little evidence of any analysis, aims not clearly identified, poor investigation and recording of findings. Little use made of structured methods in investigating and specifying. 0-5

Evaluate possible solutions Design and document data capture forms Design of user interface Describe data validation required Design and document data structures Choose appropriate hardware and software Relate the solution to the capabilities of the software and hardware. Design

Software solution developed from the design (not documented) No Explicit Software Development section Evidence of testing will imply software has been developed. A test plan produced from the system objectives including:  Valid, invalid and extreme data;  Testing of the user interface  System functionality  Evidence of user testing Implementation and Testing

Output from the testing, cross referencing the test plan A description of a strategy for implementing the system into the organisation  Implementation plan  Description of the system changeover  The training required  The problems encountered and the actions taken  Description of how existing data is converted for use in the new system

Implementation and TestingMark Range Evidence of a full and effective software solution to a demanding problem. Clear evidence of a full and effective test plan for a demanding problem. The results of the testing are fully documented with outputs cross-referenced to the original plan. Evidence that all functions agreed upon with the user(s) are indeed present and correct. Corrective action taken due to test results clearly documented. Plan for implementing the solution Evidence of a reasonable software solution to a demanding problem or an effective software solution to a less demanding problem. Evidence of a reasonable test plan for a demanding problem. Test plan followed in a systematic way but the test plan has omissions in it and/or not all cases have been tested (i.e. have no evidence of testing). Some documentation of corrective action taken due to test results. Plan for implementing the solution Evidence of an effective software solution to a simple problem or a limited software solution to a demanding problem. Evidence of an effective test plan and cross-referenced outputs for a simple problem or a patchy/limited testing of a demanding problem. Brief plan for implementing the solution 6-10 Inadequate software solution to a simple problem. Inadequate test strategy and test plan devised or a plan followed in a limited fashion. Little or no hard copy evidence of the results of testing or implementation of solution 0-5

Installation Guide Step by step operating instructions Troubleshooting Backup procedures. User Documentation

Evaluate results against objectives Identify strengths and limitations of the final system Identify possible extensions to the system Evaluation

CCEA Support 2010  Agreement Trials  Revised Specification  Revised Specimen papers/mark schemes  Revised Schemes of Work for new specification  Teacher support days  Coursework Clinic ( Feb 2011 )  Continued development of Microsite  On-line materials such as coursework exemplars

Exemplar Materials The Palace 2.Console Game Rental and Purchase System 3.Hair by Lisa