Algorithm design and problem-solving

What the syllabus asks of you

• Understand the program development life • Including identifying each stage and performing cycle, limited to: analysis, design, coding and these tasks for each stage: testing – analysis: abstraction, decomposition of the problem, identification of the problem and requirements – design: decomposition, structure diagrams, flowcharts, pseudocode – coding: writing program code and iterative testing – testing: testing program code with the use of test data
• (a) Understand that every computer system is made up of sub-systems, which are made up of further sub-systems (b) Understand how a problem can be • Including: decomposed into its component parts – inputs – processes – outputs – storage (c) Use different methods to design and • Including: construct a solution to a problem – structure diagrams – flowcharts – pseudocode
• Explain the purpose of a given algorithm • Including: – stating the purpose of an algorithm – describing the processes involved in an algorithm Candidates should be able to: Notes and guidance
• Understand standard methods of solution • Limited to: – linear search – bubble sort – totalling – counting – finding maximum, minimum and average values
• (a) Understand the need for validation checks • Including: to be made on input data and the different – range check types of validation check – length check – type check – presence check – format check – check digit (b) Understand the need for verification checks • Including: to be made on input data and the different – visual check types of verification check – double entry check
• Suggest and apply suitable test data • Limited to: – normal – abnormal – extreme – boundary • Extreme data is the largest/smallest acceptable value • Boundary data is the largest/smallest acceptable value and the corresponding smallest/largest rejected value
• Complete a trace table to document a dry-run • Including, at each step in an algorithm: of an algorithm – variables – outputs – user prompts
• Identify errors in given algorithms and suggest ways of correcting these errors
• Write and amend algorithms for given problems • Precision is required when writing algorithms, or scenarios, using: pseudocode, program e.g. x > y is acceptable but code and flowcharts x is greater than y is not acceptable • See section 4 for flowchart symbols • See section 4 for pseudocode