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Computer Science
Course outline
The IB Computer Science course is engaging, accessible, inspiring and rigorous.
Computer science requires an understanding of the fundamental concepts of computational thinking as well as knowledge of how computers and other digital devices operate.
It has the following characteristics:
• Draws on a wide spectrum of knowledge.
• Enables and empowers innovation, exploration and the acquisition of further knowledge.
• Interacts with and influences cultures, society and how individuals and societies behave.
• Raises ethical issues.
• Is underpinned by computational thinking.
Practical programming experience will be an essential element of developing higherlevel thinking skills; this may be assessed as a part of the internal assessment. There is no designated language.
Four course options are available: Databases, Modelling and simulation, Web science, and Object Oriented Programming
External Assessment
Paper 1 compulsory content Paper 2 option topic Paper 3 case study
Internal Assessment
A 30 hour programming project which is the development of a computational solution plus 10 hours dedicated to the group 4 project. Together worth 30%
Girls’ schools who offer post-16 Computer Science are rare. We are proud to offer this increasingly popular subject to enable girls to compete equally in a technical world. For those wishing to pursue the subject at university, the IB course is a fantastic introduction and along with Higher Level Mathematics, will allow students to get to top universities. Several universities are now also offering fully sponsored degrees and there are many degree apprenticeships available with organisations such as GCHQ, Facebook, Accenture and the BBC.
Girls interested in careers in other subjects can still benefit from opting for Computer Science, as technology pervades the modern workplace, and those who understand how these systems work will have the edge.
Extra-curricular opportunities include national competitions such as the BEBRAS computational thinking challenge and cybersecurity events. There is an active Digital Leaders program in the school as well as outreach sessions for younger children. It may also be possible to arrange work experience in local tech companies, during the summer holidays at the end of Year 12.
