GCSE COMPUTER SCIENCE
Mark schemeJune 2023
6/1/2023
Paper 1 Computational thinking and programming skills
,AQA
GCSE
COMPUTER SCIENCE
8525/1A, 8525/1B, 8525/1C
Paper 1 Computational thinking and programming skills
Mark scheme
June 2023
Version: Final 1.0
*236G 525/1/MS*
, q
2
, MARK SCHEME – GCSE COMPUTER SCIENCE – 8525/1 –
JUNE 2023
Note to Examiners
In the real world minor syntax errors are often identified and flagged by the development
environment. To reflect this, all responses in a high-level programming language will
assess a candidate’s ability to create an answer using precise programming
commands/instructions but will avoid penalising them for minor errors in syntax.
When marking program code, examiners must take account of the different rules between
the languages and only consider how the syntax affects the logic flow of the program. If
the syntax is not perfect but the logic flow is unaffected then the response should not be
penalised.
The case of all program code written by students is to be ignored for the purposes of
marking. This is because it is not always clear which case has been used depending on the
style and quality of handwriting used.
Examiners must ensure they follow the mark scheme instructions exactly. If an examiner is
unsure as to whether a given response is worthy of the marks they must escalate the
question to their team leader.
Level of response marking instructions
Level of response mark schemes are broken down into levels, each of which has a
descriptor. The descriptor for the level shows the average performance for the level.
There are marks in each level.
Before you apply the mark scheme to a student’s answer read through the answer and
annotate it (as instructed) to show the qualities that are being looked for. You can then
apply the mark scheme.
Step 1 Determine a level
Start at the lowest level of the mark scheme and use it as a ladder to see whether the
answer meets the descriptor for that level. The descriptor for the level indicates the
different qualities that might be seen in the student’s answer for that level. If it meets the
lowest level then go to the next one and decide if it meets this level, and so on, until you
have a match between the level descriptor and the answer. With practice and familiarity
you will find that for better answers you will be able to quickly skip through the lower levels
of the mark scheme.
When assigning a level you should look at the overall quality of the answer and not look to
pick holes in small and specific parts of the answer where the student has not performed
quite as well as the rest. If the answer covers different aspects of different levels of the
mark scheme you should use a best fit approach for defining the level and then use the
variability of the response to help decide the mark within the level, ie if the response is
predominantly level 3 with a small amount of level 4 material it would be placed in level 3
but be awarded a mark near the top of the level because of the level 4 content.
Step 2 Determine a mark
3
Mark schemeJune 2023
6/1/2023
Paper 1 Computational thinking and programming skills
,AQA
GCSE
COMPUTER SCIENCE
8525/1A, 8525/1B, 8525/1C
Paper 1 Computational thinking and programming skills
Mark scheme
June 2023
Version: Final 1.0
*236G 525/1/MS*
, q
2
, MARK SCHEME – GCSE COMPUTER SCIENCE – 8525/1 –
JUNE 2023
Note to Examiners
In the real world minor syntax errors are often identified and flagged by the development
environment. To reflect this, all responses in a high-level programming language will
assess a candidate’s ability to create an answer using precise programming
commands/instructions but will avoid penalising them for minor errors in syntax.
When marking program code, examiners must take account of the different rules between
the languages and only consider how the syntax affects the logic flow of the program. If
the syntax is not perfect but the logic flow is unaffected then the response should not be
penalised.
The case of all program code written by students is to be ignored for the purposes of
marking. This is because it is not always clear which case has been used depending on the
style and quality of handwriting used.
Examiners must ensure they follow the mark scheme instructions exactly. If an examiner is
unsure as to whether a given response is worthy of the marks they must escalate the
question to their team leader.
Level of response marking instructions
Level of response mark schemes are broken down into levels, each of which has a
descriptor. The descriptor for the level shows the average performance for the level.
There are marks in each level.
Before you apply the mark scheme to a student’s answer read through the answer and
annotate it (as instructed) to show the qualities that are being looked for. You can then
apply the mark scheme.
Step 1 Determine a level
Start at the lowest level of the mark scheme and use it as a ladder to see whether the
answer meets the descriptor for that level. The descriptor for the level indicates the
different qualities that might be seen in the student’s answer for that level. If it meets the
lowest level then go to the next one and decide if it meets this level, and so on, until you
have a match between the level descriptor and the answer. With practice and familiarity
you will find that for better answers you will be able to quickly skip through the lower levels
of the mark scheme.
When assigning a level you should look at the overall quality of the answer and not look to
pick holes in small and specific parts of the answer where the student has not performed
quite as well as the rest. If the answer covers different aspects of different levels of the
mark scheme you should use a best fit approach for defining the level and then use the
variability of the response to help decide the mark within the level, ie if the response is
predominantly level 3 with a small amount of level 4 material it would be placed in level 3
but be awarded a mark near the top of the level because of the level 4 content.
Step 2 Determine a mark
3
