Personalised Feedback Sheet for IGCSE Section 1 Types and Components of Computers
Name: Remi Preece
Target grade: Score on this assessment: 43/58 Grade for this assessment: B
General feedback/class needs: The majority of you in this class really nailed this test. You clearly knew the main components of a computer and most of you could give a definition for RAM and ROM. Software and Hardware didnt seem to pose any problems for you, most students achieved the full 8 marks on question 8. Common problems seemed to be that you didnt know the reasons why components such as RAM and ROM are needed in a computer system and that Backing Storage is NOT backup! Next, most of you seemed to struggle on things that an operating system does. Many of you told me it was software that controls the whole system but we were looking for more in depth answers such as handles any program errors or crashes to prevent the whole computer freezing. Finally, the weakest area for you all was types of computers and their uses. It was clear that many of you didnt know what a mainframe was, for example, nor the types of situations it would be used in. Your personal targets: 1. To revise the purpose and examples of Backing Storage. 2. To check the number of marks available for each question and to ensure I always provide at least one clear point for each mark. 3. To spend a minimum of 30 minutes to 1 hour revising effectively for each assessment.
Review: One question I got right is 11. Give one advantage of a GUI. I got it right because I remember reading it back from my revision notes. One question I got nearly right is 3. Describe the difference between RAM and ROM. I got 2 marks out of a possible 4 for saying that RAM is volatile and ROM is non-volatile. I missed out what RAM and ROM stands for (which I did know was Random Access Memory and Read-Only Memory.) One question I got totally wrong is 4. Give an example of a backing storage device. I got this question wrong because although I had read some examples I completely forgot an example. I guessed and put a (backing) storage disk. Challenge/Extension You will have been allocated an exam question to further your knowledge or help you to overcome a misconception. Copy out the question here in full and answer it. 9 Explain why computer systems have both backing storage and RAM. [3] Computer systems need RAM to hold open programs. Also RAM temporarily stores instructions that the computer is running. Backing Storage is needed so that users can have a permanent copy of their work when the computer is switched off. 14 Describe three drawbacks of using a command line interface (CLI) operating system. [3] 1 It is counter intuitive 2 If you mistype an instruction you often have to start again (from the beginning) 3 You are unable to guess the correct instruction, you have to type in specific commands