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Unit 1Living in a Digital World

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In Unit 1 you have explored the ways in which digital technology impacts on the lives of individuals, organisations and society. You have learned about current and emerging digital technologies and their

use in a range of contexts. You have developed an understanding of the risks that are inherent in using ICT, as well as learning the features of safe, secure and responsible practice.

So how will I be tested?The assessment for this unit is an exam paper lasting 1 hour and 30 minutes. The exam questions will test your knowledge and understanding of the content of Unit 1, as well as the skills that you have developed by completing the Tasks and Skills builders.

Unit 1 can be part of a single or a double GCSE quali� cation in ICT and the exam is worth 40% of the single award and 20% of the double award.

What will the exam paper look like?The exam paper will be in a question-and-answer booklet like the one below. There will be � ve compulsory questions.

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name hereseman rehtOemanruS

Total Marks

Paper Reference

Turn over

Edexcel GCSE

Information and Communication TechnologyUnit 1: Living in a Digital World

Sample Assessment MaterialTime: 1 hour 30 minutes

You do not need any other materials.

5IT01/01

Instructions

Use black ink or ball-point pen. Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number. Answer all questions. Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information The total mark for this paper is 80. The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question. Questions labelled with an asterisk (*) are ones where the quality of your

written communication will be assessed – you should take particular care on these questions with your spelling, punctuation

and grammar, as well as the clarity of expression.

Advice

Read each question carefully before you start to answer it. Keep an eye on the time. Try to answer every question. Check your answers if you have time at the end.

S37842A©2009 Edexcel Limited.

2/

The exam will last 1 hour and 30 minutes

The quality of your written communication will be assessed in parts of some questions

The paper contains � ve questions, worth a total of 80 marks. The marks each question is worth is shown in brackets

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Each paper starts by setting a scene that will be used throughout all of the questions. It will provide you with a context that will help you connect with the questions. Here is an example from the Sample Assessment Materials.

The scene set provides a good starting point but you will not have to keep referring back to it during the exam. Each question will remind you of any relevant information you need in order to help you give good answers.

What will the questions look like?There will be a range of different styles of questions on the paper, including multiple-choice, short answer, open response and extended writing questions.

MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONSMultiple-choice questions require you to select one answer from a number of alternatives, usually four.

In the example multiple-choice question shown here, a screen shot has been used to help you understand what is required. The question is testing whether you know, and can use, the ways of making passwords secure.

SHORT ANSWER QUESTIONSShort answer questions will ask you to name, give, state, identify or select a number of reasons, disadvantages, bene� ts or other responses. Sometimes the answers will be words, sometimes phrases and sometimes sentences. Normally, each response will be worth one mark.

2 Manjit is opening a social networking account. She wants it to be secure.

(a) The account requires a password.

(i) Figure 2 shows that the password she has chosen is not very secure.

Which one of these passwords is the most secure? (1)

A seahorse

B C-hor4se

C Chor4se

D C-horse

The Lee family

Jon and Manjit Lee have three children, Gia, Mark and Layla.

Digital devices play an important part in the daily lives of the Lee family. They keep in touch with friends and family using mobile phones and VoIP.

They use ICT in learning, leisure and socialising – sometimes connecting through the Internet to resources and sometimes using standalone devices.

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OPEN RESPONSE QUESTIONSOpen response questions range from more open-ended short answer questions that will ask you to describe or explain something, to those asking for a justi� cation, a more detailed explanation, a discussion or an extended response.

Open-ended short answer questionsHere is an example of an open-ended short answer question.

In this case, the two marks are given for showing links between the security measure you are describing and how it prevents unauthorised access to the database, e.g. Encrypt the data (1 mark) so that it cannot be read (1 mark).

EXTENDED WRITING QUESTIONSHere is an example of an extended writing question.

(ii) The online shop must keep the customer database secure.

Explain two ways of preventing unauthorised access to the database. (4)

1 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

2 ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

*(e) Some people claim that playing video games is bene� cial.

Make a reasoned argument to support this point of view. (6)

...................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................

...................................................................................................................

Note that the question asks you to give two reasons. The space provided for the answer makes this clear. So, to get two marks, you must give two reasons. Don’t worry if you don’t use all of the space provided.

(ii) Some of Manjit’s friends exchange personal details with people they meet online.

Give two reasons why this might not be a good thing to do. (2)

1 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

2 ......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

This is an example of a short answer question.

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In an extended writing question like this one you need to organise your thoughts carefully. You need to use your knowledge to support the claim about video games. The asterisk (*) also indicates that the quality of your written communication will be assessed in your response.

So you should:

Ensure that your writing is legible and that your spelling, punctuation and grammar are accurate so that meaning is clear.

Select and use an appropriate form and style of writing.

Organise information clearly and coherently, using specialist vocabulary when appropriate.

How to do well in the examinationThe � ve questions in each exam paper will be structured so that the parts of each question generally become harder towards the end of the question, and the questions become more dif� cult as the paper progresses.

So how should I approach the questions?Firstly, keep calm. The examiners are not trying to catch you out. The questions have been written to ensure that they allow you to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding. You must read the questions carefully though to ensure that you answer the question that has been asked.

You have 90 minutes to answer the � ve questions, so that is about 18 minutes for each question. Keep your eye on the time but don’t panic about the time and try to answer questions so quickly that you do not get full marks for work that you know well. These marks are just as valuable as the marks that you may get for the harder questions at the end of the paper. A good strategy is to try to pick up all of the easier marks and leave enough time to tackle the open response questions towards the end of the paper. You should also leave some time to read through your answers before the end of the exam.

Read the scenario carefully – it should help you get into the right frame of mind to tackle the questions. Then start question 1.

The different styles of questions will need slightly different approaches.

Multiple-choice questions can be tricky. In the Unit 1 exam paper they are not all in one section, but are spread throughout the paper and used when this style of question is most appropriate. Do not guess the answer at this stage, but if you think that you know the answer mark the correct box. Leave enough time to go back and try any multiple-choice questions that you left unanswered when you � rst looked at them.

For short answer questions underline the command word, such as state or identify to remind yourself of how you are expected to answer. Then give the number of responses that the question asks for. If the question asks for two reasons for doing something you lose half of the marks if you only give one reason. Make sure that the two answers are different and that you have not used an answer that was given in the question. Don’t worry if you don’t use up all of the space provided for the answer in the question-and-answer booklet.

More extended answers require careful planning. In questions marked with an asterisk (*) the quality of your written communication will impact on the mark that you receive.

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The mark scheme for the 6-mark question on page 155 is shown below. In this type of question the content of your answer is allocated a mark in a band and then this is adjusted, within the band, on the basis of the quality of your written communication.

Don’t worry about this too much though. When you tackle these questions make sure that you:

Focus on the question that has been asked and not on the similar one that you have prepared.

Don’t extend the question. Giving drawbacks as well as bene� ts in your answer to the question at the top of this page will not gain more marks and will waste valuable time.

Organise your thoughts. A reasoned argument needs to be more than a list of ideas to get to level 3.

Mark scheme for the question ‘Some people claim that playing video games is bene� cial. Make a reasoned argument to support this point of view. (6)’

Possible points that could be made as part of the answer

Criteria for level 2 answer, worth 3 or 4 marks. If a mark of 4 is awarded in terms of the points given in the answer but the quality of the written communication (QWC) is weak, then the mark will be reduced to 3. If the QWC is good, then the original mark of 4 remains unchanged

Criteria for level 1 answer, worth 1 or 2 marks

Criteria for level 3 answer, worth 5 or 6 marks

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How should I prepare for the exam?This Student Book provides many activities and ideas for investigations as you develop your understanding. The more experience that you have with the content of this unit, the easier you will � nd it to answer the questions, whatever context is used in the exam paper. The ability to transfer knowledge between contexts is an important higher order skill.

The questions will be set in an everyday context such as learning and earning, leisure, shopping and money management, health and well-being, and on the move. In the exam you will need to use your knowledge of digital technologies to determine appropriate ICT solutions for speci� c users and situations. You will also need to consider the bene� ts and drawbacks of alternative options and be able to identify potential threats and dangers associated with using ICT and how these can be overcome.

So what about other forms of revision?If you have access to the checklists provided which identify the content for you, you can assess how well you know each part and tick it off when you understand it so that you always spend your time on your weakest areas.

You could also use the questions in chapter 6 of this unit, which will help you to check your understanding.

Your teacher may also guide you towards sample assessments and papers from completed exam series.

Another way would be to take each of the chapters that are written around the contexts of learning and earning, leisure, shopping and money management, health and well-being, and on the move, and to use spider diagrams to identify the content that may be associated with each context and how it is linked. Or try other techniques like note-taking, � ashcards, pictures and colour-coding to provide variety and keep you focused!

Create a revision plan – you’ll have many subjects to revise so make sure you timetable enough time in for each of them. Aim to study in 30-minute slots so that you don’t lose concentration, and build up your revision over a number of weeks. Try not to cram a few nights before, which can cause you to panic.

Take time to relax in between revision sessions to avoid becoming too stressed!

What happens next?After the exam all completed papers are sent to the Edexcel Processing Centre for scanning. Your work will then be marked online by a team of examiners. They are trained to mark accurately using an agreed mark scheme in a process known as standardisation. Their work is overseen by senior examiners and checked at regular intervals. You can help the process by writing your answers in the identi� ed areas of the question-and-answer booklet and making sure that your work is easy to read. When all of the exam papers have been marked the marks required for each grade are agreed.

What about re-sits? You should try to get the best mark that you can the � rst time that you sit the Unit 1 exam but, if you think that you could do better, you can re-sit the unit once and the higher mark will count. There are some new rules that mean that if Unit 1 is part of the 40% terminal requirement then the mark achieved then will count.

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