A-level Computing/AQA/Paper 1/Theory of computation/Problem-solving

1. Analysis The requirements and goals of the project must be established, and a data model created. The needs of the end user are considered, and alternative solutions to the problem may be suggested

2. Design Data structures will be specified, algorithms, user interfaces, screen designs and reports will all be designed

3. Implementation The program code is written

4. Testing The whole system must be tested for presence of errors, using selected test data covering normal, boundary and erroneous data

5. Evaluation The system is evaluated according to given criteria

Problem-solving Solving logic problems is good training for "computational thinking" - basically, the ability to think logically about a problem and apply techniques for solving it. This is closely related to the skill of designing algorithms which can be turned into computer programs.