In 6 mark QWC evaluation questions, a hotel booking changeover, bitmap versus JPEG, and similar scenarios, candidates give a correct general definition of each side but never connect it back to the scenario in the question.

State the general point in one sentence, then add a second sentence saying what it means for the specific scenario given. Do this for both sides of the argument, not just one.

Modulus 11 check digit calculations are attempted without showing the weighting order or the remainder, so a single arithmetic slip loses every mark in the calculation rather than just the accuracy mark.

Write each digit with its weight underneath, show the sum, then show the division by 11 and the remainder before stating the check digit. Method marks are available even if the final digit comes out wrong.

Functional and non-functional requirements get mixed up, candidates list a security or performance requirement when the question asks what the system must do.

Ask whether the point is a task the system carries out, which is functional, or a quality the system must have while it works, which is non-functional, before writing it down.

Differential and incremental backup get described as the same thing.

State it precisely. Differential backs up everything changed since the last full backup. Incremental backs up only what changed since the last backup of any type, full or incremental.

Two's complement boundary values are given as plus 128 for the maximum positive value in an 8 bit signed byte.

The maximum positive 8 bit two's complement value is plus 127, binary 01111111, because one bit pattern is reserved for zero. Learn the boundary pair, minus 128 to plus 127, as a fact rather than deriving it under time pressure.

Fetch execute cycle answers describe fetching an instruction in general terms instead of naming the registers in the correct order.

Give the exact sequence. The address in the Program Counter copies to the MAR, the instruction at that address copies to the MDR, and the MDR content copies to the CIR. Naming registers out of order loses marks even when the general idea is right.

CCEA AS-Level · Exam Tips

Digital Technology 2650 Exam Tips

AS Digital Technology splits 200 marks evenly across two 90 minute papers. Clean DFD notation and scenario-linked QWC answers are what separate a C from a B here.

3 min readUpdated: 3 Sept 2026

Exam at a Glance

Papers

Total Marks

200

Time Limit

Question Types

Paper	Duration	Marks	Questions	Weighting	Question Types
AS 1: Systems Development	1h 30min	100	6	50%	Short definition / component identification, Structured description & distinction, Diagrammatic modelling (Level 1 DFD), Extended comparative evaluation (QWC Banded)
AS 2: Fundamentals of Digital Technology	1h 30min	100	5	50%	Binary conversion & capacity calculation, Short recall / feature listing, Technical explanation & distinction, HTML coding snippet, Extended comparative evaluation (QWC Banded)

Grade Scale

ABCDEU

Calculator Policy

AS 2: Fundamentals of Digital Technology bans calculating aids outright, so every binary, storage capacity and modulus 11 calculation in that paper has to be done by hand. AS 1 does not state a restriction, and under the general CCEA and JCQ rule a calculator with no stored or retrievable information is permitted there by default, though AS 1's content, systems development and data flow diagrams, rarely needs one. Whichever calculator you bring, it must carry no stored formulae, text or programs. Resetting a calculator's settings does not clear stored memory, so anything saved has to be cleared outright, not just reset.

AO1: AO1: demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the concepts, characteristics, components and functions of digital technology (45%)
AO2: AO2: apply knowledge and understanding of digital technology to investigate and analyse problems and propose solutions (30%)
AO3: AO3: design, develop and evaluate digital technology solutions to solve problems, making reasoned judgements and presenting conclusions (25%)

Built from real past papers and marking schemes (2023–2025).

Tips & Strategies

Where the marks sit

AS Digital Technology 2650 is assessed by two papers of equal weight: AS 1: Approaches to System Development (SDT11) and AS 2: Fundamentals of Digital Technology (SDT21), each worth 100 marks in 90 minutes. Together that is 200 marks over 180 minutes, so on average you have about 54 seconds per mark across the qualification. Architecture and Analysis carry the heaviest chapter weighting in recent papers, with Design, development and testing and Website development close behind. Security issues and the more arithmetic topics, data compression, binary and decimal, sit lower down the weighting, so revise them but do not let them eat into AS 1 time.

Paper by paper timing

AS 1 asks six questions: six short definitions, seven structured description questions, one Level 1 data flow diagram worth around 11 marks, and three 6 mark QWC evaluation questions. At roughly a minute per mark, budget about 20 minutes for the DFD and 10 minutes for each QWC answer, leaving the rest for the short and structured items.

AS 2 has five questions and, unlike AS 1, no calculating aid is permitted in this paper at all. Binary conversion and storage capacity calculations have to be done by hand, so practise place value and byte arithmetic until it is automatic rather than something you work out from scratch under time pressure. Four of the five questions end in a 6 mark QWC section, which means roughly half the paper rewards extended technical writing rather than short recall.

The two skills worth the most practice

Two things separate a C from a B on this paper: scenario-linked QWC answers and clean DFD notation.

Every QWC question gives you a scenario: a hotel booking changeover, a choice between bitmap and JPEG, a stock system upgrade. Markers report the same pattern every year, candidates write a correct general definition and then stop, without saying what it means for the scenario in front of them. Write one point, then one sentence tying it to that scenario, for both sides of the argument, before moving on. A one sided answer caps you in the middle band no matter how much you write.

For the Level 1 DFD, label every arrow with the data it carries. Never route an arrow directly between two external entities, or between an external entity and a data store, data always has to pass through a process first. Markers deduct for missing labels and for invalid connections separately, so a diagram that looks complete on the page can still lose four or five marks on notation alone.

CCEA conventions to know

CCEA marks 6 mark QWC questions on a three tier banded scheme: legible text, accurate spelling and grammar, and a form of writing that suits the technical content and organises information clearly, using specialist vocabulary where it fits. That vocabulary matters more than length. A short answer that uses terms like \(\textit{lossy}\), \(\textit{attenuation}\) or \(\textit{two's complement}\) correctly reads as top band; a long answer in vague, everyday language does not.

Two AS 2 conventions worth holding in your head. Modulus 11 check digit questions want the weight order and the remainder shown as working, not just a final digit. Fetch execute cycle questions want the exact register order, the address in the Program Counter copies to the MAR, the instruction at that address copies to the MDR, then the MDR content copies to the CIR, rather than a general description of "fetching an instruction".

Exam day plan

In AS 1, read the DFD scenario twice before drawing anything. List the external entities and processes on scrap paper first, then draw. In AS 2, do the calculation and binary questions first while you are freshest, since with no calculator every arithmetic slip costs a mark. Leave the last ten minutes of both papers to reread your QWC answers and check each one addresses both sides of the scenario, not just one.

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Practise This Topic

Common Mistakes

1highMarks at stake: 6QWC extended evaluation
In 6 mark QWC evaluation questions, a hotel booking changeover, bitmap versus JPEG, and similar scenarios, candidates give a correct general definition of each side but never connect it back to the scenario in the question.
How to avoid it: State the general point in one sentence, then add a second sentence saying what it means for the specific scenario given. Do this for both sides of the argument, not just one.
2mediumMarks at stake: 4Modulus 11 check digits
Modulus 11 check digit calculations are attempted without showing the weighting order or the remainder, so a single arithmetic slip loses every mark in the calculation rather than just the accuracy mark.
How to avoid it: Write each digit with its weight underneath, show the sum, then show the division by 11 and the remainder before stating the check digit. Method marks are available even if the final digit comes out wrong.
3highMarks at stake: 5Data flow diagrams
Level 1 data flow diagrams connect an external entity straight to a data store, or leave data flow arrows unlabelled.
How to avoid it: Route every flow through a process, never directly between two external entities or between an external entity and a store, and label every arrow with the data it carries.
4mediumMarks at stake: 4Requirements analysis
Functional and non-functional requirements get mixed up, candidates list a security or performance requirement when the question asks what the system must do.
How to avoid it: Ask whether the point is a task the system carries out, which is functional, or a quality the system must have while it works, which is non-functional, before writing it down.
5mediumMarks at stake: 3Backup strategies
Differential and incremental backup get described as the same thing.
How to avoid it: State it precisely. Differential backs up everything changed since the last full backup. Incremental backs up only what changed since the last backup of any type, full or incremental.
6mediumMarks at stake: 2Two's complement representation
Two's complement boundary values are given as plus 128 for the maximum positive value in an 8 bit signed byte.
How to avoid it: The maximum positive 8 bit two's complement value is plus 127, binary 01111111, because one bit pattern is reserved for zero. Learn the boundary pair, minus 128 to plus 127, as a fact rather than deriving it under time pressure.
7lowMarks at stake: 3Fetch execute cycle
Fetch execute cycle answers describe fetching an instruction in general terms instead of naming the registers in the correct order.
How to avoid it: Give the exact sequence. The address in the Program Counter copies to the MAR, the instruction at that address copies to the MDR, and the MDR content copies to the CIR. Naming registers out of order loses marks even when the general idea is right.

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