AP Computer Science

THE COURSE

The AP Computer Science A course is an introductory course in computer science. The major theme of the course is problem solving.

GOALS

The goals of the AP Computer Science A course are comparable to those in the introductory course for computer science majors offered in many college and university computer science departments. It is not expected that all students in the AP Computer Science A course will major in computer science at a university level. The AP Computer Science A course is intended to serve both as an introductory course for computer science majors and course for people who will major in other disciples and want to be informed citizens in today's technology.

The following goals apply to AP Computer Science A Course. Students will be allowed to:

• design, implement, and analyze solutions to problems.
• use and implement commonly used algorithms.
• use standard data structures.
• develop and select appropriate algorithms and data structures to solve new
  problems.
  
• write solutions fluently in an object-oriented paradigm.
  
• write, run, test, and debug solutions in the Java programming language, utilizing standard Java library classes and interfaces from the AP Java subset.

• Read and understand programs consisting of several classes and interacting
• objects.
• read and understand a description of the design and development process leading
• to such a program. (Examples of such solutions can be found in the AP Computer
• Science Labs.)
• understand the ethical and social implications of computer use.