Test Prep 1 - What is AP CS A test?

A. Two parts: 50% weight is MC and 50% is FRQ

1. MC: 90 minutes, 40 questions, 1 point each question. No penalty for wrong answers (Yes, take your guess!)

2. FRQ: 90 minutes, 4 coding problems, 9 points each problem. Write code on paper, no penalty for minor syntax errors.

B. Strategy for MC:

1. Roughly 2 minutes per question - stay focused when practice

2. Guess is okay - mark guesses for review when time allows

3. An active pencil - hand trace loops, write return values on booklet, use small matrix as examples to test an algorithm

4. Summarize more strategies for each subject when practice

C. Strategy for FRQ:

• 20 min for each question

• READ carefully, highlight important conditions, restrictions, requirements

• Write whatever you can, even though it's incomplete

• The four problems are almost always of the following:

1. Class and objects - how to define classes, create and use of constructors

2. 2-D array - of primitive values, Strings or objects

3. ArrayList of Strings or objects, may use inheritance

4. Interface