CST review
Assigned Week 1 (January 26). Due Week 14 (April 20).Over the semester, you will work through the full CST preparation guide and its practice questions, so that by the end of the course you have reviewed everything that the exam assesses.
Our program's courses value depth, making, and critique. The exam asks for breadth, recognition, and code reading. This review closes that gap, building on what you learned in LAI 676 and LAI 677. Plan on about two to three hours a week, in addition to the rest of the course.
How to work through each week
- Read. The guide's content summary is a dense reading. Skim what you know, and slow down for what you don't. Its footnotes point back to the labs where you met these ideas.
- Practice. In the practice questions, try one question from each topic in that week's indicators, and answer the other four in any topic where you miss. There are 1,945 questions, so you are not expected to do them all.
- Trace by hand. For programming items, work out your answer on paper before you press Check.
- Bring questions. Bring what confused you to our weekly meeting.
Milestones
| Competency | Complete by |
|---|---|
| 0002 Computational Thinking and Programming | Week 5 |
| 0001 Impacts of Computing | Week 7 |
| 0003 Networks, the Internet, and System Design | Week 10 |
| 0004 Cybersecurity | Week 12 |
| 0005 Pedagogical Content Knowledge | Week 14 |
We begin with programming because it is the largest competency, code reading is the skill that takes longest to build, and LAI 676 and LAI 677 are freshest then.
At a checkpoint, answer unseen items for that competency in the practice questions, using the "Not answered" filter, at about 90 seconds each. Spread them across indicators. A useful personal target is about 80 percent. This isn't a prediction of an exam score. Use your misses to decide what to reread.
Weekly pacing
| Week | Read in the study guide | Practice | Milestone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The guide's introduction, "About the test," and "Study plan," including the gap tables. | Take a diagnostic: 30 unseen items across competencies 0001-0004, about 45 minutes. Use the results to mark which sections you can skim. | |
| 2 | In the content summary, "From Python to typed pseudocode," through "Typed arrays." | Indicator 0002.h topics 1-6. | |
| 3 | The rest of "From Python to typed pseudocode," followed by 0002.f and 0002.j. | Indicators 0002.f and 0002.j. Trace by hand before checking. | |
| 4 | 0002.a-0002.e, 0002.g-0002.i. | Those indicators. | |
| 5 | 0002.k-0002.p. | Those indicators, then a checkpoint. | 0002 Computational Thinking and Programming (27-item checkpoint) |
| 6 | 0001.a-0001.d. | Those indicators. | |
| 7 | 0001.e-0001.i. 0001.f is the longest section, so allow extra time for it. | Those indicators, then a checkpoint. | 0001 Impacts of Computing (21-item checkpoint) |
| 8 | No new reading. Catch up, and revisit your weakest sections. | Items you missed. | |
| 9 | 0003.a-0003.d. | Those indicators. | |
| 10 | 0003.e-0003.h. 0003.e is the longest section, so allow extra time for it. | Those indicators, then a checkpoint. | 0003 Networks, the Internet, and System Design (21-item checkpoint) |
| 11 | 0004.a-0004.c. | Those indicators. | |
| 12 | 0004.d-0004.f. | Those indicators, then a checkpoint. | 0004 Cybersecurity (21-item checkpoint) |
| 13 | 0005.a-0005.d. | Those indicators. Draft a practice written response in 60 minutes or less, for a grade band you don't usually teach. | |
| 14 | 0005.e-0005.g, and the test-taking tips in "Study plan." | Those indicators, and a second written response. If you can, take a full timed practice form. | 0005 Pedagogical Content Knowledge (written response), and the full guide |
Weeks vary. Weeks 2 and 7 have the most reading, and weeks 4 and 7 have the most topics. If you fall behind, use week 8 to catch up, and let me know, so that I can help.
The review is expected, but it isn't graded, in the same way as attendance. The practice questions were written for this program. They are not official test items.