Welcome to Mr.Worden's website. Below you will find information about the classes I teach.

For those of you who will be taking my AP Computer Science A (APCSA) class this coming school year, plan to allocate plenty of study time in your schedule. I have provided some suggested reading and practice problems to help you get a head start!

One good prep book you can pick up at the Barnes and Noble for $15 is Barron's How to Prepare for the AP Computer Science Advanced Placement Examination. In my opinion it is one of the best references on the market. Another good reference is published by the Research & Education Association of Piscataway, New Jersey and is entitled The Best Test Preparation for the Advanced Placement Examination Computer Science A & AB. It should be about $20 and is also available at Barnes & Noble. Be careful, though. One of the techniques used to teach computer programming languages these days is to provide examples of complex programs as a "case study." Only Barron's guide includes the actual Marine Biology Case Study that is used on the exam. The case study in the other book is a fine example of good programming style; however, in my opinion to spend a lot of time studying that particular example is a waste, since it is not tested. Currently APCSA is being taught in the C++ programming language. In the fall of 2003, the programming language taught will be Java instead.

If you choose Barron's this summer, start with chapter one on C++ Language Features and proceed at your own pace. It is difficult reading and is learned better if digested slowly over a period of time (i.e. summer). If you decide to go with the Research & Education Association book, you can probably proceed a bit faster. Not until chapter three does the author begin to get into the C++ programming language in the latter of the two books.

Good luck in your preparation and have a great summer! We'll see you in August.

Click HERE to open a copy of the syllabus for APCSA as a webpage.

Click HERE to open a copy of the syllabus for APCSA as an Adobe Acrobat file.

Questions? Send mail toMr. Worden.