AP Computer Science Principles Student Handouts, Effective Fall 2023

AP COMPUTER SCIENCE PRINCIPLES

Student

Handouts

ective

Fall 2023

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Create Performance Task

Programming is a collaborative and creative process that brings ideas to life through

the development of software. In the Create performance task, you will design

and implement a program that might solve a problem, enable innovation, explore

personal interests, or express creativity. Your submission must include the elements

listed in the Submission Requirements section below.

You are allowed to collaborate with your partner(s) on the development of the

program only. The video and Personalized Project Reference that you submit for

this performance task must be completed individually, without any collaboration

with your partner(s) or anyone else. You can develop the code segments used in

your Personalized Project Reference with your partner(s) or on your own as you

work on the performance task during class.

Please note that once your teacher has assigned this performance task as one

of your AP score components, you are expected to complete the task without

assistance from anyone except for your partner(s) and then only when developing

the program code. You must follow the Guidelines for Completing the Create

Performance Task section below.

General Requirements

You will be provided with a minimum of 9 hours of class time to complete and submit

the following:

§ Final program code (created independently or collaboratively)

§ A video that displays the running of your program and demonstrates

functionality you developed (created independently)

§ Code Segments for your Personalized Project Reference (created independently)

Note: Students in nontraditional classroom environments should consult a school-

based AP Coordinator for instructions.

AP Computer Science Principles

Student Handouts V.1

Submission Requirements

COMPONENT A: PROGRAM CODE (CREATED INDEPENDENTLY OR COLLABORATIVELY)

Submit one PDF le that contains all of your program code (including

comments). Include comments or acknowledgments for any part of the

submitted program code that has been written by someone other than you

and/or your collaborative partner(s).

IMPORTANT:

If the programming environment allows you to include comments, this is the

preferred way to acknowledge and give credit to another author. However, if the

programming environment does not allow you to include comments, you can add

them in a document editor when you capture your program code for submission.

In your program, you must include student-developed program code that

contains the following:

□

Instructions for input from one of the following:

◆

the user (including user actions that trigger events)

◆

a device

◆

an online data stream

◆

a le

□

Use of at least one list (or other collection type) to represent a collection of

data that is stored and used to manage program complexity and help fulll

the program’s purpose

IMPORTANT:

The data abstraction must make the program easier to develop (alternatives would

be more complex) or easier to maintain (future changes to the size of the list would

otherwise require signicant modications to the program code).

□

At least one procedure that contributes to the program’s intended purpose,

where you have dened:

◆

the procedure’s name

◆

the return type (if necessary)

◆

one or more parameters

IMPORTANT:

Implementation of built-in or existing procedures or language structures, such as

event handlers or main methods, are not considered student-developed.

□

An algorithm that includes sequencing, selection, and iteration that is in the

body of the selected procedure

□

Calls to your student-developed procedure

□

Instructions for output (tactile, audible, visual, or textual) based on input and

program functionality

DEFINITION:

List

A list is an ordered

sequence of elements.

The use of lists allows

multiple related items

to be represented using

a single variable. Lists

may be referred to by

dierent names, such as

arrays, depending on the

programming language.

DEFINITION:

Collection Type

A collection type is a

type that aggregates

elements in a single

structure. Some

examples include lists,

databases, and sets.

IMPORTANT:

With text-based program

code, you can use the

print command to save

your program code as

a PDF le, or you can

copy and paste your

code to a text document

and then convert it into

a PDF le. With block-

based program code,

you can create screen

captures that include

only your program code,

paste these images into

a document, and then

convert that document

to a PDF. Screen

captures should not be

blurry, and text should be

at least 10 pt font size.

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COMPONENT B: VIDEO (CREATED INDEPENDENTLY) Submit one video le that

demonstrates the running of your program as described below. Collaboration

is not allowed during the development of your video.

Your video must demonstrate your program running, including:

□

Input to your program

□

At least one aspect of the functionality of your program

□

Output produced by your program

Your video may NOT contain:

□

Any distinguishing information about yourself

□

Voice narration (though text captions are encouraged)

Your video must be:

□

Either .webm, .mp4, .wmv, .avi, or .mov format

□

No more than 1 minute in length

□

No more than 30MB in le size

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COMPONENT C: PERSONALIZED PROJECT REFERENCE (CREATED

INDEPENDENTLY)

To assist in responding to the written response prompts on

exam day, submit required portions of your code by capturing and pasting

program code segments you developed during the administration of this task.

Screen captures should not be blurry, and text should be at least 10-point

font size. Your code segments should not include any comments. These code

segments will be made available to you on exam day only if this component is

submitted as nal in the AP Digital Portfolio by the deadline.

Procedure: Capture and paste two program code segments you developed

during the administration of this task that contain a student-developed

procedure that implements an algorithm used in your program and a call to

that procedure.

IMPORTANT:

Built-in or existing procedures and language structures, such as event handlers

and main methods, are not considered student-developed.

i. The rst program code segment must be a student-developed

procedure that:

□

Denes the procedure’s name and return type (if necessary)

□

Contains and uses one or more parameters that have an eect on

the functionality of the procedure

□

Implements an algorithm that includes sequencing, selection, and

iteration

ii. The second program code segment must show where your

student-developed procedure is being called in your program.

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List: Capture and paste two program code segments you developed during

the administration of this task that contain a list (or other collection type)

being used to manage complexity in your program.

i. The rst program code segment must show how data have been

stored in the list.

ii. The second program code segment must show the data in the

same list being used, such as creating new data from the existing

data or accessing multiple elements in the list, as part of fullling

the program’s purpose.

DEFINITION:

List

A list is an ordered

sequence of elements.

The use of lists allows

multiple related items

to be represented using

a single variable. Lists

may be referred to by

dierent names, such as

arrays, depending on the

programming language.

DEFINITION:

Collection Type

A collection type is a type

that aggregates elements

in a single structure. Some

examples include lists,

databases, and sets.

IMPORTANT:

The data abstraction

manages complexity by

making the program easier

to develop (alternatives

would be more complex) or

easier to maintain (future

changes to the size of the

list would otherwise require

signicant modications to

the program code).

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Guidelines for Completing

the Performance Task

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Policy

This policy addresses plagiarism and academic integrity in completing the Create

Performance Task.

Plagiarism

The use of program code, media (e.g., video, images, sound), data, information, or

evidence created by someone else or with generative AI tools in the creation of a

program and/or a program code segment(s), without appropriate acknowledgment

(i.e., through citation, through attribution, and/or by reference), is considered plagiarism.

A student who commits plagiarism will receive a score of 0 on the Create performance

task, including their responses to the written response prompts on the end-of-course

AP Exam.

To the best of their ability, teachers will ensure that students understand how to ethically

incorporate ideas that are not their own and provide credit to the original creator or

source, as well as the consequences of plagiarism.

Acceptable Generative AI Use

Students are permitted to utilize generative AI tools as supplementary resources for

understanding coding principles, assisting in code development, and debugging. This

responsible use aligns with current guidelines for peer collaboration on developing

code.

Students should be aware that generative AI tools can produce incomplete code, code

that creates or introduces biases, code with errors, ineciencies in how the code

executes, or code complexities that make it dicult to understand and therefore explain

the code. It is the student's responsibility to review and understand any code co-written

with AI tools, ensuring its functionality. Additionally, students must be prepared to

explain their code in detail, as required on the end-of-course AP Exam.

Preparing for Final Submission

Students are not permitted to collaborate on the video or creation of the Personalized

Project Reference.

The Personalized Project Reference cannot include course content or comments within

the code or on any other part of the reference. Including course content or comments

in the Personalized Project Reference will result in students receiving a score of 0 on the

Create performance task, including their responses to the written response prompts on

the end-of-course AP Exam.

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Attestations

During the nal submission process in the AP Digital Portfolio, students will be

asked to attest that they have followed the Performance Task guidelines and

have not plagiarized their submission. Each of the three components of the

Create performance task must be submitted as nal to be sent for scoring.

Additionally, if students do not submit their Personalized Project Reference

by the deadline, they will not have this resource available on exam day to

complete their written response section.

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Preparing for the Performance Task

Prior to beginning the performance task, you should:

§ Obtain content knowledge and skills that will help you succeed on the

performance task. This can include, but needs not be limited to, the iterative

development process, strategies for collaboration, the development of

both data and procedural abstractions, describing an algorithm’s purpose

and explaining how it functions, and identifying test data that demonstrates

the dierent outcomes of an algorithm. A development process includes

exploration, investigation, reection, design, implementation, and testing

your program.

§ Review the performance task directions and guidelines.

§ Brainstorm problems that programming can address, or brainstorm special

interests that programming can help develop.

§ As needed, seek assistance from your teacher or AP Coordinator on

dening your focus and choice of topics.

§ Be prepared to collaborate with peers as necessary.

§ Practice and discuss all or part of the performance task, including potential

written response prompts that could appear on the end-of-course AP Exam.

§ Review the role your teacher can and cannot play in providing assistance

during the actual performance task, and take advantage of the opportunity

to get assistance and feedback from your teacher during practice.

§ Ensure you know the proper way to cite media or program code, including

APIs or other pieces of open-source code, used in the creation of your

program. Any media or program code that has not been written by you must

be cited, and credit must be given to the author. Any existing program code

needs to be extended in some new way by adding new functionality.

§ Examples of responses can be found on the AP Computer Science

Principles Exam page. You cannot submit any work from AP Central

samples, curriculum provider samples, or practice performance tasks for

your nal submission.

§ Be aware that the scoring process that occurs in the AP Reading may be

dierent from the scoring process that occurs in your classroom; the AP

score that you receive may be dierent than your classroom grade.

§ Read through the AP Digital Portfolio le submission requirements and

process, paying attention to the instructions concerning the le type, size,

and length to be uploaded. This is important to ensure that work is sent for

AP scoring. This process includes:

◆

uploading your les to the correct part of the task

◆

submitting each component as nal

◆

completing the College Board attestations to the originality of your work

All three components must be submitted as nal by the deadline posted

on AP Central. Only les that are submitted as nal will be sent for scoring.

Additionally, if you do not submit your Personalized Project Reference by the

deadline, you will not have this resource available on exam day to complete

your written response section.

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§ Practice creating a video of your program running, while adhering to le

type, size, and length requirements.

§ Practice making readable screen captures and creating a PDF le of your

program code to submit for the performance task:

◆

With text-based program code, you can use the print command to

save your program code as a PDF le, or you can copy and paste your

code to a text document and then convert it into a PDF le.

◆

With block-based program code, you can create screen captures that

include only your program code, paste these images into a document,

and then convert that document to a PDF le. Screen captures should

not be blurry, and text should be at least 10 pt font size.

◆

For the Personalized Project Reference, screen captures should

not be blurry, and text should be at least 10 pt font size. Any

course content or comments that were included with the program

code, should not be included in the screen captures used in the

Personalized Project Reference. Including course content or

comments in the Personalized Project Reference could result in

students receiving a 0 for the Create performance task.

§ Understand that you may not revise your work once you have submitted

it as nal to the AP Digital Portfolio.

§ Review the categories for each written response prompts on the end-

of-course AP Exam. The written response prompts will be related to your

Create performance task. Practice writing responses for these types of

questions.

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Completing the Performance Task

You must:

§ Submit all three components of your performance task as nal prior

to the submission deadline, which can be found on the AP Computer

Science Principles Exam page on AP Central. Only les submitted as nal

will be sent for scoring. If you do not submit your Personalized Project

Reference by the deadline, you will not have this resource available on

exam day to complete your written response section.

§ Follow a calendar or schedule that provides time for all performance task

components to be completed and uploaded in advance of the deadline.

§ Read the performance task directions.

§ Apply the computer science knowledge you have obtained throughout

the course, and when completing the performance task.

§ Use acceptable acknowledgment practices when using program code,

media (i.e., images, videos, sound), or data sources created by others

or with generative AI tools in your program code to avoid plagiarism.

Program code not written by you could include starter code provided by

your teacher, the use of APIs or open-source code, or generated using

an AI tool. When using existing code, you must extend the program in

some new way by adding new functionality. Some examples of ways to

provide attribution for program code that was not authored by you are as

follows:

◆

If the program code has been made available for your use by your

teacher, add a comment that states: This code was provided as

starter code by my teacher.

◆

If the program code has been made available through an API or open-

source code, add a comment that states: This code was made freely

available by [source of code].

◆

If the program code has been co-created with the assistance of

a generative AI tool, add a comment that states: This code was

generated using [Generative AI Tool Name].

§ Add comments to your program code to clarify the functionality of

program code segments or to acknowledge and credit authors of media,

data sources, or program code:

◆

If the programming environment allows you to include comments,

this is the preferred way to acknowledge and give credit to another

author.

◆

If the programming environment does not allow you to include

comments, you can add them in a document editor when you capture

your program code for submission.

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Once you have started your ocial administration of the performance

task, you may not:

§ Seek assistance in writing, revising, amending, or correcting your work,

including debugging the program, writing or designing functionality in

the program, testing the program, or making revisions to the program,

from anyone other than your collaborative partner(s).

§ Submit practice performance tasks or any work that has been

revised, amended, or corrected by another individual, other than your

collaborative partner(s) or cited program code, as a submission for AP

Exam scoring.

§ Include any course content in the screen captures of the program code

included in the Personalized Project Reference. Any course content

or comments that were included in the program code during the

development of your program should be removed prior to taking screen

captures. Including course content or comments in your screen captures

will result in the written response portion of your exam being scored a 0.

§ Collaborate during the creation of your video or creation of your

Personalized Project Reference.

§ Revise your work once you have completed and submitted it as nal to

the AP Digital Portfolio.

Once you have started your ocial administration of the performance

task, you may:

§ Collaborate with your partner(s) only during the ideation and

development, including debugging and error testing, of your program

code, if you choose to do so. NOTE: You are not allowed to collaborate on

your video or creation of your Personalized Project Reference.

§ Follow a timeline and schedule for completing the performance task.

§ Seek assistance from your teacher or AP Coordinator on the formation

of groups and resolution of collaboration issues when one collaborative

partner is clearly and directly impeding the completion of the

performance task.

§ Seek clarication from your teacher or AP Coordinator on the program

requirements and submission requirements for the performance task

when you do not understand the directions.

§ Work on the performance task outside of designated class time.

§ Seek assistance from your teacher or AP Coordinator to resolve

technical problems that impede work, such as a failing workstation or

diculty with access to networks, or to help with saving les or making

movie les.

§ Keep a programming journal of the design choices that were made

during the development of the program code or code segment and the

eect of these decisions on the program’s function.

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