PORTMORE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

CARIBBEAN EXAMINATION COUNCIL

CARIBBEAN SECONDARY EDUCATION CERTIFICATE

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
GENERAL PROFICIENCY

1 hr and 30 mins

Instructions: This paper consists of 60 questions.

Answer ALL questions in your answer booklet, by writing the question number and
your response to the question.
DO NOT open this examination paper until instructed to do so.

Instructions: This section consists of SIXTY questions. Answer ALL questions, by placing the letter of
your chosen response beside its question number, in your answer booklet.
1.

How many bytes make one megabyte?

Approximately:
A. One thousand
B. Ten thousand
C. One hundred
D. One million

2.

The C, in the acronym MICR, stands for ....

A. Code
B. Color
C. Computer
D. Character

3.

. is the result produced by a CPU.

A. Data
B. Memory
C. Information
D. Input

4.

5.

6.

7.

A disks content that is recorded at the time of

manufacture and that cannot be changed or
erased by the user is best termed:
A. Read-only
B. Memory-only
C. Run-only
D. Write-only
The control unit of a microprocessor:
A. Stores data in the memory
B. Accepts input data from keyboard
C. Performs arithmetic/logic function
D. Governs the executing of user tasks
The term bit is shortened for:
A. Megabyte
B. Binary language
C. Binary digit
D. Binary number
The correct order for the four major functions
of a computer is:
A. Process, Output, Input, Storage
B. Input, Output, Process, Storage
C. Process, Storage, Input, Output
D. Input, Process, Output, Storage

8. Which of the following is a secondary

storage/memory device?
A. Keyboard
B. Disk
C. Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU)
D. Control Unit (CU)
9. A .... computer is a large and expensive computer
capable of simultaneously processing data for
hundreds or thousands of users.
A. Servers
B. Mainframe
C. Desktop
D. Tablet

10. The central processing unit (CPU) consists of:

A. Input, output and processing
B. CU, primary storage, and secondary storage
C. CU, ALU and primary storage
D. CU, processing, and primary storage
11. An application program that helps the user to
change any number and immediately see the result
of that change is:
A. Desktop publishing program
B. Database
C. Spreadsheet
D. Wordprocessor
12. All of the following are examples of a
transmission medium, EXCEPT?
A. telephone lines
B. coaxial cables
C. modem
D. microwave systems
13. In order to save an existing document with a
different name, you need to:
A. Retype the document and give it a different
name
B. Use the Save as.. command
C. Copy and paste the original document to a
new document and then save
D. Use Windows Explorer to copy the document
to a different location and then rename it
14. The keyboard shortcut to bold a selected text:
A. Ctrl+B
B. Alt+B
C. File/Format/Bold
D. Shit+B
15. Which keyboard shortcut centers selected text?
A. Ctrl+C
B. Alt+C
C. Shift + E
D. Ctrl+E
16. How can you highlight text, without using the
mouse?
A. It is impossible
B. Use F5 key
C. Use arrow keys while holding Ctrl key
D. Use arrow keys while holding Shift key
17. The formula for taking the average of the
numbers in cells B2 and B3 in a Spreadsheet is:
A. = AVERAGE(B2+B3)
B. = AVERAGE(B2+B3)/2
C. = AVERAGE(B2:B3)
D. It is impossible

18. Which of the following allows you to place

footer in a document?
A. format, header and footer
B. view, footer
C. insert, header and footer
D. view, header and footer

Use the Spreadsheet below to answer questions 2830

19. In a Wordprocessor, Ctrl+S allows you to:

A. Scenarios
B. Size
C. Save
D. Spelling Check
20. Which key is used to select all the text in the
document?
A. Ctrl+T
B. Ctrl+A
C. Ctrl+F
D. Ctrl+N
21. Mail merging utilizes all of the following
documents, EXCEPT:
A. Data source
B. Main document
C. Merge document
D. Letter wizard
22. The formula for taking the average of the
numbers in cells B2 and B3 in Excel is
A. = AVERAGE(B2/B3)
B. = AVERAGE(B2+B3)/2
C. = AVERAGE(B2:B3)
D. =AVERAGE(B2 + B3/2)
23. Mail merge is, using a/an:
A. 'form letter' to produce a number of similar
documents which incorporate data stored in
a database
B. mail letter, to create a merge of them
C. data source to form a letter
D. main document to merge a letter
24. In a Wordprocessor, the formula to find the
total (of values) in a table, is:
A. =Total(above)
B. =Sum(a1+a2+a3)
C. =Total(a1+a2+a3)
D. =Sum(above)
25. The component used to perform decisions,
based on some criteria, is:
A. RAM
B. ALU
C. CU
D. ROM
26. An operating system provides a ________.
A. Window
B. User interface
C. Grammar checker
D. Database
27. Devices attached to the outside of the system
unit are generally referred to as?
A. Components
B. External devices
C. Input devices
D. Peripherals

Name

Mark Mark Mark Mark Total out of

% Total
1
2
3
4
200

J. Evans

23

45

38

36

142

71

R. Adams

42

42

39

43

166

83

T. Jones

22

19

21

33

95

47.5

S. Smith

31

29

35

46

141

70.5

A. Khalid

39

40

36

45

160

80

H. Kelly

17

22

29

29

97

48.5

28. Which of the following formulas could be used

to give the total number of marks out of 200 for
J. Evans?
A. F2 + F3 + F4 + F5 + F6 + F7
B. SUM(B2 : E2)
C. B3 + C3 + D3 + E3
D. E2 * 4
29. H. Kelly improves his Mark 1 and the teacher
changes the mark in Cell B7. Give two other
cells which would also change.
A. F7 and G7
B. B7 and F7
C. B7 and G7
D. G2 and G6
30. The formula the teacher will type in cell G2, to
get the % Total is:
A. F2 * 100
B. F2/4
C. F2/2
D. F2/4 * 100
31. An example of a memory device that is
volatile:
A. ROM
B. CMOS
C. Flash memory
D. RAM
32. A category of output that includes memos,
letters, announcements, press releases, and
reports is .
A. Text
B. Audio
C. Graphics
D. Video
33. Most personal computers have a small internal
. that usually outputs only low-quality
sound.
A. Monitor
B. Speaker
C. Printer
D. Modem
34. The case of the system unit, sometimes called
the . , protects the internal electronic
components from damage.
A. Form factor
B. Chassis
C. Motherboard
D. Chip

35. . is also used to refer to a personal computer

processor chip.
A. Microprocessor
B. Parallel processor
C. Coprocessor
D. Perpendicular processor
36. Primary memory is used to store which of the
following?
A. The operating system and other system
software
B. Application programs
C. Data being processed
D. Printed paper
37. All of the following are contained within the
system unit, EXCEPT?
A. Motherboard
B. RAM
C. VDU
D. CPU
38. Three popular types of ____ are handheld
computers, PDAs, smart phones.
A. Mobile devices
B. Notebook Computers
C. Desktop Computers
D. Tower Computers
39. A network configuration in which each
computer or device is attached to a central
unit is called a(n) ________ network.
A. Bus
B. Star
C. Ring
D. Circle
40. The operation in the above question can be
categorized as?
A. Comparison
B. Arithmetic
C. Logical
D. Storage
41. All of the following are input devices,
EXCEPT?
a. Trackball
b. Plotter
c. Speaker
d. Projector
42. Fax machines are most like which of the
following in terms of their scanning
technology?
A. CRT screens
B. flatbed plotters
C. vector graphics screens
D. digitizing scanners
43. Which of the following is an example of a solid
state device?
A. Floppy diskette drive
B. CD-ROM drive
C. DVD-RW drive
D. Flash/Jump drive

44. What do you call the translator which takes

assembly language program as input &
produce machine language code as output?
A. Compiler
B. Interpreter
C. Debugger
D. Assembler
45. A Compiler is ____
A. a combination of computer hardware
B. a program which translates from one
high-level language to another
C. a program which translates from one
high-level to a machine level language
D. the tool to execute a users instruction
46. What is an interpreter?
A. An interpreter does the conversion line
by line as the program is run
B. An interpreter is the representation of the
system being designed
C. An interpreter is a general purpose
language providing very efficient
execution
D. the tool to execute a users instruction
47. What is the fourth stage in a fetch-decodeexecute cycle?
A. Get the operands
B. Execute the instruction
C. Fetch instruction
D. Store results
48. In a Spreadsheet, the formula +A3+A4
A. moves the contents of A3 into A4
B. is incorrect because there is no cell name to
the left of the plus sign
C. places the sum of A3 and A4 into cell A3
D. writes the sum of A3 and A4 into the cell
where the rule is located
49. A computing phrase known as garbage in
garbage out points out that the ____ of a
computers output depends on the accuracy
of the input.
A. speed
B. accuracy
C. storage
D. consistency
50. ____ is the idea that you can split people of
the world into two distinct groups: those
who have access to technology and those
who do not.
A. Computer Aided Manufacturing
B. The Digital Divide
C. E-Commerce
D. Anytime Anywhere Learning

51. A(n) ______ printer produces high-quality

and is inexpensive.
A. Laser
B. Dot matrix
C. Ink-jet
D. thermal

56. What is the name given to whole numbers,

positive, negative or zero?
A. Character
B. Integer
C. Literal
D. Real

52. This software can be designed by a

programmer to meet the specific needs of an
organization.
A. Presentation Software
B. Specialized Software
C. Customized Written Software
D. Communication Software

57. In programming language what are letters

called?
A. Integer
B. Character
C. Real
D. Literal

53. The central processing unit (CPU) consists

of
A. Input, output and processing
B. Control unit, primary storage, and
secondary storage
C. Control unit, arithmetic-logic unit and
primary storage
D. Control unit, processing, and primary
storage
54. The time between a computers request for
data and the completion of the transfer of
that data is called
A. Access time
B. Seek time
C. Selection time
D. Search time
55. Which would you choose to save a
document with a new name?
A. Press Ctrl+S
B. Click File, Save
C. Click Tools, Options, Save
D. Click File, Save As

58. A set of numbers whether positive or

negative which may include values before or
after a decimal point, is called real numbers.
What is the other name given to them?
A. Floating Point numbers
B. Literal
C. Character
D. Integer
59. Which transmission medium is the fastest?
A. Copper twisted wire
B. Fiber optic cable
C. Wireless transmission
D. Coaxial cable
60. During ______, a program may ask you to
register or activate the software online.
A. execution
B. loading
C. installation
D. running
[Total: 60 marks]