“Develop” — what the examiner wants
How to answer a Cambridge Computer Science question that starts with Develop (9618): Cambridge's definition, what a full-mark answer contains, the mistake that loses the mark.
Cambridge's definition
“take forward to a more advanced stage or build upon given information”
What earns full marks
Start from what is given (a design, an algorithm, an argument) and extend or improve it.
What loses the mark
Starting again from scratch instead of building on the given material.
A question that uses it
Develop the pseudocode so that the search stops as soon as the item is found.
In real past papers
None of the current-syllabus questions in the bank opens with this word yet — it is in the syllabus list, so it can still be set.
Don't confuse it with
- Write“write an answer in a specific way”3–8 marks (algorithms) or more (Paper 4 code)
- Complete“add information to an incomplete diagram or table”1 mark per entry or row
- Draw“draw a line to match a term with a description”1 mark per correct line
- Sketch“make a simple freehand drawing showing the key features, taking care over proportions”2–3 marks
The definition follows the command-word table in the Cambridge syllabus; the guidance is ZAK's. Statistics come from the real past-paper question bank (command words are read from each question's wording). Command words and past papers are © Cambridge Assessment International Education.