Cambridge A Level Information Technology (ICT): Programming for the web (9626) – Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs – examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers from your board or school.

These questions cover topic 21, Programming for the web, of Cambridge International AS & A Level Information Technology (9626), following the syllabus for examination in 2025, 2026 and 2027 (version 3), section 21.1. Topic 21 is A Level only. Paper 3 (Advanced Theory) questions are based on sections 12–21 and Paper 4 (Advanced Practical) tasks on sections 17–21. Every question here can be answered on paper.

Learn the content first in the Programming for the web study guide and the Programming for the web revision notes. Course hub: Cambridge A Level ICT. Checklist: 9626 checklist. Find your weak spots with a free 10-minute diagnostic.

Answers show one acceptable version, with a [1] per creditworthy point. This is indicative marking, not an official mark scheme; other correct code also earns credit.

Questions

1. A developer is testing a delivery-charge page.

(a) State where the output appears for each of console.log(), window.alert() and document.write(). [3] (b) Explain why document.write() should not be used inside a function called by onclick. [2]

2. Many pages on a college website use the same form-checking code.

(a) Write the HTML that links an external script file called checkout.js. [1] (b) Explain two advantages of an external script over inserting the code in each page. [2] (c) Write one single-line comment and one multi-line comment in JavaScript. [2]

3. Study this code.

let a = "7";
let b = 3;
let c = a + b;
let d = a * b;
let e = Number(a) + b;

(a) State the values of c, d and e, and the result of typeof c. [4] (b) State the results of a == 7 and a === 7, and explain why they differ. [2]

4. A page has an element with the id advert.

(a) Write a statement that hides it but keeps its space on the page. [1] (b) Write a statement that hides it and removes its space. [1] (c) A help panel sits above a form. Explain which method should be used to close the panel. [2]

5. let code = "lhr-204"; State the result of each expression.

(a) code.toUpperCase() [1] (b) code.length [1] (c) code.indexOf("-") [1] (d) code.substring(code.indexOf("-") + 1) [1]

6. An online shop shows a bag in an image with the id bag. Write the HTML and JavaScript so that the image shows back.jpg while the pointer is over it and front.jpg when the pointer leaves. [4]

7. Study this code.

let total = 0;
for (let i = 1; i <= 9; i += 2) {
  total = total + i;
}

(a) State the final value of total. [1] (b) Rewrite the code using a while loop that gives the same result. [3]

8.

(a) State the value of e after: let e = 20; do { e = e - 6; } while (e > 25); [1] (b) State the value of d after: let d = 20; while (d > 25) { d = d - 6; } [1] (c) Explain why the two answers differ. [2] (d) let stock = {pens: 40, rulers: 0, rubbers: 12}; Write a for/in loop that writes to the console the name of every item with a value of 0. [2]

9. Describe three ways a JavaScript function can be executed. Give a code example for each. [6]

10. Tickets cost £6 each. Write a function book() that:

• uses prompt() to ask for the number of tickets
• shows the alert Invalid number on Cancel or if the entry is not a number of at least 1
• otherwise uses confirm() to ask the user to accept the total
• if accepted, writes the total (for example £24.00) into the element with id total. [7]

11. A timed quiz must show a countdown from 30 in the element clock, falling by 1 every second. At 0 the timer stops, the button submit is removed from the layout, and an alert says Time up.

(a) Write the HTML and JavaScript, starting the timer when the page loads. [6] (b) Explain why setInterval() is used here rather than setTimeout(). [2]

12. Study this code.

let age = 15;
let member = false;
let price = (age < 16 || member) ? 4 : 7;

(a) State the value of price. [1] (b) State the value of !member && age >= 16. [1] (c) State the value of price if age is 19 and member stays false. [1] (d) A drop-down with id theme has the options dark, light and print. Write a function, run when the selection changes, that uses a switch statement to set the background colour of the element with id page to #222222, #ffffff or #f0f0f0 respectively, and to #ffffff for any other value. [5]

Answers

1. (a) console.log(): the browser console, not the page [1]. window.alert(): a popup box the user must close [1]. document.write(): straight into the HTML output of the page [1]. (b) The click happens after the page has loaded [1], and document.write() then clears the existing page [1]. [5] Examiner insight: Say it is the browser console, which the user does not see on the page; “console” alone may not score.

2. (a) <script src="checkout.js"></script> [1] (b) One edit to the file updates every page that uses it [1]. The browser can cache the file, so pages load faster after the first [1]. (c) // checks the postcode [1] and /* checks every field before the form is sent */ [1]. [5] Examiner insight: Each advantage needs its reason; “it is easier” with no explanation does not earn the mark.

3. (a) c is "73" [1], d is 21 [1], e is 10 [1], typeof c is "string" [1]. (b) a == 7 is true and a === 7 is false [1]; == compares value only, but === also needs the same type, and a is a string [1]. [6] Examiner insight: Show c with quotes; writing 73 without quotes loses the point that it is a string.

4. (a) document.getElementById("advert").style.visibility = "hidden"; [1] (b) document.getElementById("advert").style.display = "none"; [1] (c) Use display = "none" [1], because the panel’s space is removed and the form moves up, so no blank gap is left [1]. [4] Examiner insight: Naming the method alone gets one mark in (c); the second needs the effect on the layout.

5. (a) "LHR-204" [1] (b) 7 [1] (c) 3 (positions start at 0) [1] (d) "204" [1] [4] Examiner insight: Off-by-one answers (8 for the length, 4 for the position) lose the mark; positions count from 0.

6.

<img id="bag" src="front.jpg" alt="Bag" onmouseover="showBack()" onmouseout="showFront()">
<script>
function showBack() { document.getElementById("bag").src = "back.jpg"; }
function showFront() { document.getElementById("bag").src = "front.jpg"; }
</script>

onmouseover attached to the image [1]; onmouseout attached to the image [1]; one function sets src to back.jpg using getElementById [1]; the other sets it to front.jpg [1]. [4] Examiner insight: The event must be on the image itself; attaching onmouseover to the body or a button does not meet the brief.

7. (a) 1 + 3 + 5 + 7 + 9 = 25 [1] (b)

let total = 0;
let i = 1;
while (i <= 9) {
  total = total + i;
  i = i + 2;
}

i set to 1 before the loop [1]; condition i <= 9 [1]; i increased by 2 inside the loop body [1]. [4] Examiner insight: Without a change to i inside the body the loop never ends, so the increment mark is lost.

8. (a) 14 [1] (b) 20 [1] (c) do/while runs the body before testing, so it always runs at least once [1]; while tests first, and 20 > 25 is false, so its body never runs [1]. (d) for (let item in stock) { [1] if (stock[item] === 0) { console.log(item); } } [1] – this outputs rulers. [6] Examiner insight: In (c), describe both loops; explaining only do/while gains one of the two marks.

9. When an event occurs: the function runs in response to a user action or page event [1], e.g. <input id="search" onkeydown="countKeys()"> [1]. When invoked from code: another statement calls it by name [1], e.g. let cost = price(3); [1]. Automatically (self-invoked): it is wrapped in brackets and called at once, with no call elsewhere [1], e.g. (function () { console.log("ready"); })(); [1]. [6] Examiner insight: Each way needs a description and a matching example; wrong brackets on a self-invoked function lose that mark.

10.

function book() {
  let n = prompt("How many tickets?");
  if (n === null || isNaN(Number(n)) || Number(n) < 1) {
    window.alert("Invalid number");
  } else {
    let total = Number(n) * 6;
    if (confirm("Total £" + total.toFixed(2) + ". Continue?")) {
      document.getElementById("total").innerHTML = "£" + total.toFixed(2);
    }
  }
}

Function declared as book() [1]; prompt() result stored [1]; test for null (Cancel) [1]; test for not a number or less than 1 [1]; alert with the message [1]; entry converted with Number() and multiplied by 6 [1]; confirm() result tested before writing to innerHTML [1]. For 4 tickets the page shows £24.00. [7] Examiner insight: Number("abc") < 1 is false, because comparisons with NaN are false, so a check without isNaN() lets text through.

11. (a)

<body onload="startTimer()">
<p id="clock">30</p>
<button id="submit">Submit</button>
<script>
let secs = 30;
let timer;
function startTimer() { timer = setInterval(tick, 1000); }
function tick() {
  secs--;
  document.getElementById("clock").innerHTML = secs;
  if (secs === 0) {
    clearInterval(timer);
    document.getElementById("submit").style.display = "none";
    window.alert("Time up");
  }
}
</script>

onload calls the start function [1]; setInterval with 1000 ms [1]; counter decreased by 1 each call [1]; clock updated with innerHTML [1]; test for 0 then clearInterval [1]; button hidden with display = "none" and alert shown [1]. (b) setInterval() repeats the function every 1000 ms, which a countdown needs [1]; setTimeout() runs it only once, so it would have to be restarted on every tick [1]. [8] Examiner insight: A delay of 1 instead of 1000 is a common error; the time is in milliseconds.

12. (a) 4 (age < 16 is true) [1] (b) false (age >= 16 is false) [1] (c) 7 (both conditions false) [1] (d)

<select id="theme" onchange="setTheme()">...</select>

function setTheme() {
  let t = document.getElementById("theme").value;
  let pg = document.getElementById("page");
  switch (t) {
    case "dark": pg.style.backgroundColor = "#222222"; break;
    case "light": pg.style.backgroundColor = "#ffffff"; break;
    case "print": pg.style.backgroundColor = "#f0f0f0"; break;
    default: pg.style.backgroundColor = "#ffffff";
  }
}

onchange on the drop-down calls the function [1]; selected value read with getElementById(...).value [1]; switch with a case for each option [1]; style.backgroundColor set with a quoted value [1]; break after each case and a default [1]. [8] Examiner insight: background-color with a hyphen is CSS, not JavaScript; the property must be backgroundColor.

Where marks are usually lost

• Writing getElementByID, or leaving the quotes off an id.
• Giving "73" as 73, or 10, when a string is joined to a number.
• Choosing visibility or display without saying what happens to the space.
• Starting a setInterval with no clearInterval, so the countdown runs below 0.
• Tracing a do/while loop as if it tests before the first pass.
• Checking prompt() input with < 1 only, so Cancel (null) and text slip through.
• Attaching events to the wrong element, or calling a function that is never written.
• Using CSS property names (background-color, font-size) in JavaScript.

Next steps

• Revise with the Programming for the web revision notes.
• Go back to the Programming for the web study guide for full explanations.
• Cambridge A Level ICT hub and 9626 checklist.
• Try all free 10-minute diagnostics.
• Book a free trial class.

Official syllabus

Cambridge International AS & A Level Information Technology 9626, syllabus for examination in 2025, 2026 and 2027, version 3, Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Topic 21: Programming for the web (21.1 Programming for the web).