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Understanding Maths and Logic in Computer Science

Improve your ability to teach maths and logic in computing and create unplugged activities for your students. Supported by Google.

8,470 enrolled on this course

A female teacher and three girls looking at a computer screen
  • Duration

    3 weeks
  • Weekly study

    2 hours
  • Accreditation

    AvailableMore info
The CPD Certification Service

This course has been certified by the CPD Certification Service as conforming to continuing professional development principles. Find out more.

Become more familiar with maths and logic in computer science

The mathematical aspects of computer science can be difficult to understand and teach. On this course, you will be introduced to maths and logic in computing in an engaging way. You will learn activities and games to help improve your knowledge and skills in this subject.

You will build your understanding of a range of topics, including using logic and mathematical operators in programming, and converting numbers to binary. Through practical activities you will become more comfortable with concepts including logical operators, truth tables, and logic gates.

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Skip to 0 minutes and 3 seconds Are you looking to boost your knowledge of maths and logic in computer science? Then this course is for you. You’ll learn about Boolean logic, mathematical operators, and how to apply these concepts in a Python program. You’ll also gain an understanding of binary and hexadecimal number systems. As you explore concepts for the GCSE computing syllabus, you’ll also get tips on creating a fun escape room activity. This three week course is inspired by PRIMM methodology. You’ll make predictions about programs before running them. You’ll investigate the concepts and modify activities. And you’ll apply what you learn by making some programs of your own. This free course contains peer-led discussions, trainer interaction, and feedback on your knowledge as you progress.

Skip to 0 minutes and 46 seconds You can learn whenever and wherever you want. So if you’re an educator with students of your own or simply want to boost your own mathematic skills, this course will help you to understand the maths and logic in computer science. Sign up now at rpf.io/mathsandlogic.

What topics will you cover?

  • Mathematics
  • Logic
  • Programming
  • Control structures
  • Programming language grammars

Who is this accredited by?

The CPD Certification Service
The CPD Certification Service:

The CPD Certification Service was established in 1996 and is the leading independent CPD accreditation institution operating across industry sectors to complement the CPD policies of professional and academic bodies.

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Identify the AND, OR, NOT, and XOR logical operators
  • Produce drawings of truth tables and logic circuits and recognise a logic gate/circuit from its truth table
  • Investigate combining logic gates to produce logic circuits
  • Explain why hexadecimal is often used in computer science
  • Perform conversions between binary and hexadecimal and between decimal and hexadecimal
  • Develop programs in the Python programming language that use logical expressions, arithmetic operators, and relational operators

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for computer science teachers who want to improve their ability to teach the mathematical aspects of the subject. This course would suit teachers with some Python experience, who are able to write simple programs demonstrating sequencing, selection, iteration, and data types.

What software or tools do you need?

To take part in this course you’ll need to download Python, or use an online IDE.

What do people say about this course?

This course enriched my knowledge, relating mathematics & computation.

"Thank you so much Educators, Raspberry Pi Fundation and FutureLearn for the excellent course, I really liked all the chapters, this course enriched my knowledge, relating mathematics and computation."

I felt this made my understanding more secure.

"Thank you so much, I've been doing binary in school and I felt this made my understanding more secure."

Who will you learn with?

Laura creates and maintains Raspberry Pi educational resources. Aside from computers, she loves cats, cakes, board games and making jam.

Who developed the course?

Raspberry Pi Foundation

The Raspberry Pi Foundation works to put the power of digital making into the hands of people all over the world, so they are capable of understanding and shaping our increasingly digital world.

National Centre for Computing Education

This course is part of the National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE). Funded by the Department for Education and partners, we aim to change the way computing is taught in schools across England, and enable more young people to benefit from studying this important subject.

If you are a teacher in England you can get free upgraded access to this course, and use it towards NCCE certification. To do this, you must join the course through the Teach Computing website

Endorsers and supporters

supported by

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Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

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