Unofficial questions for Oklahoma's OSAT Computer Science test, field 181: systems, algorithms, programming and the teaching of computing.
Pick an answer, then press Check answer.Then you see Correct or Not quite, with the reason.Keys: A to D pick, Enter checks.
Print covers the next 40 questions. Share this set copies a link to the same questions in the same order.
Exam mode: 40 questions, no time limit.
Your totals on this device
0answered
0right
none yetpercent right
none yetbest exam score
Seen 0 of 50 questions
More options
Which questions to ask
Missed and Flagged fill up as you go.
Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with Oklahoma's Office of Educational Quality and Accountability or Pearson. Bank checked October 15, 2026.
A 4-bit register stores signed integers in two's complement. What range of values can it hold?Wikipedia, Two's complement, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0001
A school database has a table of students. In a SQL SELECT statement, which clause restricts the rows returned to the students in grade 9?Wikipedia, Select (SQL), lead and Overview. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0001
A student types a site's name into a browser. Which system turns that name into the numeric IP address the network needs?Wikipedia, Domain Name System, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0002
During which stage of the instruction cycle does the control unit interpret the encoded instruction and work out which operations it calls for?Wikipedia, Instruction cycle, lead and Summary of stages. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0001
Four processes are ready to run on one CPU. Under round-robin scheduling, how does the operating system share the processor among them?Wikipedia, Round-robin scheduling, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0001
Show all 50 questions (45 more)
Subarea I: Computer system concepts, continued
How does a network switch differ from a repeater hub in handling data that arrives for one device?Wikipedia, Network switch, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0002
In packet switching, how is a long message sent across a network?Wikipedia, Packet switching, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0002
What does CSS add to a web page written in HTML?Wikipedia, CSS, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0001
What is the job of a firewall on a school network?Wikipedia, Firewall (computing), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0002
Why is optical fiber chosen over copper cable for a long link that passes heavy electrical machinery?Wikipedia, Optical fiber, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0002
Subarea II: Computational thinking and algorithms 12
A class will build a school-store app. The teacher first has teams list its separate parts: inventory, checkout and receipts. Which practice is this?Wikipedia, Decomposition (computer science), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
A linear search runs over an unsorted list of 80 student ID numbers, and the number it wants happens to be the last one in the list. How many elements does it check?Wikipedia, Linear search, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
A program keeps a full table of precomputed results in memory instead of working each one out when it is needed. Which trade-off has the programmer made?Wikipedia, Space–time tradeoff, Lookup tables vs. recalculation. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
A sorted array holds 1,000 values. In the worst case, about how many comparisons does a binary search need to find one of them or to show that it is absent?Wikipedia, Binary search, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
A sorting routine repeatedly finds the smallest element of the unsorted part of a list and swaps it with the leftmost unsorted element. Which algorithm is it?Wikipedia, Selection sort, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
A transit map shows a rail line as colored dots and lines and leaves out street widths and buildings. Which idea does the map illustrate?Wikipedia, Abstraction (computer science), Rationale. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
An image format stores 24 bits for each pixel. How many different colors can one pixel take?Wikipedia, Color depth, lead and Comparison. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
ASCII gives each character a code from 0 to 127. What is the smallest whole number of bits that can store any one of those codes?Wikipedia, ASCII, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
Pseudocode: set total to 0. For each whole number i from 1 to 5, if i MOD 2 equals 1, add i to total. What is total at the end?Wikipedia, Modulo, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
Pseudocode: set x to 3. Repeat 4 times: set x to x times 2, minus 1. What is x after the loop?Wikipedia, Pseudocode, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
Which property must a set of instructions have to count as an algorithm?Wikipedia, Algorithm, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0003
Why is checking every possible route an impractical way to solve the travelling salesman problem for many cities?Wikipedia, Travelling salesman problem, Exact algorithms. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0004
Subarea III: Programming 18
A BankAccount class keeps its balance private and changes it only through its deposit and withdraw methods. Which principle does this design apply?Wikipedia, Encapsulation (computer programming), lead and Meaning. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0008
A program passes its variable score, which holds 90, by value to a function. The function sets its own parameter to 0 and returns. What does score hold afterward?Wikipedia, Evaluation strategy, Call by value. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
A program uses the sales tax rate in many formulas, and the rate must stay the same for the whole run. How should the programmer store it?Wikipedia, Constant (computer programming), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0006
A student's program runs to the end and reports 10 as the area of a 6-by-4 rectangle, because one line adds the two sides where it should multiply them. What kind of error is this?Wikipedia, Logic error, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0005
An array holds 12 monthly totals and uses zero-based indexing. What is the index of its last element?Wikipedia, Zero-based numbering, lead and Numerical properties. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0006
An unsigned 8-bit counter holds 255, its largest value, and a program adds 1. If the overflow wraps around, what does the counter hold?Wikipedia, Integer overflow, Origin. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0006
Class Truck is declared as a subclass of class Vehicle. What does a Truck object acquire through inheritance?Wikipedia, Inheritance (object-oriented programming), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0008
The expression (x ≠ 0) AND (10 / x > 2) is evaluated with a short-circuit AND. What happens when x is 0?Wikipedia, Short-circuit evaluation, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
How does a compiler or interpreter treat a comment in source code?Wikipedia, Comment (computer programming), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0005
IF temp > 30 THEN print "hot" ELSE IF temp > 20 THEN print "warm" ELSE print "cool". What prints when temp is 30?Wikipedia, Relational operator, Standard relational operators. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
In a language where the + operator joins strings, what does "7" + "3" produce when both operands are strings?Wikipedia, Concatenation, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0006
In C and languages modeled on it, what is the difference between = and ==?Wikipedia, Relational operator, Languages. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
In object-oriented programming, how are a class and an object related?Wikipedia, Class (programming), lead and Object lifecycle. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0008
In the waterfall model of software development, how do the phases proceed?Wikipedia, Waterfall model, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0005
Set count to 0 and n to 20. WHILE n > 1: set n to n divided by 2, dropping any remainder, and add 1 to count. What is count when the loop ends?Wikipedia, Loop (statement), Pre-test loop. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
What does setting a breakpoint do during debugging?Wikipedia, Breakpoint, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0005
When is a class's constructor called, and what is its task?Wikipedia, Constructor (object-oriented programming), lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0008
Which expression is equivalent to NOT (A AND B)?Wikipedia, De Morgan's laws, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0007
Subarea IV: Teaching and social impacts 10
A coding website wants to collect personal information from a 10-year-old student. What does the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act have the operator seek first?Wikipedia, Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0009
A school wants a program whose code its students may read, change and pass along with their changes. Which kind of software allows all of this?Wikipedia, Open-source software, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0010
A teacher copies two pages of a 300-page copyrighted book for a single class discussion. Which of the four fair use factors weighs the size of that excerpt?Wikipedia, Fair use, lead and U.S. fair use factors. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0010
During a unit on loops, a teacher watches students trace code on small whiteboards and changes the next activity according to what she sees. Which kind of assessment is she using?Wikipedia, Formative assessment, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0009
In one district some students have home broadband and a laptop, and others have neither. Which term names this inequity?Wikipedia, Digital divide, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0010
Moore's law is the observation that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit doubles about how often?Wikipedia, Moore's law, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0010
The same Oklahoma law has elementary and middle schools give instruction aligned to the Oklahoma Academic Standards for Computer Science. In what form may they offer it?Oklahoma Statutes, Title 70, Schools (Oklahoma Legislature), 70 O.S. § 11-103.6m(C)(2). Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0009
Since the 2024-2025 school year, what must every Oklahoma public high school offer under 70 O.S. § 11-103.6m?Oklahoma Statutes, Title 70, Schools (Oklahoma Legislature), 70 O.S. § 11-103.6m(C)(1). Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0009
Targeted advertising picks an audience by its traits. Which trait is psychographic rather than demographic?Wikipedia, Targeted advertising, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0010
Two students share one computer for pair programming. What does the navigator do while the driver types?Wikipedia, Pair programming, lead. Written to the OSAT Computer Science (181) framework, competency 0009
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test design and framework of Oklahoma Subject Area Tests field 181, Computer Science, in the study guide on the Certification Examinations for Oklahoma Educators website (https://www.ceoe.nesinc.com/Content/StudyGuide/OK_SG_OBJ_181.htm, copyright 2017 Office of Educational Quality and Accountability and Pearson Education, Inc.; test page https://www.ceoe.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/OK181_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-15): 80 selected-response questions and 1 constructed-response assignment in 4 hours, passing score 240; selected response weighs Computer System Concepts (competencies 0001 and 0002) 17%, Computational Thinking and Algorithm Design (0003 and 0004) 20%, Programming and Program Development (0005 to 0008) 30% and Learning Environments and Social Impacts of Computing (0009 and 0010) 18%, and the constructed response, Pedagogy (0011), 15%. The bank holds 50: 10, 12, 18 and 10. Every fact was read on the public page named under its question: the named Wikipedia articles and Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes in the Oklahoma Legislature's own file, last changed December 31, 2025. The answers that are traced or counted were worked twice. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
This OSAT Computer Science practice test is free and unofficial: 50 questions of our own on field 181. The site is not affiliated with Oklahoma's Office of Educational Quality and Accountability or Pearson.
Read the full guide
OSAT Computer Science (181): four selected-response subareas
The framework on the CEOE site, read October 15, 2026, weighs Computer System Concepts at 17% of the test, Computational Thinking and Algorithm Design at 20%, Programming and Program Development at 30%, and Learning Environments and Social Impacts of Computing at 18%. This bank holds 10, 12, 18 and 10.
What the bank leaves out
The last 15% is one written assignment: analyze a lesson plan for a computer science topic, with student work or assessment data, and describe what to teach next. Nothing here practices it. The framework names no programming language, so the traced questions use plain pseudocode.
Several questions are traced by hand: a loop, a remainder, an overflow. Work each on paper before you read the choices.
Two questions rest on 70 O.S. § 11-103.6m, the Oklahoma law that has every public high school offer at least one computer science course.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the OSAT Computer Science test?
The test page lists 80 selected-response questions and one constructed-response assignment. Testing time is 4 hours at a test center, after a 15-minute tutorial and nondisclosure agreement. The page lists no online proctoring for this field.
What is the passing score for OSAT Computer Science?
It is 240, by the test page. The written assignment counts toward that score, so a number right on this page converts to nothing, and the result here is a count with no pass or fail.
What is on the OSAT Computer Science (181) test?
Data representation, hardware, operating systems and networks; algorithms, searching and sorting; program development, data types, control structures and object-oriented programming; then teaching strategies and the social side of computing. The test page lists no reference materials.
Is this OSAT Computer Science practice test free?
Yes, with no account or sign-up. No question here is taken from the real test, the study guide's sample questions or its practice test; each was written to the framework and names its public source.