ICDL Databases case studies
ICDL Databases · Put your knowledge to work in context.
ICDL Databases is one of the module-based certifications offered within the ICDL programme, a global digital-skills certification scheme delivered through a network of accredited test centres. The ICDL Foundation describes itself as a global social enterprise committed to raising standards of digital competence in the workforce, education and society, and states that ICDL certification is available in more than 100 countries through more than 20,000 testing centres. The Databases module is aimed at candidates who need to work with structured data - students building employability skills, office and administrative staff, and anyone who maintains records in a relational database. Assessment is practical rather than essay-based: candidates typically work in a database application and are asked to demonstrate competence across the module's five areas - database concepts, tables and relationships, queries, forms, and reports and output. The ICDL Databases case studies are 5 cases and about 1,673 words.
1The Duplicate Membership Card
A community gym keeps a flat-file list of members in a single spreadsheet. Each row holds the member's name, phone, membership type, and the name of their personal trainer.
348 words, about 2 min2The Missing Parent Record
A small library is building two tables: Members (MemberID as primary key) and Loans (LoanID as primary key, plus a MemberID column). The designer sets a relationship between Members.MemberID and Loans.MemberID but forgets to enforce referential integrity.
302 words, about 2 min3The Query That Returns Too Much
A sales manager writes a query on an Orders table to list orders placed in March 2024 with a total over 500. The query returns 40 rows, but the manager expected about 12.
337 words, about 2 min4The Form That Edits the Wrong Table
A clinic builds a data-entry form for patient visits. The form is bound to a query that joins Patients and Visits .
335 words, about 2 min5The Report That Sums the Wrong Grain
A wholesaler prints a monthly sales report grouped by customer. The report is built on a query that joins Orders to OrderLines .
351 words, about 2 min