Pass a GCSE Biology Exam
Do you find Biology difficult? Are you worried that you will not pass your Biology GCSE exam? Read on and this will hopefully resolve your problem.
Contents
Steps
- Know your exam board. The way certain exam boards structure their papers can vary, and you may need to study extra material if this is the case. This article serves as a guideline for all major exam boards.
- Switch off the computer, mobile phone, television and MP3 player. You cannot revise if you are talking to a friend or watching an episode of Friends.
- Gather your notes, revision guides and also CDs. Also have a blank exercise book and a calculator at hand.
- Your school should issue you a Biology book specific to your exam board. However your school will not give it to you for free but may supply so you can buy from them revision guides which are also specific for your exam board. This are a great way to prompt yourself a week or so before the exam.
- Look through the textbook. Don't be intimidated by the big text and confusing words. Try to read the book and take in information. If you are still confused then ask your Biology teacher to help you.
- Write down key notes for your exam such as "Respiration is the break down of glucose in order to provide energy for your cells to carry out functions, carbon dioxide and water are the waste products." These short bullet point type notes will be easy to remember.
- In some Biology topics you will need to know equations. This is usually for BMI (body mass index). In the exam they may give you the equation but remember it just in case.
- Always do past exam papers! They help you understand what type of questions are in the exam and also help you know the areas you struggle with.
- When you have done the past exam papers and have asked a teacher or have a mark scheme to mark it, go back to the questions you got wrong or you did not understand.
- In the exam there will be questions about science in everyday life. For example "30 people take part in an experiment which was about how much exercise they do in a week, the line graph shows the amount of exercise they did and their heart rate. Suggest the link between the amount of exercise and their heart rate." Normally these types of questions will be broken down into 2 or 3 separate parts. For the question in quotation marks you need to tell the examiner the link between heart rate and the amount of exercise they do. Another part of the question is: "Is the test reliable?" In which the answer should "If the test was reliable it means if repeated the test will get the same results." Remember: Reliable = repeatable!
- Go over key areas which you do not understand.
- Know the different types of variables as these are sure to come up on the "How Science Works" questions.
- Once you have gone over the areas in which you do not understand and you are confident that you know the topic then do another past paper. Remember practise makes perfect.
- If in doubt always ask your biology teacher if you do not understand.
- If you want an A*, you will have to memorize all the Higher/process sections in your notes/book, make your revision thorough and always state the obvious in a data analysis question
- Good luck with your exam!
Tips
- You can get past papers from your exam board's website or your science teachers. See this article.
- Here are some examples of revision Guides which are helpful:
- Revision guides for Biology which are specifically designed for your exam board
- CGP Biology revision guide
- GCSE Bitesize Biology Guide
- Collins (C) Biology Higher or Foundation book
- The grade boundaries rarely change each exam, on average a C = 69UMS and an A* = 86. Meaning that there is little difference between grades, sometimes it can be by as much as 2 marks.
- Don't forget that GCSE Biology is only one third of the entire GCSE Science course. You should try your best on each module.
- Don't fear about failure, but don't get careless.
Warnings
- You must get a good night of sleep before any exam!
- On the night before the exam make sure that you don't stay up all night revising, this will cause stress and will make your brain go into overload. Just go over bits that you are not sure of but don't do it in bulk, do it in small sections.
- Never attempt to cheat on the exam. If you are caught cheating on any GCSE exam, you will get zero marks on the exam you tried to cheat on, and all of your GCSE results will be discarded.
- In the exam make sure you drink water, so you are hydrated and also don't get a headache during the exam.
Things You'll Need
- Black biro pens
- Calculator (some questions require mathematical calculations)
- Ruler (for graphs)
- Rubber (to rub out anything you don't want to get marked)
- Pencil (for little workings out)
- A bottle of water which has no labels otherwise the invigilators will confiscate it.
