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A* from just reading cgp books

Do you think that a reasonably intelligent person could get all a*s in the 3 sciences but ONLY reading through CGP books and doing past papers?

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Reply 1

jack3w98

yes that's what I am doing - I was really confident with my Physics and Chemistry GCSEs last week, now just for Biology tommorow

Reply 2

lerjj

Original post by LollyPopzicle

Do you think that a reasonably intelligent person could get all a*s in the 3 sciences but ONLY reading through CGP books and doing past papers?

GCSE or A level? Yes for the former, but you're leaving it very late. By intelligent, you need to be able to apply learnt rules very well and you'll need the entire revision guide memorized because they cover the topic in the bare minimum detail for an A*.

But yes, for GCSE I think its perfectly possible. Past papers are golden, mark schemes especially. You want to be in an exam and be able to guess what the mark scheme says for each question, then just write it down.

Reply 3

LollyPopzicle

Original post by AlphaNick

It is possible but you're taking a massively unnecessary risk. CGP books don't provide nearly enough detail. An 'intelligent person' would realise this and do revision from other sources.

I've been told that to get a*s you don't need detailed knowledge of the subject just a basic understanding and ability to apply the knowledge to questions, have I been told the wrong thing then

Reply 4

ScarletXxXRose

this is how i revised for core science and i got a*, and im also doing that for additional science
but i think you should use 'mygcsescience' video for particularly long topics or ones that you are unsure with
esp. since the exams are just round the corner, you probably don't really have enough time to revise using anything else

Reply 5

jack3w98

don't listen to Nick, he ain't that smart, if you read through the CGP books and can understand and apply concepts to past papers, you'll be fine

Reply 6

Oz_Vessalius

That's the only way I revise! Nothing else seems to help. I've done past papers in class, and the I just read through CGP/specification and I'm done. If anything, CGP books provide too much detail in a lot of places. And if you find something it doesn't explain properly, which isnt very likely, then just google it.
All that = guaranteed A*.

Reply 7

Oz_Vessalius

Original post by AlphaNick

To some extent that is correct... but for many things you do need quite detailed knowledge.

If you want to do effective revision, register at TES and download the exam-style questions here. There are about 80 in the first document, and there are four documents (for physics).

http://www.tes.co.uk/teaching-resource/Physics-unit-2-exam-style-questions-mark-scheme-6336639/

What's wrong with doing real exam questions? There are plenty in the past papers and the specimens.

(Oops sorry for the double post)

Reply 8

octopauly

GCSE - no understanding really required, the science exams are pretty much a joke, so yes, you could do that.

Obviously this doesn't apply for A-level, which is a huge step up from GCSE

Reply 9

Dumbledore'sArmy

OMG telling you now, if your doing GCSE', by learning CGP SCIENCE revision guide THOROUGHLY you can an A*!

SOURCES:
Experience

Reply 10

Atsushi

I think you could if you understand concepts. I just memorise everything and I mean everything in the book and I hoping to get A*s. If you listened in class you should understand concepts anyway.

Reply 11

username1230881

That's pretty much how I revise and I do well, though it's very late and you won't do well if you're only starting now. For A level I expect that a deeper understanding and a LOT more revision is necessary.

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Reply 12

daisychain_

Well for my science GCSEs i made notes from the CGP revision guides and did a few past papers and got my A*s

Reply 13

WinterWind

I used these revision guides for my IGCSE chemistry and physics exams, and I'm quite happy with what I did. (Chemistry was relatively easy though.) Now I'm revising for biology tomorrow. Whatever method you choose for preparing the exams just make sure there's enough time for revision and practice, then I think it'll be fine. But apparently leave them to the last minute isn't wise...

Reply 14

AngelPhys

Listen mate, we all learn things differently. So, yes you probably can.

Reply 15

ElGenioEstúpido

What about for OCR B Geography?

Reply 16

x__justmyluck

I did it for bio and chem A level so I'm sure you can for GCSE.

Reply 17

BlackLipBastard

Original post by LollyPopzicle

Do you think that a reasonably intelligent person could get all a*s in the 3 sciences but ONLY reading through CGP books and doing past papers?

That is exactly what I did last year. For GCSE the CGP books are absolutely brilliant. But I literally managed to memorise the books to the extent that I knew the page numbers and layout of many pages.

Reply 18

PricklyPorcupine

Yeah, that's pretty much a certified way of getting an A/A*. Past papers seal the deal
If you want to take a risk, do no revision (I jest, unless you are pretty confident in your abilities)

(edited 9 years ago)

Reply 19

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I think you could be significantly less than 'reasonably' intelligent and still get an A* from reading the CGP books as long as you're willing to put in enough work.

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