AQA A2 Psychology PSYA3/PSYA4 Revision Thread 2016

people aiming for an A/A* how many ao2 points do you do for a 24 marker? i know its 16 marks but i was thinking 12ish points?? is this too little? and then 4 evaluation of studies points for ao3. unit 3 is a pain in my ass absolutely hate it, doing gender, aggression and biorhythms :/

Hi there, this confuses a lot of people. 'Research' is a term given for both theories/explanations and studies

We've been told that if we get a 10/12 mark question on writing up the methods section of a report in PSYA4 then it's okay to bullet point the answer as long as it includes all the necessary info. E.g:

Design

- research design: matched pairs
- research method: lab experiment
.
.
.

Participants

- 20 students from London
- male and female
.
.
.

And so on. Will anyone else be doing this? I'm unsure of doing it as I think a long question should be written out properly.

Is anyone here just using IDA as "AO2/AO3" for unit 3?


Posted from TSR Mobile

Is anyone here just using IDA as "AO2/AO3" for unit 3?


Posted from TSR Mobile

IDA is just AO3. You need AO2 which is research/theories.

Would you know how it works with the marking itself? I'm used to sciences... e.g a mark for a specific point and don't really get the mark schemes on these new papers.

What exactly do I get credited for in the essays?

IDA is just AO3. You need AO2 which is research/theories.

The essay is graded overall rather than a point-by-point basis.

So in a 24 mark essay, there will be a total of 8 marks for description, and 16 marks for evaluation.

For the highest marks in the description, the correct terms for that theory will need to be used in the correct way, with a detailed and accurate description of what that theory says and the main mechanisms. There is a breadth vs depth trade off in the description and evaluation, you can go into depth on less points or cover more points in less detail.

For the evaluation you would briefly identify studies and their findings, and evaluate the findings according to whether it supports or criticises the theory. to aim for top marks, elaborate on each study by either linking in another study that says the same thing, or alternatively says the opposite, or by using methodological evaluation. This is your A02, you should ideally aim for at least 4 studies per essay.

For A03, you would use IDA. You only need two IDA points really in order to get into the top bands for evaluation. Be sure you elaborate well in order to explain why the limitation is limiting or for example why the theory has positive practical applications etc. Again, by linking your IDA points together (This theory is deterministic because..... however by accepting this theory as true, practical applications can be put in place...) this will help to secure top marks.

Finally, ensure your essay flows nicely. Use discourse markers (or sentence starters) such as furthermore/conversely/additionally etc. This alone can boost your overall mark by a few points.

Good luck!

does anyone have any predictions for schizophrenia and relationships? ahh i'm desperate

x

As there are three essays, and the IDA will largely discuss similar points, will I be down marked for repeating the same evaluation across three different essays?

For example, across all three essays I would talk about: culture, gender, validity, reliability, determinism, free will, reductionism, etc.

Is repeating the same things going to lower my marks? Obviously, they would be applied to the question itself but most studies largely have the same problems.

Yes, I believe it has been mentioned in previous examination reports that students who used generic IDA evaluation points were deemed as not understanding the content effectively and simply rote learning.

Then what do you mean by specific evaluation points?

What it means is if, for example, you used the IDA points of determinism and limited view for all three essays - this is what may lose you credit.

How do you differentiate all of them then as it's not like I can change the subject of determinism for the essay question?...

Ensure you use different IDA points for each essay...