How to revise for A-Level biology?

How do people on here revise for A-level biology specifically A2 biology?
Do you just do lots of past papers or do you make notes n look over them again and again and read the book? I can't seem to hack Biology to be honest.....

Reply 1

skotch

16

I like mind maps of the syllabus and of each different topic. Also do lots of notes and put them onto flashcards which i can take with me places and posters that i stick up in my room.

with something like edexcel A2 biology, working from the syllabus is very easy as it tells you precisely what you need to know. you can also use the syllabus/spec as a checklist of what you know and don't know.

going through past papers with a mark scheme is also useful as you can find out precisely where you're dropping marks.

Reply 2

LadySmythe

19

Working from the syllabus and memorising information, then as much past paper practise as possible.

Reply 3

ACDC

18

I revise one topic, make notes, and than try and do past paper questions on that topic to test how much I've understood and how much I've remembered. If I do badly I start again on the same topic, until I can answer all past paper questions and understand where I went wrong the first time. Do this for every topic.

Reply 4

steph_v

13

Which exam board are you on? I'm on OCR and because it's new and very different, there aren't many past papers available. So, to revise, I write lots and lots of notes and do massive mind map posters and stick them around my room. I actually find this topic considerably easier than the last topic, so I hope I will do okay. Biology is the only one I'm remotely confident about getting an A.

Reply 5

TLDR

11

By getting off TSR and working, instead of thinking someone has a magic way for you to get an A....

Reply 6

jj11

OP

6

steph_v

Which exam board are you on? I'm on OCR and because it's new and very different, there aren't many past papers available. So, to revise, I write lots and lots of notes and do massive mind map posters and stick them around my room. I actually find this topic considerably easier than the last topic, so I hope I will do okay. Biology is the only one I'm remotely confident about getting an A.

I'm doing AQA and that true, because it's new i can't seem to find past papers and i don't know how to revise to get an A. The highest I got was a low A in my modules, but it seems I need to get bout 85% in all ma remaining modules to get the A and amongst my subjects biology is probably the one I find most hard to revise for.

Reply 7

TwirlGirl

15

write notes.
record myself reading the textbook aloud.
play chapters back to myself when i have a free 10 mins or so.
lots of past questions
memories mark scheme type answers

Reply 8

TwirlGirl

15

jj11

I'm doing AQA and that true, because it's new i can't seem to find past papers and i don't know how to revise to get an A. The highest I got was a low A in my modules, but it seems I need to get bout 85% in all ma remaining modules to get the A and amongst my subjects biology is probably the one I find most hard to revise for.

you're making excuses. there are loads of past questions you can use for AQA. Heck, i have a whole booklet full of them.

Reply 9

TwilightKnight

11

Biology is definitely my hardest subject to revise for. I used to have a near photographic memory which made it piss easy to do any sort of memory work but I seem to have made some sort of subconcious decision to rewire my brain, and now I learn by understanding rather than memorising.

It's great for Chemistry and Maths, but it's made Biology a million times harder. There's no past papers available for those doing the new syllabuses, apart from the ones they've already sat, so I just have to write notes, write questions, have mates/ Dad test me on the questions, then write condensed notes. Repeat for next topic.

Of course, if you're doing AQA, you may as well do no revision and a rain dance the day before the exam. You're probably going to end up doing as well as anyone else.

Reply 10

TwilightKnight

11

TwirlGirl

you're making excuses. there are loads of past questions you can use for AQA. Heck, i have a whole booklet full of them.

Do share.

I've heard about a software package that basically assembles relevant questions from the old syllabuses into papers that fit the new one, but I've not actually had the fortune of coming across it.

Reply 11

TwirlGirl

15

TwilightKnight

Do share.

I've heard about a software package that basically assembles relevant questions from the old syllabuses into papers that fit the new one, but I've not actually had the fortune of coming across it.

My teacher puts them all together, using papers from the old syllabus. I'm pretty sure most of them are accessible from the internet.
She's just finishing them at the moment, but i'll try and upload them onto here when she gets round to giving them to us (probably around/just after easter). She clumps the questions in specific topics i.e. a load on photosynthesis then a load on respiration and also puts up the relevant mark schemes.
We've had them for each of the exams so far.

Reply 12

steph_v

13

jj11

I'm doing AQA and that true, because it's new i can't seem to find past papers and i don't know how to revise to get an A. The highest I got was a low A in my modules, but it seems I need to get bout 85% in all ma remaining modules to get the A and amongst my subjects biology is probably the one I find most hard to revise for.

Are you retaking any modules?

Also, another thing I find useful for Biology is to go through the specification and write one question relating to each bullet point. Then (not on the same day, usually) go through them and answer them. It takes quite a long time but it seems to work for me.

Reply 13

TwilightKnight

11

TwirlGirl

My teacher puts them all together, using papers from the old syllabus. I'm pretty sure most of them are accessible from the internet.
She's just finishing them at the moment, but i'll try and upload them onto here when she gets round to giving them to us (probably around/just after easter). She clumps the questions in specific topics i.e. a load on photosynthesis then a load on respiration and also puts up the relevant mark schemes.
We've had them for each of the exams so far.

That'd be great.

I'd do them myself, but if I knew what questions should be coming up on the exam paper, I wouldn't need to be doing it :P.

The only exam practice I've really had for biology is the textbook questions and the specimens, which really doesn't feel like enough.

Reply 14

nicola92

6

i just rewrite my notes again and again and again..., and make extra notes from the textbook. boring but making posters and stuff doesn't really work for me

Reply 15

username266244

0

18

jj11

How do people on here revise for A-level biology specifically A2 biology?
Do you just do lots of past papers or do you make notes n look over them again and again and read the book? I can't seem to hack Biology to be honest.....

Go through the syllabus, that's all you need to know, and check off the stuff you know. The bits you don't know, have a little look at your notes, and make sure you know the principle.

Next, make sure you memorise all the basic definitions, easy.

Then, past papers! Go through them all including the old course and you will quickly realise a common pattern, there are probably some questions where you can memorise the perfect answer.

Its a lot easier than you think = )

Reply 16

GunnerArshavin

1

Go through the syllabus and write notes, and then re-write them out later.

Reply 17

jj11

OP

6

steph_v

Are you retaking any modules?

Also, another thing I find useful for Biology is to go through the specification and write one question relating to each bullet point. Then (not on the same day, usually) go through them and answer them. It takes quite a long time but it seems to work for me.

I'm just retaking unit 4 so yh....

Reply 18

Artymess

16

AQA is slowly ruining biology in my opinion, its just awful. the subject and course content is great but the exams are a farce, silly HSW :holmes:

after last years bad decision of binders and files i've swapped this year to writing up everything from each topic into a little A5 book, that way i've always got it all to hand and things dont get filed and forgotten. mindmaps really dont work for me, big words do, i find it easier to string the words together and go from A to B like a story or series of events. eg:

"the action potential is a wave of depolarisation carried deeper into a muscle cell by invaginations called t-tubules that depolarise the sarcoplasmic reticulum allowing calcium ions to diffuse out and bind to troponin, moving tropomyosin from the myosin head binding site so actinomyosin cross bridges can form"

i guess it makes more sense to me than a mindmap where i'd split it into different sections and would probably forget something important

of course past paper questions help, especially HSW/application of knowledge ones. oh and reading around the subject is good, internet articles, biology magazines etc all help :holmes:

Reply 19

AAfc

10

For me I just go over past paper mark schemes and remember the answers and exam technique. I also make notes on everything i do in class and if i am not sure of an answer ill actually read and not skim that section in my textbook.
Finally i try to teach others and talk to others about the topic to reinforce the information

How to revise for A-Level biology?

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