CGP revision guides for A-level

Would you recommend the CGP complete revision and practice revision guides for A-level Biology, chemistry and Psychology? I was comparing them to the textbooks and I have to say I prefer the revision guides more. Would it be advisable for me to make notes from then and then add any extra notes from class and anything that I've missed out thats on the specification?

Reply 1

Sammy9898

16

I got the books for AS biology and chemistry but ended up not using them very much and relying on the textbooks. {I guess I found the revision books too vague?}. It depends what works for you, really. I definitely wouldn't rely on the revision books solely. If you used them in combination with a textbook, which can fill in any gaps in the revision guides, then that should be fine. :biggrin:

(edited 8 years ago)

no

yes

I can't speak for chemistry, but I did do biology and psychology AS this year. For biology the CGP guide was a godsend- the textbook we had (Nelson Thorns AQA) could have been written in Hebrew for all that I understood from it! So I used the CGP guide to make notes and checked them against the specification. I also did past papers and added extra stuff to my notes that were on the mark schemes. So for biology, I'd say it's a brilliant idea.
However, for psychology I had the CGP guide and the textbook, and I honestly only opened CGP a handful of times. Our teacher was amazing -she gave us loads of handouts on case studies etc. that pretty much covered everything. I'm my opinion the CGP guide for psychology was a waste of money, because any extra information I got from the textbook, which was much more detailed that the CGP guide.
Good luck with your AS! 😀

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Reply 5

xnads

OP

2

Original post by Sammy9898

I got the books for AS biology and chemistry but ended up not using them very much and relying on the textbooks. {I guess I found the revision books too vague?}. It depends what works for you, really. I definitely wouldn't rely on the revision books solely. If you used them in combination with a textbook, which can fill in any gaps in the revision guides, then that should be fine. :biggrin:

Original post by madsparrow

I can't speak for chemistry, but I did do biology and psychology AS this year. For biology the CGP guide was a godsend- the textbook we had (Nelson Thorns AQA) could have been written in Hebrew for all that I understood from it! So I used the CGP guide to make notes and checked them against the specification. I also did past papers and added extra stuff to my notes that were on the mark schemes. So for biology, I'd say it's a brilliant idea.
However, for psychology I had the CGP guide and the textbook, and I honestly only opened CGP a handful of times. Our teacher was amazing -she gave us loads of handouts on case studies etc. that pretty much covered everything. I'm my opinion the CGP guide for psychology was a waste of money, because any extra information I got from the textbook, which was much more detailed that the CGP guide.
Good luck with your AS! 😀

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How did you both find Biology/Chemistry at A-level? Would you say the workload and subject is hard at A level? And any advice on how to keep on top of the work and to stay organised? And how's Psychology is it as dull as people say? :frown:

Reply 6

Sammy9898

16

Original post by xnads

How did you both find Biology/Chemistry at A-level? Would you say the workload and subject is hard at A level? And any advice on how to keep on top of the work and to stay organised? And how's Psychology is it as dull as people say? :frown:

I found Chemistry to be easier than Biology, though some people may say otherwise. I didn't do amazingly well at AS, hence I'm retaking certain modules, but I can give you some advice that I probably would have wanted to know. When it comes to revision find a method that works for you and don't spend endless hours revising. {I tried this and it didn't work!!} Just remember to take breaks every 30 minutes as it helps you to concentrate better.

Past papers are your best friend, especially for chemistry! :smile:

Do as many of those as you can! :biggrin:

I'd also suggest making a timetable. I didn't make one this year and ended up spending too much time on certain topics, meaning I neglected other topics so maybe make a plan or timetable of what you're going to do on that day/week? If you need any help/ advice, GO to your teacher. << I didn't do this and as a result my maths grade suffered massively so take any help you're given. Remember to also spend some time doing things you enjoy. Spending all day everyday locked up inside revising won't help! :smile:

As for psychology, I never took it but my friends take it and enjoyed it hugely! It's an interesting subject, from what I gather. Anyway, I hope this helps. :biggrin:

Good luck.

CGP revision guides for A-level

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