Edexcel GCSE Psychology Papers 1 & 2 - 19th & 26th May 2023 [Exam Chat]

i had the same problem last year. honestly u should first do as many past papers as u can all within the time limit.
if ur already doing that and still not getting enough time to finish a couple of questions, set a timer for each question and force yourself to finish within that time, like 15 mins for a 12 marker.
secondly make sure yk the structure for each question, like 12 marks is a01, ao2 & ao3, so you would have 4 points for each - this helps you in knowing what to focus on in the essays rather than waffling about say just the ao1 and then only scoring 4 marks cus u missed the other points
ao1 - point/knowledge/ whatever yk about like for example the brain structure
a02 - evidence from the scenario if given/ the case study given
aa03 - evaluation, GRAVE, strengths and weakness of ao1


hope this helps

i had the same problem last year. honestly u should first do as many past papers as u can all within the time limit.
if ur already doing that and still not getting enough time to finish a couple of questions, set a timer for each question and force yourself to finish within that time, like 15 mins for a 12 marker.
secondly make sure yk the structure for each question, like 12 marks is a01, ao2 & ao3, so you would have 4 points for each - this helps you in knowing what to focus on in the essays rather than waffling about say just the ao1 and then only scoring 4 marks cus u missed the other points
ao1 - point/knowledge/ whatever yk about like for example the brain structure
a02 - evidence from the scenario if given/ the case study given
aa03 - evaluation, GRAVE, strengths and weakness of ao1


hope this helps

hey ive been struggling with 9 markers and 12 markers too. would u kinda go more into detail if thats alright? like for example this q, i didnt even knnow the ao3s so im pretty confused on how to approach these

no prob. so 9 markers from my memory was a01 a02 a03 and saame with 12 markers except you give 4 points per AO for 12 marker and 3 points for 9 marker. so to make it more clear
9 marks -- AO1 (three points)
AO2 (three points)
AO3 (three points)

12 marks -- AO1 (four points)
AO2 (four points)
AO3 (four points)


so in this question youre gonna need three pargraphs for each AO
your first pargraph will be everythig you can talk about morality. you need three points atleast which are highly developed fully explaining what is morality and its types. this is your AO1 paragraph.

your second paragraph would be relating it to the scenario so talk about about what each man said and link it to your points about the types or morality. the three men give you three points to talk about. this is your AO2 para.

your last paragraph is your evalution, your strengths and weaknesses about the morality theory. so you bring in stuff like it is supprted by this sttudy, but this theory lacks this or that AND EXPLAIN IT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN to ensure full marks on your point. this is your AO3 para.

So for the essays, is it better to do one paragraph per AO, or have one AO in each paragraph? What I have generally done is essentially followed the P-E-E rule, just modifying it for the AOs. So I'd make a point about morality, let's say, then I'd apply that point to the case, and finally I'd suggest a strength, weakness, theory or expansion to that point. would this still be awarded the marks in terms of essay structure?

Is it just me or are the Edexcel Psychology GCSE exams incredibly difficult to get through in the time limit? I've run out of time in two past papers and I'm really struggling with it. I think my main issue is the essays. I'm supper bad at essay planning and writing so I just go on for way to long. Does anyone have any advice for both essays and just getting through papers in time?

for a levels i do like a whole paragraph per AO, so like a 12/9 marker will have 3 para's per AO plus conclusion if u can (id suggest it, personally i was never taught that until this year, so if youve got time, do it, just summarise everything)

Also the PEE rule is really effective if you can swiftly link your points (most students struggle w that) so if you think youre good at linking points def do it, but make sure you expand alot and not write just like 3 sentences per AO as examiners want that detail (better safe than sorry!)

Ok, thank you! I will keep working at it and hopefully I can get my time down in three weeks... the most recent 12 marker I did for psych I managed 20 minutes - but I have yet to mark it, so it may have just been 20 minutes of nothing!

no prob. so 9 markers from my memory was a01 a02 a03 and saame with 12 markers except you give 4 points per AO for 12 marker and 3 points for 9 marker. so to make it more clear
9 marks -- AO1 (three points)
AO2 (three points)
AO3 (three points)

12 marks -- AO1 (four points)
AO2 (four points)
AO3 (four points)


so in this question youre gonna need three pargraphs for each AO
your first pargraph will be everythig you can talk about morality. you need three points atleast which are highly developed fully explaining what is morality and its types. this is your AO1 paragraph.

your second paragraph would be relating it to the scenario so talk about about what each man said and link it to your points about the types or morality. the three men give you three points to talk about. this is your AO2 para.

your last paragraph is your evalution, your strengths and weaknesses about the morality theory. so you bring in stuff like it is supprted by this sttudy, but this theory lacks this or that AND EXPLAIN IT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN to ensure full marks on your point. this is your AO3 para.

does anyone know what the most likely issue and debate will be for paper 1?? i’m PRAYING for nature vs nurture

hello sorry i highly doubt you’re awake at all but do you have any idea on what to write about in a social and cultural issues 9 marker? my teacher never taught us issue and debates and i’m struggling to find content online lol

I think the only one that hasn't been done yet is social and cultural issues, so maybe that? Also, nature/nurture was in the SAM and a previous paper, so I don't know that they will repeat it. Whatever it is, I hope it goes well for you!

does anyone know what the most likely issue and debate will be for paper 1?? i’m PRAYING for nature vs nurture

does anyone have any general tips for this paper? cuz my teachers for psych hhavent really been the most helpful so i feel kinda lost yk

hello sorry i highly doubt you’re awake at all but do you have any idea on what to write about in a social and cultural issues 9 marker? my teacher never taught us issue and debates and i’m struggling to find content online lol