Urgent GCSE help

I've been practicing for the upcoming biology paper 1 (combined science trilogy) exam on Tuesday and all the other sciences in that subject. I understand the content moderately well but when it comes to answering the questions I'll do really poorly. I've looked at why and it's usually because I'll talk about something the question is not really looking for in the mark scheme but what I've said it technically right. I feel that the science mark schemes are quite pedantic whilst the questions being really vague about what they really want you to explain.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I get better i guess at knowing what the questions want? I've been doing many papers and mark schemes and trying to get a feel for what they're wanting me to speak about but i always word it wrong or focus more on the wrong details.

Any advice?

I've been practicing for the upcoming biology paper 1 (combined science trilogy) exam on Tuesday and all the other sciences in that subject. I understand the content moderately well but when it comes to answering the questions I'll do really poorly. I've looked at why and it's usually because I'll talk about something the question is not really looking for in the mark scheme but what I've said it technically right. I feel that the science mark schemes are quite pedantic whilst the questions being really vague about what they really want you to explain.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I get better i guess at knowing what the questions want? I've been doing many papers and mark schemes and trying to get a feel for what they're wanting me to speak about but i always word it wrong or focus more on the wrong details.

Any advice?

I get you bro i was in the same spot, here's a technique that helped me, so once you do a biology paper, treat it like its an actual exam, mark it look at the mark scheme im sure there's a video breakdown on the paper, once you understand it write down all the answers for the questions you got wrong in your own words, then go to google doc or a paper and make a breakdown on the common mistakes you made, remember regardless of what exam board, usually questions are repeated so try memorise and understand how you made that mistake and what to write next time that question showed up. You said you understand the content moderately well right, keep on practising doing pasts papers until your hand falls off !!!!.

i totally agree with you great advice bro i love like those videos of papers but theirs like none for triple science unfortunately

I get you bro i was in the same spot, here's a technique that helped me, so once you do a biology paper, treat it like its an actual exam, mark it look at the mark scheme im sure there's a video breakdown on the paper, once you understand it write down all the answers for the questions you got wrong in your own words, then go to google doc or a paper and make a breakdown on the common mistakes you made, remember regardless of what exam board, usually questions are repeated so try memorise and understand how you made that mistake and what to write next time that question showed up. You said you understand the content moderately well right, keep on practising doing pasts papers until your hand falls off !!!!.

My daughter is doing biology Alevel, and although we been going through it all module by module, we really really understood it more when watching biorach on you tube. She really explains thing well. Like she said you would not get the marks for transpiration for plans to lose water, you have to say water vapour, because its a gas, not a liquid. She does not do many gcse, but theres a teacher called primrose kitten who we have also found very useful https://www.youtube.com/@Primrose_Kitten/search?query=gcse%20biology
Amoeba sisters I also love. they explain things like mitosis and meiosis very well. Another thing that daughter does in tests is the highlighting /underlining of key words in the question,. it keeps things to the point and not going off on a tangent somewhere.

I've been practicing for the upcoming biology paper 1 (combined science trilogy) exam on Tuesday and all the other sciences in that subject. I understand the content moderately well but when it comes to answering the questions I'll do really poorly. I've looked at why and it's usually because I'll talk about something the question is not really looking for in the mark scheme but what I've said it technically right. I feel that the science mark schemes are quite pedantic whilst the questions being really vague about what they really want you to explain.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I get better i guess at knowing what the questions want? I've been doing many papers and mark schemes and trying to get a feel for what they're wanting me to speak about but i always word it wrong or focus more on the wrong details.

Any advice?

i definitely agree with you im in the same situation myself honestly and tbf with biology it is really just about waffling and hoping you get it right because a lot of questiond they can be about stuff you havent learnt but they require you to apply your general knowledge and knowledge from things you have learn to answer it. so in a way its just abt how well you can do that.

Exam preparation is difficult, especially understanding the questions. To boost your performance and align your responses with the mark scheme, try these:

Read the question several times and underline or highlight the terms. Understand the question and its main ideas.

Review the mark scheme: This is a good method. Focus on the examiners' criteria for answers. Note the mark scheme's frequent keywords and phrases.

Practice with past papers and mark schemes to become used to the questions and answers. Compare your answers to model answers. Find disparities and explain why your answer may not match the mark scheme.

Command words, such "describe," "explain," "compare," and "evaluate," reveal the question's intent. Understand the prerequisites for each command word.

Write clearly: Science mark schemes generally require focused answers. Practice writing concisely, stressing vital themes and minimizing needless information. Use the mark scheme's terminology and phrases as appropriate.

Ask your teacher for help if you don't understand the questions. They can help you comprehend exam requirements.

After studying practice papers and mark schemes, thoroughly examine your blunders. Determine where you tend to stray and why. You can enhance your approach by acknowledging your misunderstandings.

Exam performance improves through practice, dedication, and attention to detail. You'll get better at answering questions by learning the mark scheme and practicing. Biology exam? Good luck! Reach out if you need help

Thank you so much. I didn't know about the video break down part to be honest but that's really useful as I'd usually just guess the topic and try to learn it better until i understand what's going on (or make a guess).

Also, do you think that putting the questions you got wrong as flashcards could be just as effective as on a google docx? Like if you didn't understand food tests for example, one side of the flashcard could be asking about the foodtests and the other side could be a table describing what's used, positive result additional steps, etc... Then you could use some scrap paper and roughly sketch this table each time the flashcard comes and then flip it to see if it's correct. Maybe this could work more effectively than a google docx which you probably won't look at again after you've written it. Just a suggestion but thanks for the response this is going to help tremendously.