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my A2 mocks is in 1 week!

how do I remember huge content in biology?
also, I am finding it hard to answer real exam questions even though I remember the content. how do I improve it?

Reply 1

DanielK1456

Unfortunately the nature of Biology is such that you just need to remember the facts and there's not much else to it until you do the exam questions. Revise whichever way has worked best for you so far eg flashcards, fact recall questions from the textbook, revision websites etc. It's tricky to fit all the information in, but putting in the work is definitely worth it.

Once you have got the facts down, the fact recall questions in the exams should be fine. In the real A Level (I've got my first real paper after half term), 50% of paper 1 should be fact recall and knowledge based. The tricky parts are the dreaded application and data analysis which put the information in a much less familiar context. Miss Estruch has a free bank of past application questions (which count for over 50% of the marks in paper 2). I used these to challenge myself to go through each question and ask myself which area of the course the question is from, and all facts that might be relevant. Remind yourself that the question can only ask you things on the spec. It could be direct facts or facts interlinked with the question context. I found it really useful as well to push myself to not read the mark scheme before I had an answer I was somewhat happy with, even if I wasn't sure. Having done my first A Level, you really feel the pressure when you realise that question is your last chance, and you can't just look up the answers anymore. You have to try and put something, anything down, even if it's just a random thought. Try and get used to that! Once you're confident try the past exam questions and keep a track of your scores. Go for the more recent papers first, they were made during COVID so should be slightly easier than previously. :smile:

Reply 2

aysha ali

OMG thank you so much for the advice! It slipped from my mind that I asked for help in here and my exams got postponed to middle of this month. so I am surely gonna try your suggestions.

Reply 3

DanielK1456

Original post by aysha ali

OMG thank you so much for the advice! It slipped from my mind that I asked for help in here and my exams got postponed to middle of this month. so I am surely gonna try your suggestions.

Great, just did my first paper. It was good for fact recall, but the application in the second half was quite tricky.

Reply 4

StudyMind

Original post by aysha ali

how do I remember huge content in biology?
also, I am finding it hard to answer real exam questions even though I remember the content. how do I improve it?

Heya!
Not sure if it's a bit too late but to remember a large amount of content in biology, it can be helpful to break it down into smaller, manageable chunks and create a structured study plan. Use flashcards, or concept maps to aid in memory retention :h:

Additionally, actively engaging with the material through practice questions, quizzes, and teaching the concepts to others can reinforce your understanding and help you recall the information more effectively. To improve your ability to answer exam questions, practice past papers under timed conditions to simulate the exam environment and familiarize yourself with the question format. Analyse the questions you struggle with to identify any knowledge gaps and focus on addressing those areas during your revision. If it helps, Study Mind has lots of free resources that can help you out!

Kind regards,
Milena
UCL PFE
Study Mind