Advice for Year 13 Physics
I do Eduqas A-Level Physics. At the start of January, we did two mocks (component 1 and 2), and I got a really strong C in the component 1 mock, which I'm happy with, especially since I was on the lowest U possible in year 12 due to personal issues and worked hard to get the grade up. We got our component 2 mock back today, and I'm really upset since I got a U, and I revised a lot too. I could tell you every single piece of theory for component 2, which equations to use and how to solve issues. Yet, in the exam, my mind went completely blank and I just realised that I lost out on so many marks with loads of questions that I should've been getting right. How do I fix this issue of knowing lots about physics topics, but can't seem to reciprocate that in the exam or understand questions??
Reply 1
hi,
i feel for you. i found physics a level really hard too. you've still got time to improve.
i also did eduqas a level physics. i found it a bit strange compared to other physics exam boards and harder to prepare for
it may sound obvious but the key is mainly just doing as many past papers/practice questions as possible
i found the old spec and new spec wjec exam paper questions helpful for getting more exam practice in
if you do loads of them until you are getting them all correct then it will be ingrained in your mind so it shouldn't be possible to forget as you will have done it so often
if you go the 2 wjec sections here there is an insane amount of wjec physics papers available: https://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/past-papers/a-level-physics/
I have to admit, some of physics i didn't totally understand. so i went through these old spec exam papers and i could see what questions came up a lot for a given topic eg particle physics. if there was a question that kept coming up i would just rote memorise the answer so i could regurgitate it in the exam without even having to think.
i may be saying stuff you already know but the key thing is to try and learn physics from all angles to try and get a well rounded understanding and knowledge. i used lots of different ways to learn physics and it was definitely necessary to understand a topic.
Some resources I used a lot were:
-a level physics online website (though you have to pay for 2nd year videos, not necessarily essential though) https://www.alevelphysicsonline.com/
-the textbook and revision/study guides made by eduqas themselves
-notes from physics and maths tutor
-these notes were essential for me: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2020-10/physics-en-2019.pdf
if you google "bangor university wjec physics exam board texts" for units 1, 2, 3 and 4 they should all come up. they explain concisely and accessibly the most important parts of physics. some of it is a bit brief but on the whole it has most of the important stuff you need
-eduqas themselves released books full of practice exam questions too which were very helpful https://www.illuminatepublishing.com/product/eduqas-physics-a-level-revision-workbook-2
-also this blended learning was good too https://www.wjec.co.uk/home/student-support/revision/revision-resources/new-blended-learning/
another way to approach it is when learning a topic you might think "what's actually relevant for the exam?" so you could look at exam questions for that topic as you learn it then just look at the markscheme to see what comes up (since you have so many practice questions available). then memorise anything relevant you learned from the markscheme.
the key is just once you have learnt a topic to memorise any important stuff then try and attack as many exam questions as possible. if you have seen lots and lots of questions the likelihood of being stumped in an exam gets smaller and smaller
also people might say for physics understanding stuff is the main thing which is true. but you can pick up so many marks through good memorisation. like there are marks for definitions or if they recycle a question and you memorise the markscheme then you can just write what you memorised. i used anki flashcards personally which worked well on the whole. i don't know how you study best but in my opinion you can't do well in physics without a lot of memorisation of the content otherwise you will simply forget it and won't be able to apply it in an exam.
hope that helps, and hope things improve for you
feel free to ask any more questions (I got an a* in physics) or if you want me to clarify because i explained it badly
i feel for you. i found physics a level really hard too. you've still got time to improve.
i also did eduqas a level physics. i found it a bit strange compared to other physics exam boards and harder to prepare for
it may sound obvious but the key is mainly just doing as many past papers/practice questions as possible
i found the old spec and new spec wjec exam paper questions helpful for getting more exam practice in
if you do loads of them until you are getting them all correct then it will be ingrained in your mind so it shouldn't be possible to forget as you will have done it so often
if you go the 2 wjec sections here there is an insane amount of wjec physics papers available: https://www.physicsandmathstutor.com/past-papers/a-level-physics/
I have to admit, some of physics i didn't totally understand. so i went through these old spec exam papers and i could see what questions came up a lot for a given topic eg particle physics. if there was a question that kept coming up i would just rote memorise the answer so i could regurgitate it in the exam without even having to think.
i may be saying stuff you already know but the key thing is to try and learn physics from all angles to try and get a well rounded understanding and knowledge. i used lots of different ways to learn physics and it was definitely necessary to understand a topic.
Some resources I used a lot were:
-a level physics online website (though you have to pay for 2nd year videos, not necessarily essential though) https://www.alevelphysicsonline.com/
-the textbook and revision/study guides made by eduqas themselves
-notes from physics and maths tutor
-these notes were essential for me: https://www.bangor.ac.uk/sites/default/files/2020-10/physics-en-2019.pdf
if you google "bangor university wjec physics exam board texts" for units 1, 2, 3 and 4 they should all come up. they explain concisely and accessibly the most important parts of physics. some of it is a bit brief but on the whole it has most of the important stuff you need
-eduqas themselves released books full of practice exam questions too which were very helpful https://www.illuminatepublishing.com/product/eduqas-physics-a-level-revision-workbook-2
-also this blended learning was good too https://www.wjec.co.uk/home/student-support/revision/revision-resources/new-blended-learning/
another way to approach it is when learning a topic you might think "what's actually relevant for the exam?" so you could look at exam questions for that topic as you learn it then just look at the markscheme to see what comes up (since you have so many practice questions available). then memorise anything relevant you learned from the markscheme.
the key is just once you have learnt a topic to memorise any important stuff then try and attack as many exam questions as possible. if you have seen lots and lots of questions the likelihood of being stumped in an exam gets smaller and smaller
also people might say for physics understanding stuff is the main thing which is true. but you can pick up so many marks through good memorisation. like there are marks for definitions or if they recycle a question and you memorise the markscheme then you can just write what you memorised. i used anki flashcards personally which worked well on the whole. i don't know how you study best but in my opinion you can't do well in physics without a lot of memorisation of the content otherwise you will simply forget it and won't be able to apply it in an exam.
hope that helps, and hope things improve for you
feel free to ask any more questions (I got an a* in physics) or if you want me to clarify because i explained it badly
(edited 10 months ago)
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