With exams it is quite simple, you do a bunch of practice questions and read the subject textbook so you know how to answer the questions on the exam. However, how do you achieve an A+ on assignments? How do you know your assignment ticks of the 'A' grade criteria? Thanks.
We are quite different people, haha
I find it much more of a challenge to get an A+ on an exam.
I do understand assignments tho! So hopefully I can help
GENERAL TIPS - (I know Bri posted this one, but I would like to also stress the importance of it
) My biggest tip is to look at the
example assessments that QCAA has up on their website! It has helped me tremendously, especially considering all the assignments I have had to do this year are so so different to assignments I've done in the past.
- Always proofread! it doesn't sound like it will do much, but trust me, taking some time before you hand it in to make sure there aren't any grammatical and/or spelling errors and to ensure it makes sense can really help
- Have good research! (Google scholar all the way!!) It is really hard to write an A+ assignment with shoddy research
- Pick a topic you are most interested in (you will find it much easier to work on it you find it enjoyable)
- Think outside of the box (for example, with my student experiment I looked at how the rate of reactions varied when an enzyme was repeatedly used as a catalyst - other people just did things like cutting their potato up differently) - this may help you show your understanding of a topic (i.e. I was able to show my understanding that enzymes are catalysts, not reactants, and thus wouldn't be used up in a reaction and therefore could be used again. The people who cut their potato differently just showed the impact of surface area on the rate of reaction, which had already been tested so it didn't really extend their knowledge).
- Really pay attention to the ISMG
- Get feedback from teachers as much as possible
STUDENT EXPERIMENT - I cannot stress this enough: get good data! I really suffered in my physics student experiment because my experiment was a flop, and while you will usually be fine even if the data doesn't support your hypothesis (as long as you evaluate the reason for the difference), you need to be able to graph your data and analyse it. My data was that bad for physics that I couldn't do anything with it, so I lost marks in the analysis section.
- Most of your writing should be in your analysis of results - this is important!
- Your report inquiry should contain the independent and dependent variable
- In your rationale, include your research and show how that developed the modification of your experiment
- In the methodology section, don't allocate a million words to this part of the assignment. You don't need to write it out step by step. Instead, you can say something along the lines of "The methodology implemented when conducting the experiment was adapted from [NAME ORIGINAL EXPERIMENT]. The original method was developed as a means of investigating [ENTER WHAT THE ORIGINAL EXPERIMENT INVESTIGATED]." then briefly write about the differences of your experiment and what it investigates.
- In the section exploring modifications, you can talk about modifications, refinements, extensions and redirections (this doesn't need to be too long winded)
- In the risks and ethical considerations section, identify the primary risks and how they were mitigated (i.e. PPE, administrative controls, adult supervision...). You could include a table that has the equipment used, potential hazard and standard handling procedure
- In the results section, use tables and graphs to present your data (include error bars), look at the spread of your data, you can look at R values and stuff like that. This is the section where you can also bring up any potential confounding variables (but don't go into too much detail, save the discussion for you limitations and analysis of results)
- Limitations has to do with the experiment itself (i.e. was there human error? were the trials truly fair?)
- In your analysis of results, talk about things like confounding variables, and what may have caused the results to turn out the way they did. I did a paired t-test in my analysis in order to look at the statistical significance of my data. This is also the section where you state whether or not you accept your hypothesis
- In the improvements and extensions section, your improvements and extensions should link to the limitations you identified
- In the reliability and validity sections, this is like the limitations section but this time you are talking about the data itself. You can talk about type 1 and type 2 error, statistical significance of data, and systematic errors that may have affected data collection (e.g. parallax and meniscus...)
RESEARCH INVESTIGATION- Be as specific as possible. What I mean by this is to make your research question as narrow as possible (not so narrow that you can't answer it tho). My teacher loved my psychology assignment because I was able to narrow my research question down to Western Australia - rather than the entirety of Australia, or the just the planet in general.
- Your rationale must show the development of your research! This is an absolute must. You have to mention a broad research question, then do some further research, and by the end of your rationale you should be able to state a refined research question. This refined question is what you should base your report off of.
- If your teacher allows it, I would highly recommend doing a literature review paragraph, rather than a background research paragraph. By doing this, 1) it increases the amount of scholarly articles in your reference list, and 2) it allows you to look at studies and experiments that have to do with what you are researching (for example, my biology investigation was about using synthetically designed DNA to produce an antibody response, and in my literature review I looked at three scholarly articles: 1) Bioinformatics and Multiepitope DNA immunisation to Design Rational Snake Antivenom, 2) Developing Snake Antivenom Sera by Genetic Immunisation: A Review and 3) In-vitro Neurotoxicity of Two Malaysian Krait Species (Bungarus candidus and Bungarus fasciatus) Venoms: Neutralisation by Monovalent and Polyvalent Antivenoms from Thailand).
This is a good way of finding data!
- the data you use can be qualitative or quantitative, so this leaves you with a lot of options in regards to where you want to take your investigation.
- make sure you analyse your evidence well! What are the limitations of your evidence? Do they aid in answering your research question?
- It is vital that your talk about trends, patterns and relationships in your data!
- I find that it helps to refer to the claim and research question throughout the report so that you can show that you are finding reliable evidence
- It is most important to mention them in your conclusion however. Don't forget to do that!
- in the evaluation section, consider these things: limitations of your report/evidence, strengths of your report/evidence, ethics, quality of sources (did they aid in answering the research question? were they peer-review articles? were they backed up by other sources?), improvements to investigation, validity and reliability of report (does your report answer what it is meant to answer? can you trust it?), how can you extend or redirect your research?
That's about all I can think of at the moment. I hope this helps, if you have any questions feel free to ask
Best of luck on your future assignments!