Biology-Unit 4 End of Year Exam Tips

[ariawuu]

Hey guys,

I did bio 3/4 this year and i compiled a list of tips I've gathered from vcaa reports prior to my unit 4 exams. Just a quick summary that would hopefully get you some marks + some advice when approaching the exam.  


Before the exam Please acknowledge that ....

   When answering questions try to NEVER give inferences. -This is very important-


   Pedigrees (2 marks) 1 mark is for pedigree 1 mark for key/legend


   Always indicate what alleles is what eg Let B= Black, b= white  


   Never forget to include gender for giving phenotypic ratio (if it is relevant)


   Refer to the individuals in the pedigree when answering questions. -always be concise-  


   Name one isolation barrier involved in allopatric speciation; do not put geographical barrier; acceptable answers ie mountain ranges


   Drawing meiosis must show crossing over !!!


   Awarded marks for clear expression , info included and organised logically, addressed question directly.


   If you are asked to draw a plasmid, do not just draw a circle, draw two circles to show it is double stranded!!


During the exam

This is what i did but of course everyone has different methods..

Suggested time to spend on each section by VCAA:
30minutes on Multiple Choice(Section A) and
1.5 hours on Short Answers (Section B).

You have 15 minutes reading time; It is best to spend 10 minutes reading (& brainstorming answers) for the short answers. The rest of the 5minutes start doing the Multiple Choice questions mentally so when it is writing time you can just quickly shade in the boxes! Do the most you can in Section A then head to Section B straight away so you can spend as much time on the short answers as possible! -Given that they worth 1+ marks) Note: In Section B, I Began with questions I was comfortable with to build up confidence and so I had less of a chance developing a mental blank(which often arises when you panic)~ Once finished, head back to Section A to complete the rest of your MC; if you're stuck eliminate what is obviously wrong and take a lucky guess! (Remember- MC questions are only worth 1 mark).

I hope this will be of great help to you and good luck with your studies!  

P.S: Those who have done biology 3/4 please do not hesitate to add in your own tips via posts! Let's be of great help to each other =]

 Also check out Russ' thread--> http://vce.atarnotes.com/forum/index.php/topic,36018.0.html

Note: Read my post below on how to go about with prac exams.

I have more to add also.. to those who are going into bio 3/4 without any knowledge from 1/2, sacs are just as important as exams despite it makes up 34% of the SS. For some people they are better at exams than sacs or vice versa but it all comes down to good preparation and tactics!!!

[Russ]

Good tips, thanks for these. I added them + a linkback to the major thread

[Greatness]

Ill add in some tips that i found useful in my studies of biology.

-Write up chapter summaries!! I found these very helpful. Come exam time you dont want to be writing up a slab of notes for the entire unit. If you have done chapter summaries then you can condense these notes further to the more fine details. Also, after you've written these read/review them!! There is no point in writing them up if you dont review them regularly.

-Biology is all about exam technique. The more variety of exam questions you complete, the likelihood of you losing marks in the exam for not answering a question properly is greatly reduced.

-Read the assessment reports, these will give you insight in how to and how not to write your responses

-Do well in your SACs, you will want to be ranked quite highly if you have a weak cohort.

-If you ever have questions always ask your teacher or VN, you're better off understanding a concept than ignoring it thinking you understand it. The exam questions usually require you to  apply your understanding therefore it is imperative that you ask questions when you have queries.

-There are A LOT of exams on these forums so download them and do as many as possible.

These are the main things that i can think of but remember to revise regularly!! Cramming doesnt work well with biology, but there are some freaks who can do it...

[thushan]

I wrote this on another thread, but here goes:

"Textbook: Nature, hands down. Excellent resource which precisely explains the concepts in depth. However, like all textbooks it does have its errors and missing parts. I used Nature as my main textbook and Heinemann (which is quite detailed in some respects, yet extremely brief in others) as a supplement.

Supplementary resources: A+ Notes are excellent, Lisachem Biology 12 Student Study Guide, BioZone

Lecture Programs: TSFX. Ian Macdonnell is an excellent lecturer; he taught in such a way that it was fun to listen and you learn a heap. The notes were my main resource for study.

As I said in another thread, Andrew Douch is a brilliant teacher, and his podcasts were quite detailed and clear - the main reason I did well in biology. Listen to him on your iPod in the train - seriously. You find that in SACs and the exams his voice sometimes goes through your head.

Past Papers: STAV ones are very good, NEAP decent, LisaChem decent, TSSM atrocious. For unit 3, do VCAAs from 2006-2010 (I'd do 2006 last, it was the most difficult unit 3 paper, A+ was 72%) and for unit 4 from 1997-2010, as the course hasn't changed. The 1997-2001 papers your school may give you, or you can find on VCEnotes.

Keep an ear out for exam technique, because in Biology wording is extremely important and the examiners are pedantic."

And another tip; if you understand the first principles behind all the stuff you cover in biology, you will find that wording in your answers in the exam is no problem.

[ariawuu]

Ian MacDonnell really knows his stuff but he made me super sleepy everytime he presented unlike the other lecturer Veronica Parson i think her name is, her voice maintained my focus throughout the entire time she was talking.

Oh and another tip when going through prac exams: Do some that are untimed so you get the hang of the types of questions THEN do a good lot of at least 10 papers under timed conditions. If you have say 30 prac exams and cant get through them all just do the multiple choice questions(you need as much practice as you can possibly get). As for short answers just expose yourself to read the questions and the answers in the report so it kind of helps you set a clear idea how to tackle questions as well as refreshing the contents you have learnt.

[echenzi]

For unit 4, the course has not changed much in the years so even exams from 2000 will have relevance.

[pi]

Ian MacDonnell really knows his stuff but he made me super sleepy everytime he presented unlike the other lecturer Veronica Parson i think her name is, her voice maintained my focus throughout the entire time she was talking.

+1, he is a good lecturer, but I nearly fell asleep too!

Another tip:
If asked for a name of something, always write the full name.
Q: What is the molecule that carries genetic information and is primarily found the nucleus of a eukaryotic cell?
A: Deoxyribonucleic acid

Not DNA, or RNA (nucleus!), or protein (wtf?)

[simpak]

I haaaate lectures for science and maths subjects.

[azngirl456]

The content in VCe biology is relatively easy to master and can be quite interesting at times. The disease and the immune system section might be a bit challenging to understand at first but nevertheless everything appears to be straightforward.

Just like everyone else is saying, your performance in SACs and exams are critical in achieving a high study score for biology. Make sure you read the previous years examiner reports and know VCAA's marking scheme. If a question is worth 3 marks, make sure your answer includes the 3 crucial points they're looking for. Also, don't waffle on with the intricacies behind the workings of a biological concept, you will waste time which could be spent on other questions. Your wording is also important because 'a change of guanine to thymine' is different to 'a change of guanine from thymine'

Doing lots of practice exams helps a lot in biology and you can better prepare for sacs by doing relevant questions from old exams. From doing practice exams, you will discover that VCe biology and many other subjects focus on 'applying' knowledge and not just the regurgitation of knowledge. So make sure throughout the year that you're on top of knowing everything you need from the study design and take the time to do exam questions progressively leading up to exam days.

I also think Ian macdonell is one of the best biology teachers I've come across. He's really passionate about the subject and his power points are just wonderful. Attend the tsfx biology lectures and you'll be impressed! Andrew douch isn't that bad either...google him for his biology podcasts

[azngirl456]

I haaaate lectures for science and maths subjects.

I don't like maths ones either...the lecturer usually just shows you the method but not how the theory behind the method works

[simpak]

I haaaate lectures for science and maths subjects.

I don't like maths ones either...the lecturer usually just shows you the method but not how the theory behind the method works

They are just pointless, entirely.  Better off spending that time studying the things you need, rather than listening to someone summarise the whole course.  By the time the lectures start it's like, a month after you should have become comfortable with the brief of the content.
In Literature/English subjects the lecturers can give you different ideas but science and maths are too straight forward.
Waste of money, waste of time, easy way out.

[thushan]

I haaaate lectures for science and maths subjects.

I don't like maths ones either...the lecturer usually just shows you the method but not how the theory behind the method works

They are just pointless, entirely.  Better off spending that time studying the things you need, rather than listening to someone summarise the whole course.  By the time the lectures start it's like, a month after you should have become comfortable with the brief of the content.
In Literature/English subjects the lecturers can give you different ideas but science and maths are too straight forward.
Waste of money, waste of time, easy way out.

Disagree; TSFX Biology was excellent - the course basically made sense after I went into the lecture.

For maths, I agree with mavis; best to do qns.

[thushan]

Summer/Winter schools are good if you want a head start and didn't do too much work over the hols
Exam Prep lectures are the best ones for content
I haven't been to the Intensive Workshop ones though...

[ariawuu]

Intensive workshops are pretty much what you get from summer/winter school lectures. I cant stand either of them; I'd rather stay home and study. Its a waste of money/time for all i can say. And personally its just another way of making people feel their need it when in fact all they do is sit there and listen and simply review things learnt in class- something anyone can do at their own pace, in the comforts of their own house.  

Edit: What I'm trying to say is that if no one can stand boring lectures then you're not going to benefit from it+ travel costs you time=marks wont be guaranteed.  

[azngirl456]

Disagree; TSFX Biology was excellent - the course basically made sense after I went into the lecture.
For maths, I agree with mavis; best to do qns.

Mm which TSFX lectures are good: Intense Workshops? Summer/winter schools? Exam prep lectures?

Summer/winter school tsfx lectures are good if you want to get ahead in the theory of the subject you're doing. They usually go through area study 1 and delve a little into area study 2. I personally think they're good to go to because I enjoy listening and taking notes from lectures. Positives-tsfx usually get really good lecturers who are good communicaters, so not people who read off from the book. Negatives-the notes you get aren't complete for unit 3 or 4...you're usually missing a few notes/concepts from area study 2. Overall, the cost for these lectures are  from $95 to $130 for 6,12 or 18 hour lecture (spread across 2 or 3 days)

Tsfx intense workshops are good for people who find the theory behind the subject they're doing, difficult and challenging to understand. You get a numerous amount of books and each week the teacher explains and goes through it page by page. It can get a bit boring after a while if you're a bright student who already knows everything inside out. Positives- the books you get are the complete set of unit 3 or 4 notes, so it covers every dot point of the study design. The workshops are also good for revision. Negatives-the intense workshops start a month later after you start school, that means that they start teaching you things after you learnt it ages. So essentially, the intense workshops will always be behind on what you're learning at school. Also, the workshops are not that 'intense'..they go through things relatively slowly and if you think their going too fast, you can request for them to go slower. As with teachers, you might not get a good teacher if you go on certain days and there are always long lists of requests on the day where the good teacher teaches.
Intense workshops cost $560 for one subject for 10 x 2 hour sessions a week. If you want exam prep classes then that's another $200

The tsfx exam prep lectures are similar to the summer/winter school lectures. Except with the exam prep lectures, you get lecture notes that cover every single dot point on the study design and a bunch of old printed vcaa questions. There is an emphasis on exam techniques as well...and focus on the difficult concepts in the subject you're doing. These lectures go into greater detail in everything you need to know. Just the important things and the mistakes most students make.