GCSE Biology practice, marked as they go.

1. 1Organisation and the Digestive System+

   • Understand the principles of organisation
   • Study the human digestive system as an organ system in which several organs work together to digest and absorb food, breaking down large insoluble molecules so they can be absorbed into the bloodstream
   • Understand the hierarchical organisation of the digestive system, for instance the stomach is one organ made up of muscular, glandular and epithelial tissue
   • Recognise carbohydrates, proteins and lipids as large molecules that need to be digested, and name the molecules they are broken down into
   • Be familiar with enzyme action: enzymes are proteins with a specific shape including the active site, and the lock and key model
   • Define enzymes as biological catalysts that are reused after each reaction
   • Understand the effect of high temperature and extremes of pH on enzymes, changing the active site and denaturing the enzyme
   • Know how each part of the digestive system is adapted to provide an optimum pH for each enzyme, including the role of bile in the small intestine
2. 2Preventing and Treating Disease+

   • Study the prevention of disease by vaccination
   • Know how the immune system works and what is meant by an antigen
   • Appreciate that the shapes of antigens and antibodies are complementary
   • Understand what a vaccine contains and how it works, giving examples, and the concept of herd immunity
   • Understand that memory cells remain in the body to provide long-term immunity
   • Study the treatment of disease by drugs including painkillers and antibiotics
   • Understand that painkillers such as aspirin and paracetamol treat the symptoms and not the cause of disease
   • Know that antibiotics are drugs used to cure bacterial infections, how they work, and the current crisis of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria
   • Learn how drugs are made to be effective and safe, and outline the processes of clinical trials including double blind trials and the use of placebos
3. 3Organising Animals and Plants+

   • Be familiar with the different plant tissues and their functions
   • Recognise plant organs such as a leaf
   • Understand that the roots, stem and leaves form a plant organ system for transport of substances around the plant
   • State the functions of xylem and phloem tissue
   • Understand the function of stomata and recognise factors that affect transpiration rate
4. 4Photosynthesis+

   • Study photosynthesis in both plants and algae
   • Know the word equation for photosynthesis, and the symbol equation (Higher tier), and that photosynthesis is an endothermic reaction
   • Study the adaptations of leaves to achieve maximum efficiency in photosynthesis
   • Study the factors that affect the rate of photosynthesis and understand the concept of limiting factors
   • Interpret data and explain results; Higher tier students understand that any one factor could become limiting as the factors interact, analyse two or three factors on a graph, and describe the inverse square law as applied to light intensity
   • Know the fate of glucose: its use in respiration, and how it is assimilated into starch and cellulose
   • Consider the use of greenhouses and how conditions can be monitored and manipulated to achieve the highest rate of photosynthesis, including the economics of increasing the rate (Higher tier)
5. 5Plant Diseases (Separate Biology only)+

   • Describe the different pathogens, the symptoms and treatments of a range of different diseases
   • Describe the different defence mechanisms of plants
6. 6Human Nervous System+

   • Study the principles of homeostasis, give some examples and outline the control system involved
   • Learn the structure and function of the human nervous system
   • Describe a reflex arc, with detail of synaptic transmission
   • Know that receptors detect a change in a stimulus and not the stimulus itself
   • Describe an electrical impulse accurately
   • Separate Biology: learn about different areas of the brain and their relative functions, and investigating the brain and the treatment of brain damage (Higher tier)
   • Separate Biology: learn the structure and function of the human eye and the process of accommodation, including that the ciliary muscles contract
   • Separate Biology: describe common defects of the eye including myopia and hyperopia, and the role of new technology in their treatment
7. 7Ecosystems+

   • Learn about the importance of communities, including the interdependence of all the species present, and give real examples to illustrate interdependence
   • Recall the effects of abiotic and biotic factors on populations
   • Carry out field work to measure the distribution and abundance of a common species in a habitat with quadrats and transects
   • Study competition in animals and plants: what they compete for, how they compete and how they become successful in their environments
   • Understand how organisms are adapted to survive in many different conditions
8. 8Ecosystems and Biodiversity+

   • Learn how ecosystems are organised and about interdependence
   • Define biodiversity and explain why it is important
   • Study human impact on biodiversity and global warming
   • Study the possible consequences and the methods we can use to try to reduce our impact
9. 9Hormonal Coordination+

   • Learn the principles of hormonal control and the endocrine system
   • Identify the main parts of the endocrine system and recall the hormones they produce
   • Recall how blood-glucose concentration is controlled, including the role of insulin; Higher tier also explain the role of glucagon and distinguish glucose, glycogen and glucagon
   • Know the causes and treatments of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes
   • Higher tier: understand negative feedback, particularly as applied to adrenaline and thyroxine
   • Higher tier: understand in more detail how hormones interact to control the menstrual cycle
   • Understand how hormones are used in the control of fertility as applied to contraception, and for Higher tier, to infertility treatments
   • Separate Biology: study the role of hormones in plants and the tropism responses they cause; Higher tier understand the use of plant hormones in agriculture and horticulture
10. 10Homeostasis in Action (Biology only)+

    • Study the removal of waste products: water, ions and urea are lost from the skin in an uncontrolled way, and the removal of excess water, ions and urea by the kidneys is a controlled process
    • Higher tier: know that the digestion of proteins may result in excess amino acids, which are deaminated in the liver to ammonia and then converted to urea for safe excretion
    • Learn that the kidneys produce urine by filtration of the blood and selective reabsorption of useful substances such as glucose, some ions and water
    • Study treatments for kidney failure: understand how dialysis works and link this with earlier work on diffusion
    • Recall the process of kidney transplantation, including the problems of rejection
    • Compare dialysis with transplantation and analyse the advantages and disadvantages of both treatment options
11. 11Reproduction+

    • Study asexual and sexual reproduction and be aware of the importance of meiosis, fertilisation and variation in sexual reproduction
    • Compare the advantages of each type of reproduction
    • Learn a variety of genetic terms and set out a genetic cross with the use of a Punnett square
    • Predict ratios of different phenotypes and apply this to sex determination and family trees
    • Describe the inheritance of genetic disorders as applied to polydactyly and cystic fibrosis
    • Be aware of developments in genetic engineering with the aim of curing genetic disorders
    • Discuss screening for genetic disorders and the implications of using this technology
12. 12Genetics and Evolution+

    • Learn several theories of evolution including the work of Lamarck and Darwin, focusing on Darwin's theory of natural selection
    • Outline the reasons why Darwin's ideas were not accepted for some time
    • Be familiar with Wallace's ideas on evolution and how he established our current theory of speciation
    • Understand that each part of a divided population undergoes natural selection separately and over a long period of time can end up very different
    • Study the evidence for evolution, including the fossil record and reasons for extinction
    • Learn how living organisms are classified: the natural system designed by Linnaeus, the rules of the binomial system of naming, and the three-domain system
    • Separate Biology: learn the history of genetics and evolutionary theories in more detail
13. 13Cell Biology+

    • Compare animal, plant, bacterial (prokaryotic) and eukaryotic cells, and name the functions of the nucleus, cytoplasm, cell membrane, mitochondria, ribosomes, cell wall, chloroplasts and permanent vacuole
    • Explain how cells are specialised for their function and how stem cells differentiate (including the use of stem cells in medicine and the ethical issues)
    • Use microscopes: calculate magnification and real size, convert between units (mm, µm, nm) and compare light and electron microscopes
    • Describe the cell cycle and mitosis, and explain why mitosis is needed for growth, repair and asexual reproduction
    • Describe diffusion, osmosis and active transport, and the factors that affect the rate of each
    • Understand how surface area to volume ratio affects exchange in organisms
    • Carry out the required practicals on microscopy and osmosis in potato tissue
14. 14Respiration+

    • Know that respiration is an exothermic reaction that happens continuously in all living cells, and that the energy released is used for movement, keeping warm and building larger molecules
    • Describe aerobic respiration (including the word and symbol equations) and where it takes place
    • Describe anaerobic respiration in muscles (producing lactic acid) and in plant and yeast cells (producing ethanol and carbon dioxide), and compare the energy released with aerobic respiration
    • Explain the effects of exercise on the body: changes in heart rate, breathing rate and breath volume, and the oxygen debt
    • Explain the importance of the liver in breaking down lactic acid after exercise
    • Explain what is meant by metabolism, including the formation of new molecules from glucose and the breakdown of excess proteins to form urea

Topics follow the AQA 8461 specification. PrepAcer is independent and not affiliated with the exam board.