Introduction
H2 Biology is one of the subjects where I feel like you can score as long as you have a decent grasp of the subject content (though I guess you still need the relevant skills and exam techniques). It’s pretty content heavy, but I personally think it’s one of the easier subjects to do well in compared to the other sciences like Chemistry (or Physics) where more conceptual understanding is required.
H2 Biology is different from secondary school Biology in that you now have more micro topics (e.g. DNA) compared to more macro topics like human anatomy (e.g. the digestive system, the circulatory system etc). I used to enjoy Biology in secondary school (highest in level for Biology / did SJBO etc) but retrospectively didn’t exactly enjoy JC Biology as much. Despite this, I think it’s entirely possible to do well even without actually liking the subject (there are many students I know who attain As for most if not all the Biology tests and exams despite not liking the subject) - and if you do enjoy JC Biology then that’s even better :)!
There are definitely students who preferred JC Biology over secondary school Biology, so it really varies from person to person; my experience won’t necessarily be representative of the general student population.
Examination Structure
There’s 4 papers you take in Biology; P1 is MCQ (15%), P2 has open-ended short questions (30%) focussing mainly on depth, P3 has long structured questions (35%) focussing on breath, P4 is your practical paper (20%).
Paper 1
MCQ (30 questions in 60 minutes, so 1 mark = 2 minutes; though most people would finish the paper within 40-45 minutes)
I personally find the MCQ paper the hardest because of the phrasing of the questions by Cambridge (i.e. I usually don’t exactly understand what the question is asking for) - it feels more like an English Language comprehension and inference paper to me, but I know some students do well in P1. My scores are actually significantly lower for past A level papers compared to internal HC school papers (where I feel like the language is clearer), so for those in a similar situation as me, I would advise:
Practice more A level past year papers to get a feel of the language style of the examiners if you are preparing for A levels; if you are in JC1 and want to score well for your Promotional Exams, then do your school papers. If your school papers have a similar language style to the A level papers then that’s great, you can choose any.
Use your P2 and P3 (content papers) to pull your P1 score up - I find P2 and P3 easiest to score if you study your content well, and so do a number of my peers!
Don’t overthink too much - that’s oftentimes the reason for students doing poorly in P1s. It admittedly takes a lot of practice to know where to draw the line between thinking analytically and overthinking though, so this will take some time and effort.
Paper 2
Many students I have met label this as a “mad rush” paper; expect to write till the last second as it’s 100 marks in total and you have just 2 hours (so 1.2 minutes per mark). There are about 8-11 questions, each about 9-10 marks.
This paper focuses more on the depth of content for the topics in the syllabus, so there is generally no cross-topics within a question but rather just a single topic. The kind of questions asked tend to be focussed on the memory-recall questions, so this is where some students score if they mug for it (conversely, this is also where students may be pulled down if they don’t).
Common mistakes:
Not answering the question explicitly, but blindly regurgitating all the information you know about the topic (do NOT do this, you only waste your time! You will just get 0 if it is not related to what the question is asking for)
Some topics have a lot of content, but the question may only require you to give a brief answer (e.g. a 2m question about protein synthesis by the ribosomes) - for such topics, I would usually prepare a list of “model answers” beforehand, each of varying degrees of detail, so that I pick and choose which “model answer” to write out based on the marks the question gives (note that you must still contextualise to the question and not just paste your prepared answer).
Time management is a huge pitfall for the majority of students for P2. Do NOT leave any question blank! It is more exam-smart to write a sub-par answer (so go for the concepts rather than focussing on being super detailed, though you still must have some level of it) that you are not fully satisfied with for all the questions, rather than have ⅔ of the paper with excellent answers but leaving the remaining ⅓ blank.
Paper 3
75 marks, 2 hours (so 1.6 minutes per mark; less rushed than P2)
This paper is supposed to be higher-order thinking, but I find that it’s the easiest to score (and there’s less memory work than P2!). It can sometimes feel like a common sense / language test which evaluates your ability to make logical and reasonable arguments.
Section A consists of 2-3 long questions (50 marks total); usually 1 is 25-30 marks while the other 2 are shorter. These questions involve synoptic thinking (i.e. you must comfortably incorporate the different topics and easily switch across topics within a single question).
Section B consists of 2 essay questions, each 25m, from any topic, so you choose one to do. Each question has part (a) and part (b). I find this the easiest to score in as long as you know your content well (or maybe because I enjoy essay-writing, but I think most of my peers would also agree that this component usually helps pull them up).
Common mistakes:
Not answering the essay question (section B) directly - this most painful and major mistake you can make I feel, because if your answer is correct but does not explicitly link to the question, you are heavily penalised. P3 essay is where most people score, so not getting marks for a component that is supposedly easy is very sad :”(
Most students see a topic they know a lot about and regurgitate all the content knowledge right from the lecture notes very accurately. You do NOT get marks for this if it doesn’t directly address the question (and you are wasting time)! Memory work is a low level skill unfortunately; the higher level is more about whether you can articulate what you have memorised and argue for a stand using your content knowledge. LINK to answer the question always. This is super important, otherwise you will lose marks for the component to get easy marks.
It is possible to get close to full marks for section B if you have good content knowledge; many people have gotten as high as 23 or 24 (out of 25) easily, though most students (who have studied) tend to hover around 20.
Not using specific content keywords and scientific terminologies to show your Biological understanding - I find being as precise and detailed as possible very helpful (most people get the right idea but are not specific enough)
E.g. “The enzyme has a specific shape that complements that of the substrate, to form an ESC, and the products of maltose are then formed, leading to a positive Benedict’s test” → not precise! It is not the enzyme but the enzyme’s active site→ not scientific in use of terminology! It is not “shape” but “complementary 3D conformation”→ not contextualised! You must specify what kind of ESC is formed as long as clues / information is given in the question (e.g. amylase-starch ESC)→ need more details! The more precise wording should be:
The active site of the amylase enzyme has a specific 3D conformation that is complementary to that of the starch substrate. During an effective collision, the starch substrate binds to the active site of the amylase enzyme due to the enzyme’s various oscillations, to form an enzyme substrate complex, causing the enzyme’s 3D conformation to change slightly to bind the starch substrate more tightly (i.e. induced-fit model). This strains critical bonds of the starch substrate (e.g. covalent bonds, hydrophobic interactions, disulfide bridges, ionic bonds - specify if you can based on question clues) such that they weaken and break, to form products of maltose, a reducing sugar that leads to the formation of the brick red precipitate in the Benedict’s test.
Do note that this is a very detailed form that is not required if only 1m is awarded; pick and choose the important points so as not to waste your time
Not reading the long synoptic question (section A) fully before attempting the question - students sometimes end up repeating their answers in the earlier parts for another part; you should read all the parts of the long question fully to avoid repeating yourself
Paper 4
40 marks, 2 hours 30 minutes (people usually have way too much time for A level Biology practicals, unlike A level Chemistry practicals).
I don’t really like P4 at all but apparently it’s one of the easiest to score in. It’s more about general knowledge than actual biological knowledge sometimes. The questions they ask sometimes can just be based on whether you are lucky enough to have a sudden big brain moment and get the answer.
You will have to work with the microscope and conduct wet experiments (e.g. cutting up plant specimens, photosynthesis experiments with water weeds and light etc). Just follow their instructions and make sure you don’t do something careless (e.g. accidentally pour away your solutions).
Biology practicals allow you to “smoke” to a significant extent under the new syllabus (no SPA) - you just write answers that are likely to be correct especially if you are rushing; sometimes you don’t need to actually conduct the full experiment (but do this at your own risk!). Though as someone who did this frequently and did decently well for most of my practicals, I would say that as long as you give believable answers, you’ll usually still be able to get the marks :)
The only exception is the microscopy question: you should actually view the slide under the microscope especially if they pre-prepare weird specimens that you won’t usually come across (so you can’t smoke it).Microscopy tips and cheats:
If you know the sample is yeast, always draw the cell wall even if you can’t see it (it’s always there but may be too small), if they ask you to draw a budding yeast cell, make up your own if you can’t find one after a few minutes; they’re pretty standard in shape so you usually won’t get penalised
When drawing cell walls, make them super thin, because examiners will award marks on how proportionate your drawings are
Obvious point but don’t shade or make sketchy lines; your lines should be clean and smooth
When drawing plan diagrams, draw the general shape of the plant tissue (there’s some flexibility due to how each person defines what constitutes tissue) and not the individual cells
Other Miscellaneous Examples
Remember your binomial nomenclature! You will be penalised one mark in most schools. E.g. the correct way to write is Escherichia coli:
Escherichia coli (WRONG - not underlined)
Escherichia coli (WRONG - there must be a space between the underline)
escherichia coli (WRONG - the e should be big letter)
Escherichia Coli (WRONG - the C should be small letter)
When writing “Golgi body”, remember to capitalise the G! If you write “golgi body” instead, you will usually be penalised, especially if the school is strict (schools like HCI will deduct one mark; happened to me before)
The above write-up is entirely from my own personal experiences and those of my classmates / peers; they may not be fully representative of other students. For additional information please ask your seniors or teachers about what Biology is about before making a final decision :) good luck!
Contributed by Judith Ko (MGS’18 | HCI’20)
A for H2 Biology in the 2020 A Levels; Hwa Chong Diploma with Distinction