Edexcel A Level Biology Tutors Online

Edexcel A Level Biology is code 9BN0, and its full title is the Pearson Edexcel Level 3 Advanced GCE in Biology A (Salters-Nuffield). First teaching was September 2015 and first certification was 2017. This page works from Issue 4, dated November 2018.

The qualification consists of three externally examined papers and the Science Practical Endorsement, and students must complete all assessment in May and June in any single year. Students are also expected to carry out the 18 core practical experiments that are identified in the content.

Paper 1 is The Natural Environment and Species Survival, code 9BN0/01. It is externally assessed, available in May and June, first assessed in 2017, and worth 33.33% of the total qualification. Assessment is 2 hours and the paper consists of 100 marks. It examines Topics 1 to 6: Lifestyle, Health and Risk, Genes and Health, Voice of the Genome, Biodiversity and Natural Resources, On the Wild Side, and Immunity, Infection and Forensics.

Paper 2 is Energy, Exercise and Co-ordination, code 9BN0/02. It is worth 33.33% on the same terms, assessment is 2 hours, and the paper consists of 100 marks. It examines Topics 1 to 4 again, then adds Topic 7: Run for your Life and Topic 8: Grey Matter.

That overlap is the single most useful fact about the course. Topics 1 to 4 are examined on both Paper 1 and Paper 2. Topic 5 and Topic 6 appear only on Paper 1, and Topic 7 and Topic 8 appear only on Paper 2. So the first four topics are assessed twice and the last four once each.

Paper 3 is General and Practical Applications in Biology, code 9BN0/03. It is worth 33.33%, assessment is 2 hours, and the paper consists of 100 marks. It includes questions from Topics 1 to 8, so every topic can appear, and it carries two features the other papers do not have. A scientific article is pre-released on Pearson's website 8 weeks before the examination and underpins one section of the paper, and the paper includes synoptic questions that may draw on two or more different topics.

The Science Practical Endorsement is code 9BN0/04. It is internally assessed and externally monitored by Pearson Edexcel, and it is available in May and June with first assessment in 2017. It does not contribute to the overall grade for the qualification, but the result is recorded on the student's certificate as a separately reported result alongside the overall grade.

The endorsement has its own practical requirement, which is not the same as the 18 core experiments. Students must carry out a minimum of 12 practical activities which, together, meet the requirements of Appendices 5b and 5c, covering the practical skills identified for direct assessment and the use of apparatus and techniques. The core practicals are the main opportunity to demonstrate those competencies, but additional practical work can also count if it covers the Appendix 5c requirements.

Practical work is assessed by teachers using common practical assessment criteria, known as CPAC, which are consistent across exam boards. Students who demonstrate the required standard across all the CPAC requirements receive a pass grade. Students may work in groups, but a teacher who awards a pass must be confident of that individual student's competence, and the application of CPAC is monitored through a system of visits coordinated across the exam boards by JCQ.

All three papers share a common question style and a common mathematical requirement. The papers may include multiple choice, short open, open response, calculations and extended writing questions. Each paper will include questions that target mathematics at Level 2 or above, and overall a minimum of 10% of the marks across the three papers will be awarded for mathematics at Level 2 or above. Each paper will also include questions that target the conceptual and theoretical understanding of experimental methods, so practical thinking is examined in writing as well as in the laboratory.

The assessment objectives are three, and they are stated as ranges. AO1, demonstrate knowledge and understanding of scientific ideas, processes, techniques and procedures, is 31 to 33 per cent. AO2, apply knowledge and understanding in a theoretical context, in a practical context, and when handling qualitative and quantitative data, is 41 to 43 per cent. AO3, analyse, interpret and evaluate scientific information, ideas and evidence to make judgements and reach conclusions and to develop and refine practical design and procedures, is 25 to 27 per cent.

Applying knowledge is the largest objective by some distance, and it is worth more than knowledge and analysis combined on the two topic papers. A student who can recall content but cannot move it into an unfamiliar context will not reach the higher grades here.

The breakdown shows Paper 3 is built differently. Paper 1 is 11 to 13 per cent AO1, 12 to 14 per cent AO2 and 7 to 9 per cent AO3. Paper 2 is identical. Paper 3 is 8 to 10 per cent AO1, 14 to 16 per cent AO2 and 8 to 10 per cent AO3. Paper 3 asks for less recall and more application than the other two, which fits a paper built around a pre-released article and synoptic links between topics.

The qualification is graded and certificated on a six grade scale from A* to E using the total subject mark, and individual papers are not graded. The first certification opportunity was 2017, and students whose level of achievement is below the minimum judged by Pearson to be of sufficient standard receive an unclassified U result.

The specification is also clear about how the AS fits. The A Level content includes all the content studied at Advanced Subsidiary GCE, and a student who has taken the AS would have covered Topics 1 to 4, which are common to both qualifications. Topics 5 to 8 would still need to be covered, and all the assessment for the A Level must then be taken at the end of the course.

On codes: the qualification number is 601/5299/0 and the subject code is 9BN0. The paper codes are 9BN0/01, 9BN0/02 and 9BN0/03, with the Science Practical Endorsement at 9BN0/04. No discount code number is printed in this specification. Appendix 3 states only that discount codes are published by DfE and points to the GOV.UK website.