Welcome to the HSC Study Day For Science

Session Outline  The Content  The Syllabus  The Biggest Secret of All!  The Biggest Mistake of All!  The Exam ~ Sections, Parts and General Info  Diagrams  The Questions  Where to Now!  E-Day  Check Me Out

The Content This is the area that you and your teacher have been preparing since beginning the preliminary course. You have practiced and refined it in lessons and through homework and assessment tasks. It is specified very clearly in the syllabus. It is made up of two areas: knowledge and skills.

The Content The Biology HSC core includes: Maintaining the Balance Blueprint of Life Search for Better Health And ONE HSC Option chosen from: Communication Biotechnology Genetics: The Code Broken? The Human Story Biochemistry

The Content The Chemistry HSC core includes: Production of Materials The Acidic Environment Chemical Monitoring and Management And ONE HSC Option chosen from: Industrial Chemistry Shipwrecks, Corrosion and Conservation The Biochemistry of Movement The Chemistry of Art Forensic Chemistry

The Syllabus  Use the syllabus to make a summary of your work.  If you do not have a copy of the syllabus, you can find it at  Don’t forget section 9.1 … the skills you need to be able to demonstrate

The Biggest Secret of All! If you have the syllabus, you have all the questions and all the answers for the exam

The Biggest Mistake of All! Apart from not preparing well enough to give yourself the best possible chance for success … answering MORE THAN ONE option!

The Exam  All of the science exams are 3 hours long, with 5 minutes reading time.  All exams have the same format.  All are worth 100 marks in total.  All have two sections.  Section One has two parts

Section 1 ~ Part A  Part A has 15 multiple choice questions which are based on the core modules.  Allow 30 minutes for this section (about 1 ½ minutes per question)  A multiple choice answer sheet will be provided for your answers. Make sure you use it and mark your answers correctly.

Section One ~ Part B  Part B is worth 60 marks.  These questions will be a mix of short-answer and extended response type questions.  Marks for the individual questions will be shown on the exam paper.  The maximum marks for one question will be no more than 8 marks.  Answers are to be written in the spaces provided following the question  Markers Hint … if I can’t read it, I can’t give marks for it!)

Section One ~ Part B  Like Part A, these questions will be based on the core modules.  Allow 1 hour and 45 minutes for this section, or about a minute and a half per mark.

Section Two  Section Two contains questions based on the options of the syllabus.  There are 25 marks for this section.  ATTEMPT ONLY ONE QUESTION.  Allow about 45 minutes for this section.  There are a variety of question types.

Section Two  Each question may consist of several parts.  Opportunities will be provided for candidates to demonstrate a range of skills across all levels on the performance scale.  A writing booklet will be provided for your written responses. Additional booklets will be available if you need them.

General Information Correct statements will not score marks if they do not answer the question asked. Check you have not provided a response that rewords the information provided in the question. If you make a mistake, do not waste time with liquid paper! Neatly cross out what you do not want the examiner to mark and rewrite your answer. Ask for a new booklet if you need it.

Diagrams  Keep them simple.  Two dimensional line diagrams are generally enough.  Make a diagram large enough to show the detail required.  Use a pencil (see instructions)

The Questions  Identify the keywords.  What is the verb? (What does it mean?)  What is the noun?  What is the content of the question?  Plan your answer including the points that you have identified in the question.  Write your response.

Quick Quiz Time

Where to Now? For each topic:  Make a list of important terms and write down their definitions.  Match examples and or diagrams to these terms.  Construct a concept map to see the relationships between terms in the context of the topic.  Know what the syllabus is asking you to be able to do.  Make study notes based on the syllabus statements.

Where to Now?  Go through assessment tasks, topic tests, past HSC and specimen papers to practice questions.  Learn the meaning of the verbs.  Write your own questions using different verbs to test yourself and your friends.  Practice drawing graphs. Make sure to include a title, axes labels, units and correct scales. Use a ruler to join plots or to draw a line of best fit.

Where to Now?  Recall experiments conducted. Write out the aim, procedure, results and conclusion. Justify each step taken. Consider safety aspects. Consider variables, controls, validity and reliability.

E - Day  Give yourself plenty of time to get to the exam.  Arrive early. This will give you time to quickly review your study notes.  Make sure you have all of your equipment and that it all works properly.

When You Start the Exam  Read the directions carefully.  Quickly skim the entire exam and figure out how much time to allocate to each section.  Do the easy questions first.  Work on one at a time.  Don’t leave early.  Use any extra time to go over your answers.  Check your answers by reading with your mouth moving.

Check Me Out  Board of Studies  Uniserve Science  HSC Online  OTEN

In Your Handout ~ Helpful Bits In your handout, which you can collect on the way out, you will find the slides used today PLUS:  Scaffolds for 8 Key Words  Helpful Words and Phrases  Glossary of Key Words & Points to Remember

A Final Word … We wish you all the very best for your exam.