what is the best way to study for bio? (1 Viewer)

Qeru

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active recall. If all you are doing is reading the textbook you wont get a good mark. Consistently trying to recall content you learnt (maybe through flashcards past papers up to you) is the way to go.
 

Etho_x

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As mentioned already don’t just rely on a textbook like Biology in Focus to help you revise or learn new content through reading the book and answering questions. Bottom line, it’s not a productive use of time and I’ve already learnt this through experience.

Generally textbooks tend to extend beyond the scope of the syllabus and for that reason, they’re going to add in questions which have little to no relevancy to your studies at all, and are really there for you to gain an appreciation for what you’re learning. I’m not saying all questions that appear in textbooks are not related to the syllabus, but I’d suggest picking questions which align to the notes you’ve been given in class so you can at least test yourself on what you have learnt during school and what content is most relevant for you to know.

In saying that, I think you’ll find it more beneficial to be revising over your syllabus from time to time. Personally what I do (this complements Qeru’s idea of active recall), is that I will use active recall to try and remember as much information as I possibly can about a topic, and rather than leaving it in my head, I will write it down. I will then look at my notes and evaluate how much I know about the topic so I can plan my study accordingly as opposed to wasting time by fully revising over a topic which I’m half or mostly proficient in.

Hope that helps
 

Qeru

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As mentioned already don’t just rely on a textbook like Biology in Focus to help you revise or learn new content through reading the book and answering questions. Bottom line, it’s not a productive use of time and I’ve already learnt this through experience.

Generally textbooks tend to extend beyond the scope of the syllabus and for that reason, they’re going to add in questions which have little to no relevancy to your studies at all, and are really there for you to gain an appreciation for what you’re learning. I’m not saying all questions that appear in textbooks are not related to the syllabus, but I’d suggest picking questions which align to the notes you’ve been given in class so you can at least test yourself on what you have learnt during school and what content is most relevant for you to know.

In saying that, I think you’ll find it more beneficial to be revising over your syllabus from time to time. Personally what I do (this complements Qeru’s idea of active recall), is that I will use active recall to try and remember as much information as I possibly can about a topic, and rather than leaving it in my head, I will write it down. I will then look at my notes and evaluate how much I know about the topic so I can plan my study accordingly as opposed to wasting time by fully revising over a topic which I’m half or mostly proficient in.

Hope that helps
IMO reading the textbook first just trying to get the general idea is good. Then grinding out questions works (pearsons questions are really good).
 

Etho_x

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IMO reading the textbook first just trying to get the general idea is good. Then grinding out questions works (pearsons questions are really good).
Not for bio, both Bio in Focus and Pearson have terrible questions, only some are adequate and related to the syllabus. I only really read the textbook when writing my notes
 

Mimi_c22

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Not for bio, both Bio in Focus and Pearson have terrible questions, only some are adequate and related to the syllabus. I only really read the textbook when writing my notes
Where should we get our questions from?
 

Mimi_c22

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That's great news!
could you please ask your teacher for the solutions to the book, so that you can check your answers throughout your studies
I doubt she will give me a copy of the answers as we normally just discuss our answers verbally.
 

Etho_x

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That's great news!
could you please ask your teacher for the solutions to the book, so that you can check your answers throughout your studies. The teacher has access to it, in the teachers resources section
Dude. You. Don't. Need. The. Answers. As. Most. People. Have. Already. Told. You. That. They. Don't. Have. It.

It's getting close to trials anyway, ur time is spent better doing trial questions than trying to find the answers to Bio in Focus....
 

Etho_x

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Where should we get our questions from?
Past trials, unfortunately old syllabus won't be able to test everything but for things that are in old and new syllabus, you can get your questions from there. Unlike chemistry, physics, and especially math, biology is more about regurgitation of content rather than the application of content (yes there is application of content such as questions involving data etc. but it relies on the fact that you can recall ur knowledge). Therefore, you don't need questions from a textbook to do well at Biology. For prelims I only used Bio in Focus for notes and hardly used it for questions, still managed to get 90 in the prelims.

Main point: Trial q's good : ), textbook not necessary for bio
 

idkkdi

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lowkey reckon u should be able to full mark a trial as long as u can comfortably recall and do every question in the book, including the discussion q's of pracs.

and have decent exam technique for grabbing dem marks.
 
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pikachu975

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I just printed syllabus and highlighted stuff I 100% knew then went through the dot points that weren't highlighted. I basically just read them and tried to recall it a bit in my head after reading the dot point. Also do past papers and ask for feedback from your teacher, and swap past papers with your friends and peer mark them.
 

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