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Teacher Resource Bank

GCE Biology
Synoptic Essay Questions – Your questions
answered

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 Teacher Resource Bank / GCE Biology / Synoptic Essay Questions – Your questions answered / Version 1.0

The Synoptic Essay - your questions answered

What synoptic content do you expect?

The essay titles will be very general and candidates will be expected to draw on
relevant information from the complete specification to illustrate their understanding
of general principles. They may wish to include detailed knowledge of topics from
any of the AS and A2 units. They may also gain credit for including material which
stems from wider reading and reflects greater depth or breadth of knowledge.

Will candidates be expected to include material relating to How Science

Works?

The choice of material to include lies entirely with the candidate. How Science
Works is an integral part of the specification and, while not being specifically tested in
the essay, will certainly gain credit if relevant.

How will the essay be marked so that marking is fair to candidates who
adopt different approaches?

AQA published a booklet entitled Guidance for Marking the Essay when it introduced
the new specification. This booklet gives a detailed account of the way in which the
essay will be marked. It can be accessed through the following link
http://store.aqa.org.uk/qual/gce/pdf/AQA-2410-W-TRB-OGME.PDF

Can we have some more specimen essay titles?

The essay titles will be very similar to those in the synoptic papers on the legacy
specifications (BYA8/W, BYA9/W and BYB678/B). Some of titles from these papers
that are applicable to the new specification are listed below.

• The different ways in which organisms use ATP

• How the structure of cells is related to their function

• The structure and functions of carbohydrates

• How bacteria affect human lives

• The biological importance of water

• The ways in which different species of organisms differ from each other

• Describe how the structures of different polymers are related to their

functions.

• Why offspring produced by the same parents are different in appearance.

• The importance of hydrogen bonds in living organisms

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 • The movement of substances within living organisms

• How the structure of proteins is related to their functions

• The process of osmosis and its importance to living organisms

• Energy transfers which take place inside living organisms

• Inorganic ions include those of sodium, phosphorus and hydrogen.

Describe how these and other inorganic ions are used in living organisms.