BIOLOGY
Candidates will be assessed on both the core and the extended objectives. All candidates must enter for three components.
Candidates will sit two written components (Papers 1 and 3) and one practical skills assessment component (Paper 4 or 5). Candidates will be graded on a scale A* – G. Candidates failing to achieve grade G will be unclassified (U) and no grade will appear on the certificate.
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SYLLABUS COMPONENTS |
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Paper 1 (50 minutes) A compulsory paper taken by all candidates. A multiple-choice paper consisting of 40 items each with 4 options. The questions will be based on the core and extended objectives and will be of a difficulty appropriate to grades A to G. The paper will test skills mainly in Assessment Objectives A and B. The paper will be weighted at 30% of the total final available marks. |
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Paper 3 (1 hour 15 minutes) A compulsory paper taken by all candidates. The paper consists of short-answer and structured questions worth a total of 70 marks. The questions will be based on the core and extended objectives and will be of a difficulty appropriate to grades A to G. The paper will test skills mainly in Assessment Objectives A and B. The paper will be weighted at 50% of the total final available marks. |
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Practical Assessment All candidates must be entered for one of the following components: Paper 4 Practical Test (1 hour 15 minutes). This is a laboratory based paper with questions covering experimental and observational skills. The total mark of the paper is 40. Paper 5 Alternative to Practical (1 hour). This is a written paper designed to test familiarity with laboratory procedures. The total mark for the paper is 40.
The purpose of these components is to test appropriate skills in Assessment Objective C. The components are designed to discriminate from grades A to G. The practical assessment will be weighted at 20% of the total final available marks. |
Availability of Practical Components
(a) Paper 4 is available to all candidates who are in full-time attendance at Government Schools.
(b) Paper 5 is only available to Private candidates and to candidates in Private Schools. However, the component may be available to candidates in Government Schools on special request and the Botswana Examinations Council having granted a written permission.
Weighting of Papers
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Weighting (%) |
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Paper 1 |
30% |
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Paper 3 |
50% |
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Paper 4 or 5 |
20% |
ASSESSMENT OBJECTIVES
The three assessment objectives in Biology are:
A Knowledge and understanding,
B Handling information and solving problems,
C Experimental skills and investigations.
A description of each assessment objective follows;
A KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Candidate should be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:
1. the concepts, laws, theories and principles of Biology;
2. the vocabulary, terminology, conventions of Biology, including symbols, quantities and units;
3. applications of Biology and of their technological, economic, environmental and social implications;
4. the significance of information and communication technology in the day-to-day life and in the world of work.
Questions assessing these objectives will often begin with words such as: define, state, describe, outline, etc.
B HANDLING INFORMATION
MALEPA
