OCR
OCR GCSE Biology revision.
Ilmino organises GCSE Biology around the OCR GCSE Biology J247 specification, so every topic, every required piece of practical work and every mark scheme a student sees belongs to the board they are actually sitting.
OCR publishes two GCSE science suites. Ilmino follows Gateway Science A (J247); the alternative is Twenty First Century Science B: Biology (J257).
The exam, in short
How OCR examines GCSE Biology.
- Specification
- Gateway Science A: Biology (J247)
- Papers
- Two papers, each 1 hour 45 minutes, with the required practicals examined across both.
- Tiers
- Foundation and Higher. A student is entered for one tier, and the same tier is sat for every paper in the subject.
- First exam series
- Summer 2018
Spec aligned
Every topic on the OCR specification.
The question bank is grouped by this board's specification, not by a generic topic list, so a student works through the same headings their teacher and their revision guide use.
Cell biology
- Cell structure, animal and plant cells
- Cell division and mitosis
- Microscopy and magnification calculations
- Diffusion, osmosis and active transport
Organisation
- Tissues, organs and organ systems
- The digestive system and enzymes
- The heart and circulatory system
- Plant tissues and transport
Infection and response
- Pathogens and communicable disease
- The human immune system
- Vaccination and antibiotics
- Developing new drugs
Bioenergetics
- Photosynthesis and limiting factors
- Aerobic and anaerobic respiration
- Metabolism and exercise
Homeostasis and response
- The nervous system and reflexes
- The endocrine system and hormones
- Control of blood glucose and diabetes
- Hormones in human reproduction
Inheritance, variation and evolution
- DNA, genes and the genome
- Meiosis and inheritance patterns
- Variation, natural selection and evolution
- Genetic engineering and classification
Ecology
- Ecosystems, communities and competition
- Cycling of materials
- Biodiversity and human impact
- Sampling techniques in the field
Marking
How marking follows OCR.
Ilmino stores an examiner-style mark scheme for every question, written per board. An answer is marked against the wording OCR credits, not against a general idea of what is right.
- Each mark is awarded or withheld on its own, with the mark-scheme point it maps to shown beside the answer.
- Command words are read the way OCR uses them, so describe, explain, evaluate and calculate are each held to their own standard.
- The phrase an examiner is looking for has to appear. A right idea in the wrong words loses the mark here, exactly as it would in the exam.
- Handwritten working is photographed and marked line by line, so method marks survive an arithmetic slip.
- When a mark is lost, Lumi explains which mark-scheme point was missed and what would have earned it.
Other boards for GCSE Biology
Sitting a different board? The whole bank switches with your choice, and progress carries across because it is stored by skill.
OCR in other subjects
Questions
OCR GCSE Biology on Ilmino
Start OCR GCSE Biology today.
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AQA, Pearson Edexcel and OCR are trademarks of their owners and do not endorse Ilmino.
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