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Biology
Wesley Hammond
Leaving Certificate Biology
Higher Level
2020 - 2021
Exam Layout
CONTENTS
Summary of previous exam layout 1
New exam layout 2
Important topics 4
Suggestions of a revision schedule 5
Useful tips on the exam 7
Marking Scheme 8
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th Year
Summary of previous exam layout
1
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th Year
New Exam Layout for 2021 Leaving Certificate
Section A: Questions 1 – 7 (spend 30 minutes)
In section A you will have one additional short question included. Students will be able to answer
any five of seven questions (On the 22nd March we will know if you have less questions to answer).
- Two questions from Unit 1
- Two questions from Unit 2
- Two questions from unit 3
- The extra 7th question this year can be asked from any of the 3 units
Section B: Questions 8 – 10 (spend 30 minutes)
Answer two of three questions (On the 22nd March we will know if you have less questions to
answer). Each of the three questions will be aligned with a specific experiment section:
One question from these 8 experiments
1) To test for starch, To test for lipids, To test for proteins, To test for a reducing sugars
2) To use simply keys to identify 5 fauna and 5 flora
3) To use different apparatus to collect plants and animals
4) To carry out a quantitative survey of plants
To carry out a quantitative survey of animals
5) To investigate three abiotic factors
6) To be familiar with and to use a light microscope
7) To prepare a plant cell and examine using a light microscope
To prepare an animal cell and examine using a light microscope
8) To isolate DNA from a plant tissue
One question from these 7 experiments
• To investigate the effect of pH on enzyme activity
• To investigate the effect of temperature on enzyme activity
• To investigate the effect of heat denaturation on enzyme activity
• To prepare an enzyme immobilisation and examine its application
• To investigate the influence of light intensity or carbon dioxide on the rate of photosynthesis
• To prepare and show the production of alcohol using yeast
• To demonstrate osmosis
One question from these 7 experiments
• To investigate the growth of leaf yeast using agar plates
• To prepare and examine a transverse section (TS) of a dicot stem
• To dissect and identify the parts of a heart
• To investigate the effect of exercise on the pulse rate or To investigate the effect of exercise
on the breathing rate
• To investigate the effect of IAA growth regulator on plant tissue
• To investigate the effect of water, oxygen and temperature on germination
• To use starch agar or skimmed milk plates to show digestive activity during germination
2
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th Year
Section C: Question 11 – 17 (spend 120 minutes)
Students will be able to answer any four of seven questions (On the 22nd March we will know if you
have less questions to answer).
- One question from Unit 1
- Two questions from Unit 2
- Three questions from unit 3
- The extra 7th question this year can be asked from any of the 3 units
There is one extra full long question that will be Q15 which has a similar structure to Q11, 12, 13, 14.
An additional part (d) will be added to both of the following questions Q16 and Q17. In these two
questions students will have a choice of four parts and to answer any two.
Instead of having a choice of three parts and answering any two like below, you will have a choice of
four parts and to answer any two.
3
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearUnit 1:
2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007
Scientific
20m 6m 6m 6m 12m 6m 6m 9m 6m 20m
Method
Food 20m 20m 20m 29m 20m 20m 20m 20m 20m 26m 20m 20m 20m
Ecology 60m 80m 110m 86m 80m 80m 110m 80m 80m 80m 80m 95m 80m
100m 106m 136m 121m 112m 106m 136m 100m 109m 112m 100m 135m 100m
(25%) (26.5%) (34%) (30%) (28%) (26.5%) (34%) (25%) (27.5%) (28%) (25%) (34%) (25%)
Unit 2:
2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007
Enzymes 36m 24m 30m 6m 9m 60m 30m 30m 30m 30m 30m 30m 54m
Photosynthesis 24m 30m 36m 27m 36m 36m 27m 30m 36m 24m 30m 30m
Respiration 30m 42m 20m 36m 24m 44m 60m 24m 20m 36m 20m 36m
Cell Division 20m 20m 24m 20m 20m 20m 24m 20m 20m 20m 20m
110 116 110 89 89 124 150 81 100 66 110 100 140
(27.5%) (29%) (27.5%) (22%) (22%) (31%) (37%) (20%) (25%) (17%) (27.5%) (25%) (35%)
Unit 3:
2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007
Human
60m 40m 30m 30m 60m 30m 30m 60m 20m 50m
Reproduction
Plant
30m 30m 20m 50m 30m 60m 6m 36m 60m 60m 30m
Reproduction
90 30 60 80 60 60 66 66 90 120 20 80
(22.5%) (7.5%) (15%) (20%) (15%) (15%) (16%) (16%) (22.5%) (30%) (5%) (20%)
4
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearSuggestions for a revision schedule:
Unit 1:
Study all of unit 1 (at least 25% of paper):
Unit 1 - Scientific Method, Characteristics of Life, Food and Ecology (at least 25% of paper)
Unit 2:
Study all of unit 2 (at least 40% of paper):
Unit 2 – Cell Structure, Cell Diversity and Diffusion/Osmosis
Unit 2 - Cell division, Enzymes, photosynthesis and Respiration (usually worth between 17% - 30%
of paper)
Unit 2 - DNA and RNA, Genetic Crosses, Variation and Evolution, Genetic Engineering
Study all experiments from Unit 1 and Unit 2 (at least 15% of paper):
Experiments : One question from these 8 experiments
1) To test for starch, To test for lipids, To test for proteins, To test for a reducing sugars
2) To use simply keys to identify 5 fauna and 5 flora
3) To use different apparatus to collect plants and animals
4) To carry out a quantitative survey of plants
To carry out a quantitative survey of animals
5) To investigate three abiotic factors
6) To be familiar with and to use a light microscope
7) To prepare a plant cell and examine using a light microscope
To prepare an animal cell and examine using a light microscope
8) To isolate DNA from a plant tissue
One question from these 7 experiments
• To investigate the effect of pH on enzyme activity
• To investigate the effect of temperature on enzyme activity
• To investigate the effect of heat denaturation on enzyme activity
• To prepare an enzyme immobilisation and examine its application
• To investigate the influence of light intensity or carbon dioxide on the rate of photosynthesis
• To prepare and show the production of alcohol using yeast
• To demonstrate osmosis
NOTE: Remember that due to changes that will occur in the exam paper this year Unit 1 and Unit 2
will definitely be at least 80% of the paper.
5
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearUnit 3:
Study all of unit 3 (at least 55% of paper):
Unit 3 - Bacteria, Fungi, Protista
Unit 3 - Viruses, Human Defence, Lymphatic System, Blood
Unit 3 - The Heart, Human Digestion, Excretion, Human Breathing, Homeostasis
Unit 3 - Nervous System, The Senses, Endocrine System, Skeleton
Unit 3 - Human Reproduction, Plant Reproduction and Vegetative Propagation (usually worth
between 10% and 20% of paper)
Unit 3 - Plant Structure, Plant Transport, Plant Responses
Study all experiments from Unit 3 (at least 7.5% of paper):
One question from these 7 experiments
• To investigate the growth of leaf yeast using agar plates
• To prepare and examine a transverse section (TS) of a dicot stem
• To dissect and identify the parts of a heart
• To investigate the effect of exercise on the pulse rate or To investigate the effect of exercise
on the breathing rate
• To investigate the effect of IAA growth regulator on plant tissue
• To investigate the effect of water, oxygen and temperature on germination
• To use starch agar or skimmed milk plates to show digestive activity during germination
How important are definitions?
• Definitions are very important area as they have a major impact on your overall grade.
• Definitions are usually worth around 20% of the overall grade.
• You should approach studying the definitions by chapter. You need to have a list of all the
definitions on an A4 sheet or on flash cards so you can continuously look over them
whenever you have free time and not waste time trying to find them in a text book.
How important is it to use questions from past papers?
• It will make you aware of certain keywords that might be expected in certain answers to gain
full marks. You will also notice that you can gain full marks without always giving every single
detail on the question asked.
• It is very important that past questions are continuously studied to improve your exam
technique and the ability to interpret the more difficult questions.
Example:
• 2020 – What is the function of the myelin sheath? To insulate the impulses
• 2018 – Explain the importance of the myelin sheath in the transmission of the impulse: It
speeds up the transmission of the impulse
6
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearNOTE: Be aware that a true or false short question in Section A, similar to the question below, has
been asked numerous times in the past 6 years.
Some other instructions for the paper:
• Write your answers in blue or black pen. You may use pencil for sketches, graphs, and
diagrams only.
• Anything written outside the answer areas may not be seen by the examiner as the paper is
scanned and presented to an examiner on a screen.
7
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearMarking Schemes
How the marking scheme can change?
• Marking schemes can sometimes vary depending on the difficulty of the paper. Below are
some examples of past marking schemes for individual questions:
Marking scheme 2010:
8
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearMarking Scheme 2012:
9
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearMarking Scheme 2015:
10
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th Year11 Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th Year
Marking Scheme 2019:
12
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearHow might you determine the amount of marks awarded to individual questions:
Exam paper 2020:
The question below has four parts, part (i) 3 marks, part (ii) 6 marks, part (iii) 3 marks, part (iv) 12
marks.
Why is part (iv) worth most marks? As they have asked you to outline the events.
Solutions:
13
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearExam paper 2020:
The question below has five parts, part (i) 3 marks, part (ii) 3 marks, part (iii) 3 marks, part (iv) 3
marks, part (v) 15 marks.
Why is part (v) worth most marks? As they have asked you to give an account of the events.
14
Wesley Hammond. Biology. Leaving Certificate. 6th YearHow to approach studying Ecology?
Unit 1 is 25% and only includes Scientific Method, Food, Characteristics of Life and Ecology. For this
reason it is very important to have Ecology studied extremely well as it is a very large topic.
Below is a framework in how you should divide Ecology into different sections:
• Definitions
• Experiments
To test for starch, To test for lipids, To test for proteins, To test for a reducing sugars
To use simply keys to identify 5 fauna and 5 flora
To use different apparatus to collect plants and animals
To carry out a quantitative survey of plants
To carry out a quantitative survey of animals
To investigate three abiotic factors
• Food chains, Food webs, Pyramid of numbers, Predator-prey relationships
• Pollution, Conservation, Waste management
• Carbon Cycle and Nitrogen Cycle
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