Description

ABOUT THIS COURSE

This brand-new course focuses on developing a deeper understanding of assessment in AQA A-Level Biology and provides opportunities to explore strategies to enhance exam performance for students of all attainment levels. The course will enable teachers to develop their understanding and skills needed to assess student responses to the different question types on AQA A-Level  Biology exam papers. The course will also emphasise those teaching and learning strategies which will best facilitate improvement in student performance with a focus on the role of assessment for learning.

BENEFITS OF ATTENDING

• Develop a deeper understanding of the assessment demands in AQA A Level Biology
• Discover what examiners are looking for in all exam papers
• Enhance your analytical and guidance skills for student responses of different questions types: the short-answer, longer structured-answer and multiple-choice questions
• Special focus on the requirements of questions that test students’ practical skills and their ability to analyse and evaluation experimental data
• Learn valuable techniques to help your students to become more self-sufficient in their own assessment journey
• Take away strategies and approaches to maximise students’ marks in the exams

PROGRAMME

A Focus on the Assessment Model and the Support Available

10.00 – 10.50am

• Understanding the different requirements and demands of the 3 exam papers
• Explanation of the finer details of mark-schemes to know how marks are gained and lost
• Integrating the use of the Principal Examiner’s reports into your teaching to inform students to avoid common errors and follow the advice being offered by AQA
• Appreciating the importance of the ‘student learning outcomes’ stated in the specification and the implications for teaching and learning

Morning Break

10.50 – 11.10am

Effective Assessment and Feedback to Students on Paper 1 Topics and Questions

11.10 – 12.00pm

• The most common student misconceptions of the paper 1 topics and how to challenge and eradicate these
• Using the AQA guidance provided in the Paper 1 examiner reports to improve students’ performance
• Recommended teaching and learning strategies for the trickiest topics in Paper 1
• Resources and assessment methods that have been found to improve students’ understanding and performance in answering questions on the Paper 1 topics

Effective Assessment and Feedback to Students on Paper 2 Topics and Questions

12.00 – 12.50pm

• The most common student misconceptions of the paper 2 topics and how to challenge and eradicate these
• Using the AQA guidance provided in the Paper 2 examiner reports to improve students’ performance
• Recommended teaching and learning strategies for the trickiest topics in Paper 2
• Resources and assessment methods that have been found to improve students’ understanding and performance in answering questions on the Paper 2 topics

Lunch

12.50 – 1.50pm

Effective assessment and feedback to students on the Paper 3 requirements

1.50 – 2.40pm

• Why students find Section A of Paper 3 the most difficult part of the A-level Biology assessment: where most of the marks are lost
• The AQA guidance on Paper 3, Section A from the reports and how best to implement these
• Recommended teaching and learning strategies for improving students’ practical skills and how to improve their data analysis and evaluation ability
• How to decide which essay OPTION is best for your students – the pros and cons of each

Afternoon Break

2.40 – 2.45pm

Improving students’ revision and exam technique

2.45 – 3.30pm

• A range of successful revision methods for students
• Getting the most from AQA past-papers and mark-schemes
• Detailed guidance on students’ examination technique and to persuade them to follow these