Well done!
Well done to everyone who has now finished their 2017 IGCSE Biology course. I hope paper 2 was to your liking (it seemed pretty typical to me) and all the hard work you have put in over two years has finally paid off. I guess that many Y11 students will be almost finished so it is nearly time for you to have a long, relaxing summer break. I wish you all the best of luck when the results come out in August.
Can I ask for one small favour before you switch off schoolwork completely?
If you have time, please can you leave a comment below with any tips you have as to things you have done in revision that really helped you. I imagine you have learned a great deal about how to motivate, organise and maximise your own learning over the past few months so why not leave a short comment to inspire/enthuse/help those that follow you……?
My page settings require me to approve any comment before it appears so don’t expect to see your comment straightaway as it may take an hour or two before it becomes visible.
But I hope you all have a brilliant summer and I wish you the best of luck!
PMG Biology 
Firstly, follow PMG Biology from the get go in year 10. Sadly, I only found these amazing blogs 3 weeks before paper 1. I personally didn’t like revision cards, because I found that once you made them, reading over them and self-quizzing eventually turned into passive learning which bored me and hence was demotivating, but that’s totally up to personal preference – if you like them, use them because they can be very effective. What I found more helpful was starting with websites like SAVEMYEXAMS, for example, and finding all the topic-specific related past questions for revision. Do these in test conditions and use PMG to recap the areas of topics you didn’t get right in past questions – write detailed notes and secure your knowledge. Scrutinising mark schemes is essential.
Also, use the YouTube channel SCIENCEWITHHAZEL because she has videos where she tells you which points you need to put down to get full marks on commonly asked long-answer questions. Note down and try to memorise these points because they’ll score you easy marks in the exam for longer answers, as well as shorter ones. She also goes through past exam paper questions which can be useful. Do all of this before going onto full past papers in exam conditions, because you will get more out of them with a firm basis of knowledge. Start early (Feb/March time perhaps).
But by far, PMG is your most valuable resource in terms of thorough detail which is more than any revision guide or textbook gives you. This enhances your understanding and I only wish I had found this site sooner.
Above all else though, resist the temptation to revise what you already know, ALWAYS start with past questions on your weakest areas. Thank you so much for these amazing blogs. Have a lovely summer! 😊
Thank you for this detailed and helpful comment – loads of good advice! Good luck when the results come out in August 🙌
Hi Paul,
I agree, I definitely preferred the second paper, thought it was pretty average.
as far as advice goes: I would say for biology make sure you understand before you write: whether you’re making a poster or flashcards or notes. It makes it so much easier to come back and fully learn. Flashcards really helped me as I could quiz myself to make sure I really knew it. And draw the diagrams!!!
I would also say use a variety of resources. For example, if I didn’t understand the textbook, I would search up the topic on your website (very helpful btw :)) or a revision guide until I understood all of the concept clearly. In terms of motivation, I set myself mini goals – i.e. to get to a section on the spec in a certain time, which was in pursuit of an ultimate goal of understanding everything and (hopefully) securing an A*.
Another motivation was my biology teacher predicting me an A/B, haha. Wanted to prove her wrong which isn’t a great motivation, but it helped me anyway.
Hope you have a nice summer, and thank you so much! Wishing there was a pmgphysics and a pmgchemistry at the moment…
Kate
Thanks Kate – some great advice here on how to work successfully for IGCSE Biology exams….
I have done my biology exam in such a way that i can earn a good result , for the biology exams i have worked over 2 years , giving my best. Thanks for all the teachers and the PMG Bbiology network for giving me the motivation and improving me . I made a clear statement that i am the creator of my own destiny thanks for the my god , the one and only who made this possible.
Good luck in August – I hope you get the result all your hard work deserves….