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WACE Human Biology is an exam notorious for being content heavy and relentless when it comes to memorisation. For those who do manage to memorise the correct content, there is also the task of answering questions according to a strict WACE marking key. While these issues can intimidate many students, Human Biology is a subject that with the right study techniques can be enjoyable for students and yield high marks.
What score did you achieve?
I achieved a score of 88% in my Human Biology WACE Exam and an overall scaled score of 87%.
How would you advise students to organise their notes?
For content heavy subjects like Human Biology, I would always advise students to aim for a good ratio of diagrams to words. Human Biology is a subject that rewards understanding, not memorisation, so it is best to present your notes in a way that will aid this understanding. I found in particular, certain topics work well with different representations. For example feedback loops are helpful to learn as diagrams and comparison between the nervous and endocrine systems as a table. As for making notes, I would advise students to structure them around each syllabus point, not textbook headings. It is very easy to fall into the trap of memorising your textbook, but you will never be assessed on anything that is not on the syllabus points.
What is your advice for SACs?
My advice for SACs would be to use them as a learning opportunity. At the start of the year, I did feel a bit disappointed by some of my marks, but they allowed me to evaluate my strengths and weaknesses before exams. I found, that like a lot of students, I was memorising perfect answers instead of truly adapting my knowledge to the short answer questions and using appropriate terminology. To fix this I started increasing the volume of practice questions I was doing and focusing less on waiting until all the content was memorised. I would also recommend not dismissing your EPIs. While they may seem hard to study for, as they are experiments, there are always easy marks you can secure ahead of time,(such as learning to write a good hypothesis, preparing your variables and scientific method.
What is your advice for exams?
Be very intentional about how you use your time in exams and in particular how you answer questions. It is easy to let nerves get the better of you, but it is important to stay focused on what you can do, even if there are parts you can’t. I will always recommend not rushing your multiple choice questions, as each correct answer is worth 1% of your overall mark and you have a good chance of making an educated guess. For short answer questions, take a few seconds to mentally create a quick plan of how you will approach each question. You can use the marks to help guide you (for example 5 marks generally means 5 different points or 5 sequenced steps depending on the type of question. And think about how this matches up to the topic (feedback loops have 5 mechanisms.) In your extended response, you can use your reading time to once again plan. Don’t forget the questions contain multiple parts, so it is better to choose a question you can answer a bit of everything in, rather than one where you can only answer one part of. Here, it is best to prioritise quality over quantity, as writing a lot will not guarantee marks, so plan around the marks allocation.
How did you study?
I always tried to ensure that whatever technique I used, I was actively learning. I would advise students to experiment with different study techniques to find what works for them. For me, this looked like shifting from passively rereading notes to trying to actively engage with the content and apply it (as Human Biology tests your ability to apply key concepts.) Some active recall techniques I used were mindmaps, flowcharts to map out the progression of topics and I would often teach these concepts to anyone who would listen and work on my gaps. Personally, I found mind maps to be a very underrated technique – as they help you to think about the connections between topics needed for extended response questions. Once you have this solid understanding of concepts, the most important practice for Human Biology, is exposing yourself to as many different practice questions as you can, to apply these topics.
Do you have any resources that you used?
The most beneficial resource I used was definitely going onto the SCSA website. They have past WACE exams stretching back a few years, which really helps you to practice applying these concepts in short answer, multiple choice and extended response questions. The more practice you do in the exam formats, the more prepared you will be, come exam day. I also found the Creelman exam questions quite helpful, but any source of practice questions supplied by your teachers will do the trick. The WACE examiner’s reports also offer insight into the topics students struggle with each year, which tend to be assessed again and again.
How did you balance study with the rest of your life during Year 12?
I definitely feel that I could have balanced my studies better with the rest of my life in Year 12. If I could go back, I would definitely shift my mindset, viewing study breaks not as a distraction, but as necessary rest. There will always be more hours you could have studied, but carving out time for rest, exercise and hobbies, helps to not just improve your mental health, but also your focus. A study tip I could give is to start with the harder topics first rather than focusing on easier questions you know how to do. This ensures you maximise your marks and also spend less time studying.
Anything else you would like to add
A final piece of advice I could give is that ATAR is a very challenging year, but it is important to focus on the things you can control. It is completely normal to experience fluctuations in your marks, become unmotivated, or worry about scaling, but it is a very long year, so focus on the small wins that keep you going.
