Predictions 2025

While it is impossible to be certain about what is coming up, here are areas to pay special attention to for 2025:

Section A (Short Questions) 

• Food (featured in Section A for the last 16 years) 
• Ecology (featured 12 times in the past 16 years. It did not come up in Section A last year)
• Variation and Evolution
• Human Reproduction (not featured in short questions since 2021)
• Enzymes (not featured in short questions since 2021)
• Nervous System (not featured in short questions since 2021)
• Human Defence System and Viruses (not featured in short questions since 2021)

Section B (Experiments) 

• Question 8 will assess activities from Unit 1, sub-unit 2.1 and 2.5 – total of 8 practicals.
• Question 9 will assess activities from subunit 2.2. – total of 7 practicals (1 Higher Level only).
• Question 10 will assess activities from Unit 3 – total of 7 practicals.

Question 8 

• Conduct a qualitative test for: starch, fat, a reducing sugar, a protein (have not appeared in Section B since 2021)
• Investigate any three abiotic factors present in the selected ecosystem ● Identify any five fauna and any five flora using simple keys.
• Identify a variety of habitats within the selected ecosystem

Question 9 

• Conduct any activity to demonstrate osmosis
• Investigate the influence of light intensity on the rate of photosynthesis ● Investigate the effect of pH on the rate of enzyme activity

Question 10 

• Investigate the effect of exercise on the pulse rate of a human
• Prepare and examined microscopically the transverse section of a dicotyledonous stem
• Dissect, display and identify an ox’s or a sheep’s heart

Section C (Long Questions) 

• Ecology 
• DNA and RNA/Genetic Crosses/Variation and Evolution 
• Photosynthesis and Respiration
• Enzymes 

Section C (Long Questions with option i.e. Q16 and Q17) 

• Bacteria, Fungi & Yeast (featured as a long question 13 times in the past 15 years) ● The Nervous System (featured as an option 9 times in the past 15 years, did not appear last year)
• The Skeleton and Muscles (has not featured in Section C since 2022) ● Plant Transport (has not featured in Section C since 2022)
• Human Breathing (has come up every second year for the last while, it did not appear last year)
• The Senses (has not featured since 2022)

Exam Layout in 2025

Section A: Short Questions – Answer any five out of seven questions Section B: Experiments – Answer any two of three questions 

Section C: Long Questions – Answer any four of seven questions. 

An additional part will be added to the last two questions, Q16 and Q17, in which case candidates answer any two of four parts. 

Food, Ecology and Cell Division Come up very frequently in Section A. Enzymes and Scientific Methods are asked a lot in Section B. It is becoming more common in short questions and experiment questions for multiple chapters to be asked in the same question. Ecology, Genetics, Plants and Respiration and Photosynthesis commonly appear in Section C.

LC Biology paper layout (without adjustements)

Section A: Short Questions 

Answer any five out of seven questions 

Section B: Experiments 

Answer any two of three questions 

Section C: Long Questions 

Answer any four of seven questions. 

An additional part will be added to the last two questions, Q16 and Q17, in which case  candidates answer any two of four parts. 

General patterns of LC Biology questions

Short questions consist of 2 questions from Unit 1, 2 from Unit 2 and 2 from Unit 3.
Unit 1: The scientific method, the characteristics of life, food, ecology.
Unit 2: Chapters on the cell, enzymes, photosynthesis and respiration, diffusion and osmosis and genetics.
Unit 3: The kingdoms of life, chapters on plants and on the human body.

Very common topics for short questions are food, ecology and cell division.

For experimental questions, it is becoming more common to see questions with a variety of different experiments in one question. For example, in 2016 Q7 candidates were asked about a test for a reducing sugar, how to carry out an examination of plant and animal cells and about the immobilisation of an enzyme.

The scientific method is almost always asked about in experimental questions.

Other common experiments include experiments about enzymes (immobilisation, denaturation, effect of temperature and pH on enzyme activity), about plants (digestive activity during germination, conditions necessary for germination) and about using a microscope to examine plant/animal cells.

For long questions, there is almost always a question on genetics (DNA and RNA, genetic crosses, evolution, genetic engineering), ecology, respiration/ photosynthesis/ enzymes and plants (plant responses, structure of flowering plants, exchange in flowering plants, sexual reproduction in flowering plants.

For Q14 and 15, there will almost always be a part (a, b or c) where you have to write about various topics. For example, in 2016 Q15 (c) candidates were asked about the skeleton, a dietary deficiency of a water-soluble vitamin, a genetically sex-linked disease, vaccination, etc.

2024: what we predicted

Section A (Short Questions):

Food (featured in Section A for the past 15 years)

Ecology (featured 12 times in the past 15 years, did not feature last year)

Cell Division (not featured as short question since 2021, featured 7 times in the 10 years prior)

Genetics & Evolution

Excretion – Kidneys (not featured as a short question since 2018)

Human Reproduction (not featured in short questions since 2021)

Plant Transport & Osmosis (not featured as a short question since 2017)

Section B (Experiments):

A recent trend has been to ask short questions on the Scientific Method in the first parts of an experiment question so it is a good idea to know this well. (Questions 8, 9 & 10 experiment questions come from the same units of the course each year,  appearing periodically based on the amount of time lapsed since they last appeared)

Question 8

• Conduct a qualitative test for: Starch, Fat, Reducing Sugar, Protein
• Isolate DNA from plant tissue

Question 9

• Prepare one enzyme immobilisation and examine its application
• Investigate the effect of light intensity or carbon dioxide on the rate of  photosynthesis
• Investigate the effect of ph/temperature on the rate of one of the following:  amylase, pepsin or catalase activity

Question 10

• Investigate the effect of oxygen, water and temperature on germination
• Investigate the effect of exercise on the breathing rate or pulse rate of a human

Section C (Long Questions):

• Ecology
• Genetic crosses/DNA and RNA/genetics and evolution
• Respiration
• Enzymes
• Photosynthesis

Section C (Long Questions with option i.e. Q16 and Q17):

Bacteria, Fungi & Yeast (featured as a long question 13 times in the past 15 years)

Digestive System (not featured as long question for past 2 years)

The Skin/Body Temperature (not featured for the past two years)

Excretion – Kidneys (not featured frequently as option in recent years, not featured last  year)

The Nervous System (featured as an option 10 times in the past 15 years)

Immune System (not featured for the past 2 years)

2023: what we predicted

Section A (Short Questions):

• Food
• Ecology
• Sexual reproduction
• Excretion
• Cell division
• Bacteria
• Diffusion and osmosis

Section B (Experiments):

A recent trend has been to ask short questions on the Scientific Method in the first parts of an experiment question so it is a good idea to know this well.

• Visit to an ecosystem – carry6ing out a quantitative study (quadrats), abiotic factors
• Food tests – test for starch, fat, reducing sugars, and protein
• Prepare an enzyme immobilisation and examine its application
• Isolate DNA from plant tissue
• Investigate the effect of water, oxygen, and temperature on germination
• Dissect, display and identify an ox’s or sheep’s heart

Section C (Long Questions):

• Ecology
• Genetic crosses/DNA and RNA/genetics and evolution
• Respiration
• Enzymes
• Endocrine system

Section C (Long Questions with option i.e. Q16 and Q17):

• Human reproduction
• Plant structure
• Immune system
• The skin/body temperature
• Bacterial, fungi and yeast
• Nervous system

2022: what we predicted

Section A (Short Questions):

• Food
• Ecology
• Cell cycle
• DNA & RNA
• Plant structure and transport
• Blood/circulatory system
• Bacteria

Section B (Experiments):

• A recent trend has been to ask short questions on the Scientific Method in the first parts of an experiment question so it is a good idea to know this well.
  • Question 8
    • Use a light microscope to examine animal/plant cells
    • Visit to an ecosystem – carrying out a quantitative study (quadrats), abiotic factors
  • Question 9
    • Investigate the effect of temperature on enzyme activity
    • Investigate the influence of light intensity or carbon dioxide on the rate of photosynthesis
  • Question 10
    • Investigate the effect of I.A.A. growth regulator on plant tissue
    • Investigate the effect of water, oxygen and temperature on germination

Section C (Long Questions):

• Ecology
• Genetic crosses
• Variation and evolution
• Respiration
• Photosynthesis

Section C (Long Questions with option i.e. Q16 and Q17):

• Endocrine system
• Human reproductive system
• Excretion
• Musculoskeletal system
• Plant responses
• Plant reproduction
• Fungi
• Viruses

2021: what we predicted

Section A (Short Questions):

• Food
• Ecology
• Scientific Method
• Respiration
• Diffusion and osmosis
• Cell Division
• Excretion

Section B (Experiments):

• Food tests
• Isolate DNA from plant tissue
• Prepare and show the production of alcohol by yeast
• Investigate the influence of light intensity or carbon dioxide concentration on the rate of photosynthesis
• Prepare and examine microscopically a transverse section of a dicotyledonous stem
• Investigate the effect of I.A.A. growth regulator on plant tissue

Section C (Long Questions):

• Ecology
• DNA & RNA/Genetics
• Photosynthesis
• Respiration
• Enzymes

Section C (Long Questions with option i.e. Q16 and Q17):

• The senses
• Endocrine system
• Fungi
• Blood/human circulatory system
• Diffusion and osmosis
• Human nutrition
• Cell diversity
• Musculoskeletal system

2020: what we predicted

Short Questions: 

• Food 
• Ecology 
• Cell Division
• Enzymes
• Human Nutrition
• Plant Reproduction

Experiments: 

• How to use a microscope
• Dissection of the heart
• Ecology – quantitative study
• Enzymes – temperature/ pH/ heat denaturation/ immobilisation
• Digestive activity during seed germination
• *Note that The Scientific Method almost always form part of an experiment question*

Long Questions: 

• Ecology
• Photosynthesis/ Respiration
• Genetic Crosses/ DNA and RNA
• Excretion

Long Questions with options (Q14 and Q15)

• Human Defence System
• Viruses
• Human Reproduction
• Plant Responses
• Transport, storage and gas exchange in flowering plants
• The senses

2019: what we predicted

For your reference, this is what came up in 2019:

• Food
• Scientific Method
• Cell Structure
• Cell Division
• Blood
• Blood vessels/ Human Breathing

• Food tests/ Prepare and examine animal cells/ Isolate DNA from plant tissue/ Investigate the effect of IAA on plant tissue/ Investigate osmosis
• Prepare and show the production of alcohol by yeast
• Prepare and examine a transverse section of a dicot stem

Short Questions

Food
Ecology
Respiration
Cell division
The skeleton and muscles
Protista

Experiments

Denaturation/ immobilisation of enzymes
Show the production of alcohol by yeast
Pulse rate/ breathing rate
Dissection of the heart
Effect of IAA on plant tissue

Long Questions

Ecology
DNA and RNA/ Genetic crosses
Sexual reproduction of flowering plants
Photosynthesis/ respiration

Long Questions with options (Q14 and Q5)

Fungi
Plant responses
Human nutrition/ food
Diffusion and osmosis
Human reproduction
The nervous system

Not bad, eh?