AQA GCSE Biology Exam 2016

All that hard studying wasted as exam had non curriculum topics in it

I putted a lot of effort revising waking up at 5am to make sure that I succeeded in this exam but unfortunately my hard work was wasted because of this disgraceful paper

You should put the grade boundaries down 10 Marks so it is equal due to the exam having no biology.

My daughter sat this exam, they all left the exam room' saying what was that' some were in tears. Fortunately my daughter has put it behind her and won't let it interfere with the rest of her exams - many students however will feel seriously undermined by this.

I agree, that was the most appalling exam I'd ever taken. I thought I was the only one who struggled with it, because I actually turned up late due to disorganisation. The questions in there were business studies, psychology, and anthropology related! I hope the exam board eliminate those unfair questions.

I find AQAs approach to this cynical ....so many students worked so hard ...not necessarily learning the way that they would have chosen but learning the way that they were directed and taught...They have done no wrong and rightly expected to be examined thoroughly on the syllabus they were given...This now becomes a lottery and very little to do with the students comprehensive knowledge of the subject...Yes throw in one obscure question to test creative application and thinking...this might sort out the A's from the A*s but surely most of the paper should be testing the students on the syllabus they have learned....All past papers have done this and so it was clearly logical to expect the same approach....If AQA are going to change this approach they should give teachers warning beforehand and stop making money from selling irrelevant revision guides.....Our education system and the students prospects deserve much more fairness than this rediculous and I would suggest irresponsible approach..I believe that the exam was very badly worded and ill conceived. I also believe that it has proved to be very disheartening to many students who had this as their first GCSE...It is a very stressful time and one at least expects a high degree of responsibility, fairness and relevance from the examining boards for students and their teachers.....I firmly believe that this exam should be cancelled and replaced with another paper more rellevant to the course....The country will not get the people that they need in proffessions relevant to Biology if they trip them up and discourage them like this...this is an outragious nonsense and AQA should be made accountable - not the students who worked so hard and did no wrong.

It seems to me that many people posting adverse comments are completely missing the point! What point I here you ask? Well the point being that the whole point of examinations is to test the level of knowledge gained from a given subject taught. The examining body (AQA) support this by selling revision guides which are there to reinforce the curriculum, for them set questions in subjects which have not formed part of any teaching of the subject is misdirection and crimminal. I have taken many examinations and have never had anything other than the subject matter being questioned, as an example most people will at some point take their driving test, the basis of the teaching for that test comes from the Highway Code how many people would pass their test if examiners started to ask random questions from a subject which is completely unconnected such as water displacement of a floating body or string theory. None of the mock exams were anything other than the subject matter taught, AQA needs to step up and admit fault and instigate a resolution pretty quick.

How do you expect anyone to pass on questions your revision books do not even cover.

I find it unfair

No good

Please check the relevance of the questions. Thank you

Not good . My son got A* on mocks and has really knocked his conference . Not good at start of exams

Discussed with the unrelated questions and the long questions asked, the ones that took time to read. My sons confidence have been knocked.

very unfear!

Its not fair

daughter did this paper today-what a farce! should all get a pass for the subject and shouldn't have to sit the rest of the science papers-didn't learn about any of the higher tier contents

Absolutely outrageous! I revised the whole of biology unit 1 to be asked about independent companies and drunken rats!!

Please urgently review this situation

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I strongly feel that the exam questions in this exam did not reflect the GCSEs syllabus. In addition... Because there were such ridiculous questions and so obviously not biology that my daughters confidence for all of her GCSEs has diminished Shame on the exam board!