Y9 Science Transition Test Teacher Guide

8/17/2019 Y9 Science Transition Test Teacher Guide

1/30

Teacher’sguide

Science

Year 9

Transition


2/30


3/301

Introduction

This test has been designed to help teachers make professional judgements about their students’readiness for GCSE. It assesses the working scientically strands of the NC2014; specically Scientic

attitudes, Experimental skills and investigations and Analysis and evaluation. There are mark boxes on

the front cover to record a pupil’s scores in these three strands.

The questions in this test have been selected based on their suitability to assess aspects of working

scientically as mentioned above. They are previous KS3 science national curriculum test questions that

have been agreed as suitable by test development and assessment experts at AQA.

Support Materials

To accompany the PDF of the test and teacher’s guide, which contains mark schemes/commentaries,there is a spreadsheet to enter marks that will enable evaluation of performance and allow comparisons

across the school.

A summary of the focus of each question is available, along with commentaries on common

misconceptions and implications for teaching and learning as part of the teacher’s guide. Exemplar

material will also be available in due course, along with resources to help build students understanding in

areas where they need further support.

Administering the test

There are no formal time limits, but an hour is recommended to allow the vast majority of pupils to showwhat they can do.

Less able pupils may nd the nal three questions very challenging so you may wish to consider giving

those pupils only the rst nine questions.

Coming soon

For 2017, The Assessment Research Community - ARCommunity intends to develop newly-

commissioned tests written specically for the NC2014. This work will be done in partnership with AQA’s

Centre for Education Research and Practice, Doublestruck (the creators of Testbase and Exampro) and

practising teachers. If you are interested in taking part in this work please follow this link.

https://www.optionaltest.org/about/work-with-us.php#signuphttps://www.optionaltest.org/about/work-with-us.php#signup


4/30

Question 1

“Implications for teaching and learning”

Rucksack materials

2

Assessment of learning

What this question is intended to assess …

Assessment for learning

What your students’ responses could be revealing about

their understanding, and what you could do next …

This KS3 question is about:

Working scientically

• exploring questions that can lead to a scientic enquiry

• identifying and controlling variables for a fair test

• selecting appropriate equipment in order to carry it out• interpreting data presented in tables and presenting

• explanations of the data

Looking ahead to GCSE:

At GCSE these Working Scientically skills are all

essential, where students will be looking at more

complex situations, tables with more data and further

consideration of the control of variables.

Student responses:

The original lower attaining Year 9 cohort who answered

this question found it of intermediate difculty overall.

Some students, in particular, struggle with providing full

reasons and explanations, and controlling variables forfair testing.

What you could do next:

• Ask students to generate as many questions as

possible (How does X affect Y?) in various situations

and then decide whether they might be explored

scientically, and if so how – can we control and

measure the variables? (All the questions generated

do not have to be actually carried out in class.)

• Ask students to identify, and put into words to explain,

why some methods involve a fair test and others do

not. Do not allow pupils to loosely refer to ‘fair testing’,

without also explaining what it means in that specic

situation i.e. what is being varied, what is beingcontrolled and what is being measured.

• Show a range of common lab equipment to clarify

their proper names, discuss the precision possible

and what is required by the enquiry question (e.g.

measuring cylinder or beaker? clock or stopwatch/

timer? ruler or tape measure?)

• Using tables with rows and columns labelled and

data provided, ask students to draw conclusions by

extracting data form the table, giving reasons.


5/30

3

Mark point Mark Answer Accept Additional Guidance

(a) 1

WSB41

Zoe if more than one box is ticked, award

no mark

(a) 2

WSC131

Any one from

• best needs to be dened ‘best needs to be described’

‘you do not know what best means’

• best is not observable or

measurable

• best is subjective ‘it is not doable’; ‘best is an opinion

or judgement’; ‘best is not clear’

(b) (i)

WSB61

Any one from

• use the same area of material

each time

• use the same volume of water ‘same amount of material’

‘same size of rucksack’

‘same amount of water’

‘same liquid’

‘same timing’

‘allow the water to drip through the

material for the same length of time’

‘keep the temperature the same’

do not accept ‘do it more than once’

(b) (ii)

WSB71

Any one from

• measuring cylinder

• stopclock or stopwatch

‘measuring beaker’, ‘clock’ or ‘timer’

or ‘watch’

do not accept ‘cylinder’ or ‘measuring

tube’ or ‘measuring jug’(c) 1

WSC121

• B if more than one box is ticked, award

no mark

(c) 2

WSC131

• the smallest volume of water

passes through the material

‘only 5 cm3 passed through’

‘less water passed through’

‘not as much water gets through’

answers must include or imply a

comparison:

‘5 cm3 passed through’ is insufcient;

‘not much water gets through’ is

insufcient

TOTAL MARKS 6


6/30


4


What this question is intended

to assess …


What your students’ responses could be revealing about their understanding,

and what you could do next …



• developing a line of enquiry from

a question of the student’s choice

• identifying and controllingvariables for a fair test

• selecting appropriate equipment

in order to carry it out


While this situation is a simple one

and requires no predictions of results,

at GCSE these Working Scientically

skills are all essential for more

complex situations, and predictions/

hypotheses might also be expected.

Student responses:

The original lower attaining Year 9 cohort who answered this question found it

of intermediate difculty overall, although part (b) slightly harder.

Some lower attaining students, in particular, struggle with generating

questions, identifying independent and dependent variables, and controllingvariables for fair testing.


• Clarify the meaning of the terms ‘independent’ and ‘dependent’ with

reference to variables. Use the words ‘factor’ and ‘variable’ - both are

required at KS3 and GCSE.

• Use the words ‘prediction’ and ‘hypothesis’- both are required at KS3

and GCSE.

• Ask students to generate as many questions as possible (How does

X affect Y?) in various situations and then decide how they might be

explored scientically, with the variables identied as independent/

dependent, and then controlled and measured. Ask for simple predictions

of how X might affect Y, and ask for reasons. (All the questions generated

do not have to be actually carried out in class.)• Show a range of common lab equipment to clarify their proper names,

discuss the precision possible and what

is required by the enquiry question (e.g. measuring cylinder or beaker?

clock or stopwatch/timer? ruler or tape measure?)

Shoe on rampQuestion 2


7/30

5

TOTAL MARKS 4


(a)

WSB4

WSB6

1

any suitable independent variable

such as

• the surface

• the angle of the slope

• the kind of object

• the size of the push

specic variations in objects, such

as ‘weight’ or ‘mass’ or ‘surface area’

or ‘type of trainer sole’ or ‘type

of shoe’

(b) 1

WSB4

WSB6

1

any suitable dependent variable

such as

• the distance travelled

• the time to move down the ramp

• the force needed to start the

object moving

• the angle of the ramp at which the

object starts moving

‘the time to reach a given point’

‘angle or height of ramp’

‘speed’

a dependent variable (DV) without

an independent variable (IV) can

gain credit

(b) 2

WSB4

WSB7

WSB8

1

any appropriate equipment to

measure the dependent variable

such as

• ruler or metre rule

• stopwatch or timer or light gates

• newton meter

• protractor

‘tape measure’

‘clock’

do not accept a measurement

strategy if a DV is not given or

is incorrect

(c)

WSB4

WSB6

1

any appropriate control variable

such as

• the object used

• the angle of the slope

• the surface used

• the height of the ramp

• the length of the ramp

‘distance travelled’ only give credit for a control variable

which does not conict with the

suggested investigation


8/30


6








• interpreting data from tables to identify patterns

in results to draw conclusions

• evaluating data to decide whether or not it supports conclusions

• making predictions about further results



essential, where students will be looking at more

complex situations, tables with more data and further

consideration of the control of variables.

Student responses:

Of the original Year 9 cohort who answered this question,

lower attaining students found it more difcult than higher

attaining ones, and many of these did not even attempt to

answer some parts of it.Students may struggle with the large amount of

information in the introduction to the tables of results, and

with drawing conclusions.


• Using various described situations where variables

are changed, ask students to sketch out a plan of their

own results tables. (What would you have as columns

and rows?)

• Using various sketched out tables with rows and

columns labelled but minimum details of the situation,

ask students to describe what is being changed

and measured.

• Using tables with rows and columns labelled and dataprovided, ask students to agree/disagree/not sure with

a number of suggested conclusions, giving reasons.

• Encourage students to describe results in the form

‘The …er the X, the …er the Y’, or similar.

Swing in parkQuestion 3


9/30

7

TOTAL MARKS 4


(a)

WSC121

A and B both answers are required for

the mark

answers may be in any order

(b) (i)

WSC121

Any one from

• the longer the string, the longer it

takes

accept the converse

• the longer the string the more time

it takes

references to both length and time

are required for the mark

(b) (ii)WSC12

WSC14

1 A and C and D ‘B and C and D’ if part (a) is correct answers may be in any order

all three answers are required for

the mark

(c)

WSB51

E : 10.0

F : from 18 to 25

‘10’ both answers are required for

the mark


10/30


8








• interpreting data presented in tables and graphs

• evaluating data in terms of possible errors

Light waves

• using ray models for reection and refraction



essential, where there are higher expectations around

identifying issues of accuracy, and drawing and

reading graphs.

An understanding of ray models is not required in all

GCSE specications.

Student responses:

The original Year 9 cohort who answered this question

found it relatively easy overall, although lower attaining

students struggled more with part (b) where they were

asked to read a value from a graph (unusually, from the Y axis to the X axis).


• Using tables with data provided (contrived, if

necessary), ask students to identify unusual data

that do not t with general patterns, and encourage

sophisticated answers (rather than simplistic ones e.g.

‘it looks wrong/doesn’t t the pattern’)

• Ask students to read data from a range of different

graphs where the point does falls between easily-

identiable lines. Do this in both directions i.e. from X

axis to Y axis, and vice versa.

MirrorQuestion 4


11/30

9

TOTAL MARKS 2


(a)

WSC12

WSC14

1

65

it is different from the angle of

incidence

or all the others are the same

‘number 4’ or ‘the fourth’

‘it is not 60°’ or ‘it should be 60°’

‘the angle of reection and the angle

of incidence should be the same’

‘it is 5° out’; ‘they are not the same’

both the answer and the correct

explanation are required for the mark

award a mark for ‘60°’ if the

explanation is correct

‘they go up in tens’ is insufcient

‘it does not t the pattern’

is insufcient

(b)

WSC11PC4.38 1

a number from 30 to 32


12/30


13/30

11

TOTAL MARKS 6


(a)

WSB6

WSB8

1

Any one from

• the distance the ruler dropped ‘how far until they caught it’

‘length or measurement on the ruler’

‘ruler’ is insufcient

‘length of ruler’ is insufcient

• where the hand grabbed the ruler ‘where she caught it’

‘mm’ or ‘cm’

(b)

WSA01

WSC14

1

Any one from

• to avoid the effect of her own

reaction time

‘she might stop the watch before or

after he reacted’

‘the time keeper would not have been

as accurate’ is insufcient

• the time is too short to measure

with a stopwatch

‘you cannot stop a stopwatch

straightaway’

‘it might be too fast for the stopwatch’

‘you can time incorrectly’

is insufcient

‘the ruler is more precise’

is insufcient

(c)

WSB61

pupils ‘pupil’ or ‘friend’ or ‘person’

or ‘human’

(d)

WSB62

Any two from

• the position of the ruler above

the hand

‘height of ruler’

‘the height it is dropped from’

‘where she put her hand on the ruler’

is insufcient

• the way the ruler is released ‘handedness’; ‘the same person

dropping it’

• the ruler

• distance between nger

and thumb

‘position of hand’ or ‘position of ruler’

• the conditions in the room accept examples of

possible distractions

• measure to same nger of catcher if more than one box is ticked, award

no mark

(e)

WSA01

WSB8

1

• repeat the investigation or it ‘do more than one test with

each person’

do not accept ‘use more people’


14/30


12



to assess …






• evaluating an investigative method

which has already been carried

out, and suggesting improvements


At GCSE these Working Scientically

skills are all essential, where there

are higher expectations around also

suggesting further investigations as

well as evaluating the current one.

Student responses:

The original Year 9 cohort who answered this question found it of

intermediate difculty overall, although lower attaining students struggled

more with part (c), about understanding what they would need to observe

when carrying out the method.Some students think that fair tests are about ‘keeping everything the same’,

rather than changing one variable while controlling others.

When suggesting improvements, greater efforts to control variables are

common, but fewer suggest repeating results.


• Ask students to identify, and put into words to explain, why some methods

involve a fair test and others do not. Do not allow pupils to loosely refer

to ‘fair testing’, without also explaining what it means in that specic

situation i.e. what is being varied, what is being controlled and what is

being measured.

• When completing investigative work, extend discussion about how to

improve the present investigation (by, say, repeating results, or gathering

more data) into any further investigations that could follow on; and thevariables and methods that would be involved

• Using tables with rows and columns labelled and data provided,

ask students to draw conclusions by extracting data form the table,

giving reasons.

Washing powderQuestion 6


15/30

13

TOTAL MARKS 4


(a)

WSB81

Any one from

• they left the cloth in water for

30 minutes

• they soaked the cloth for the

same time

‘cloth in both bowls was egg-stained’

(b)

WSB82

ways of improving the investigation may be any two from

• same cloth(s) in each bowl (i) a control

• same size fabric

• same level of staining on cloth ‘same amount of egg’ or ‘same

size stain’

• same amount of each powder

• same volume of water added

• same temperature of water added

• same pH of solutions ‘use egg-stained cloth in water’

• repeat the test (ii) improved reliability

• stir or agitate the cloth (iii) improved procedure

• measure the water ‘measure the powder’

• vary the amount of powder (iv) extend the

independent variable

• time how long it takes for the

stain to go

accept ‘longer time’

• vary the amount of egg stain ‘do it at different temperatures’

‘use different washing powders’

do not accept ‘use different stains’

(c)

WSB81

Any one from

• whether the cloths are stained

or not

‘how much egg is left on cloths’ ‘the cloth’ or ‘the stain’ are insufcient

• level of staining or time taken to

remove stain

‘which cloth was the cleaner

or cleanest’

do not accept ‘cylinder’ or ‘measuring

tube’ or ‘measuring jug’


16/30


14



to assess …






• interpreting data presented in

tables to draw conclusions

• applying mathematics andcalculating results

Nutrition and digestion

• content of a healthy human diet

• consequences of imbalances in

the diet



skills are all essential, where there

are higher expectations around

greater use of calculations and

converting units of measurement.

An understanding of diet and

imbalanced diets are also further

developed at GCSE.

Student responses:

The original Year 9 cohort who answered this question found it quite difcult

overall, and especially parts (ai) and (di) which requires extracting information

form tables. Lower attaining students also struggled more with part (dii),

about estimating the dietary needs of the mother for a baby.The question relies to a great extent on the student’s ability to interpret

complex tables, and to read the column headings carefully, while also taking

account of the units in each case. They may struggle to know how to go

about estimating values.


• Present students with multi-column/multi-row tables such as this (e.g. food

labelling, data about countries, the properties of elements etc.). Explain

how some columns are subdivided, as in this case. Look at the units and

convert between units and milli/kilo versions of

these units.

• Set tasks to get practice at extracting data from a table e.g. What is the

value of ‘column Y’ for ‘row X’? Which row has the greatest value for a

given column? etc.• Explain estimation as a ‘rough calculation’, or a ‘good/educated guess’.

Ask students to estimate number of pupils using a corridor in a day, beans

in a jar etc. stressing that the idea is to get near to the value, rather than

worrying about the exact answer. Move on to estimating missing data in

tables, or on graphs, where there are patterns.

Food amountsQuestion 7


17/30

15

TOTAL MARKS 7


(a)(i)

WSC121

fat

(a)(ii)

WSC121

carbohydrate

(a)(iii)

BA3.101

protein

(b)

WSC10

WSC12

1

200 g 4 if more than one box is ticked, award

no mark

(c)

BA3.101

Any one from

• vitamins a named vitamin

• water

• bre ‘roughage’; ‘minerals’ or a

named mineral

do not accept ‘calcium’

(d) (i)

WSC101

1100 accept a number from 1000 to 1300

(d) (ii)

BA3.12 1

Any one from

• to make milk

• milk contains calcium

• breast-fed baby needs calcium for

growth or for bones or teeth

‘the baby needs calcium’

• she has to have enough calcium

for herself and the baby

‘to feed herself and the baby’

‘the baby needs 600 and she

needs 500’

‘this is recommended for mother

and baby’

‘to feed the baby’ is insufcient


18/30


16



to assess …






• reading graphs, and interpreting

graphical data to draw conclusions

Energetics

• energy changes involved with

changes of state

Energy changes and transfers

• energy transfers caused by

temperature differences



skills are all essential, where the

interpretation of graphs is more likely

to involve line graphs with changes of

gradient.

An understanding of energy and

changes of state is also further

developed at GCSE; as well as

temperature differences leading

to energy transfer, and the use of

insulators.

Student responses:

Higher attaining students in the original Year 9 cohort who answered this question

found it relatively straightforward overall, whereas lower attaining students struggled.

Both groups found (ai) (reading the graph in terms of changes of state) and (b) (types

of thermal energy transfer) the hardest. In (aii) some were not accurate in reading the

graph and rounded the answer to 54 °C or 56 °C.

The question relies on the student’s ability to interpret a potentially unfamiliar

practical set-up, with an unfamiliar substance, and apply what they know about

melting and boiling to it. Students may struggle with large amounts of information

provided in one go, and with interpreting graphs with changes of gradient.


• Having taught a topic, immediately provide situations where they have to apply

knowledge in unfamiliar situations. Draw out the similarities and differences with

what they already know.

• Provide various line graphs with changing slopes, and ask students to “tell the

story of the line” as they see it (e.g. “rst it goes up gradually, then it levels out,

then it goes up more steeply” etc.). Then ask them to put values on the places

where the story changes.

• Ask students to read data from a range of different graphs where the point does

falls between easily-identiable lines. Do this in both directions i.e. from X axis to

Y axis, and vice versa.

• The processes of conduction, convection, radiation and evaporation are distinct,

but the words may be confusing. Break the words down into components; and

ask students to generate their own ways (such as rhymes, acronyms etc.) to

remember the differences.

• When teaching changes of state, do not focus on water only. Using melting and

boiling point data, ask students to tell you the state of different substances at

given temperatures.

Changes of state – stearic acidQuestion 8


19/30

17

TOTAL MARKS 6


(a)(i)

WSC12

CE20

1

B

(a)(ii)

WSC121

55 accept answers from 54 to 56

(a)(iii)

WSC12

CE20

2

point A: solid

point D: liquid

(b)

PA2.7 1

conduction4 if more than one box is ticked, award

no mark

(c)

PA2.71

Any one from

• the boiling point of water is less

than that of stearic acid

‘the water is not hot enough’

• water could not transfer

enough energy

• the maximum temperature of

water is 100°C

• it cannot get hot enough ‘stearic acid has a very high

boiling point’


20/30


18



to assess …






• the way theories develop in light

of new evidence

• interpreting observations to draw conclusions

• presenting explanations of

observations



skills are all essential, where drawing

conclusions and explaining scientic

observations clearly are both needed

in situations where new information

is presented.

Student responses:

Higher attaining students in the original Year 9 cohort who answered this

question found it of intermediate difculty overall.

The question does not depend heavily on any detailed understanding of life

cycles, houseies or meat preservation – students can work out much of it ifthey can read and hold in their minds a lot the information provided, and think

of it in terms of what has been controlled.


• Stress that science is not just a collection of things to know – you can treat

things scientically in any situation, so it is always worth having a go even

if you think you don’t know all the facts.

• Use the word ‘control’ with students. When discussion any experiments

from which we have learned something – ask: what was varied here? what

was controlled here?

• Present students with situations where they have to take in more than one

piece of information at a time, so that they get practice in drawing together

evidence from more than one place (e.g. in this case, from all

three containers).• When they are suggesting reasons for anything, encourage fuller

explanations by asking ‘… and why might that be?’ or ‘… and that is

because…why?’, or similar, so that they are as specic as they can be.

Reward these specic explanations, rather than shallow ones – in both

discussion and in writing.

Housey life cycleQuestion 9


21/30

19TOTAL MARKS 5


(a) (i)

WSA2

WSC12

1

Award a mark for an answer that shows that maggots will only be found in meat that ies have had contact with, for example:

Any one from

• there were no maggots in container 2

• there were no maggots in container 3

• there were only maggots on the meat

in container 1 or in the container that

was open

• the meat the ies could not reach had

no maggots on

‘when the meat is sealed there are

no maggots’

• there are maggots on the mesh but

not on the meat

‘there are maggots on the mesh’

is insufcient

(a) (ii)

WSA2

WSC12

1

Award a mark for an answer that shows that contact with air is not sufcient for maggots to develop, for example:

Any one from

• there were maggots in container 1 but

no maggots in container 2 or 3

‘there were no maggots in

container 2 or 3

• air could get into container 3

• there is air in container 2 ‘there would have been maggots in all

of them’

(b)

WSC131

Any one from 1

• they had no food

• they starved or died

‘maggots could not get to the food’

‘maggots could not eat the meat’

‘maggots could not get to the meat’

is insufcient

(c)

WSC132

Any two from 1

• ies or insects cannot reach the meat

• too cold for bacteria or fungi to

multiply or bacteria multiply

more slowly

‘microbes grow more slowly’ do not accept ‘it kills bacteria’ or ‘stops

the growth of bacteria’

do not accept ‘it is too cold or too cool’

without qualifcation

• prevents meat rotting ‘keeps the meat or food fresh’ or ‘so it

does not go off’ or ‘too cold for enzymes

to work’ ‘eggs or maggots grow

more slowly’

do not accept ‘maggots are killed by

the cold’


22/30


20



to assess …






• taking an objective approach when

planning to investigate a claim

• identifying and controllingvariables for a fair test

• selecting appropriate methods

in order to carry it out



skills are all essential, where students

may be asked to plan to use scientic

approaches to investigate claims.

Student responses:


question found it of intermediate difculty overall. Students struggled with

even attempting to provide a dependent variable as well as the independent

one, or were not specic enough in saying what they would actually observe/measure about the owers. Many students noticed the prompt for the

timescales and were able to include this.

This requires an extended answer that includes the prompts in the question,

and does not depend at all on any detailed understanding of owers or

genetic modication. Students need to be able to identify variables and plan

what to measure.


• Clarify the meaning of the terms ‘independent’ and ‘dependent’ with

reference to variables. Use the words ‘factor’ and ‘variable’ - both are

required at KS3 and GCSE.

• Ask students to identify, and put into words to explain, why some methods

involve a fair test and others do not. Do not allow pupils to loosely refer to

‘fair testing’, without also explaining what it means in that specic situationi.e. what is being varied, what is being controlled and what is being

measured.

• Provide students with opportunities to plan extended answers from scratch

in cases where a fair test is required. Start with providing the prompts “I

can change…”, “I can measure…”, “I can control…”, with each prompt

leading to its own sentence or paragraph. Most importantly, move on and

make “change-measure-control” a mantra for fair testing situations so they

don’t need the prompt.

Wilting rosesQuestion 10


23/30

21

TOTAL MARKS 4


WSA01 | WSB6 | WSB7 Markers should read through the whole answer before marking this question

1 1modied and unmodied plants ‘type of plant’ ‘(owers from) different plants’

is insufcient

2 1the number of days or weeks or

months the owers stayed fresh

‘how long they stayed fresh’

3 1

Any one from

• modied and unmodied plants

should be the same variety

• conditions under which owers are kept should be the same

‘amount of sunlight should be the same’

‘amount of water should be the same’

‘nutrients added should be the same’

• modied and unmodied plants

should be the same starting age

4 1

A suitable time span (which will allow

comparison) for example ‘until they

have all wilted’ or ‘until all ordinary

plants have wilted’

award a mark for answers of 2 weeks

or more


24/30


22



to assess …






• using line graphs and interpreting

data presented in them, in order to

draw conclusions• working out what to calculate, and

then carrying out calculations

Energy

• comparing amounts of energy

Space physics

• day lengths at different times

of year



skills are all essential - where the

interpretation of graphs is more likely

to involve line graphs with changes ofgradient; and where calculations from

data provided are more common.

An understanding of quantifying

energy transferred (and power) is

also further developed at GCSE;

although understanding differences

in day length with the seasons is not

required in all GCSE specications.

Student responses:


question found it relatively straightforward overall, except for (bi) which

awards two marks – some students did not consider the change in start/end

of day as well as lower energy output overall.This question requires students to apply previous knowledge to sketch graph

shapes, and calculate answers from data in the question.


• Provide various line graphs with changing slopes, and ask students to “tell

the story of the line” as they see it (e.g. “rst it goes up, reaches a peak,

then it goes down” etc.). Then ask them to put values on the places where

the story changes.

• Before carrying out investigations or formally plotting graphs, encourage

the use of sketch graphs to predict or show the general behaviour of

one factor (Y axis) as another is varied (X axis). Ask questions about

steepness, changes in slope, what might happens at the extremes,

whether it can go through the origin or crosses axes elsewhere. At this

stage, ask them to draw as only rough sketches, so they think abouttrends not details.

• Ask students to read data from a range of different graphs where the point

does falls between easily-identiable lines. Do this in both directions i.e.

from X axis to Y axis, and vice versa.

Solar panelsQuestion 11


25/30

23

TOTAL MARKS 5


(a)(i)

WSC12

PA1.3

1

Any one from

• the Earth rotates ‘the Sun appears to move across the

sky’; ‘the Sun is in a different position

at different times of day’

• the amount of sunlight varies ‘different cloud cover’

• the angle of the Sun varies ‘in the middle of the day the energy

received is greatest’

do not accept ‘in the middle of the

day the Sun is hottest or brightest’

(a)(ii)

WSC10WSC12

1

6.0 any number from 5.8 to 6.2

(b)(i) 1

PF.611

a graph starting after 6 am and

ending before 6 pm

(b)(i) 2

PF.611

a line below the existing line and at

or reaching a maximum between 12

noon and 1 pm

(b)(ii)

WSC10

WSD17

1

15 180

12


26/30


24








• taking an objective approach when considering a

claim, and evaluating the reliability of data

• interpreting observations to draw conclusions• presenting reasoned explanations of ideas



essential, where students may be asked to interpret and

evaluate scientic claims, and consider the implications

of the claim in the real world.

Student responses:

Higher attaining students in the original Year 9

cohort who answered this question found it relatively

straightforward overall, although some students struggled

more with interpreting the claims in parts (b) and (c).This question requires students to question whether data

might be representative of a population, use the idea of

reliability, and give full explanations.


• Clarify the meaning of the term ‘reliable’ with reference

to data; and ‘evidence’ and ‘justify’ with reference to

scientic claims.

• Present students with newspaper or other reports of

studies that use sampling, and ask whether or not

there is enough information presented to know if the

sample is representative of the population.

• When they are suggesting reasons for anything,

encourage fuller explanations by asking ‘… and whymight that be?’ or ‘… and that is because…why?’,

or similar, so that they are as specic as they can

be. Reward these specic explanations, rather than

shallow ones – in both discussion and in writing.

Heart diseaseQuestion 12


27/30

25

TOTAL MARKS 5


(a)

WSC12

WSC14

1

they have only investigated

British women

‘it is only one country’; ‘diet

differences elsewhere’ ‘stress may

be different elsewhere’; ‘different

lifestyles elsewhere’

‘they have only investigated women

in the 60 to 79 age group’

(b)

WSA01

WSC13

WSC14

1

they used a large sample ‘they used 4286 women’

(c)1

WSC12

WSC13

1

Any one from

• no - data refers only to

older women

• no - if you include all women the

rate could be up or down

(c)2

WSC12

WSC13

1

Any one from

• no - no evidence of the impact of

treatment

‘no mention of treatment’

• no - previous research could have

underestimated the proportion

‘it does not tell you’

(c)3

WSC12

WSC13

1

• yes - data suggests only 1 in 5

showed signs of heart disease so

4 out of 5 are unlikely to suffer

‘data shows 1 in 5 had signs of

heart disease’


28/3026

Mark point lookup table

Code Description

WSA Scientifc attitudes

WSA1pay attention to objectivity and concern for accuracy, precision, repeatability

and reproducibility

WSA2

understand that scientic methods and theories develop as earlier explanations are

modied to take account of new evidence and ideas, together with the importance ofpublishing results and peer review

WSA3 evaluate risks

WSB Experimental skills and investigations

WSB4ask questions and develop a line of enquiry based on observations of the real world,

alongside prior knowledge and experience

WSB5 make predictions using scientic knowledge and understanding

WSB6

select, plan and carry out the most appropriate types of scientic enquiries to test

predictions, including identifying independent, dependent and control variables,

where appropriate

WSB7use appropriate techniques, apparatus, and materials during eldwork and laboratory

work, paying attention to health and safety

WSB8

make and record observations and measurements using a range of methods for

different investigations; and evaluate the reliability of methods and suggest

possible improvements

WSB9 apply sampling techniques

WSC Analysis and evaluation

WSC10 apply mathematical concepts and calculate results

WSC11present observations and data using appropriate methods, including tablesand graphs

WSC12interpret observations and data, including identifying patterns and using observations,

measurements and data to draw conclusions

WSC13present reasoned explanations, including explaining data in relation to predictions

and hypotheses

WSC14evaluate data, showing awareness of potential sources of random and

systematic error

WSC15 identify further questions arising from their results

WSD Measurement

WSD16understand and use SI units and IUPAC (International Union of Pure and

Applied Chemistry) chemical nomenclature

WSD17 use and derive simple equations and carry out appropriate calculations

WSD18 undertake basic data analysis including simple statistical techniques

GCSE Assessment Objectives

AO1 Knowledge with understanding

AO2 Application, analysis, evaluation and problem solving

AO3 Experimental skills and methods amenable to indirect assessment


29/30


30/30

Documents

Y9 Science Transition Test Teacher Guide