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This A Level Biology Online Course will cover the full AQA specification, developing essential knowledge and understanding of different areas of the subject and how they relate to each other. It will also improve and demonstrate a deep appreciation of the skills, knowledge and understanding of scientific methods.
This course overall will nurture a passion for Biology and lay the groundwork for further study in courses like biological sciences and medicine at University or to continue studying via distance learning.
£395.00
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This A Level Biology Online Course will give you essential knowledge and understanding of different areas of the subject and how they relate to each other. You will gain a deep appreciation of the skills, knowledge and understanding of scientific methods. You will also become competent and confident in a variety of practical, mathematical and problem solving skills and develop an interest in and enthusiasm for the subject, including developing an interest in further study and careers associated with the subject
The A Level Biology Online Course is ideal for anyone wishing to gain knowledge and understanding of this subject or for anyone who wishes to study at a higher level at University and gain UCAS points. You will also find this course extremely valuable if you are looking for a progression route for further training whilst employed.
The course will be delivered online including Tutor Support for two years. All assignments are marked by one of our professional Tutors who will offer regular feedback and guide you through your course. Postal assignments cannot be accepted without prior permission from the tutor and you must have access to email in order to contact your Tutor.
You will be provided with the telephone number for your dedicated Student Support Team who will be available for any other queries that you may have whilst completing your course. You can be assured that you will receive unlimited support for your home study course, so there is no need to struggle or feel isolated during your studies.
The A Level Biology Online Course contains a number of assignments which your tutor will mark and give you valuable feedback on. You will also have access to a range of online resources.
Students will be required to arrange and pay for their examinations at an approved centre when an examination forms part of the course. We can provide an extensive list of these centres for you.
All of our A Level awarding bodies will give you a full A Level qualification. There will be slight differences between the specifications and what you will actually learn.
For the Science courses (Biology, Chemistry, and Physics), there would be a difference in how you sit practical elements.
AQA offer practicals but they are optional.
With the Cambridge exam board, you will be expected to perform the practical elements, they are compulsory. Which means finding an exam centre that has a lab for you to complete this.
With Edexcel, the practical elements are all taught in theory and are assessed via a written exam, therefore you can sit your full exam at a typical Edexcel approved exam centre.
More information about science practicals can be found here.
Course fees for payment in full include:
Awarding Body: AQA
AS Level Biology: 7401
A Level Biology: 7402
Exams: June
Study Hours: 300 – 360 hours
This A’ Level Biology Course with AQA, will give you the skills to make connections and associations with all living things around you. Biology is pretty much the study of life and being such a broad topic, you’re bound to find a specific area of interest.
The course is also ideal for anyone wishing to study at a higher level at University and gain UCAS points, Plus it opens the door to a fantastic range of interesting careers.
This course is designed to build naturally on GCSE understanding with minimal duplication of content and develop skills involving fieldwork.
This A’ Level Biology course forms part of the linear qualifications. This means that learners will sit exams for their particular qualification at the end of the completed course in the June series.
You will not be able to carry forward your AS qualification to the A’ Level qualification as they are now classed as entirely independent qualifications and you will sit either AS or A’ Level exams.
AS Modules:
Biological Molecules
Cells
Organisms exchange substances with their environment
Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
Overall, at least 15% of the marks for an AS Biology qualification will require the assessment of practical skills.
A Level Modules:
Biological Molecules
Cells
Organisms exchange substances with their environment
Genetic information, variation and relationships between organisms
Energy transfers in and between organisms
Organisms respond to changes in their international external environments
Genetic, populations, evolution and ecosystems
The control of gene expression
At least 15% of the overall assessment of A-level Biology will assess knowledge, skills and understanding in relation to practical work.
Practical Assessment
Assessment of practical skills in the AS specification will be by written exams only. Therefore the practical endorsement does not apply to the AS specification. At least 15% of the marks for the AS Biology qualification will require the assessment of practical skills through written exams only.
For the Full A Level, practical assessments have been divided into those that can be assessed in written exams and those that can only be directly assessed whilst learners are carrying out experiments.
A-level grades will be based only on marks from written exams. A separate endorsement of practical skills can be taken alongside the A-level.
Paper 1:
Written Examination: 1 hour 30 minutes
Availability: June
Assessment Overview: Short answer and comprehension questions covering Topics 1- 4 including relevant practical skills
75 marks
50% of AS
Paper 2:
Written Examination: 1 hour 30 minutes
Availability: June
Assessment Overview: Short answer and extended response questions covering Topics 1- 4 including relevant practical skills
75 marks
50 % of AS
Paper 1:
Written Examination: 2 hours
Availability: June
Assessment Overview: A mixture of short answer, long answer and extended response questions covering Topics 1- 4 including relevant practical skills
91 marks
35% of A Level
Paper 2:
Written Examination: 2 hours
Availability: June
Assessment Overview: A mixture of short answer, long answer and comprehension questions covering Topics 5- 8 including relevant practical skills
91 marks
35% of A Level
Paper 3:
Written Examination: 2 hours
Availability: June
Assessment Overview: structured questions, including practical techniques, critical analysis of given experimental data and one essay from a choice of two titles based on Topics 1- 8 including relevant practical skills
78 marks
30% of A Level
Awarding Body: Cambridge
Course Code: 9700
Study Hours: Recommended 300 – 360 hrs
Exams Available: June & November (also March in India only)
The key concepts for Cambridge International AS & A Level Biology are:
Cells as the units of life
A cell is the basic unit of life and all organisms are composed of one or more cells. There are two fundamental types of cell: prokaryotic and eukaryotic. Understanding how cells work provides an insight into the fundamental processes of all living organisms.
Biochemical processes
Cells are dynamic structures within which the chemistry of life takes place. Biochemistry and molecular biology help to explain how and why cells function as they do.
DNA, the molecule of heredity
Cells contain the molecule of heredity, DNA. DNA is essential for the continuity and evolution of life by allowing genetic information to be stored accurately, to be copied to daughter cells, to be passed from one generation to the next and for the controlled production of proteins. Rare errors in the accurate copying of DNA known as mutations result in genetic variation and are essential for evolution.
Natural selection
Natural selection acts on genetic variation and is the major mechanism in evolution, including speciation. Natural selection results in the accumulation of beneficial genetic mutations within populations and explains how populations can adapt to meet the demands of changing environments.
Organisms in their environment
All organisms interact with their biotic and abiotic environment. Studying these interactions allows biologists to understand better the effect of human activities on ecosystems, to develop more effective strategies to conserve biodiversity and to predict more accurately the future implications for humans of changes in the natural world.
Observation and experiment
The different fields of biology are intertwined and cannot be studied in isolation. Observation, enquiry, experimentation and fieldwork are fundamental to biology, allowing relevant evidence to be collected and considered as a basis on which to build new models and theories. Such models and theories are further tested by experimentation and observation in a cyclical process of feedback and refinement, allowing the development of robust and evidence-based conceptual understandings.
AS Level candidates also study practical skills.
Candidates for Cambridge International A Level Biology study the AS topics and the following topics:
A Level candidates also study practical skills.
Paper 1:
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
40 multiple choice questions
Paper 2:
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
AS Level Structured Questions
6o marks
Paper 3:
Time: 2 hours
Practical work & structured questions. Questions are based on the practical skills in the practical assessment section of the syllabus.
4o marks
Paper 4:
Time: 2 hours
Based on the A Level syllabus
Structured Questions
100 marks
Paper 5:
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
30 marks
Questions are based on the practical skills of planning, analysis & evaluation.
You do not need any prior learning knowledge or experience to take this course. This course is openly available to anyone who wishes to take part in a highly rewarding home study course, although you would be expected to have a reasonable standard of literacy.
You have the freedom to start the course at any time and continue your studies at your own pace for a period of up to 2 years from initial registration with the full support of your Tutor. You do not have to wait until September, when a traditional school starts.
Once you enrol, you will have access to our online portal 24/7. Here you will find study materials that have been specially prepared by your tutor, there will be assessments, study notes, eBooks and assignments all relating to your course. Everything in this course is structured to follow the course specification, so all topics and units cover everything you need to learn. Your tutor will mark your work and give you written feedback on areas you need to improve or explain what you have done well. You can also ask your tutor questions if you get stuck on a topic or need something explaining a little more.
When you approach the exams, your tutor will set you a series of practise exam papers so that you can know what to expect in your exam, and you can go into them feeling confident.
You will be provided with eBooks for this course. If you want to purchase physical books in addition, then we can provide you with the book ISBN numbers.
Students will be required to arrange and pay for their examinations (including any practicals they wish to take) at an approved centre. We can provide an extensive list of these centres for you.
Most of our A Levels are available internationally. We offer A Levels with three different awarding bodies, AQA, Cambridge and Edexcel. If the course is only available via the AQA awarding body then of course you can still take our course, however the exams must be taken in the UK.
Cambridge, and Edexcel both have international exam centres, so you may be able to take the exams locally to you. Should you need any help, then please do get in touch and we can assist you on this.
We recommend that you are able to dedicate between 300 and 360 hours’ study time, plus additional time for completing assignments.
Yes, you can work at your own pace to complete this course. Despite having 24 months Tutor Support, once you enrol you will be asked when you wish to complete, and your tutor can work along side you to achieve this.
For example, any A-Level course undertaken has a recommended 360 guided learning hours. Breaking down a 360 hour course into 12 weeks, you would need to be able to commit to 30 hours per week of studying. It is entirely up to you the amount of time you can commit to studying. But with online learning, having the flexibility is a real advantage. This allows you to set the pace. Take your time or Fast-track, get the qualification when you need it.
Yes you will gain UCAS points and these depend on your final grade once you have completed your exams.
For more information about UCAS points click here
All of our A Level awarding bodies will give you a full A Level qualification. There will be slight differences between the specifications and what you will actually learn.
For the Science courses (Biology, Chemistry, and Physics), there would be a difference in how you sit practical elements.
AQA offers practicals but they are optional.
With the Cambridge exam board, you will be expected to perform the practical elements, they are compulsory. Which means finding an exam centre that has a lab for you to complete this.
With Edexcel, the practical elements are all taught in theory and are assessed via a written exam, therefore you can sit your full exam at a typical Edexcel approved exam centre.
More information about science practicals can be found here.
In most cases yes, what we would ask is for the course codes that you have taken in sixth form/college and we will see if we can match them up.
In most cases you can, If you go to the individual course page you should be able to see if this option is available for you.
It is recommended that you aim to book your examinations 4/6 month prior to sitting them to avoid late entry fee charges. Additionally, we would advise that you contact a few exam centres and find out the best price, as they can fluctuate greatly.
You will sit the same exam as thousands of students across the country in an exam centre, and achieve the same qualification as everyone else. A-Level qualifications are recognised by the world’s best universities and employers, giving students a wide range of options in their education and career.
Just like sitting your A Levels in a school, your tutor will be able to provide you with predicted grades, and references for university applications.
Of course, all of our courses are tailored to cover the entire specification and are split into topics. You will have assignments to complete on every topic where your tutor will give you feedback. If you are struggling with an aspect then you can message your tutor and they can provide more information for you.
As your exams approach, your tutor will set a series of exam papers for you to take, so you can get a feel for the real thing.
If you complete all of your assignments, and your practise exam papers then there is no reason why you shouldn’t achieve a top grade.
If you are interested in any of our courses then fill in this form to receive more information to your email.
Alternatively click on the chat logo in the bottom right hand corner and contact us there. We look forward to hearing from you.
