Biology

Course summary

Year 12 Firstly we will look at how digestive and gas exchange systems may be affected by communicable and non-communicable diseases, how knowledge of basic biology allows us to understand the symptoms of disease and interpret data relating to risk factors. We then move on to look at the influence of genetic and environmental factors on intraspecific variation and how the variety of life is reflected in similarities and differences in its biochemical basis and cellular organization. The course also includes the study of how size and metabolic rate affect an organism’s requirements and give rise to adaptations. Year 13 This year we look at how living organisms form ecosystems through which energy is transferred and chemical elements cycled, how human activity affects ecological balance in a variety of ways, and how genetic variation and isolation may lead to the formation of new species. We then move on to look at: stimulus and responses; the biology of the nervous systems; homeostasis and the maintenance of a constant internal environment; and genes and genetic expression.