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It then defines AO2, describes regulatory requirements and assessment strands, highlights common AO2 issues, and demonstrates using student work and exam questions to improve performance.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/exam/","Exam",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/gcse-science-marking-and-improving-student-outcomes-in-ao2-focussed-questions/618966/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/gcse-science-marking-and-improving-student-outcomes-in-ao2-focussed-questions/618966.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Logic","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.presentationml.presentation","2026-11-05","2026-10-20",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",9,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What is the purpose of a GCSE Science mark scheme?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"It evaluates each student’s evidence fairly, rewards positive achievement, differentiates based on subject knowledge and skills, and ensures an agreed interpretation of command words and assessment purposes is applied consistently.","Answer",{"name":66,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":67},"How do points-based and levels of response mark schemes differ?",{"text":68,"@type":64},"Points-based schemes award marks for each correct point and focus on correctness of the response, often for lower-tariff questions. Levels of response schemes assess the overall quality of open answers by describing performance in mark “chunks” (levels) with linked level descriptors.",{"name":70,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":71},"What does AO2 mean and how is it assessed?",{"text":72,"@type":64},"AO2 is applying knowledge and understanding to provide meaning and explanation to observed phenomena. It is assessed through links between theory and data, including understanding models and theories, practical skills, interpreting diagrams and graphical data, and using appropriate scientific vocabulary and variables, errors, and uncertainties.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":32,"og:type":75,"og:title":10,"og:site_name":45,"og:description":12},"article",{"robots":77,"canonical":32},"index,follow",{"doc_id":79,"site_id":7},618966,1792525439,{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":83},"success",[84,88,92,95,100,105,110,115,119,122,126],{"id":22,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":85,"show_sort_weight":86,"slug":87},"Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":26,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":89,"show_sort_weight":90,"slug":91},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":33,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":29,"show_sort_weight":93,"slug":94},70,"exam",{"id":96,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":97,"show_sort_weight":98,"slug":99},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":101,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":112,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":55,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":116,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":118},"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":117,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":120,"show_sort_weight":117,"slug":121},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":123,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":124,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":125},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":25,"category_name":128,"show_sort_weight":96,"slug":129},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":82,"data":131},{"doc_id":79,"user_id":132,"nickname":42,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":33,"category_name":29,"doc_title":10,"doc_description":12,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":55,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":22,"is_downloadable":22,"audit_status":22,"page_count":139,"language":140,"language_code":8,"site_id":7,"html_lang":8,"table_of_contents":141,"faqs":142,"seo_title":143,"seo_description":12,"update_tm":144,"read_time":145,"preview_page_count":4},1099513958762,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/1000023916a998db790?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1784791008015729253","GCSE Science: Marking and improving student outcomes in AO2-focussed questions\nJane Bryant\nSpring 2019\nWelcome\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\n2\nThis meeting will be recorded\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nExam boards have an Ofqual requirement to record event audio.\nRecordings are kept for the lifetime of the specification and not shared as an accompaniment to session resources.\nThe recording will begin now.\n3\nOutline for the session\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nMark schemes and how we apply them\nAO2-focused questions in GCSE sciences\nExercise using student work\nUsing exam questions to improve student performance\nAssessing AO2 at different levels of demand\n4\nMark schemes and how we apply them\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nWhat is the mark scheme for?\nOur GCSE Science mark schemes\nPoints-based mark schemes\nLevels of response mark schemes\n5\nWhat is the mark scheme for?\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nTo evaluate the evidence from each student fairly\nTo reward positive achievement\nTo differentiate purely on evidence of subject knowledge, understanding and skills\nTo fully and consistently reflect the agreed interpretation of command words\nTo fully reflect the purpose of each assessment\nTo credit appropriate responses that reflect the different ways in which learners may demonstrate what they know, understand and can do\n6\nOur GCSE Science mark schemes\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nThe ‘Information to examiners’ section:\ngeneral guidance on the parts of the mark scheme\nexplicit guidance on what parts of the mark scheme mean and how they should be applied\nmarking levels of response questions\nexactly the same for all GCSE Sciences.\nDetailed mark scheme for each question:\nspecific guidance on what is/is not acceptable\npoints or levels of response marked.\n7\nPoints-based mark schemes\nMarks given for each correct point a student gives\nExplicitly define correct (and incorrect) answers\nEmphasis is on the correctness of the response, not the quality\nUsually used for lower-tariff questions (\u003C10 marks)\nIf well-written are very reliable\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\n8\nLevels of response mark schemes\nUsed for open questions where there are a variety of ways for students to arrive at a mark\nReward the overall quality of the answer\nDivide performance into chunks of marks (levels) on a continuum\nDescribe the performance at each level\nGeneric level descriptors linked to specific command words\nSame descriptors apply to all GCSE sciences\nSection of indicative content specific to each question\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\n9\nAO2-focused questions in GCSE sciences\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nWhat is AO2?\nRegulatory requirements\nHow do we assess AO2?\nCommon issues with AO2 questions in Summer 2018\n10\nWhat is AO2?\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nAO2 is the skill of being able to apply knowledge and understanding to provide meaning and explanation to observed phenomena\nIt involves making links between theory and data to make sense of observations\nThis skill is a fundamental part of science\nIt is not an ‘add on’ but something scientists do all the time\n11\nRegulatory requirements for AO2\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\n12\nGCSE Subject Level Guidance for Single Science (Biology, Chemistry, Physics)\nUnpicking the strands\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nStrand 1\nIncludes application of subject-specific content and aspects of Working Scientifically (WS) 1 and 3 (‘theories, models and relevant mathematics’).\nStrand 2\nIncludes application of practical skills gained through doing the required practical activities: WS2, Apparatus and Techniques Skills, aspects of WS3 and WS4.\n13\nContexts and making links\nCopyright © AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved.\nWe must","cbCaimmLLT2paiUP","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaimmLLT2paiUP","pptx",4022920,26,"English","# Outline for the session\n## Mark schemes and how we apply them\n## AO2-focused questions in GCSE sciences\n## Exercise using student work\n## Using exam questions to improve student performance\n## Assessing AO2 at different levels of demand\n# Mark schemes and how we apply them\n## What is the mark scheme for?\n## Our GCSE Science mark schemes\n## Points-based mark schemes\n## Levels of response mark schemes\n# AO2-focused questions in GCSE sciences\n## What is AO2?\n## Regulatory requirements\n## How do we assess AO2?\n## Common issues with AO2 questions in Summer 2018\n## Using AO2 questions to improve performance\n## Exercise: Marking student responses","[{\"question\":\"What is the purpose of a GCSE Science mark scheme?\",\"answer\":\"It evaluates each student’s evidence fairly, rewards positive achievement, differentiates based on subject knowledge and skills, and ensures an agreed interpretation of command words and assessment purposes is applied consistently.\"},{\"question\":\"How do points-based and levels of response mark schemes differ?\",\"answer\":\"Points-based schemes award marks for each correct point and focus on correctness of the response, often for lower-tariff questions. Levels of response schemes assess the overall quality of open answers by describing performance in mark “chunks” (levels) with linked level descriptors.\"},{\"question\":\"What does AO2 mean and how is it assessed?\",\"answer\":\"AO2 is applying knowledge and understanding to provide meaning and explanation to observed phenomena. It is assessed through links between theory and data, including understanding models and theories, practical skills, interpreting diagrams and graphical data, and using appropriate scientific vocabulary and variables, errors, and uncertainties.\"}]","GCSE Science - Marking and improving student outcomes in AO2-focussed questions | PPTX",1792462108,66]