“What if the one thing I leave out is the mark?” That fear makes you write everything, and the important points get lost.
This page belongs to the SPM Biology help pages. The example uses ideas from gas exchange, and the exam guide shows how questions are phrased.
Why does adding everything not help?
Mark schemes list specific points. A precise answer lands on them, while an answer with ten facts may hit only one. It also takes time from later questions.
The habit comes from a good instinct: be thorough. But being thorough means covering what the question asks, not everything about the topic.
One example: a three-mark question
An original question: explain how the alveolus is suited for gas exchange [3 marks].
Ten-fact answer: the alveolus is in the lungs, the lungs are in the thorax, alveoli are tiny, the trachea brings air, the bronchus divides, oxygen is needed for respiration, carbon dioxide is waste, and three more facts of the same kind.
Precise answer:
- There are many alveoli, so the surface area for diffusion is large.
- The wall is one cell thick, so the diffusion distance is short.
- A rich blood supply carries oxygen away, so the concentration gradient stays steep.
The precise answer has three points and three reasons. The ten-fact answer has plenty of true facts, but none of them explains how the alveolus is suited for gas exchange.
What can I do on my own?
Use this four-step routine when you practise:
- Write the marks next to the question.
- List the points you could give, in rough form.
- Choose the points that answer the command word. Here it is “explain”, so each point needs a reason.
- Write those, in full sentences, and stop.
Afterwards, compare with a mark scheme. Notice which of your points earned credit and which were padding.
When might one-to-one tuition help?
If trimming still makes you anxious, going through your own drafts with someone can help you trust the method. A one-to-one teacher can mark a few of your answers, point at the lines that scored, and show that the rest was not needed.
This site explains the routine for free, and a teacher gives marked feedback on your own writing. See online one-to-one Biology tuition for how to start.
What to read next
If your answers are long but still miss the link, read long Biology answers that still miss the mechanism. The gas exchange topic page has more content to practise the routine on.