Biology HL Study TIPS and HELP

[Amer14]

Hey, this is my first time posting on this website. I have my exams November 2018 and I'm really starting to panic at the moment. I'm doing Biology HL and so far I've only covered content from 1.1-1.4 and this is the school's progression. With me covering the content I have not been abiding by the syllabus but instead been abiding by Test checklists. My method of study is as follows:

Read Oxford Course companion and study guide.

Go to powerpoints provided by my teacher and read.

Head on over to BioNinja for reading and then memorizing that content. 

So basically read books memo BioNinja and then I'd do questionbank questions.

I'm just extremely worried that my approach to studying is wrong. I do not make notes nor have I been following the syllabus religiously. 

PLEASE, provide me with a sufficient bio study plan and tell me if my approach is good. Do I need notes? Are notes important? if so how long should my notes be, because usually, they're pretty long (use 1.1 Intro to cells for example).

Am I progressing the bio hl course too slow to achieve the ultimate goal in which we all want 6 or hopefully a 7.

Thanks, your answers are deeply appreciated.

[IB`NOT`ez]

1 hour ago, Amer14 said:

Hey, this is my first time posting on this website. I have my exams November 2018 and I'm really starting to panic at the moment. I'm doing Biology HL and so far I've only covered content from 1.1-1.4 and this is the school's progression. With me covering the content I have not been abiding by the syllabus but instead been abiding by Test checklists. My method of study is as follows:

Read Oxford Course companion and study guide.

Go to powerpoints provided by my teacher and read.

Head on over to BioNinja for reading and then memorizing that content. 

So basically read books memo BioNinja and then I'd do questionbank questions.

I'm just extremely worried that my approach to studying is wrong. I do not make notes nor have I been following the syllabus religiously. 

PLEASE, provide me with a sufficient bio study plan and tell me if my approach is good. Do I need notes? Are notes important? if so how long should my notes be, because usually, they're pretty long (use 1.1 Intro to cells for example).

Am I progressing the bio hl course too slow to achieve the ultimate goal in which we all want 6 or hopefully a 7.

Thanks, your answers are deeply appreciated.

Try other sources apart from the Oxford stuff, which are convoluted with unnecessary information imo. The Pearson Biology book works really well, and utilize youtube videos to supplement your understanding.

Honestly, there's no real right or wrong way to study, and clearly you have a solid plan. If your exams are indeed in November 2018, there's still a lot of time to adjust – just take your time. 

[Amer14]

17 minutes ago, IB`ez said:

Try other sources apart from the Oxford stuff, which are convoluted with unnecessary information imo. The Pearson Biology book works really well, and utilize youtube videos to supplement your understanding.

Honestly, there's no real right or wrong way to study, and clearly you have a solid plan. If your exams are indeed in November 2018, there's still a lot of time to adjust – just take your time. 

Thank you for the insight. Oh and good luck on your upcoming exams

Edited April 9, 2017 by Amer14

[IB`NOT`ez]

Just now, Amer14 said:

Thank you for the insight. 

Additionally, a senior of mine who scored a 7 in the May 2016 Bio HL exams advised frequent reading. Notes in Biology tend to be more important than for Physics and Chemistry, and past papers are almost useless.

Do a lot of taking notes and reading, making sure you understand stuff. These are what's essential for a 7. 

[inriya]

11 hours ago, IB`ez said:

Additionally, a senior of mine who scored a 7 in the May 2016 Bio HL exams advised frequent reading. Notes in Biology tend to be more important than for Physics and Chemistry, and past papers are almost useless.

Do a lot of taking notes and reading, making sure you understand stuff. These are what's essential for a 7. 

I went through Bio exam last year and I must say past paper is extremely important (sorry about that). Though reading notes can build up your knowledge, past papers make you adapted to the mode of answering questions. 

To this post's owner, you are certainly on a good progress.  Take your time and keep up with the hard work. I am sure you will find Bio HL easier to handle than other HLs with your revision.

[myjn]

I think what you're doing already is quite good! One thing I like to do for biology is create flashcards before every test (they always help me score max points and help engrave information into my brain). I hope that when the time comes for exams, I will be able to use the flashcards I make now as preparation. I am talking about digital flashcards by the way, e.g. quizlet, as I think that physical flashcards are a huge pain to make and also is a waste of time. 

Edited April 9, 2017 by myjn

[Amer14]

8 hours ago, inriya said:

I went through Bio exam last year and I must say past paper is extremely important (sorry about that). Though reading notes can build up your knowledge, past papers make you adapted to the mode of answering questions. 

To this post's owner, you are certainly on a good progress.  Take your time and keep up with the hard work. I am sure you will find Bio HL easier to handle than other HLs with your revision.

Thank you so much. 

[Amer14]

5 hours ago, myjn said:

I think what you're doing already is quite good! One thing I like to do for biology is create flashcards before every test (they always help me score max points and help engrave information into my brain). I hope that when the time comes for exams, I will be able to use the flashcards I make now as preparation. I am talking about digital flashcards by the way, e.g. quizlet, as I think that physical flashcards are a huge pain to make and also is a waste of time. 

That's true, I do consider sitting down for hours making notes a waste of time when there are plenty of digital and physical resources already made available to us. Thanks and good luck with your exams to come