A-level Physics A

Current events you might be interested in

AQA Teacher CPD is offering the following A-level Physics which you may be interested in:

A-level Physics: A practical toolkit for AS units

This successful two day residential programme will help you deliver the specification through engaging, practical Physics lessons that are integral to developing your students’ practical skills and theoretical understanding.

To find out more or to book a place, visit our online booking service Courses and Events and search for the meeting above!

January 2012 1451/2451 (AS/A2) Physics A

Here is confirmation of the approach taken in your subject.

General advice

Students should:

read all instructions on the front cover and at the start of each section of the question paper
read each question carefully before responding, especially where there are optional question(s)
remember that questions can appear on all pages of a question paper, including the final page.

Combined question paper answer books

Students should look at the number of marks and the line space allocated to each question and write answers of an appropriate length.

If a student needs more space to answer a question, they must:
either use the white space immediately beneath the lined answer space and before the start of the next question
or ask for an AQA four-page Supplementary answer book.

They should not:

use the answer space for a different question
write in the margin
respond elsewhere in the answer book.

Separate answer books and the two-digit numbering system

Students worked well with the two-digit numbering system and separate answer books in 2011 exams; thank you for ensuring that the guidance was applied successfully. We have updated our guides for students, teachers and exams officers / invigilators to reflect the general advice given above.

A reminder: question paper style and marking answers on screen
Exams with separate question papers and answer books (unconstrained answer books) will use:

our simplified, two-digit question numbering system
answer books with spaces for students to write the two-digit question numbers.

For additional guidance see:

Teacher Guide (revised)
Exams officer and invigilator Guide (revised)
Student Guide (revised)
Question papers and mark schemes:
- Summer 2011 materials are available to schools / colleges in the Secure Key Materials area of e-AQA
- Specimen materials are available from the subject pages of aqa.org.uk
Examples of students' work:
- Good practice
- Areas for improvement
AQA Research team papers: Marking answers on screen
New AQA Numbering System
- Nested Numbering
Archive
- Exams Officer questionnaire feedback
- Exams Officer questionnaire

Updates top

Teacher online standardisation

AQA’s successful roll-out of online standardisation services is extending to the standardisation of teachers

A-level Physics will be part of this extended service and the materials will be available via e-AQA soon. We will be contacting centres in the near future alerting you to the availability of the service.

NB There are a limited number of face-to-face meetings for new centres. If you are new to the ISA examinations, please e-mail the A-level Physics subject team to receive further information.

Get Involved for free! Pre-Testing of Objective Test Questions (OTQ)

GCE Physics Unit 4 Section A is assessed by OTQ's.

AQA is inviting centres to participate in the Pre-Testing process. The actual tests are held in March each year.

Participation has benefits to both centres/candidates and AQA:

AQA provides all the material for the pre-test
A free mock exam (under supervised conditions)
Can be taken during lesson time (at a date/time convenient to you)
Good practise for candidates preparing for exams
Data from the pre-test ensures quality questions in future examinations
Marked by AQA and centres informed of results.

Other subjects offering pre-testing are GCE General Studies (GEN 1 & GEN2). If your centre offers these subjects please notify colleagues of this opportunity.

If you are interested, please read the following instructions/guidance and return the OTQ Pre-Test Application Pro forma. If you would like to discuss the arrangements please contact AQA's OTQ Processing section on 0161 957 3981.

For centres following route T, the ISA – From September 2010 ISA materials will be published on e-AQA in Secure Key Materials. Access to these secure documents is restricted to Examinations Officers only. The security rules provided in previous series apply to these materials. These rules are published in the Instructions for the Administration of the ISA.

Provisional ISA Marking Guidelines will be published in September in Secure Key Materials. Final versions of the Marking Guidelines will be published by 31 October and must be used to mark candidates’ work.

Teacher Standardising meetings – Centres new to the specification must send a representative to a Teacher Standardising meeting. Please contact our A-level physics team to register an interest in attending one of these free of charge meetings.

Centres that have delivered the specification previously but have been subject to a significant adjustment to their marks will also be invited to send a representative to a Teacher Standardising meeting. Invitations will be sent out to the Heads of Physics at these centres in October.

For centres following route X, the EMPA – From January 2011 EMPA Teachers’ Notes will also be published on e-AQA in Secure Key Materials, they will no longer be despatched in hard copy. The same security rules apply as in previous series. The remaining EMPA materials will be despatched to centres in hard copy based on estimated entries.

Secure Key Materials

More materials added 19 October 2010

Secure Key Materials is a new e-AQA service which replaces Recent Exam Materials from 1 September. It provides teachers and Exams Officers with exclusive access to a bank of exam-related material that is:

secure
easy to navigate
quick to use
intuitive, based on the design of our website.

Please read our new leaflet and look at the following demo to find out more about this new service.

The first 2010/2011 series-related documentation provided on the Secure Key Materials will be for the GCSE and GCE Science. Please note that the 2010/2011 ISA materials will be posted on the site (between 1 – 10 September) and not circulated on a CD as in previous years.

To obtain an e-AQA account and access to Secure Key Materials, please register at e-AQA. For more information about the materials published on Secure Key Materials, please don't hesitate to contact the Subject team.

Investigative & Practical Skills for Units 3 & 6 – 2010/2011
(Examinations Update 8)

Units 3 and 6: Investigative & Practical Skills – Route X. (PHA3/B3/X & PHA6/B6/X)
(Examinations Update 4)

Unit 3 Investigative and Practical Skills Route X
(Examinations Update 36)

0161 957 3372