MAM · Mathematics Methods
2025 | - Logarithms (4.1)
Do this：Write out the base-change rule, the log laws and the log-inverse relationship from memory before you drill questions; in any log equation, unify the base first, then check each line against a named law. - Rectilinear motion and functions defined by an integral (3.1 / 3.2)
Do this：Fix a positive direction and list every given with its unit before substituting; when limits appear, write down what each one stands for before you start work. - Confidence intervals computed correctly but not explained (4.3 — flagged three times)
Do this：Once the interval is computed, write a plain-language line linking the estimate, the interval and what it means, then check you could explain it aloud to a classmate. - Insufficient working on “show that” questions
Do this：Treat every 'show that' as a proof: one algebraic move per line with its reason, then check the middle lines are enough for someone else to reach the result unaided. - Key features mislocated when sketching graphs
Do this：List the fixed features for that graph type first (intercepts, asymptotes and so on), plot them one by one before joining the curve, then tick them off the list.
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HBY · Human Biology
2025 | - Biotechnology: PCR, gel electrophoresis, protein analysis
Do this：Draw one flow diagram per technique: steps down the page, inputs and outputs beside each step; redraw it closed-book, then open your notes and fill the gaps. - The Unit 4 extended answer is the weakest part of the paper (42.53% versus 56.73% for Unit 3)
Do this：Break extended answers into four fixed moves: circle the command word, list points, order them, then write; practise under time and mark yourself against the criteria. - Absolute dating (potassium–argon)
Do this：Make a comparison card for each dating method: what it measures, what material it suits, what it assumes; recite it with the card closed and check what you missed. - Gene flow versus genetic drift; founder effect versus speciation
Do this：For each easily confused pair, draw a two-column table covering just mechanism, outcome and timescale, then explain each one aloud with an example you invent. - Components of a reflex arc
Do this：Draw the pathway as a chain of arrows in signal order, label each step with its name and job, then close your notes and redraw the whole chain, filling any gap. - Half-life calculations
Do this：Use three fixed lines for half-life questions: list what is given and what is wanted, write the relationship you will use, substitute, then sanity-check the units and size.
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PHY · Physics
2025 | - Applying trigonometry
Do this：Sketch the situation first, marking the known side, the wanted side and the angle; state which side over which side you are using, and only then put numbers in. - Algebraic manipulation and separating variables
Do this：Do two letter-only rearrangements a day with no numbers, substitute your result back into the original to check it, and confirm you treated both sides alike at each step. - Not planning before writing explanation questions
Do this：Spend a minute on a three-line plan: what is asked, which principle applies, what the conclusion is; then write and check the answer point by point against the question. - Deriving from first principles
Do this：For every first-principles derivation, cover the answer and reproduce it; mark exactly where you stall, and next time rederive only that step. - Relativistic effects and relativistic momentum/energy (the report calls these widespread misconceptions)
Do this：Build a one-page 'everyday intuition versus relativity' table, note the conditions each statement holds under, and check each result falls back to the classical form at low speed. - Section Three (comprehension and data analysis) is the weakest of the three
Do this：After each data set, sort your lost marks into types (reading the graph, units, reasoning, calculation), drill two questions of each type, and redo the original a week later.
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ELD · English (EALD)
2025 + 2024 + 2023 | - Synthesis that only summarises without combining sources (weak three years running)
Do this：Write one sentence stating what the sources agree on, one line per source showing where that comes from, then one sentence of your own judgement; if any is missing, rewrite. - Submitting a memorised essay that does not answer the question
Do this：Circle the command word and the scope first, rewrite the question as a single question of your own, then check every body paragraph actually answers that question. - Formulaic “firstly / secondly / thirdly”
Do this：Replace 'secondly'-type signposts with real links such as cause, contrast or addition; read the piece aloud afterwards and rewrite anything that sounds like a template. - Writing a speech as though it were an essay
Do this：Decide the audience and occasion before drafting, open with an address or a question, keep sentences short and mark the pauses, then read it aloud and time it. - Leaving parts of multi-part questions unanswered
Do this：Number every part of the question in the margin as you read, cross each one off once answered, and count the numbers again before you hand the paper in. - Poor time allocation
Do this：Before the exam, split the total time across the questions by marks and write it at the top; check the clock after each one and, if you are over, jot key points and move on.
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CSC · Computer Science
2025 | - Subnetting and IP addressing (including router interfaces)
Do this：Work subnetting out by hand instead of mentally; afterwards line the address and mask up in binary to check, and give each router interface its own line. - Interpreting network performance data
Do this：When reading a performance graph, note three things first: what each axis shows, its units, and where the baseline sits; then describe the trend and name the anomaly. - SQL joins
Do this：For each query, write down which rows of which table you must keep, then choose the join type, then hand-check the result against a few sample rows. - Multi-step algorithms: 2-D arrays, dictionaries, sorting, object-oriented code
Do this：Split the algorithm into numbered steps before typing, one job per step; then trace it by hand on empty, single and multiple inputs. - Applying encryption concepts (recognition is fine; contextual explanation is not)
Do this：Give every encryption concept a real situation and explain in three sentences who holds the key, what it protects and what goes wrong if it fails. - Struggling to break down low-scaffold scenario questions
Do this：When a scenario gives you no steps, build your own table of knowns, unknowns, available tools and constraints, then write the first move from that table.
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