TRIPLE SCIENCE
Courses: Triple Science (Separate Sciences in Biology, Chemistry and Physics)
Level: GCSE
Course Content
We offer the AQA GCSE Triple Science qualification. Students will study separate Biology, Chemistry and Physics across Year 10 and Year 11 leaving us with three separate science GCSEs, one in Biology, one in Chemistry and one in Physics. The Triple Science pathway is aimed at those students who have strong literacy and numeracy skills alongside a keen interest in Science. The course should be considered by students who are considering a post-16 course in Science as it has extended content which links well to the post 16 course.
Additional content for the triple course includes microbiology, the brain and eye in biology, testing for ions, organic chemistry and titration calculations in chemistry and astrophysics, static electricity and nuclear fission and fusion in physics.
Assessment
Students are awarded 3 separate grades based on their individual performance in the three disciplines. Triple Science students will sit six exams at the end of the course (two papers for each of the three disciplines and each paper will last 1 hour 45 minutes).
There will be Foundation tier and Higher tier papers, and students must sit all six exams at the same tier. Foundation tier is for students who are aiming for up to a grade 5, and Higher tier is for students who are aiming for grades 4–9.
Practical skills are developed through a series of classroom activities, including the completion of 28 required practicals (7 more than combined science). These practical skills will be assessed as part of the written examinations at the end of the course.
Progression
A level Sciences – A level Biology, A level Chemistry and A level Physics
BTEC Applied Science
A good proportion of students enjoy their sciences at GCSE so much that they go on to study science at A Level. This may lead them into a career straight from 6th Form, where their science qualifications are very impressive; or it may lead them into a variety of university courses, either science or non-science based.
Examples of future careers include: Teaching, Toxicology, Pharmacology, Bioinformatics, Biotechnology, Neuroscience, Doctor/Nursing, Forensics, Geneticist, Aerospace, Engineering, Biochemistry, Laboratory technician, Materials scientist, Environmental chemistry, Researcher, Meteorologist, Astronomer, Software engineer, Nuclear physics.