The paper structure is stable
Complete papers range from 100 to 100 marks, with 39 to 45 assessed parts.
Practise: Prepare for the recurring paper shape while using the content and question trends to decide what to practise.
Parisel Exam Insight
See how Biology papers have changed
A student-friendly view of question patterns, syllabus coverage and response demands across 12 reviewed Biology papers.
Use these patterns to choose what to practise. They describe the papers reviewed; they do not predict the next paper.
12complete papers reviewed
2014–2025
2014–2025
607reviewed question links
5syllabus areas
shown below
shown below
Across the papers
Patterns worth knowing
Scientific explanation is the leading recurring capability
This capability is associated with 673 reviewed marks across 246 parts over 12 years.
Practise: Practise scientific explanation in several topics and response formats, rather than treating it as a one-off question type.
Short answer questions are more prominent in the latest paper
Their mark share changes from 27% in 2014 to 51% in 2025.
Practise: Include short answer practice in your revision plan, while checking the year-by-year weighting.
Syllabus coverage
Where the reviewed marks have accumulated
These rows join reviewed questions to syllabus outcomes or areas. A high total does not mean an area appears in the same form every year.
01
Working Scientifically
reviewed syllabus links
173marks
02
Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links
reviewed syllabus links
86marks
03
Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links
reviewed syllabus links
78marks
04
DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis
reviewed syllabus links
75marks
05
Biotechnology
reviewed syllabus links
75marks
reviewed evidence
What this page can tell you
- Which syllabus areas recur in the reviewed questions.
- How reviewed marks and question labels move across the years.
- Where the paper structure changes around a stable content base.
This page highlights recurring patterns from the reviewed papers.
How to use this
Turn the pattern into practice
Start with a mixed paper. When you review it, sort missed marks by syllabus area and response demand—not only by topic.
Best next move: use the year views below to choose a recurring area and practise it in a different question context.
Explore the pattern
See what changed from year to year
The same reviewed evidence can answer different student questions. Switch views without leaving the page.
reviewed marks for the highlighted reviewed syllabus areas. Darker cells show greater reviewed weight within this view.
| Syllabus area | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Working Scientifically | 40 | 27 | 17 | 12 | 15 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 18 |
| Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links | 8 | 7 | 5 | 10 | 18 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links | 13 | — | — | 2 | 5 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 8 | 11 |
| DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis | 4 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 9 | 2 | — | 5 | 14 | 1 | 10 | — |
| Biotechnology | 24 | 10 | 17 | 4 | 6 | 5 | — | — | — | 7 | 2 | — |
A blank cell means no reviewed mark was recorded for that area in that year. reviewed marks can overlap when a question connects to more than one area.
Question labels connected to each highlighted syllabus area. A question can appear in more than one row.
| Syllabus area | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Working Scientifically | Q12 · Q13 · Q23(a) · Q23(b) · Q27(b) · Q27(c) · Q33(d.ii) · Q34(d.i) · Q34(e) · Q35(b) · Q35(c) · Q35(d.i) · Q35(d.ii) | Q18 · Q25(a) · Q25(b) · Q28(b) · Q35(d.ii) · Q36(b) · Q36(d.ii) · Q36(e) | Q26(a) · Q26(c) · Q36(c) · Q36(e) | Q18 · Q20 · Q26(b) · Q33(d.ii) · Q36(b) · Q9 | Q23(a) · Q35(c.i) · Q35(c.ii) · Q35(e) | Q33(c) | Q24(a) · Q24(b) · Q25(a) · Q25(b) · Q27(a) · Q27(b) · Q7 | Q8 | Q10 · Q24(a) · Q24(b) · Q26 · Q29(a) · Q5 | Q26(a) · Q26(b) | Q10 · Q22(a) · Q22(b) | Q25 · Q27 · Q28(b) · Q32 |
| Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links | Q30 | Q15 · Q34(d.i) · Q34(d.ii) · Q34(d.iii) | Q29(b) · Q8 | Q12 · Q15 · Q28 · Q34(d.i) · Q34(d.ii) | Q28(a) · Q28(b) · Q33(a.ii) · Q33(c.ii) · Q33(e) | Q11 · Q17 · Q30 | Q20 · Q26(a) · Q26(b) | Q10 · Q18 · Q22 · Q27 | Q14 · Q18 · Q22 | Q17 · Q3 | Q20 · Q28(a) | Q31(a) · Q34(a) |
| Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links | Q10 · Q15 · Q33(a.i) · Q33(c) · Q33(d.i) · Q34(d.ii) | — | — | Q35(c.i) | Q10 · Q14 · Q19 · Q33(a.i) | Q28(a) · Q33(a) · Q33(b.i) · Q33(b.ii) | Q10 · Q14 · Q16 · Q17 · Q19 · Q2 · Q3 | Q33(a) | Q12 · Q15 · Q17 · Q28(a) | Q21(a) · Q21(b) · Q23 · Q25(a) · Q25(b) · Q25(d) | Q21(a) · Q21(b) · Q30(a) | Q1 · Q17 · Q18 · Q19 · Q20 · Q31(b) · Q33(b) · Q8 |
| DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis | Q32(a.i) · Q32(a.ii) | Q14 · Q23(b) · Q34(b) · Q34(c) | Q10 · Q33(a.i) · Q33(a.ii) · Q34(e) | Q13 · Q17 · Q33(c.i) · Q33(c.ii) | Q26(a) · Q26(b.i) · Q33(b) | Q14 · Q4 | — | Q20 · Q28(a) · Q7 | Q28(b) · Q28(c) · Q31(b.i) · Q31(b.ii) | Q7 | Q28(b) · Q30(b) · Q4 | — |
| Biotechnology | Q32(c) · Q32(d.i) · Q32(d.ii) · Q32(e) · Q35(e) | Q33(a.ii) · Q33(c) · Q33(d.ii) | Q33(b) · Q33(c.i) · Q33(c.ii) · Q33(d.i) · Q33(d.ii) · Q34(d.i) | Q33(a.i) · Q33(d.i) | Q32(a.ii) · Q32(b) | Q24 | — | — | — | Q18 · Q19 · Q34 | Q19 · Q2 | — |
Question IDs are the labels a student sees on the paper; question labels are not shown.
The top one to three reviewed syllabus areas by paper section and year. Numbers in brackets are reviewed marks in that section.
| Section | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section I | Prevention, Treatment and Control — reviewed syllabus links (16) Working Scientifically (13) Effects of the Environment on Organisms — reviewed syllabus links (9) | Causes and Effects — reviewed syllabus links (8) Working Scientifically (8) Technologies and Disorders (7) | Prevention, Treatment and Control — reviewed syllabus links (11) Causes of Infectious Disease (10) Effects of the Environment on Organisms — reviewed syllabus links (10) | Transport — reviewed syllabus links (11) Immunity (9) Genetic Technologies (8) | Prevention, Treatment and Control — reviewed syllabus links (10) Cell Replication (8) Technologies and Disorders (8) | DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis (2) Genetic Technologies (2) Immunity (2) | Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (7) Causes and Effects — reviewed syllabus links (3) Mutation — reviewed syllabus links (3) | Reproduction (3) DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis (2) Homeostasis (2) | Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (3) Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (2) Responses to Pathogens (2) | Reproduction (3) Biotechnology (2) Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (2) | Causes of Infectious Disease (3) Biotechnology (2) Epidemiology (2) | Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (6) Prevention, Treatment and Control — reviewed syllabus links (6) Causes and Effects — reviewed syllabus links (4) |
| Section II | Working Scientifically (27) Biotechnology (24) Mutation — reviewed syllabus links (18) | Effects of the Environment on Organisms — reviewed syllabus links (19) Working Scientifically (19) Transport — reviewed syllabus links (16) | Biotechnology (17) Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection (12) Evolution - the Evidence (11) | Cell Function (22) Effects of the Environment on Organisms — reviewed syllabus links (16) Genetic Technologies (10) | Cell Function (18) Evolution - the Evidence (16) Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (12) | Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (11) Epidemiology (10) Cell Replication (8) | Working Scientifically (15) Causes of Infectious Disease (13) Homeostasis (12) | Immunity (12) Reproduction (12) Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (6) | DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis (14) Epidemiology (13) Causes of Infectious Disease (12) | Inheritance Patterns in a Population — reviewed syllabus links (14) Epidemiology (7) Population Dynamics (7) | Mutation — reviewed syllabus links (15) Causes and Effects — reviewed syllabus links (10) DNA and Polypeptide Synthesis (9) | Working Scientifically (18) Mutation — reviewed syllabus links (11) Prevention, Treatment and Control — reviewed syllabus links (8) |
These are reviewed syllabus signals, not official section allocations.
Information → practice
Practice resources for this subject
Use the patterns above to choose what to practise, then open a relevant Parisel practice pack.