Syllabus & Assessment

The syllabus has been designed to build on and extend the content coverage at 'O' level. Candidates will be assumed to have knowledge and understanding of Physics at 'O' level, either as a single subject or as part of a balanced science course.

Candidates may not simultaneously offer Physics at H1 and H2 levels.

Curriculum Framework

The Practices of Science, Core Ideas in Physics and Learning Experiences are put together in a framework to guide the development of the H2 Physics curriculum.

The Practices of Science are common to the natural sciences of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. These practices highlight the ways of thinking and doing that are inherent in the scientific approach, with the aim of equipping students with the understanding, skills, and attitudes shared by the scientific disciplines, including an appropriate approach to ethical issues.

The Core Ideas help students to integrate knowledge and link concepts across different topics, and highlight important themes that recur throughout the curriculum. The syllabus content is organised into sections according to the main branches and knowledge areas of Physics, i.e. Newtonian Mechanics, Thermal Physics, Oscillations and Waves, Electricity and Magnetism and Modern Physics. This allows for a focussed, systematic and in-depth treatment of topics within each section.

The Learning Experiences refer to a range of learning opportunities selected by teachers to link the Physics content with the Core Ideas and the Practices of Science to enhance students’ learning of the concepts. Real-world contexts will be used to help illustrate the concepts in Physics and their applications, and experimental activities and ICT tools will be used to build students’ understanding as well.

Scheme of Assessment

Paper 1 (1 h, 30 marks)

This paper will consist of 30 compulsory multiple-choice questions. All questions will be of the direct choice type with 4 options.

Paper 2 (2 h, 80 marks)

This paper will consist of a variable number of structured questions plus one or two data-based questions and will include questions which require candidates to integrate knowledge and understanding from different areas of the syllabus. All questions are compulsory and answers will be written in spaces provided on the Question Paper. The data-based question(s) will constitute 20-25 marks.

Paper 3 (2 h, 80 marks)

This paper will consist of 2 sections and will include questions which require candidates to integrate knowledge and understanding from different areas of the syllabus. All answers will be written in spaces provided on the Question Paper.

• Section A worth 60 marks consisting of a variable number of structured questions, all compulsory.
• Section B worth 20 marks consisting of a choice of one from two 20-mark questions.

Paper 4 (2 h 30 min, 55 marks)

This paper will assess appropriate aspects of objectives in the following skill areas:

• Planning (P)
• Manipulation, measurement and observation (MMO)
• Presentation of data and observations (PDO)
• Analysis, conclusions and evaluation (ACE)

The assessment of Planning (P) will have a weighting of 5%. The assessment of skill areas MMO, PDO and ACE will have a weighting of 15%.

The assessment of PDO and ACE may also include questions on data-analysis which do not require practical equipment and apparatus. Candidates would be allocated a specified time for access to apparatus and materials of specific questions.

Candidates will not be permitted to refer to books and laboratory notebooks during the assessment.

Physics H1 Exam Code: 8867

The syllabus has been designed to build on and extend the content coverage at 'O' level. Candidates will be assumed to have knowledge and understanding of Physics at 'O' level, either as a single subject or as part of a balanced science course.

Candidates may not simultaneously offer Physics at H1 and H2 levels.

Curriculum Framework

The Practices of Science, Core Ideas in Physics and Learning Experiences are put together in a framework to guide the development of the H1 Physics curriculum.

The Practices of Science are common to the natural sciences of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. These practices highlight the ways of thinking and doing that are inherent in the scientific approach, with the aim of equipping students with the understanding, skills, and attitudes shared by the scientific disciplines, including an appropriate approach to ethical issues.

The Core Ideas help students to integrate knowledge and link concepts across different topics, and highlight important themes that recur throughout the curriculum. The syllabus content is organised into sections according to the main branches and knowledge areas of Physics, i.e. Newtonian Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, and Nuclear Physics. This allows for a focused, systematic and in-depth treatment of topics within each section.

The Learning Experiences refer to a range of learning opportunities selected by teachers to link the Physics content with the Core Ideas and the Practices of Science to enhance students’ learning of the concepts. Real-world contexts will be used to help illustrate the concepts in Physics and their applications, and experimental activities and ICT tools will be used to build students’ understanding as well.

Scheme of Assessment

All school candidates are required to enter for Papers 1 and 2.

Paper 1 (1 h, 30 marks)

This paper will consist of 30 compulsory multiple-choice questions. All questions will be of the direct choice type with 4 options.

Paper 2 (2 h, 80 marks)

This paper will consist of 2 sections. All answers will be written in spaces provided on the Question Paper:

• Section A (60 marks)

This section will consist of a variable number of structured questions including one or two data-based questions, all compulsory. The data-based question(s) will constitute 15-20 marks.

• Section B (20 marks)

This section will consist of two 20-mark questions of which candidates will answer one. The questions will require candidates to integrate knowledge and understanding from different areas of the syllabus.