Physics Coursework: Planning

THIS IS LEGACY MATERIAL - the science is correct but the marks no longer apply!

Up to 8 marks are available for planning your practical investigation.

As with the other 3 areas of assessment, the criteria you have to meet are hierarchical - you must achieve the lower marks before you can be awarded marks higher up.

The Planning Criteria

The table below indicates the criteria your work will be marked against. Failing to outline even the most basic of procedures would mean that you could not score P.2a, and as a result would score zero for the plan.

P.2a outline a simple procedure

P.4a plan to collect evidence which will be valid

P.4b plan the use of suitable equipment or sources of evidence

P.6a use scientific knowledge and understanding to plan and communicate a procedure, to identify key factors to vary, control or take into account, and to make a prediction where appropriate

P.6b decide a suitable extent and range of evidence to be collected

P.8a use detailed scientific knowledge and understanding to plan and communicate an appropriate strategy, taking into account the need to produce precise and reliable evidence, and to justify a prediction when one has been made

P.8b use relevant information from preliminary work, where appropriate, to inform the plan

Writing a Plan

Most people don't finish writing the plan until after they've done the whole investigation! It is a very good idea to produce a rough plan of what you intend doing before you start - teachers should demand this.

Most of the marks come from talking about equipment and discussing science that applies to what you are going to investigate. Let's see what sorts of things you need to include to get the marks.

Simple planning ideas

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