VCE: Science

Biology, Chemistry, Environmental Science, Physics, Psychology

Biology

Unit 1: How do organisms regulate their functions?

In this unit students examine the cell as the structural and functional unit of life, from the single celled to the multicellular organism, including the requirements for sustaining cellular processes. Students focus on cell growth, replacement and death and the role of stem cells in differentiation, specialisation, and renewal of cells. They explore how systems function through cell specialisation in vascular plants and animals and consider the role homeostatic mechanisms play in maintaining an animal’s internal environment.

A student-adapted or student-designed scientific investigation is undertaken in Area of Study 3. The investigation involves the generation of primary data and is related to the function and/or the regulation of cells or systems.

Areas of Study:

How do cells function?
How do plant and animal systems function?
How do scientific investigations develop understanding of how organisms regulate their functions?

Unit 2: How does inheritance impact on diversity?

In this unit students explore reproduction and the transmission of biological information from generation to generation and the impact this has on species diversity. They apply their understanding of chromosomes to explain the process of meiosis. Students consider how the relationship between genes, and the environment and epigenetic factors influence phenotypic expression. They explain the inheritance of characteristics, analyse patterns of inheritance, interpret pedigree charts, and predict outcomes of genetic crosses.

Students analyse the advantages and disadvantages of asexual and sexual reproductive strategies, including the use of reproductive cloning technologies. They study structural, physiological, and behavioural adaptations that enhance an organism’s survival. Students explore interdependences between species, focusing on how keystone species and top predators structure and maintain the distribution, density and size of a population. They also consider the contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and perspectives in understanding the survival of organisms in Australian ecosystems.

Areas of Study:

How is inheritance explained?
How do inherited adaptations impact on diversity?
How do humans use science to explore and communicate contemporary bioethical issues?

Unit 1 & 2 Assessments (suitable tasks include):

A case study analysis
A bioinformatics exercise
A data analysis of generated primary and/or collated secondary data
Media analysis of two or more media sources
A modelling or simulation activity
A response to an issue
A report of a laboratory or fieldwork activity including the generation of primary data
A scientific poster

Students undertaking this study must maintain a logbook of practical activities in each of Units 1 & 2 for recording, authentication, and assessment purposes. All items in the logbook must be dated and clearly documented.

Unit 3: How do cells maintain life?

In this unit students investigate the workings of the cell. They explore the relationship between nucleic acids and proteins as key molecules in cellular processes. Students analyse the structure and function of nucleic acids as information molecules, gene structure and expression in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells and proteins as a diverse group of functional molecules. They examine the biological consequences of manipulating the DNA molecule and applying biotechnologies.

Students explore the structure, regulation, and rate of biochemical pathways, with reference to photosynthesis and cellular respiration. They explore how the application of biotechnologies to biochemical pathways could lead to improvements in agricultural practices.

Students apply their knowledge of cellular processes through investigation of a selected case study, data analysis and/or a bioethical issue.

Areas of Study:

What is the role of nucleic acids and protein in maintaining life?
How are biochemical pathways regulated?

Unit 4: How does life change and respond to challenges?

In this unit students consider the continual change and challenges to which life on Earth has been, and continues to be, subjected to. They study the human immune system and the interactions between its components to provide immunity to a specific pathogen. Students consider how the application of biological knowledge can be used to respond to bioethical issues and challenges related to disease.

Students consider how evolutionary biology is based on the accumulation of evidence over time. They investigate the impact of various change events on a population’s gene pool and the biological consequences of changes in allele frequencies. Students examine the evidence for relatedness between species and change in life forms over time using evidence from palaeontology, structural morphology, molecular homology, and comparative genomics. Students examine the evidence for structural trends in the human fossil record, recognising that interpretations can be contested, refined, or replaced when challenged by new evidence.

Areas of Study:

How do organisms respond to pathogens?
How are species related over time?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate cellular processes and/or biological change?

Unit 3 & 4 Assessments:

Analysis and evaluation of a selected biological case study
Analysis and evaluation of generated primary and/or collated secondary data
Comparison and evaluation of biological concepts, methodologies and methods, and findings from three student practical activities
Analysis and evaluation of a contemporary bioethical issue
Student-designed and student-conducted scientific investigation through a structured scientific poster and logbook entries. The poster should not exceed 600 words.

External Assessment

The level of achievement for Units 3 & 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, contributing 50% of the final assessment.

Chemistry

Unit 1: How can the diversity of materials be explained?

In this unit students appreciate that the development and use of materials for specific purposes is an important human endeavour. Students investigate the chemical structures and properties of a range of materials, including covalent compounds, metals, ionic compounds, and polymers. They are introduced to ways that chemical quantities are measured. They consider how manufacturing innovations lead to more sustainable products being produced for society through the use of renewable raw materials and a transition from a linear economy towards a circular economy. Students conduct practical investigations involving the reactivity series of metals, separation of mixtures by chromatography, use of precipitation reactions to identify ionic compounds, determination of empirical formulas, and synthesis of polymers.

A student-directed research investigation into the sustainable production or use of a selected material is undertaken in Area of Study 3.

Areas of Study:

How do the chemical structures of materials explain their properties and reactions?
How are materials quantified and classified?
How can chemical principles be applied to create a more sustainable future?

Unit 2: How do chemical reactions shape the natural world?

In this unit students explore society’s dependence on the work of chemists to analyse the materials and products in everyday use. Students analyse and compare different substances dissolved in water and the gases that may be produced in chemical reactions. They explore applications of acid-base and redox reactions in society. Students conduct practical investigations involving the specific heat capacity of water, acid-base and redox reactions, solubility, molar volume of a gas, volumetric analysis, and the use of a calibration curve.

A student-adapted or student-designed scientific investigation is undertaken in Area of Study 3.

Areas of Study:

How do chemicals interact with water?
How are chemicals measured and analysed?
How do quantitative scientific investigations develop our understanding of chemical reactions?

Unit 1 & 2 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Reflective annotations of one or more practical activities from a logbook
Media analysis/response
Problem-solving involving chemical concepts, skills and/or issues
Report of an application of chemical concepts to a real-world context
Analysis and evaluation of a chemical innovation, research study, case study, socio-scientific issue, secondary data, or a media communication, with reference to sustainability
A scientific poster

Unit 3: How can design and innovation help to optimise chemical processes?

In this unit students investigate the chemical production of energy and materials. They explore how innovation, design and sustainability principles and concepts can be applied to produce energy and materials while minimising possible harmful effects of production on human health and the environment. Students analyse and compare different fuels as energy sources for society, with reference to the energy transformations and chemical reactions involved, energy efficiencies, environmental impacts, and potential applications. They explore food in the context of supplying energy in living systems. The purpose, design and operating principles of galvanic cells, fuel cells, rechargeable cells and electrolytic cells are considered when evaluating their suitability for supplying society’s needs for energy and materials. They evaluate chemical processes with reference to factors that influence their reaction rates and extent. They investigate how the rate of a reaction can be controlled so that it occurs at the optimum rate while avoiding unwanted side reactions and by-products. Students conduct practical investigations involving thermochemistry, redox reactions, electrochemical cells, reaction rates and equilibrium systems.

Areas of Study:

What are the current and future options for supplying energy?
How can the rate and yield of chemical reactions be optimised?

Unit 4: How are carbon-based compounds designed for purpose?

In this unit students investigate the structures and reactions of carbon-based organic compounds, including considering how green chemistry principles are applied in the production of synthetic organic compounds. They study the metabolism of food and the action of medicines in the body. They explore how laboratory analysis and various instrumentation techniques can be applied to analyse organic compounds in order to identify them and to ensure product purity. Students conduct practical investigations related to the synthesis and analysis of organic compounds, involving reaction pathways, organic synthesis, identification of functional groups, direct redox titrations, solvent extraction, and distillations. A student-designed scientific investigation involving the generation of primary data related to the production of energy and/or chemicals and/or the analysis or synthesis of organic compounds is undertaken in either Unit 3 or Unit 4, or across both Units 3 & 4, and is assessed in Unit 4 Outcome 3. The design, analysis and findings of the investigation are presented in a scientific poster format.

Areas of Study:

How are organic compounds categorised and synthesised?
How are organic compounds analysed and used?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate the sustainable production of energy and/or materials?

Unit 3 & 4 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Analysis and evaluation of primary and/or secondary data
Comparison and evaluation of chemical concepts, methodologies and methods, and findings from at least two practical activities
Problem-solving, including calculations, using chemistry concepts and skills applied to real-world contexts
Analysis and evaluation of a chemical innovation, research study, case study, socio-scientific issue, or media communication
Communication of the design, analysis, and findings of a student-designed and student-conducted scientific investigation through a structured scientific poster and logbook entries

External Assessment

The level of achievement for Units 3 & 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, contributing 50% of the final assessment.

Environmental Science

Unit 1: How are Earth’s dynamic systems interconnected to support life?

In this unit students examine the processes and interactions occurring within and between Earth’s four interrelated systems – the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere. They focus on how ecosystem functioning can influence many local, regional, and global environmental conditions such as plant productivity, soil fertility, water quality and air quality. Students explore how changes that have taken place throughout geological and recent history are fundamental to predicting the likely impact of future changes. They consider a variety of influencing factors in achieving a solutions-focused approach to responsible management of challenges related to natural and human-induced environmental change.

Areas of Study:

How are earth’s systems organised and connected?
How do Earth’s systems change over time?
How do Scientific Investigations develop understanding of how Earth’s systems support life?

Unit 2: What affects Earth’s capacity to sustain life?

In this unit students consider pollution as well as food and water security as complex and systemic environmental challenges facing current and future generations. They examine the characteristics, impacts, assessment, and management of a range of pollutants that are emitted or discharged into Earth’s air, soil, water, and biological systems, and explore factors that limit and enable the sustainable supply of adequate and affordable food and water.

Areas of Study:

How can we manage pollution to sustain Earth’s systems?
How can we manage food and water security to sustain Earth’s systems?
How do scientific endeavours contribute to minimising human impacts on Earth’s systems?

Unit 1 & 2 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Reports based on fieldwork exercises and practical reports
Media analysis/response
Structured questions
Data analysis based on secondary data
A report of a case study involving the management of a selected pollutant of local interest
Annotations of a practical logbook of activities or investigations

Unit 3: How can biodiversity and development be sustained?

In this unit students focus on environmental management through the application of sustainability principles. They explore the value of the biosphere to all living things by examining the concept of biodiversity and the ecosystem services important for human health and well-being. They analyse the processes that threaten biodiversity and evaluate biodiversity management strategies for a selected threatened endemic animal or plant species. Students use a selected environmental science case study with reference to sustainability principles and environmental management strategies to explore management from an Earth systems perspective, including impacts on the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.

Areas of Study:

Why is maintaining biodiversity worth a sustained effort?
When is development sustainable?

Unit 4: How can climate change and the impacts of human energy use be managed?

In this unit students explore different factors that contribute to the variability of Earth’s climate and that can affect living things, human society, and the environment at local, regional, and global scales. Students compare sources, availability, reliability, and efficiencies of renewable and non-renewable energy resources in order to evaluate the suitability and consequences of their use in terms of upholding sustainability principles. They analyse various factors that are involved in responsible environmental decision-making and consider how science can be used to inform the management of climate change and the impacts of energy production and use.

Areas of Study:

How can we respond to climate change?
What might be a more sustainable mix of energy sources?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate contemporary environmental challenges?

Unit 3 & 4 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Reports based on fieldwork exercises and practical reports
Media analysis/response
Structured questions
Data analysis based on secondary data
An evaluation of the management strategies to maintain biodiversity in the context of one selected threatened endemic species
Annotations of a practical logbook of activities or investigations

External Assessment

The level of achievement for Units 3 & 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, which will contribute 50 per cent to the study score.

Physics

Unit 1: How is energy useful to society?

In this unit students examine some of the fundamental ideas and models used by physicists in an attempt to understand and explain energy. Models used to understand light, thermal energy, radioactivity, nuclear processes, and electricity are explored. Students apply these physics ideas to contemporary societal issues such as communication, climate change and global warming, medical treatment, electrical home safety and Australian energy needs.

Areas of Study:

How are light and heat explained?
How is energy from the nucleus utilised?
How can electricity be used to transfer energy?

Unit 2: How does physics help us to understand the world?

In this unit students explore the power of experiments in developing models and theories. They investigate a variety of phenomena by making their own observations and generating questions, which in turn lead to experiments.

In Area of Study 1, students investigate the ways in which forces are involved both in moving objects and in keeping objects stationary and apply these concepts to a chosen case study of motion.

In Area of Study 2, students will undertake a detailed study from a list of 18 options. These options enable students to pursue an area of interest through a guided research task, with students sharing their interest with their peers via a visual and oral presentation.

In Area of Study 3, a student-designed investigation involves the generation of primary data and draws on the key science skills and key knowledge from Area of Study 1.

Areas of Study:

How is motion understood?
Options: How does physics inform contemporary issues and applications in society?
How do physicists investigate questions?

Unit 1 & 2 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

A report of a laboratory or fieldwork activity including the generation of primary data
Report of a selected physics phenomenon
Media analysis/response
Problem-solving involving physics concepts and/or skills
An analysis, including calculations, of physics concepts applied to real-world contexts
A scientific poster

Unit 3: How do fields explain motion and electricity?

In this unit students use Newton’s Laws to investigate motion in one and two dimensions. They explore the concept of the field as a model used by physicists to explain observations of motion of objects not in apparent contact. Students compare and contrast three fundamental fields – gravitational, magnetic, and electric – and how they relate to one another. They consider the importance of the field to the motion of particles within the field. Students examine the production of electricity and its delivery to homes. They explore fields in relation to the transmission of electricity over large distances and in the design and operation of particle accelerators.

A student-designed practical investigation involving the generation of primary data and including one continuous, independent variable related to fields, motion or light is undertaken either in Unit 3 or Unit 4, or across both Units 3 & 4, and is assessed in Unit 4, Outcome 2. The design, analysis and findings of the investigation are presented in a scientific poster.

Areas of Study:

How do physicists explain motion in two dimensions?
How do things move without contact?
How are fields used in electricity generation?

Unit 4: How have creative ideas and investigations revolutionised thinking in physics?

In this unit, students explore some monumental changes in thinking in Physics that have changed the course of how physicists understand and investigate the Universe. They examine the limitations of the wave model in describing light behaviour and use a particle model to better explain some observations of light. Matter, that was once explained using a particle model, is re-imagined using a wave model. Students are challenged to think beyond how they experience the physical world of their everyday lives to thinking from a new perspective, as they imagine the relativistic world of length contraction and time dilation when motion approaches the speed of light. They are invited to wonder about how Einstein’s revolutionary thinking allowed the development of modern-day devices such as the GPS.

Areas of Study:

How has understanding about the physical world changed?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate fields, motion or light?

Unit 3 & 4 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Application of physics concepts to explain a model, theory, device, design, or innovation
Analysis and evaluation of primary and/or secondary data, including data plotting, identified assumptions or data limitations, and conclusions
Problem-solving, applying physics concepts and skills to real-world contexts
Comparison and evaluation of two solutions to a problem, two explanations of a physics phenomenon or concept, or two methods and/or findings from practical activities
Communication of the design, analysis, and findings of a student-designed and student-conducted scientific investigation through a structured scientific poster and logbook entries

External Assessment

The level of achievement for Units 3 & 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, contributing 50% of the final assessment.

Psychology

Unit 1: How are behaviour and mental processes shaped?

In this unit students examine the complex nature of psychological development, including situations where psychological development may not occur as expected. Students examine the contribution that classical and contemporary knowledge from Western and non-Western societies, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, has made to an understanding of psychological development and to the development of psychological models and theories used to predict and explain the development of thoughts, emotions, and behaviours. They investigate the structure and functioning of the human brain and the role it plays in mental processes and behaviour and explore brain plasticity and the influence that brain damage may have on a person’s psychological functioning.

Areas of Study:

What influences psychological development?
How are mental processes and behaviour influenced by the brain?
How does contemporary psychology conduct and validate psychological research?

Unit 2: How do internal and external factors influence behaviour and mental processes?

In this unit students evaluate the role social cognition plays in a person’s attitudes, perception of themselves and relationships with others. Students explore a variety of factors and contexts that can influence the behaviour of individuals and groups, recognising that different cultural groups have different experiences and values. Students are encouraged to consider Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s experiences within Australian society and how these experiences may affect psychological functioning. Students examine the contribution that classical and contemporary research has made to the understandings of human perception and why individuals and groups behave in specific ways. Students investigate how perception of stimuli enables a person to interact with the world around them and how their perception of stimuli can be distorted.

Areas of Study:

How are people influenced to behave in particular ways?
What influences a person’s perception of the world?
How do scientific investigations develop understanding of influences on perception and behaviour?

Unit 1 & 2 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Analysis and evaluation of an experiment or case study
A data analysis of generated primary and/or collated secondary data
Reflective annotations of a logbook of practical activities
Media analysis of contemporary media texts
A literature review
Response to a psychological issue or ethical dilemma
A modelling or simulation activity
Problem-solving involving psychological concepts, skills and/or issues
A report of a scientific investigation, including the generation, analysis, and evaluation of primary data

Unit 3: How does experience affect behaviour and mental processes?

In this unit students investigate the contribution that classical and contemporary research has made to the understanding of the functioning of the nervous system and to the understanding of biological, psychological, and social factors that influence learning and memory. Students investigate how the human nervous system enables a person to interact with the world around them. They explore how stress may affect a person’s psychological functioning and consider stress as a psychobiological process, including emerging research into the relationship between the gut and the brain in psychological functioning. Students investigate how mechanisms of learning and memory lead to the acquisition of knowledge and the development of new and changed behaviours. They consider models to explain learning and memory as well as the interconnectedness of brain regions involved in memory. The use of mnemonics to improve memory is explored, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ use of place as a repository of memory.

Areas of Study:

How does the nervous system enable psychological functioning?
How do people learn and remember?

Unit 4: How is mental wellbeing supported and maintained?

In this unit students explore the demand for sleep and the influences of sleep on mental wellbeing. They consider the biological mechanisms that regulate sleep and the relationship between rapid eye movement (REM) and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep across the life span. They also study the impact that changes to a person’s sleep-wake cycle and sleep hygiene have on a person’s psychological functioning and consider the contribution that classical and contemporary research has made to the understanding of sleep. Students consider ways in which mental wellbeing may be defined and conceptualised, including social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) as a multidimensional and holistic framework to wellbeing. They explore the concept of mental wellbeing as a continuum and apply a biopsychosocial approach, as a scientific model, to understand specific phobia. They explore how mental wellbeing can be supported by considering the importance of biopsychosocial protective factors and cultural determinants as integral to the wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Areas of Study:

How does sleep affect mental processes and behaviour?
What influences mental wellbeing?
How is scientific inquiry used to investigate mental processes and psychological functioning?

Unit 3 & 4 Assessments (suitable tasks may include):

Analysis and evaluation of a case study, experiment, model, or simulation
An analysis and evaluation of generated primary and/or collated secondary data
Comparison and evaluation of psychological concepts, methodologies and methods, and findings from practical activities
Media analysis of contemporary media texts
Communication of the design, analysis, and findings of a student-designed and student-conducted scientific investigation through a structured scientific poster and logbook entries.

External Assessment

The level of achievement for Units 3 & 4 is also assessed by an end-of-year examination, contributing 50% of the final assessment.