Face-to-face CPD

Essential A-Level Biology - Tackling Difficult Topics

A-Level Biology is one of the top choices of all A-Level subjects, but it is also one of the most challenging. This course deals with some of the tricky topics and demonstrates how to reduce the cognitive load to help students of all abilities process complex ideas.

Overview

Format
Face-to-face CPD
Series
Essential
Duration
1 day (10am to 3.15pm)
Price
£315.00 inc VAT
Audience

All teachers of A-Level Biology: whether ECT, non-specialist teachers, teachers lacking confidence in the harder topics or experienced teachers who have not taught these topics before, having focussed on only one side of the course

Upcoming dates

  • Friday September 26th 2025

    London - The Clermont Hotel (Charing Cross)

    £315.00 inc VAT
    Book now

About the course

Some of the topics covered in A-Level Biology are very conceptually difficult and students can find them hard to understand. Poor understanding will cost them marks in the exams.

This course focuses on four challenging topic areas covered by all exam boards:

  1. Biological molecules including DNA
  2. Gene technology
  3. Genetic crosses and Hardy Weinberg
  4. The immune response

The course will improve your confidence and provide you with classroom resources to support these topics. Hear expert guidance to use up-to-date techniques for enhancing understanding and memory. Learn about the role of dual coding, blank canvassing, chunking and ways to reduce cognitive load. Discuss the misconceptions and common errors for each topic area.

What we'll cover

  • How to get your students to know their molecular structures and know their bonds! - The use of retrieval methods to secure this topic in the long-term memory
  • The importance of knowing the big picture and also knowing the finer details
  • This topic underpins the understanding of many other topics so is essential to master at an early stage – an analysis of the synoptic links that can be made

  • Strategies to cope with the breadth of the different techniques and how not to confuse them
  • The power of using diagrams for understanding genetic engineering and marker genes
  • Discussion of the applications of PCR
  • A focus on how DNA profiling includes many of the other gene technology techniques

  • Understanding the main types of genetic cross
  • The difficulty in using pedigrees to give evidence for types of inheritance – getting the right explanation that will be awarded marks
  • It’s all about the alleles and gene pool for Hardy Weinberg
  • How to make the algebra have clear biological meaning

  • How to break down the whole immune response into easier, more understandable sections
  • The value of diagrams and flowcharts to help processing complex ideas
  • Discuss the use of models, analogies and animation

The tutor2u approach to CPD

  • A full day of CPD designed and delivered by experienced subject specialists

  • Practical, ready-to-use resources that you can put to use and share with colleagues as soon as you return to the classroom

  • A chance to have your questions answered, and teaching problems solved

  • An invaluable opportunity to share ideas and experiences with colleagues from other centres and to build a network of contacts

  • Refreshments throughout the day and a buffet lunch

  • All attendees receive a 20% one-time discount code to use on any tutor2u print or digital resources

Your hosts

  • Ellena Gilson

    Ellena has an excellent teaching background as the head of Biology at a top grammar school and has over 25 years’ experience of teaching. Ellena holds senior positions for two major exam boards and runs her own tutoring business. Ellena has a decade of experience setting exam questions and revising questions for A-Level papers. She authors A-Level resources for a number of publishers.

  • Tracey Williams

    Tracey is an excellent A-Level Biology teacher with nearly 20 years of A-Level experience from a wide-range of schools both in the UK and abroad. Tracey is a senior examiner for two major exam boards, which involves mark scheme construction and has over 16 years of experience in assessment. Tracey runs her own A-Level tutoring business.

About Essential

Designed to support all non-specialist, early career or inexperienced teachers delivering specific qualifications.

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