VCE - Science
VCE Science
A major aim of science is to develop explanations for natural phenomena and events that are supported by evidence. Common to different methods of scientific inquiry and practical activities are three key aspects that are central to the VCE Science Curriculum inquiry focus: asking questions, testing ideas and using evidence.
The opportunity for students to work scientifically and respond to questions is an important feature. Questions reflect the inquiry nature of studying science and can be framed to provide contexts for developing conceptual understanding. Practical activities may also be used to introduce and consolidate understanding of a concept and to develop scientific skills. The principles of fair testing through controlled experiments are important in science, but may not always enable students to understand scientific ideas or concepts, answer their questions or appreciate how scientists work and the nature of science. At this level, different methods of scientific inquiry that generate primary data may be utilised.
VCE Biology
Biology is the study of living organisms, of life processes, and of the different levels of organisation from the cell to the biosphere. It includes the study of interactions between organisms, and between organisms and their environments. It considers the unity and continuity of life as well as diversity and change.
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 this unit. The investigation involves the generation of primary data and is related to the function and/or the regulation of cells or systems.
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 interdependencies 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. A student-directed research investigation into a contemporary ethical issue is to be undertaken in this unit. The investigation relates to the application of genetic knowledge, reproductive science, inheritance or adaptations and interdependencies beneficial for survival.
Unit 3: How do cells maintain life?
In this unit students investigate the workings of the cell from several perspectives. 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. Examples of investigation topics include, but are not limited to: discovery and development of the model of the structure of DNA; proteomic research applications; transgenic organism use in agriculture; use, research and regulation of gene technologies, including CRISPR-Cas9; outcomes and unexpected consequences of the use of enzyme inhibitors such as pesticides and drugs; research into increasing efficiency of photosynthesis or cellular respiration or impact of poisons on the cellular respiration pathway.
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 paleontology, 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.
Students demonstrate and apply their knowledge of how life changes and responds to challenges through investigation of a selected case study, data analysis and/or bioethical issue. Examples of investigation topics include, but are not limited to: deviant cell behaviour and links to disease; autoimmune diseases; allergic reactions; development of immunotherapy strategies; use and application of bacteriophage therapy; prevention and eradication of disease; vaccinations; bioprospecting for new medical treatments; trends, patterns and evidence for evolutionary relationships; population and species changes over time in non-animal communities such as forests and microbiota; monitoring of gene pools for conservation planning; role of selective breeding programs in conservation of endangered species; or impact of new technologies on the study of evolutionary biology.
VCE Chemistry
The study of VCE Chemistry involves investigating and analysing the composition and behaviour of matter, and the chemical processes involved in producing useful materials for society in ways that minimise adverse effects on human health and the environment. Chemistry underpins the generation of energy for use in homes and industry, the maintenance of clean air and water, the production of food, medicines and new materials, and the treatment of wastes.
Unit 1: How can the diversity of materials be explained?
The development and use of materials for specific purposes is an important human endeavour. In this unit students investigate the chemical 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. Throughout this unit students use chemistry terminology including symbols, formulas, chemical nomenclature and equations to represent and explain observations and data from their own investigations and to evaluate the chemistry-based claims of others.
Throughout the unit students use chemistry terminology including symbols, formulas, chemical nomenclature and equations to represent and explain observations and data from experiments, and to discuss chemical phenomena. A student-directed research investigation into the sustainable production or use of a selected material is to be undertaken in Area of Study 3. The investigation explores how sustainability factors such as green chemistry principles and the transition to a circular economy are considered in the production of materials to ensure minimum toxicity and impacts on human health and the environment. The investigation draws on key knowledge and key science skills from Area of Study 1 and Area of Study 2.
Unit 2: How do chemical reactions shape the natural world?
Society is dependent on the work of chemists to analyse the materials and products in everyday use. In this unit 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.
Throughout the unit students use chemistry terminology, including symbols, formulas, chemical nomenclature and equations, to represent and explain observations and data from their own investigations and to evaluate the chemistry-based claims of others.
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 production of gases, acid-base or redox reactions, or the analysis of substances in water. It draws on the key science skills and key knowledge from Unit 2 Area of Study 1 and Area of Study 2.
Unit 3: How can chemical processes be designed to optimise efficiency?
The global demand for energy and materials is increasing with world population growth. In this unit students explore energy options and the chemical production of materials with reference to efficiencies, renewability and the minimisation of their impact on the environment. Students compare and evaluate different chemical energy resources, including fossil fuels, biofuels, galvanic cells and fuel cells. They investigate the combustion of fuels, including the energy transformations involved, the use of stoichiometry to calculate the amounts of reactants and products involved in the reactions, and calculations of the amounts of energy released and their representations. Students consider the purpose, design and operating principles of galvanic cells, fuel cells and electrolytic cells. In this context they use the electrochemical series to predict and write half and overall redox equations, and apply Faraday’s laws to calculate quantities in electrolytic reactions. Students analyse manufacturing processes with reference to factors that influence their reaction rates and extent. They investigate and apply the equilibrium law and Le Chatelier’s principle to different reaction systems, including to predict and explain the conditions that will improve the efficiency and percentage yield of chemical processes. They use the language and conventions of chemistry including symbols, units, chemical formulas and equations to represent and explain observations and data collected from experiments, and to discuss chemical phenomena.
Unit 4: How are organic compounds categorised, analysed and used?
The carbon atom has unique characteristics that explain the diversity and number of organic compounds that not only constitute living tissues but are also found in the fuels, foods, medicines and many of the materials we use in everyday life. In this unit students investigate the structural features, bonding, typical reactions and uses of the major families of organic compounds including those found in food. Students study the ways in which organic structures are represented and named. They process data from instrumental analyses of organic compounds to confirm or deduce organic structures, and perform volumetric analyses to determine the concentrations of organic chemicals in mixtures. Students consider the nature of the reactions involved to predict the products of reaction pathways and to design pathways to produce particular compounds from given starting materials. Students investigate key food molecules through an exploration of their chemical structures, the hydrolytic reactions in which they are broken down and the condensation reactions in which they are rebuilt to form new molecules. In this context the role of enzymes and coenzymes in facilitating chemical reactions is explored. Students use calorimetry as an investigative tool to determine the energy released in the combustion of foods.
VCE Psychology Units 1 to 4
Psychology is a multifaceted discipline that seeks to describe, explain, understand and predict human behaviour and mental processes. It includes many sub-fields of study that explore and seek to better understand how individuals, groups, communities and societies think, feel and act.
VCE Psychology applies a biopsychosocial approach to the systematic study of mental processes and behaviour. Within this approach, different perspectives, models and theories are considered. Each of these has strengths and weaknesses, yet considered together, they allow students to develop their understanding of human behaviour and mental processes and the interrelated nature of biological, psychological and social factors
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.
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.
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.
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.
VCE Physics Units 1 to 4
Increasing the understanding of the physical and social environment, has led to developments which have profoundly influenced the world. The study of Physics covers the areas that traditionally are the basis of courses at this level, with an emphasis on the foundation areas of mechanics and electricity. A contextual approach to the study has been adopted so that students appreciate the relevance of physics to the physical, technological and social worlds.
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: communication, climate change and global warming, medical treatment, electrical home safety and Australian energy needs.
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. Students make direct observations of physics phenomena and examine the ways in which phenomena that may not be directly observable can be explored through indirect observations.
In the core component of this unit, students investigate the ways in which forces are involved both in moving objects and in keeping objects stationary. The class selects one of eighteen options related to climate science, nuclear energy, flight, structural engineering, biomechanics, medical physics, bioelectricity, optics, photography, music, sports science, electronics, astrophysics, astrobiology, Australian traditional artefacts and techniques, particle physics, cosmology and local physics research. A student-adapted or student-designed scientific investigation is undertaken in Area of Study 3. The investigation involves the generation of primary data and draws on the key science skills and key knowledge from Area of Study 1 and/or Area of Study 2.
Unit 3: How do fields explain motion and electricity?
In this unit, students explore the importance of energy in explaining and describing the physical world. They examine the production of electricity and its delivery to homes. Students consider the field model as a construct that has enabled an understanding of why objects move when they are not apparently in contact with other objects. Applications of concepts related to fields include the transmission of electricity over large distances and the design and operation of particle accelerators. They explore the interactions, effects and applications of gravitational, electric and magnetic fields. Students use Newton’s laws to investigate motion in one and two dimensions, and are introduced to Einstein’s theories to explain the motion of very fast objects. They consider how developing technologies can challenge existing explanations of the physical world, requiring a review of conceptual models and theories. Students undertake investigations involving at least two continuous independent variables.
Unit 4: How can two contradictory models explain both light and matter?
A complex interplay exists between theory and experiment in generating models to explain natural phenomena including light. Wave theory has classically been used to explain phenomena related to light; however, continued exploration of light and matter has revealed the particle-like properties of light. On very small scales, light and matter – which initially seem to be quite different – have been observed as having similar properties. In this unit, students explore the use of wave and particle theories to model the properties of light and matter. They examine how the concept of the wave is used to explain the nature of light and explore its limitations in describing light behaviour. Students further investigate light by using a particle model to explain its behaviour. A wave model is also used to explain the behaviour of matter which enables students to consider the relationship between light and matter. Students learn to think beyond the concepts experienced in everyday life to study the physical world from a new perspective. Students undertake investigations involving at least two continuous independent variables. A student-designed practical investigation related to fields or motion is undertaken in Unit 4. The findings of the investigation are presented in a scientific poster format.