Home > Subjects > Biology > Level 3 > 3.1 Practical investigation > Subject content
- Subject: Biology
- AS: AS90713
- Level: 3
- Credits: 4
- Internal
Biology 3.1 Carry out a practical investigation into an aspect of an organism's ecological niche with guidance
Subject content
You will carry out the investigation but your teacher will guide and support you. This means that your teacher may:
- decide the organisms for study
- make available equipment for the investigation
- provide you with resource suggestions
- and if necessary, will suggest possible new directions.
Before you begin the investigation, develop an understanding of the ecological niche of the organism you will study. This will help you in your selection of a relevant aspect of the ecological niche.
Some keywords to understand are:
- biotic and abiotic factors. The primary data that you collect of the ecological niche of the organism may be biotic and/or abiotic factors. Your investigation may be about the interaction or relationship between at least two factors
- qualitative and quantitative data.
The scientific method. Check out the Experimental Science Projects: An Intermediate Level Guide to plan an investigation, collect and process data, and interpret the findings. This site has a particularly helpful section on experimental errors (how to avoid and how to identify).
Scientific Writing covers all the stages involved in a scientific investigation. The section on writing a discussion is particularly helpful. Note that the two parts – significance of the results and critical evaluation – are covered under one heading.
