Stage 1 Physics B
Length of Course
Level
Learning Area
Core or Specialist
Pre-requisites
Stage 1 Physics A
Subject Description
Physics is a subject for students who are interested in understanding how things work in their everyday lives. It is the study of heat and matter, electricity, light, sound and radioactivity, amongst many other things. It therefore helps in our understanding of many modern technologies and devices that influence our daily lives, including communication, medical diagnosis, information technologies, and engineering.
Students wishing to do Stage 2 Physics require successful completion of Stage 1 Physics A and B.
By the end of this course, students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of:
- Heat – the link between the temperature of matter and the kinetic energy of its particles, the flow of energy in terms of conduction, convection and radiation, specific heat and latent heat.
- Electrical Circuits – the concepts of electric charge, potential difference, current, resistance, electrical power, and efficiency.
- Waves – the properties of waves with a focus on light and sound waves, the characteristics of light waves including reflection, refraction and interference of the electromagnetic spectrum.
- Nuclear Models and Radioactivity – the basic structure of the nucleus, radioactivity and nuclear fission and fusion.
The four summative assessment tasks have an equal weighting of 25%. These are an experiment and practical written report on waves, a test on heat and electrical circuits, a science as a human endeavour essay, and an examination on the semester’s content.
Stage 2 Physics
Pathways for Science
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