H556/01 Modelling Physics
Many candidates displayed excellent recall of points of physics and good application of that knowledge in both familiar and unfamiliar situations.

Candidates omitted few questions and there was little evidence that the candidates could not complete the paper in the scheduled time.  

The multiple choice questions section helped to discriminate between the candidates very well since the section was answered competently by most candidates.
Space on the question paper was used effectively to draft out calculations or to eliminate options.

Generally, candidates answered questions on practical skills quite well. Two questions focused on experiments suggested by OCR as acceptable Practical Activity Group (PAG) activities.  Most candidates were evidently familiar with both practical activities. Centres and candidates should remember that each suggested PAG activity includes advice about which practical skills may be tested in the examination.  Refer to the the Practical Skills Handbook for further guidance about this (available at http://www.ocr.org.uk/Images/295483-practical-skills-handbook.pdf).

Candidates are once again reminded that it is poor practice to round off numbers in the middle of long calculations. In ‘show’ questions add as much detail as possible and make clear the logical order of the steps from start to finish.

A quick read-through of extended answers could be usefully employed by the candidates to spot contradictions, which negate previous good physics in these answers.  Responses could be improved by being brief and organised, acceptable use of bullet points may help.  Use of named quantities rather than just their symbols (e.g. period instead of just T) is recommended for clarity.  

If candidates are unable to write their answers within the space provided for answers they are advised to use the additional pages at the back of the answer booklet.  This reduces the chance of answers being partially omitted during the scanning process.

There were some excellent scripts with clearly laid out physics and well-presented calculations.

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H556/02 Exploring Physics

Many of the candidates demonstrated good understanding and application of physics.

Multiple-choice questions were tackled with sensible techniques by most candidates with equations and key ideas noted on the scripts and important calculations done accurately using calculators.  Good use was made of the space provided on the question paper for planning thoughts.

Two questions requiring extended written responses showed that candidates’ practical and graphical skills were good.

Good use was made of the  Data, Formulae, and Relationships Booklet.  Answers were frequently quoted to the correct number of significant figures and calculators were used well.  Some candidates rounded numbers mid calculation for long calculations which is poor practice; it is best to carry through calculator values.  A few candidates made errors recalling prefixes, pico in particular which was often mistakenly quoted as 10⁻⁹.

Written work was of variable quality.  Many candidates included scientific vocabulary in their descriptions and explanations with ease.  But the verboseness of some candidates’ responses led to statements that contradicted themselves.  Use of bullet points is encouraged as a method to aid brief and precise writing which is optimum for physics.  Candidates are reminded that any symbols used in their descriptions should be defined (this is not necessary for calculations).

As noted above candidates are reminded that their scripts are scanned and then marked by examiners so it is important that answers are not written outside of the space provided.

There were some very good scripts with clearly laid out physics and well-presented calculations.

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H556/03 Unified Physics

Most candidates made use of the Data, Formulae, and Relationships Booklet or recalled formulae correctly.  The mass of an alpha particle is included in the data section of the booklet - many candidates seemed to be unaware of this.  Therefore it is a good idea for candidates to familiarise themselves with values included in the data section.  Candidates are reminded that it is useful to record intermediate steps of calculations so that they have more chance to gain credit if an error is made.

More attention should be given to using the correct number of significant figures for each stage of a calculation.  Rounding numbers off in the middle of longer calculations or displaying too many significant figures are bad practice.

There were two level of response questions in this paper, roughly 15% of the candidates failed to attempt one or both of these questions.  This reduced their maximum possible mark by 17%.  The questions focused on practical skills and interpretation of experiments and demonstrations.

The quality of written work was variable, some papers had poor presentation with handwriting that was difficult to read.  Some calculations were also poorly presented - with parts of the calculation scattered across the page with no clear logical development.

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