11–12Biology 11–12 Syllabus (2025)

Discuss the role of genetic variation, inheritance and selective pressures in contributing to the process of evolution by natural selection

Use examples to demonstrate how abiotic and biotic factors exert selective pressures on populations

Explain how human-induced changes may function as selective pressures

Analyse how evolution causes species diversity

Describe examples from Aboriginal palaeontological evidence that demonstrate the existence of Australian megafauna

Evaluate the role of isolation and adaptation in the evolution of Australian monotremes and marsupials

Conduct a practical investigation to model the processes involved in natural selection

Discuss the validity of various models that demonstrate natural selection

Use examples to explain convergent and divergent evolution

Use plant and animal examples to explain how structural, physiological and behavioural adaptations shaped by evolution enable survival in their environment

Conduct a practical investigation to examine structural adaptations for water balance in Australian plants

Use examples to explain behavioural adaptations used by ectotherms and endotherms to survive in the Australian environment

Analyse data to compare how the external environment and body temperature are related in endotherms and ectotherms

Explain physiological adaptations of aquatic animals to regulate water and salt balance

Explain how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples use the adaptations of local plants and animals for specific purposes

Use phylogenetic trees to compare the gradualism model with the punctuated equilibrium model of evolution

Conduct a secondary-source investigation to analyse how human-induced pressures can drive the emergence of antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria and Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane (DDT)-resistant mosquitoes

Analyse information on how transitional fossils, fossil assemblages and relative dating have provided palaeontological and geological evidence for past changes in life forms

Conduct a scientific investigation to infer evolutionary relationships between species using DNA and amino acid sequences

Evaluate comparative anatomy, genetic phylogeny, biogeography and biochemistry as evidence for the theory of evolution by natural selection

Conduct a practical investigation to collect and analyse abiotic and biotic data, to discuss the features of an ecosystem

Compare abiotic data from a variety of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems

Explain how abiotic and biotic factors influence the abundance, distribution and diversity of species in an ecosystem

Compare sampling techniques to estimate distribution and abundance of organisms

Conduct a practical investigation to examine the distribution and abundance of a plant or animal using belt transect, line transect or quadrat sampling techniques

Conduct a practical investigation to model the mark-release-recapture method and estimate abundance of mobile organisms

Use examples to determine relationships between organisms, including predation, competition, mutualism, commensalism, allelopathy and parasitism

Analyse data on the impact of predator–prey relationships and competition on populations

Explain how the carrying capacity of a selected ecosystem is affected by biotic and abiotic factors

Evaluate the validity, reliability and accuracy of ecological sampling data when drawing conclusions about ecosystem dynamics