The VCE Psychology exam is a doozy. At least in my opinion, this subject has the greatest disparity between SACs and exams. Depending on the teacher, it can be easy to get nursed through units 3 and 4, answering easy questions on what a neuron is, or gleefully describing classical conditioning for the 670th time. So it’s quite a shock when the exam rolls around, and suddenly you have to think outside the box. Having an intimate knowledge of what may pop up is essential to not falling at the final hurdle. So please, join me, as we navigate this crazy world of psychology together.
For any stats nerds out there, I’d suggest having a peek at the VCE Grade Distribution. Assuming you want to get an A, typically in Unit 3 you’d need to averaging around 90% (remember what I said before about psych teachers tending to go easy on us). However, on the exam, a 75% will get you the same mark. Maybe it’s exam apprehension, maybe people are just really tired after the English exam the day before. Or, maybe the powers that be just really don’t want you to be happy. In any case, the stats show, this exam will not be anything to take lightly.
This is part 1 in a 3 part series completely breaking down the VCE Psychology Exam.
Section A- Multiple Choice Questions
For me, these are where you can really boost your marks. All you need to do to excel here is truly know the content. You will be rewarded. Trust me. There will be at least a couple of ambiguous questions that leave you shaking your fist to the sky in rage, but we can all get through those together. While Section B is a cold and desolate wasteland at times, Section A can be like candyland to a psych student hungry for delicious marks. But that candy can turn into boiled lollies if not respected. You need to study. There is no other way.
Consider the following questions, test yourself. No pressure
A role of cortisol during prolonged stress is to
A. maintain homeostasis.
B. activate the freeze response.
C. suppress the immune system.
D. trigger the parasympathetic nervous system
Memories that are automatic and involve how to do things, such as riding a bike, are
A. explicit memories, which are stored in the cerebellum.
B. implicit memories, which are processed in the cerebellum.
C. explicit memories, which are consolidated by the hippocampus.
D. implicit memories, which are consolidated by the hippocampus.
Which one of the following is a biological cause of shifts in the sleep-wake cycle during adolescence?
A. too much REM sleep
B. too much light in the morning
C. delayed release of sleep-inducing hormones
D. later bedtime due to homework and/or part-time work
The answers were C, B, C by the way. How did you go? These are actual questions from the 2018 exam. If you can navigate through these sorts of questions, you’ll be fine. There may be a series of questions which focus on a case study, but once again, if you know the content well, you will have no trouble thinking outside of the box.
If you struggled, here is how I broke down each question. If cortisol maintained homeostasis for us, then that prolonged stress response could not exist. That means it can’t be A. Similarly, triggering the parasympathetic nervous system would calm us down, so it can’t be D. And while the freeze response sounds more plausible, remember, the question specifies the role of cortisol in prolonged stress. The freeze response would have been activated long ago. So the answer will be C. If you recall, ya boy Hans Selye and his GAS defines an exhaustion stage, where prolonged cortisol starts to cause physical illness. (We’ve all been there). So C makes sense! All about that sweet sweet process of elimination.
There are two vital pieces of information in the second question. One, you have to know that implicit memories do NOT require conscious awareness. A lot of your motor skills don’t require much effort to implement, and that is because of implicit memories! Next, you need to remember that the cerebellum helps coordinate body movement. Then you have your answer, B.
The last question on the surface could be harder, IF you haven’t done the content. I don’t know about you, but the main thing I learnt for adolescent sleep is that melatonin does not get released until later (makes an 8:30 school start time a bit cruel doesn’t it?). Thus, it is B. REM sleep shouldn’t play a factor as it doesn’t really affect the sleep wake process, however an absence in REM sleep would likely lead to bad things such as sleep deprivation. Too much light can play a factor, but I would say that comes into play more at night than in the morning. You need light in the morning to get you up and going!
There are some weird instances where 2 options are accepted as correct, or all 4 are accepted as correct. This is just cruel, but it means that if you can’t split between two options no matter how hard you try, just circle one of them. You’re likely to get the mark anyway.
How to study
The good thing about multiple choice is that there are SO many out there. You can practice to your heart’s content, and it isn’t as time consuming or draining as short answer. I would start with doing sets of 10 questions, maybe do the ones at the end of each textbook chapter. Practice the art of elimination, and celebrate each correct answer you get. Get rid of the completely wrong answer first, and think critically of the other three. Knowing the content should never let you down.
You could even make it more interesting. Ask your teacher if they can order a few pizzas, and have a kahoot study session. You can’t go wrong! If the exams were in kahoot format, we’d all be a bit happier.
That’s it for part 1! Parts 2 and 3 will focus on Section B, including the dreaded research methods. Stay tuned.
While I have you, check out The VCE Psychology Tutor on Facebook and Youtube!
I also do tutoring! In addition to VCE Psychology, I can help with VCE English, English Language, and Health and Human Development.
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