WACE ATAR Human Biology case studies
WACE ATAR Human Biology · Put your knowledge to work in context.
WACE ATAR Human Biology is a Western Australian senior-secondary course, examined within the Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) framework administered by the School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA). It is intended for Year 11 and Year 12 students in Western Australian schools and, through SCSA's international schools arrangements, students studying WACE programs elsewhere who are building an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) pathway toward university study in health sciences, nursing, biomedical science, and related fields. The course develops understanding of human structure and function, from cells and body systems through to inheritance, reproduction, and the ways humans interact with their environment. Assessment combines school-based tasks with an external examination set and marked under SCSA's examination procedures, and results contribute to the calculation of an ATAR. The WACE ATAR Human Biology case studies are 5 cases and about 2,384 words.
1Interpreting a Glucose Tolerance Curve
A 52-year-old man with a BMI of 31 attends a clinic after reporting fatigue and frequent urination. He fasted for 10 hours.
533 words, about 3 min2Oxygen Dissociation and Altitude
A trekker ascends from sea level to 3800 m over four days. At altitude, her arterial partial pressure of oxygen (PaO2) falls from about 95 mmHg to about 55 mmHg.
500 words, about 3 min3Thermoregulation During Exertion in Heat
A 24-year-old runner completes a 10 km race on a 34 °C day with 70% humidity. At 5 km his skin is flushed and sweating heavily; his core temperature is estimated at 39.2 °C.
470 words, about 2 min4Nephron Handling and a Diuretic
A 60-year-old woman with hypertension is prescribed a drug that acts on the ascending limb of the loop of Henle, blocking the sodium-potassium-chloride cotransporter. Before treatment: plasma sodium 140 mmol/L, potassium 4.2 mmol/L, blood pressure 158/96 mmHg.
429 words, about 2 min5Antibody Response After Vaccination in an Older Adult
A 78-year-old man receives a two-dose vaccine schedule. Blood is sampled before dose 1, 10 days after dose 1, and 14 days after dose 2.
452 words, about 2 min