JCE General Science (Syllabus 43) study guide
JCE General Science (Syllabus 43) · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
This page is an independent study guide for the Junior Certificate General Science examination, commonly linked to Syllabus 43 within Botswana's Junior Certificate (JCE) framework. It is written for candidates preparing for a school-leaving science qualification and for teachers or parents supporting that preparation. The qualification is administered within the JCE system overseen by the Botswana Examinations Council (BEC), but this page is not affiliated with BEC and does not issue results or certificates. The syllabus profile organizes General Science into five broad areas: scientific skills and processes; biology and life processes; chemistry and matter; physics, energy and forces; and Earth, environment and technology applications. The JCE General Science (Syllabus 43) study guide has 5 sections and about 1,614 words.
01Scientific Skills and Processes: Investigation, Measurement and Data Handling
Every investigation begins with a hypothesis - a prediction that can be tested and shown to be wrong. Identify the independent variable (what you deliberately change), the dependent variable (what you measure) and the control variables (everything kept the same).
333 words, about 2 min02Biology and Life Processes
Know the shared features of cells - cell membrane, cytoplasm, nucleus, mitochondria, ribosomes - and the plant extras: cell wall, chloroplasts, permanent vacuole. Root cells have no chloroplasts.
295 words, about 1 min03Chemistry and Matter
Use the particle model to explain solids, liquids and gases, and the changes of state between them. Melting and boiling happen at fixed temperatures for a pure substance; evaporation occurs at any temperature from the surface.
314 words, about 2 min04Physics, Energy and Forces
Distinguish scalars (speed, distance) from vectors (velocity, displacement). On a distance–time graph the gradient is speed; on a velocity–time graph the gradient is acceleration and the area beneath the line is distance travelled.
332 words, about 2 min05Earth, Environment and Technology Applications
Earth has a crust, mantle and core. Tectonic plates of lithosphere move on the mantle; at boundaries plates diverge, collide or slide, producing volcanoes, earthquakes and mountain belts.
340 words, about 2 min