Biology Waec Syllabus

Concept of Living

1. Classification
   • Living and non-living things
   • Classification of living things into Kingdoms
   • Differences between plants and animals
2. Organization of life
   • Levels of organization
     • cell (single-celled organisms): Amoeba, Euglena, Paramecium
     • Tissue: Hydra
     • Organ (storage organ) bulb, rhizome and heart.
     • System/Organ System: In mammals, flowering plants – reproductive system, excretory system, etc.
   • Complexity of organization in higher organisms: advantages and disadvantages
3. Forms in which living cells exist
   • Single and free-living: Amoeba, Paramecium, Euglena, and Chlamydomonas
   • Colony: Volvox
   • Filament: Spirogyra
   • Part of a living organism: cheek cells, onion root tip cells, and epidermis of fleshy leaves
4. Cell
   • Cell structure and functions of cell components
   • Similarities and differences between plant and animal cells
5. The Cell and its environment
   • Physical and biophysical processes
   • diffusion
   • osmosis
   • active transport
6. Properties and functions of the living cell
   • Nutrition
     • Autotrophic (photosynthesis)
     • Heterotrophic (holozoic)
   • Cellular respiration
     • Aerobic respiration
     • anaerobic respiration
     • energy release
   • Excretion
     • Excretion in single-celled aquatic organisms. Diffusion by body surface and by the contractile vacuole
     • Waste products of metabolism
   • Growth
     • Basis of growth: cell division (mitosis), enlargement, and differentiation.
     • Aspects of growth: increase in dry weight, irreversible increase in size and length, and increase in the number of cells.
     • Regions of the fastest growth in plants
     • Influence of growth hormones and auxins
     • Growth curvatures (Tropisms)
   • Development: Enlargement and differentiation
   • Movement
     • Organelles for movement: cilia and flagella
     • Cyclosis
   • Reproduction:
     • Types of reproduction.
     • Asexual: fission, budding and vegetative propagation
     • Sexual: Conjugation, formation of male and female gametes (gametogenesis), fusion of gametes fertilization)
7. Tissues and supporting systems
   • Skeletons and supporting systems in animals
     • Biological significance
     • Skeletal materials, e.g. bone, cartilage and chitin.
     • Types of skeleton: exoskeleton, endoskeleton and hydrostatic skeleton
     • Bones of the vertebral column, girdles and long bones of the appendicular skeleton
     • Mechanisms of support in animals
     • Functions of skeleton in animals: Protection, support, locomotion and respiratory movement
   • Different types of supporting tissues in plants
     • Main features of supporting tissues in plants
     • Functions of supporting tissues in plants: strength, rigidity (resistance against the forces of the wind and water), flexibility and resilience.
8. Transport System
   • Need for transport
     • surface area/volume ratio.
     • substances have to move greater distances
   • Transport in animals
     • Structure of the heart, arteries, veins and capillaries
     • Composition and function of blood and lymph
     • Materials for transport: excretory products, gases, digested food, and other nutrients
   • Transport in plants
     • Uptake and movement of water and mineral salts in plants
     • Translocation
     • Transpiration
     • Movement of water to the apex of trees and herbs
9. Respiratory System
   • Body surface: cutaneous, gills and lungs.
   • Mechanisms of gaseous exchange in fish, toads, mammals and plants
10. Excretory Systems and Mechanisms
    • Types of excretory systems: Kidney, stomata and lenticels
11. Regulation of Internal Environment (Homeostasis)
    • Kidney: Structure and functions
    • Liver
      • Functions of the liver
    • The skin
      • Structure and function
12. Hormonal Coordination
    • Animal hormones
      • Site of secretion, functions and effects of over and under-secretion
    • Plant hormones
13. Nervous Coordination
    • The central nervous system
      • Components of the central nervous system
      • Parts of the brain and their functions; cerebrum, cerebellum, medulla oblongata, hypothalamus and their functions
      • Structure and function of the Spinal Cord
    • Peripheral Nervous System
      • Somatic Nervous System
      • Autonomic nervous system
      • Structure and functions of the neurone
      • Classification of neurones
    • Types of nervous actions
      • The reflex arc
      • Reflex and voluntary actions
      • Differences between reflex and voluntary actions
      • Conditioned reflex and its role in behavior
14. Sense Organs

    Structure and function of the:

    • Eye
    • Ear
15. Reproductive System
    • Reproductive systems of mammals
      • Structure and function of male and female reproductive systems
      • Differences between male and female reproductive organs
      • Structure of the gametes (sperm and ovum)
      • Fertilization, development of the embryo and birth
      • Birth control
    • Metamorphosis in insects: life histories of butterfly and cockroach
    • Comparison of reproduction in fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals
    • Reproduction in flowering plants
      • Arrangements of floral parts of a named insect-pollinated flower and a named wind-pollinated flower
      • Structure and function of the male and female parts of a flower
    • Pollination in Plants
      • Types of pollination
      • Features of cross-pollinated and self-pollinated flowers
      • Agents of Pollination
    • Kinds of placentation: axile, marginal and parietal
    • Process of development of zygote in flowering plants: Fertilization
      • Types of fruits (classification)
      • Structure of fruits
    • Dispersal of fruits and seeds: Agents of dispersal

Plant and Animal Nutrition

1. Plant Nutrition
   • Photosynthesis
     • Process of photosynthesis and its chemical equation
     • Light and dark reactions
     • Materials and conditions necessary for photosynthesis
     • Evidence of photosynthesis
   • Mineral requirement of plants
     • Mineral nutrition: Macro and micro-nutrients
     • Soil and atmosphere as sources of mineral elements.
2. Animal Nutrition
   • Food substances; classes and sources
   • Balanced diet and its importance
   • Food tests
   • Digestive enzymes: Classes, characteristics and functions
   • Modes of Nutrition
     • Autotrophic: Photosynthesis
     • Heterotrophic: holozoic, parasitic, symbiotic and saprophytic
   • Alimentary System
     • Alimentary tract of different animals.
   • Dental Formula
   • Feeding in protozoa and mammals

Basic Ecological Concepts

1. Ecosystem
   • Components of the ecosystem and sizes
     • Ecological components: environment, biosphere, habitat, population, biotic community and ecosystem
   • Components of the ecosystem
     • Biotic and abiotic
2. Ecological factors
   • Ecological factors in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems
3. Simple Measurement of Ecological Factors
   • Physical factors: Climatic, topographic and gaseous
   • Edaphic factors: Chemical and physical composition, moisture content and soil texture
4. Food webs and trophic levels
   • Autotrophs and Heterotrophs
     • Producers: autotrophs
     • Consumers: heterotrophs
     • Decomposers
   • Trophic levels of energy relationships
     • Food chain
     • Food web
   • Energy flow
     • Food/Energy relationship in aquatic and terrestrial environments
     • Pyramid of energy and Pyramid of numbers
   • Decomposition in nature
     • Decomposers: (micro and macro-decomposers)
     • Gaseous products
     • Role of decomposers
5. Ecological Management
   • Biological Associations
     • Type of associations: Parasitism, symbiosis, commensalism and saprophytism
   • Adaptation of organisms to habitats
   • Pollution of the atmosphere
     • Nature, names, sources and effects of air pollutants
     • Effect of noise
   • Water and Soil Pollution
     • Type and effects of pollutants
6. Ecology of population
   • Ecological succession
     • Structural changes in species composition, variety or diversity and increase in numbers
     • General characteristics and outcomes of succession
   • Primary succession
   • Succession in terrestrial and aquatic habitats
   • Secondary succession, climax of the succession: characteristic of a stable ecosystem
   • Factors that affect population size: natality, mortality, emigration, immigration, food shortage, predation, competition and diseases
   • Preservation and storage of foods
   • The life of selected insects
     • Weevils and cotton strainers
     • Control of pests
7. Microorganisms: Man and health
   • Carriers of microorganisms
   • Microorganisms in action
     • Beneficial effects in nature, medicine and industries
     • Harmful effects of microorganisms, diseases caused by microorganisms: cholera, measles, malaria and ringworm.
   • Towards better Health
     • Methods of controlling harmful microorganisms: high temperature, antibiotics, antiseptics, high salinity and dehydration
     • Ways of controlling the vectors
   • Public Health
     • Refuse and sewage disposal
     • Immunization, vaccination and inoculation (control of diseases)

Conservation of Natural Resources

1. Resources to be conserved: soil, water, wildlife, forest and minerals
2. Ways of ensuring conservation

Variation in Population

1. Morphological variations in the physical appearance of individuals
   • size, height and weight
   • colour (skin, eye, hair coat of animals)
   • fingerprints
2. Physiological Variations
   • Ability to roll tongue
   • Ability to taste
   • phenylthiocarbamide (PTC)
   • Blood groups (ABO) classification

Biology of Heredity (Genetics)

1. Genetic Terminologies
2. Transmission and expression of characteristics in organisms
   • Hereditary variation
   • Mendel’s work in genetics
     • Mendel’s experiments
     • Mendelian traits
     • Mendelian laws
3. Chromosomes: The basis of heredity
   • Structure
   • Process of transmission of hereditary characters from parents to offspring
4. Probability in genetics (Hybrid formation)
5. Linkage, sex determination and sex-linked characters
6. Application of the principles of heredity in
   • Agriculture
   • Medicine

Adaptation for survival and Evolution

1. Behavioural Adaptations in Social Animals
   • Termites
   • Bees
2. Evolution
   • Evidence of evolution
   • Theories of evolution

SECTION B

1. Introducing Biology
   • Biology as a science of life
   • Procedure for biological work
   • Importance of Biology
   • Body symmetry, sectioning and orientation
   • The microscope
   • Biological drawings
2. Cell Biology
   • Movement of substances into and out of cells: Endocytosis and Exocytosis
   • Nucleic acids
   • DNA structure and replication, RNA transcription
   • Protein synthesis
   • Cell cycle
3. Life Processes in Living Things
   • Amoeba, Paramecium, and Euglena
   • Spirogyra and Rhizopus
   • Mosses and ferns
4. Diversity of Living Things
   • Characteristics of some of the orders of Class Insecta
   • Identification of organisms using biological keys
5. Interactions in Nature Soil
6. Mammalian Anatomy and Physiology
   • Dissection of a small mammal
   • Transport: Structure of the mammalian heart
   • Cellular respiration
   • Movement
     • Muscles
     • Skeletal tissues
   • Reproduction
     • Secondary sexual characteristics
     • Prenatal/Antenatal care
7. Plant Structure and Physiology
   • Morphology of monocotyledonous and dicotyledonous plants.
   • Transport: Guttation
   • Reproduction: Floral formula
8. Humans and their Environment
   • Integrated water resources management
   • Health and hygiene
     • Drug abuse
     • Community Health
     • First Aid
9. Evolution
   • Recombinant DNA Technology
10. Biology and Industry
    • Biology and water industry
      • Contamination of water
      • Identification of polluted water
      • Wastewater treatment
    • Biology and fishing industry
      • Fish stock management
      • Fish farming
    • Biology and food industry
      • Food additives
    • Biology and Agriculture
    • Biotechnology
    • Biological fuel generation

SECTION C

1. Concept of Living
   • Cell theory
   • Irritability as a basic characteristic of protoplasm
     • Types of responses: taxis and nastism
     • Environmental factors that evoke responses; temperature, pH etc
   • Excretory Systems
     • Diseases of the kidney: Nephritis, kidney stone and diuresis, Their effects and remedies.
     • Diseases of the liver: infective hepatitis, cancer of the liver and gallstones. Their effects and remedies
2. Sense organs
   • Nose
   • Tongue
   • The skin
3. Reproduction
   • Courtship behaviour in animals
     • Pairing
     • Display e.g. peacocks
     • Territoriality
     • Seasonal migration associated with breeding in herrings, eels and birds.
   • Metamorphosis and life history of houseflies.
   • Adaptive features in a developing animal
     • Yolk in eggs of fish, toads and birds for nourishment
     • Placenta in animals
   • Germination of seeds
     • Essential factors which affect developing embryos.
     • Types of germination

Plant and Animal Nutrition

1. Nitrogen cycle
2. Modes of nutrition:
   • autotrophic, chemosynthetic, and carnivorous plants
3. Alimentary System
   • Alimentary tracts of different animals
   • Description and function of various parts.
4. Feeding habits
   • Categories: Carnivorous, herbivorous and omnivorous
   • Modifications and mechanisms associated with the following habits; filter feeding, fluid feeding, feeding adaptation in insects, saprophytic feeding, parasitic feeding etc.

Basic Ecological Concepts

1. Ecological Components:
   • Lithosphere, hydrosphere, atmosphere, niche
2. Population Studies by Sampling
   • Population size
   • Dominance
   • Density
3. Energy transformation in nature
   • Energy loss in the ecosystem
   • Solar radiation: its intake and loss at the earth’s surface
   • Energy loss in the biosphere
4. Nutrient Cycling in Nature
   • Carbon Cycle
     • Process of the carbon cycle
     • Importance of carbon in nature
   • Water Cycle
     • Importance of water cycle
     • Importance of water to living organisms
5. Ecological Management
   • Tolerance, Minimum and maximum range
6. Habitats
   • Aquatic habitat: marine, estuarine fresh water under the following headings
     • Characteristics of habitat
     • distribution of plants and animals in the habitat
     • adaptive features of plants and animals in the habitat
   • Terrestrial habitat: marsh, forest, grassland, arid land should be studied under the following headings
     • Characteristics of habitat
     • distribution of plants and animals in habitat
   • Balance in Nature
     • Dynamic equilibrium population and population density
7. Relevance of Biology to Agriculture
   • Classification of plants based on life cycle
   • Effects of agricultural practices on ecology
     • Bush burning
     • Tillage
     • Fertilizer
     • Herbicide/pesticide
     • Different farming methods
8. Microorganisms: Man and His Health
   • Microorganisms around us
     • Microorganisms in air and water
     • Groups of microorganisms: bacteria, viruses, some algae, protozoa and some fungi
   • Microorganisms in our bodies and food
   • Public Health
     • Food hygiene and health organization.

Application of Variations

1. Crime detection
2. Blood transfusion
3. Determination of paternity

Evolution

1. Adaptation for survival
   • Factors that bring about competition
   • Intra and Inter-species competition
   • Relationship between competition and succession
2. Structural Adaptation for
   • obtaining food protection and defense
   • securing mates for reproduction,
   • regulating body temperature
   • conserving water
3. Adaptive Colouration Plants and animals Colouration and their functions