AQA A-Level Physical Education guide FAQ (7582)
Guide overview All 33 topics Sample questions Papers and weighting Look inside Questions and answers
AQA A-Level Physical Education: questions and answers
Specification 7582. Two sets, because students and parents ask different things.
For students
Which topics are on which paper?
Paper 1 is the cardiovascular, respiratory, neuromuscular and musculo-skeletal systems, energy systems, skill acquisition, and the emergence and globalisation of sport with equal opportunities. Paper 2 is diet and nutrition, training, injury, biomechanics, the whole of sport psychology, and the contemporary issues including drugs, ethics, commercialisation and technology. The full breakdown is here.
Is the practical assessment covered?
No. The non-exam assessment is your performance or coaching in one activity plus a written and verbal analysis of performance, marked by your school and moderated by AQA. It is 30 per cent and it is your own.
What is in the guide is the theory examined on the two written papers, which is 70 per cent.
How much of this is actually science?
A large part of it. Cardiac output and the conduction system, gas exchange and oxyhaemoglobin dissociation, muscle fibre types and proprioceptors, the three energy systems and their thresholds, and the mechanics of levers, motion and projectiles.
Is there maths?
Some. Calculations of cardiac output, stroke volume, body mass index, heart rate zones, velocity and acceleration, and the interpretation of graphs and data tables. It is arithmetic and substitution rather than anything harder.
How long does one session take?
About twenty minutes for one subtopic, all three steps. Topics run from 42 to 95 questions, which is two to five sessions each.
Can I do it in my head instead of writing?
Write. The papers reward named theories, labelled processes and precise definitions, and step 2 is where a vague version gets corrected. The method page sets out the evidence.
When should I start?
7582 is linear, so both papers are sat at the end of Year 13. Work each subtopic in the week it is taught, or start a full first pass in the January of Year 13.
Do I still need past papers?
Yes. Past papers train the fifteen-mark extended answers and the data questions. AQA publishes them free.
For parents
What is this, in plain terms?
A PDF of 2,084 exam-style questions covering the whole examined content of AQA A-Level Physical Education, with the answers printed after each topic.
My child is a strong athlete but the theory marks are low.
That is common. The practical is 30 per cent and the two written papers are 70 per cent, and the written papers test anatomy, physiology, biomechanics, psychology and sociology that playing the sport does not teach.
How do I check it is the right course?
The specification code is on the exam timetable. AQA A-Level Physical Education is 7582.
How do I know if it is being used properly?
There should be handwritten answers on paper and three passes over the same questions, and two scores per session to compare.
How much is it compared with a textbook?
£8.00 for the whole specification. An endorsed A-Level PE textbook is usually £30 to £40 and covers one year.
How much time does the whole course take?
139 subtopics at roughly twenty minutes each is about 46 hours for a full first pass, spread across two years.
What else does my child need?
Past papers, which AQA publishes free, and their own notes.
AQA A-Level Physical Education Active Recall Guide
2,084 questions with their answers, 139 subtopics, one file.