Excel at Science

  • May 9, 2020

How to Answer Experiment Questions on AP Biology FRQ

Updated: Sep 22, 2023

On the AP Biology exam, the first section is multiple-choice and the second section is a set of 8 FRQs (free response questions), in which you may be given an experiment setup or asked to design an experiment yourself. Many students find the FRQs challenging because experimental design is not a specific chapter in the AP Biology textbook.

In order to answer these questions well, you need to put on your scientist’s hat and think about it as if you were running the experiment. The best way to demonstrate this is to walk through some examples of experiments. First, we will discuss the guidelines and terminology used for designing and running experiments in biology.

An experiment should always be based on a hypothesis, something that you believe might be true and that you want to test. If there is no hypothesis, there is no purpose for the experiment. Often, the hypothesis is an association between a factor and a result of interest. Some examples are:

Sunlight and plant growth

Mutation in bacteria and resistance to an antibiotic

A particular drug and decreased blood pressure

Soil acidity and flower color

Let’s take the second example, a particular mutation in bacteria and resistance to a specific antibiotic. There are so many different aspects of bacteria and the environment they live in. How can we determine that one particular trait (in this case, a mutated gene) is responsible for antibiotic resistance?

This is why scientists use controlled environments for their experiments. They can control for all factors ( keep them the same) across all experimental groups except the suspected factor, the gene mutation. Each experimental group has a different treatment or condition. In a control group, there is no special treatment. The control group serves as a baseline to compare the other groups to. The diagram below illustrates this:

Notice that all other factors (bacterial strain, concentration of nutrients, concentration of antibiotic added, etc.) are kept the same.

Another term often used in experimentation is null hypothesis . This is different from the scientific hypothesis! Many students get confused by that. The null hypothesis is more of a statistics term and it states that there will be no significant difference observed among the different experimental groups. Scientists usually hope to reject the null hypothesis , which means they do observe a real difference, supporting their scientific hypothesis . This will all become more clear when we walk through some examples.

Example Problems:

2017 FRQ - #2 Bees and Caffeine Experiment

This question involves an experiment about bees and the nectar they encounter while pollinating flowers. The scientists want to understand the role of caffeine on the bees’ memory.

The question gives a table showing the results of the experiment, shown below. It includes a control group and test group (caffeine). It also shows the probability of the bees returning to a recently visited nectar source. This probability is used to represent the bees’ short-term and long-term memory.

ap bio frq experimental design

As you read through the question and think about the experiment, you should consider the set of questions below. Just consider them, no need to write them down. They will help you plan out your responses to the actual problem:

What are these scientists testing in this experiment? In other words, what is their scientific hypothesis ?

What is the independent and dependent variable?

What is the difference between the control and test group? What’s the purpose of the control group? Note that sometimes there is more than one test group. Here, we only have one, which is the caffeine treatment group.

What is the null hypothesis ?

How could the experimental data be represented graphically?

What do the +/- values mean in each of the data cells?

If you are able to answer all those questions, you will have no trouble with this problem. So let’s answer them:

The scientific hypothesis is that exposure to caffeine is associated with the bees’ memory.

The independent variable is the treatment, which is exposure to caffeine. The dependent variable is what is impacted. Here, that is the bees’ memory.

The control group is exposed to no caffeine, while the treatment group is exposed to caffeine in the nectar. The control group serves as a baseline to compare the treatment group to. If we hypothesize that caffeine has a negative impact on memory, then the probability of revisiting the nectar source should be higher for the treatment compared to the control.

The null hypothesis states that there is no significant difference in memory between the control and treatment groups. Any difference observed would be due to chance. To support the scientific hypothesis, scientists need the data to reject the null hypothesis.

The data here should be represented by a bar graph. There will be two bars, one for control and one for treatment. There should also be error bars because the standard errors are included in the data. The graph would look something like this:

ap bio frq experimental design

2019 FRQ - #2 Ecological Relationship Between Two Protists

This question is about an experiment that investigates the ecological relationship between two protists. Are they competing for the same food? Does one predate on the other? Or do they live together in harmony and use different resources? That is what the scientists want to know.

The data collected in the experiment is given in the question, shown below.

ap bio frq experimental design

Let’s answer the same list of questions again to really understand the experiment.

The scientific question being tested is: what kind of ecological relationship do protist species A and B have?

The independent variable is the treatment, which is the two species living together. The dependent variable is the population size of each species over time.

The control group is the species grown separately. The test group is the species grown together.

The null hypothesis states that there is no significant difference in population size between the control and treatment groups at each time point. Any difference observed would be due to chance.

The data here should be represented by a line graph, since we have time as a factor. Time should be on the x-axis -- this is almost always the case. There will be two lines, one for control and one for treatment. The graph would look something like this:

ap bio frq experimental design

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AP® Biology

How to answer ap® biology free response questions.

  • The Albert Team
  • Last Updated On: March 1, 2022

how to answer AP® Biology free response questions

The free response section can make or break any student’s AP® Biology exam score. If you’re wondering what the best tips and tricks for answering AP® Biology free response questions, you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we extensively cover must know tips for writing effective AP® Biology FRQs, common mistakes made by students when analyzing past AP® Biology scoring guidelines, and how to use past AP® Biology free response questions to start practicing for your exam.

Read on to get the complete scoop when it comes to succeeding on your AP® Biology exam review.

What We Review

5 Steps on How to Write Effective AP® Biology Free Responses

In this section, we’ll give you a strategy to start writing AP® Biology free responses that score you points. 

1. Understand how points are awarded by reviewing the AP® Biology rubrics.

The first step to crafting good AP® Biology free responses that score you points is understanding how points are distributed. The easiest way to do this is by going to the College Board’s AP® Central website and navigating to their past released exams . 

From here, you’ll want to open up the scoring guidelines — these will detail what points were awarded for different parts of AP® Biology free response questions. 

Here’s a screenshot from the 2019 released exam: 

AP® Biology scoring guidelines

Source: College Board

As you can see in this first section 1 (a), students receive two points, one for properly circling the transcription on the template pathway, and another point for properly identifying the molecule.

2. Underline or circle every bolded and capitalized word.

how to answer AP® Biology frqs

One of the nice parts of the AP® Biology free response section is that the College Board draws attention to what they are asking you to answer. This means you need to make sure you answer it! 

Bolded and capitalized words are often the easiest way to figure out the root of the question. Typically you can break down how much each question is worth from the bolded and capitalized words. 

One of our best test taking tips is to make sure you check off or star next to the word after you’ve answered it in your free response. This serves as a visual checklist for you to make sure you answered all parts of the question. 

3. Understand what the question is asking you and identify common AP® Biology directive words.

common AP® Biology free response directive words

One of the easiest ways students get tripped up in their AP® Biology exam review is not actually answering the question that the test makers are asking. It’s a commonly cited piece of advice from the College Board readers. 

Here are nine common AP® Biology question stems (directive words) to make sure you know cold:

  • Calculate: This is where you’ll be asked to solve a problem. Two points are typically awarded for these parts, one for the right answer and one for showing your work. 
  • Compare: This is where you must outline similarities between two or more things. It’s important you specifically only outline similarities; don’t get this confused with contrast!
  • Contrast : This is where you must show the differences between two or more things.
  • Discuss: This is where you’ll want to outline pros and cons on a topic, process, theory or technique. 
  • Describe: This sort of question assesses your ability to characterize something; for example: the functions of a certain part of a cell. 
  • Explain: This is where you need to demonstrate your ability to make something understandable. 
  • Identify: This is where you will need to give a direct answer to the question. It’s usually closely related to reading a diagram or graphical representation. 
  • Interpret: This is where you need to analyze something critically or explain something that isn’t clear. 
  • Justify: This is where you must explain why something may happen. This is testing similar skills to interpret and explain. 

Stems like calculate, explain, and justify are often associated with two-point problems. 

Notice how some of these stems are open-ended. For example, discuss, describe, explain, and interpret are all generally pretty-open ended. Typically, this should clue you in that your answer should be thorough for this part of the problem. For example, if you’re asked to explain why a certain result may occur from an experiment — you would need to exhaustively cover the set up of the experiment, as well as what makes that particular experimental design an effective way to measure the dependent variable. 

Make sure you do not make the mistake of only providing a single sentence answer when so many points are at stake! 

AP® Biology students most often lose 5+ points when it comes to the first and second problems in the free response section. These are points you can’t get back, and can dramatically impact the way you score. 

There are a handful of other common stems — be sure to review the past AP® Biology released exams to familiarize yourself with them. 

4. Be succinct in your AP® Biology free responses.

This isn’t an AP® English Language free response essay. One of the most common mistakes AP® Biology students make when answering free response questions is thinking if they just write a lot, they can score more points. This is not true. 

For example, if the question asked you to identify four properties of something and you list out nine, you will only get points for the first four you stated. 

It is not the responsibility of your AP® reader to figure out what you meant. It is your responsibility as the AP® Biology test taker to communicate clearly through your writing. 

A few principles to remember when writing your AP® Biology free responses:

  • Don’t restate the question. This is unnecessary and will not score you points. 
  • Write in complete sentences.
  • If doing a calculation, make sure you clearly identify your final answer (this is most easily done by boxing your answer), AND show your work. A point is typically awarded for showing your work.
  • Once you answer the question, move on. One of the most common mistakes AP® Biology students make is by making a contradicting statement after they stated the right answer. If there is a contradicting statement made, you can lose out on points. 
  • Remember the prior tip for graphing as well. If it asks you to plot, put the data points in the graph. If the question asks you to graph, draw a line or curve. Do not extend beyond the provided data unless you’re explicitly asked in the question to predict or extrapolate a result. 
  • When graphing, make sure you follow graphing conventions. This means titling your chart, labeling your axes, scaling appropriately, and selecting the right type of graph.
  • Be mindful of your handwriting. While it’s not formally part of the grading process, if your AP® Reader cannot decipher your handwriting in the limited amount of time they have grading your exam, you are making it harder for them to give you points. 

A final overarching principle is to make sure you practice completing your thoughts within a prompt. This has been called “closing the loop” and it is one of the most frequent mistakes students make here is when they’re asked for example to state the direction something is changing in the prompt, but then fail to do so. 

5. Practice, practice, and then practice some more.

Mastering the AP® Biology free response section comes down to two things: understanding how the free response is graded, and then learning how to answer questions that fit those expectations. 

Sometimes students do a great job of learning the rubrics, but don’t practice enough on actually writing sample responses or vice versa. When you’re starting your AP® Biology free response review, it’s helpful to first try out a past set of released questions, then grade yourself with the scoring guidelines. 

See how long it took you to answer each question, how effective you were at answering the actual question posed, and where you missed out on points. 

After a few times of doing this, you’ll begin to be more mindful of what the test makers are looking for in your responses.

Return to the Table of Contents

25 AP® Biology FRQ Tips to Scoring a 4 or 5

Now that we’ve covered how to write effective AP® Biology free responses, we’ll shift gears to cover some tips and tricks to maximizing your FRQ score. 

  • When interpreting data, make sure you provide reasoning to support a claim. In recent years of exams, students have struggled in understanding the two-part nature of questions that ask to explain or justify something.
  • Interpreting and constructing models are different skills. It is not enough just to be able to create a phylogenetic tree. A student needs to understand what the model they construct actually says. 
  • Practice applying fundamental knowledge of basic biology to giving an explanation for why you chose to present data in a certain way. 
  • Be specific but with purpose ! Sometimes students include unnecessary specificity that doesn’t actually answer what the question is asking. Provide your reasoning — don’t just repeat something given in the prompt.
  • Use “claim-evidence-reasoning”. This is where you break down an argument into these parts to make your point more clear. 
  • When asked to make a comparison, make sure to answer the before and after state of the comparison. 
  • When reviewing commonly tested topics such as the modeling of a cell signaling pathway, make sure you are able to describe each step of the pathway and anticipate what might happen if a particular step was activated or inhibited.
  • Practice reading multiple types of tables, then make sure you also practice creating your own tables with data. Remember the earlier tip to follow standard graphing conventions. Students have missed points in recent years for mistakes like forgetting to have units in their axes or missing labels.
  • Building on the prior tip, practice creating graphs from different sources of information — for example, you may have to draw a diagram from a narrative description. You should feel comfortable with creating different types of graphs like bar, dual Y axes, line, semi-log, etc. 
  • Practice incorporating evidence from your own knowledge of biology — this can help in thoroughly answering questions that ask you to justify or interpret something.
  • Always be thinking about how to apply prior things you’ve learned to a new situation — the College Board is known for asking AP® Biology questions that cover something you’ve never directly learned before, but they are often questions that require you to apply one or two concepts you have previously had exposure to. This was a common mistake made by students in the 2019 exam on question 1 when students often missed points for not applying changes in molecular processes to ecological relationships. 
  • Remember that natural selection has two notions: survival AND reproduction. This was a commonly missed point over the course of the last few years. 
  • When answering experimental design questions, make sure you practice being specific in stating the change that may occur in an experiment. It’s not enough just to say that a change will occur. Make direct comparisons to the control group. When you fail to explain the different parts of an experiment and how it is designed, it makes it difficult for the reader to believe that you truly understand how to build a meaningful experiment.
  • Questions that test you on experimental design should always have a control, a variable to test in a few ways, a hypothesis, expected results, and clear graphs.
  • Know the difference between a dependent variable and an independent variable. There can be several independent variables but there can only be one dependent variable in a well-constructed experiment. 
  • Remember that hypotheses (predictions) should compare the experimental group to a control group. It is not enough just to say something like “X will change” — it is better to say “X will change by being more Y” — notice how in this latter response, we’re being intentional and specific with directionality of the change. 
  • If you don’t remember the exact name of a concept or how to spell it, try describing it or giving your best shot at spelling it. You can sometimes earn points for defining relevant terms. 
  • Answer the AP® Biology free responses questions any way you’d like. All you need to do is make sure you’re making clear which question you are answering. Taking this approach is a common strategy for managing your time effectively. 
  • Keep your opinion out of your free response answer. Your AP® Bio free responses should be backed by things you learned in class and actual science.
  • Wear a watch when practicing and taking the actual AP® Biology exam. You need to be familiar with how to pace yourself in different parts of the FRQs. It’s common sense, but longer questions deserve more time while shorter questions should take you less time.
  • If you’re given a parameter, follow it…when questions ask you to state something in a sentence or two, you should not write four sentences. Follow directions!
  • Make sure you explain terms when you use them — assume your grader knows little about AP® Biology. 
  • Use a black or blue ink pen. Doing so makes it easier for your AP® Biology exam to be graded.
  • Try every question. One of the most common pieces of advice from AP® Biology teachers is to make sure you put something down for every question. You do not lose points for getting things wrong, but you miss out entirely on points for not answering a question at all.
  • Know your commonly tested diagrams cold. Concepts that often have related diagrams like cell signaling pathways, or Punnett squares are topics to make sure you understand when given different forms of information. For example, with Punnett squares you should be comfortable describing all outcomes in a variety of ways (such as in percentages and ratios, as phenotypes or genotypes). You should be comfortable creating Punnett squares when given information about the parent generation, or the F1 generation. 

Wrapping Things Up: How to Write AP® Biology FRQs

AP® Biology frq summary

We’ve covered a lot of ground when it comes to answering AP® Biology free response questions. Here are a few key things to remember: 

  • Know how AP® Biology FRQ points are rewarded.
  • Build the habit of identifying the sources of points in questions. Circle or underline these to figure out how valuable different parts of a question are. 
  • Understand the question being asked — learn the directive words the College Board often uses and what they are asking for.
  • Master commonly tested skills such as experimental design and graphing (including interpretation of graphs). 
  • Review commonly tested AP® Biology topics. Refer to the curriculum and exam description to see the percentage breakdown of different units. 
  • Be specific and succinct in your responses. This is not an AP® English Language essay.
  • Try every question and be intentional in the order in which you answer each one. Tackle the questions you feel most confident in first.  

We hope you’ve found this extensive guide helpful for your AP® Biology exam review. If you’d like additional free response or multiple choice practice, check out Albert for hundreds of original standards-aligned practice questions.

If you found this post helpful, you may also like our AP® Biology tips here or check out our AP® Biology score calculator here .

We also have an AP® Biology review guide here .

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Advanced Placement (AP)

feature_apbio-cc0

AP Biology is known for being one of the tougher AP exams , and, for most students, the free-response section is the hardest part of the test. In 2021 , the average score for every free-response question was less than a 50%! However, knowing what to expect can make it easier to get a great score on AP Biology FRQ. And in this guide, we explain everything you need to know to ace this section. Read on to learn the format of AP Biology FRQ, what graders are looking for, what the questions will look like, and what you can do to be well-prepared on exam day.

What's the Format of the AP Biology Free Response Section?

The AP Biology exam has two sections: multiple choice and free response. The free-section comes second and contains six questions:

  • Two long-response questions , both with a focus on analyzing experimental results. The second long question will require you to create a graph.
  • Four short-answer questions on the following topics in this order:
  • Scientific Investigation
  • Conceptual Analysis
  • Analysis of Model or Visual Representation
  • Analysis of Data

Additionally:

  • The free-response section is 90 minutes long
  • It's worth 50% of your total score
  • You're able to use the AP Biology formula sheet for the entire section

Long questions are worth 8-10 points each, whereas short-answer questions are each worth 4 points. It's recommended that you spend about 25 minutes on each long question and about 10 minutes on each short question (although you'll decide yourself how long you spend on each question).

The AP Biology test expects you to know how to:

  • Understand how graphical and mathematical models can be used to explain biological principles and concepts
  • Make predictions and justify events based on biological principles
  • Implement your knowledge of proper experimental design
  • Interpret data

AP Biology Sample Free Response Questions 

Now we'll go through two AP Biology free response example questions: one long question and one short question. These questions both were used for the 2021 AP Biology exam . You can see answers and scoring for each of the 2021 AP Biology FRQs here .

Long Question

First let's look at one of the long questions. This is Question 2, so remember you'll need to create a graph for at least one part of it. The entire question is worth 8 points.

long1

Part A (1 point)

Part B (4 points)

First, you need to create a graph based on the data in Table 1. The graph is worth 3 points: 1 for axis labels, 1 for the correct plotting in the bar graph, and 1 for the error bars. Here's an example of a graph that would get full points:

1graph

Part C (1 point)

Part D (2 points)

  • The data do not support the claim because females III-2 and III-6 have the disorder and, if inheritance was X-linked recessive, they'd only have the disorder if their father II-1 had the disorder, which he does not.
  • The data supports mitochondrial inheritance because all of the offspring of individual II-2 , not just the sons, have the disorder.

Giving one of those answers is worth one point.

body_student_chemistry_major_microscope

Short Question

Next is a short question. It's question 3 in the free-response section which means it will focus on scientific investigation. It's worth a total of four points.

short1

Part B (1 point)

  • The researchers must run the experiment without adding resveratrol.
  • The researchers must treat the cells with DMSO alone.

There are two potential answers; you only need to include one:

  • No ATP production
  • Reduced ATP production

Part D (1 point)

For Part D, you must state that more electrons can be transferred so that more oxygen is required as the final electron acceptor.

Where to Find AP Biology FRQs

Taking practice tests and answering practice questions is one of the best ways to prepare for any AP exam, including AP Biology FRQs. Fortunately, the College Board, who creates and administers AP courses and exams, has made dozens of old AP Bio FRQs available for free online. Because there are so many official FRQs available, we recommend only using them instead of looking online for unofficial questions (those not created by the College Board), which can be hit or miss in terms of quality. However, if you're using an AP Biology prep book, they often have solid FRQs. For advice on which prep book to get, check out our guide on the best AP Biology prep books.

Here are links to the FRQs:

Additionally, the AP Biology Course and Exam Description includes two up-to-date FRQs, beginning on page 206.

Note that, until 2020, the AP Bio exam had six short-answer questions instead of the current four. This means that questions from 2019 and earlier will have a different format and slightly different content. They can still be useful to study, but be aware of the differences between them and the current free-response section.

feature_dna

4 Tips for AP Biology FRQs

When you're studying for AP Bio FRQs and actually taking the exam, there are a lot of things to remember to ensure you do your absolute best. Keep these four tips in mind throughout the year and on exam day.

#1: Know Your 13 Required Labs

There are 13 labs you're required to complete during the AP Biology course. Questions that relate at least in part to these labs make up 25% of the AP Biology exam. It’s important to understand how these labs are conducted and how the principles behind them relate to the main ideas of the course. This will help in answering both free-response and multiple-choice questions that deal with lab scenarios on the test. There's a nice overview of each of the 13 labs on this site that can refresh your memory, and we link to in-depth explanations of each of the labs in our AP Biology study guide .

You should also know general lab skills. Many free-response questions ask you to identify the components of a proposed experiment (dependent and independent variables) or to design a lab to test a certain hypothesis. You might have forgotten about the labs you did toward the beginning of the year, so take extra care to go over them. Make sure that you understand just how they were conducted and what the results mean.

#2: Eliminate Irrelevant Information

Free-response AP Biology questions (especially the long questions) include lots of scientific terminology and visual aids, and this kind of format might be intimidating if you’re not used to it. It’s important to practice sorting through this jumble of information so that you can quickly get to the root of the question rather than obsessing over small details you don’t understand.

Try underlining important words and phrases in the question to help you stay focused on the main points and avoid misleading distractions.

You should also practice responding to free-response questions in a straightforward way without any unnecessary fluff. Remember, this isn’t an English test; the graders are just looking for clear facts and analysis. Make it easy for them to give you points!

#3: Draw During Studying

If you're feeling shaky on your knowledge of a process or system in AP Biology, one helpful strategy is to draw it. This will both reinforce what you know and highlight what you still need to work on learning. Once you're able to draw an accurate diagram of a system or process without looking at your notes, you can feel confident that you know exactly how it works.

For example, you could challenge yourself to draw a diagram of a cell membrane, label its different components, and explain their significance. You could also draw a process like mitosis that happens in clear visual stages, or a more complex process like cellular respiration where you might focus on one aspect at a time (glycolysis, Krebs cycle, electron transport chain). You can also apply this tip during the exam, if you need help visualizing part of an AP Bio FRQ.

#4: Pay Attention to the Clock

Time is always tight on AP exams. For the AP Biology free response section, you get 90 minutes to answer six questions. It can be easy to get caught up on one question and suddenly realize you're nearly out of time but haven't had a chance to look at some of the questions, let alone answer them. Don't let this happen to you! We recommend spending 25 minutes on each of the two long questions and 10 minutes on each of the four short questions. You don't need to keep perfectly to that plan, but don't get too far off it, either. 

At the very least, make note of where you are halfway through the free-response section (that's 45 minutes in). If you're roughly halfway finished with the section (taking into account that long questions take about twice as much time to complete as short questions), you're doing well. If you're significantly behind that, you know you need to pick up the pace.

Also, don't feel you need to answer the FRQ in the order they're listed. We recommend skimming through each of the questions at the start of the section, then tackling the questions that seem easiest first so you can spend more time on trickier questions.

Summary: Acing the AP Biology Free Response Section

The AP Biology free-response section can be tough, but if you prepare well for it, you can go into exam day confident and knowing what to expect. The section consists of two long questions and four short questions, lasts 90 minutes, and is worth half of your total score. You'll need to create a graph for the second AP biology FRQ. Old exam questions are a great study resource and, when you're preparing for the free-response section, keep these four tips in mind:

  • Know your labs
  • Eliminate irrelevant information
  • Make drawings while studying
  • Stay aware of time

What's Next?

How should you study for the AP Biology exam?  Our expert article goes over all 5 steps to take during your AP Biology review.

What is the rest of the AP Biology exam like? Our article on the AP Biology exam goes over every question type you can expect to see as well as tips for answering them.

Looking for an easier AP class than Biology? Learn which AP classes tend to be the least challenging for students .

Looking for help studying for your AP exam?

Our one-on-one online AP tutoring services can help you prepare for your AP exams. Get matched with a top tutor who got a high score on the exam you're studying for!

Get a 5 On Your AP Exam

Christine graduated from Michigan State University with degrees in Environmental Biology and Geography and received her Master's from Duke University. In high school she scored in the 99th percentile on the SAT and was named a National Merit Finalist. She has taught English and biology in several countries.

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Experimental Design

cheatsheet

Students in most science classes start with an overview of scientific processes. For advanced students, I use this cheat sheet to remind them of the major features of the scientific method, such as a control group, dependent and independent variables .

AP Bio students are also introduced to the concept of the null and alternative hypotheses as well as how to statistically analyze data. Though this was made for AP Biology, you could make a copy of it (google docs) and then edit it to work other groups.

This guide can be used with introductory lessons like “ The Fortune Telling Fish ” where students can be asked to describe each feature of the design they used to determine what was causing the fish’s movements.

My anatomy and physiology classes and AP Bio classes do an investigation where they determine trends of lung capacity and physical features like height and sex.

This guide also clearly describes the difference between a hypothesis and a prediction. Many biology books describe them as being the same thing, but they are not. “ Teaching the Hypothesis ” is a great article on why the difference matters.

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ap bio frq experimental design

Shannan Muskopf

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Scientific Method

9th -  11th  , microscope parts and function, 8th -  11th  .

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Experimental Design AP Biology

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25 questions

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Which of the following best describes a hypothesis?

a complete guess

the variable that is being tested by the researcher

a testable explanation

a conclusive statement made based on experimental results

Which of the following best describes an independent variable?

the variable being tested

the variable being measured

the group that is a standard for comparison

Which of the following best describes a dependent variable?

Which of the following best describes the control group?

the group that is the standard for comparison

the group that is used to test the effects of the independent variable

the variables that are kept the same for all groups

Which of the following best describes the experimental group?

Which of the following best describes experimental constants or controls?

How many variables should be tested in an experiment?

as many as you need to test

What is the purpose of a Chi-Square test?

To compare means of two separate groups.

To determine if there is a statistically significant difference between the observed and expected values in an experiment.

To do extra math.

To conclusively prove that your null hypothesis is true or false.

Which of the following pieces of data is quantitative?

There were 7 heads and 3 tails when a coin was flipped 10 times.

A coin has a heads side and a tails side.

A coin is silver.

A coin is heavy.

An experimenter was testing the effect of light distance on the the number of oxygen bubbles produced by a photosynthesizing aquatic plant. The researcher counted the number of bubbles produced at 10 successive distances. What type of data is this? What type of graph should be used?

continuous, line

continuous, bar

categorical, bar

categorical, line

Which variable typically goes on the x-axis of a graph?

independent

either independent or dependent

Students put two plants in the sun. Plant A is in the sun for 10 minutes. Plant B is in the sun for 1 hr. Students decide that plant B is better at photosynthesis. This is wrong because...

They had too many uncontrolled variables

The independent variable was sunlight

The dependent variable was amount of gas produced

they used different amounts of water

  • 14. Multiple Choice 30 seconds 1 pt If you were testing how well different dish soap cleaned grease, the independent (experimental) variable would be the: Dishes Water Dish Soap Types of Grease
  • 15. Multiple Choice 30 seconds 1 pt Students are growing plants in the dark or in the light to see which grows better.  They put 3 seeds in the dark and 5 seeds in the light because they know seeds are more likely to dry out in the light.  How could this experiment be improved? Put all plants in the light. Put all plants in the dark (where they sprout better) Put the same number of seeds in each container. put all the plants in the light so they grow better
  • 16. Multiple Choice 2 minutes 1 pt An experiment is performed on plants to see how different liquids affect plant growth. Each plant in the experiment is given a different liquid; water, apple juice, or milk. Each plant has the same amount of soil, sunlight, and listens to the same music. In this investigation, what is the dependent variable? Type of plant Water, apple juice, milk Plant growth Color of the plant's leaves
  • 17. Multiple Choice 2 minutes 1 pt When experimenting with the growth of a plant, a scientist uses three (of the same type of) plants, two different fertilizers, equal light, and equal water. What type of variable is the fertilizer? Dependent Independent Control Compound

Which significance level (p value) do you look at when finding the critical value?

How do you find critical value?

where degrees of freedom lines up with significance level (p-value)

where significance level (p-value) lines up with chi-square

the difference between total and chi-square

degrees of freedom minus significance level (p-value)

How do you find degrees of freedom?

the number of categories + 1

the number of categories minus one

total number of categories divided 2

total number of experiments times 2

Observed in the wild are 10 circles, 20 squares and 30 triangles. The ratio for this particular population is 2:3:5

observed: 10 circles expected: 12

observed 20 squares expected : 18

observed 30 triangles expected: 30

How many degrees of freedom are there in this experiment?

The manager of a high school cafeteria is planning to offer several new types of food for student lunches in the following school year. She wants to know if each type of food will be equally popular so she can start ordering supplies. To find out, she selects a random sample of 100 students and asks them, "Which type of food do you prefer: Asian food, Mexican food, pizza, or hamburgers?" Here are the data in the table provided. The Chi-square value is 11. Which of the following is the most appropriate conclusion?

The chi-square value is less than the critical value and the null hypothesis should be rejected. Students prefer some foods over others.

The chi-square value is greater than the critical value and the null hypothesis should be rejected. Students prefer some foods over others.

Students do not prefer one food type over another as proven by the chi-square test.

The data is inconclusive.

Recent revenue shortfalls in a mid-western state led to a reduction in the state budget for higher education. To offset the reduction, the largest state university proposed a 25% tuition increase. It was determined that such an increase was needed simply to compensate for the lost support from the state. Separate random samples of 50 freshmen, 50 sophomores, 50 juniors, and 50 seniors from the university were asked whether they were strongly opposed to the increase, given that it was the minimum increase necessary to maintain the university's budget at current levels. The results are in the table provided. Which null hypotheses would be appropriate for performing a chi-square test to determine if students of a particular class are more opposed to the changes compared to other classes?

The null hypothesis is that the closer students get to graduation, the less likely they are to be opposed to tuition increases. The alternative is that how close students are to graduation makes no difference in their opinion.

The null hypothesis is that the mean number of students who are strongly are opposed is the same for each of the 4 years. The alternative is that the mean is different for at least 2 of the 4 years.

The null hypothesis is that the distribution of student opinion about the proposed tuition increase is the same for each of the 4 years at the university. The alternative is that the distribution is different for at least 2 of the 4 years.

The null hypothesis is that year in school and student opinion about the tuition increase in the sample are independent. The alternative is that these variables are dependent.

Which variable typically goes on the y-axis of a graph?

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  1. How to Answer Experiment Questions on AP Biology FRQ

    On the AP Biology exam, the first section is multiple-choice and the second section is a set of 8 FRQs (free response questions), in which you may be given an experiment setup or asked to design an experiment yourself. Many students find the FRQs challenging because experimental design is not a specific chapter in the AP Biology textbook.

  2. PDF 2022 AP Exam Administration Scoring Guidelines

    Question 1: Interpreting and Evaluating Experimental Results with Experimental Design 9 points The binding of an extracellular ligand to a G protein-coupled receptor in the plasma membrane of a cell triggers intracellular signaling (Figure 1, A).

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    1. Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is an inherited disease that causes water loss from the body and affects cell division in the kidneys. Because water movement across cell membranes is related to ion movement, scientists investigated the role of the Na /K + ATPase (also known as the sodium/potassium pump) in this disease.

  4. PDF AP Biology Sample Student Responses and Scoring Commentary

    Are you preparing for the AP Biology exam? Do you want to see how well you can answer the free-response questions? Check out this pdf file that contains the sample responses for question 1 of the 2017 exam, along with the scoring guidelines and commentary. You will learn how to approach the question, how to write a clear and concise answer, and how to avoid common mistakes.

  5. PDF AP Biology 2022 Free-Response Questions

    Figure 1. Under normal conditions, ligand binding to a G protein-coupled receptor results in chloride ion transport from an intestinal cell. Individuals infected with the bacterium Vibrio cholerae experience severe loss of water from the body (dehydration). This is due to the effects of the bacterial cholera toxin that enters intestinal cells.

  6. PDF AP Biology Sample Student Responses and Scoring Commentary

    (a) Use the symbols below and the template aquariums to demonstrate the experimental design for testing the researcher's claim that mobile aquatic invertebrates can pollinate seagrass in the absence of circulating water. Draw the appropriate symbols in the negative control aquarium AND the experimental aquarium.

  7. Experimental Design AP Bio Exam Review with Mr W from Learn ...

    Experimental Design AP Bio Exam Review with Mr W from Learn Biology com sciencemusicvideos 137K subscribers 116 5.4K views 2 years ago AP Bio Review, 2021. Testing Tips, Music, and...

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    AP® Biology 2013 Free-Response Questions . About the College Board . ... Propose ONE specific improvement to each of the following parts of the experimental design and explain how the modification will affect the experiment. < Experimental control < Environmental factors (c) The experiment described above is repeated with ripe bananas at one ...

  9. PDF AP Biology 2019 Free-Response Questions

    Questions 1 and 2 are long free-response questions that require about 22 minutes each to answer and are worth 10 points each. Questions 3-8 are short free-response questions that require about 6 minutes each to answer. Questions 3-5 are worth 4 points each and questions 6-8 are worth 3 points each. Read each question carefully and completely.

  10. How to Answer AP® Biology Free Response Questions

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  11. 4 Top Tips to Make AP Biology FRQs a Breeze

    AP Biology is known for being one of the tougher AP exams, and, for most students, the free-response section is the hardest part of the test.In 2021, the average score for every free-response question was less than a 50%! However, knowing what to expect can make it easier to get a great score on AP Biology FRQ. And in this guide, we explain everything you need to know to ace this section.

  12. PDF 2022 AP Exam Administration Student Samples and Commentary

    Question 1: Interpreting and Evaluating Experimental Results with Experimental Design 9 points The binding of an extracellular ligand to a G protein-coupled receptor in the plasma membrane of a cell triggers intracellular signaling (Figure 1, A).

  13. Experimental Design Practice Questions2012 FRQ

    This video goes over how to solve the experimental design question from 2012 APES exam. This FRQ and its scoring guidelines can be found on AP Central.

  14. PDF AP Biology 2018 Free-Response Questions

    1. Polar bears are highly adapted for life in cold climates around the North Pole. Brown bears, black bears, and pandas are found in warmer environments. Researchers collected complete mitochondrial DNA sequences from several populations of bears and constructed a phylogenetic tree to represent their evolutionary relatedness (Figure 1).

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  17. AP Bio FRQ's Flashcards

    AP Bio FRQ's Get a hint Fruit Fly Behavior a) Predict the distribution of flies in the chamber after 10 minutes and justify your prediction. Click the card to flip 👆 The flies will be distributed so that more flies will be near the glucose soaked cotton ball because glucose is an energy source for fruit flies.

  18. Experimental Design

    Experimental Design. Students in most science classes start with an overview of scientific processes. For advanced students, I use this cheat sheet to remind them of the major features of the scientific method, such as a control group, dependent and independent variables. AP Bio students are also introduced to the concept of the null and ...

  19. PDF AP Biology Student Samples from the 2023 Exam Administration

    AP Biology Student Samples from the 2023 Exam Administration Question 1: Interpreting and Evaluating Experimental Results with Experimental Design 9 points In eukaryotic microorganisms, the PHO signaling pathway regulates the expression of certain genes. These genes, Pho target genes, encode proteins involved in regulating phosphate homeostasis.

  20. Experimental Design AP Biology

    Experimental Design AP Biology Shelly Aull 142 plays 25 questions Copy & Edit Live Session Assign Show Answers See Preview 1. Multiple Choice 30 seconds 1 pt Which of the following best describes a hypothesis? a complete guess the variable that is being tested by the researcher a testable explanation

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  22. PDF AP® Biology Scoring Guidelines

    AP® Biology 2021 Scoring Guidelines . Question 1: Interpreting and Evaluating Experimental Results 10 points . Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is an inherited disease that causes water loss from the body and affects cell division in the kidneys. Because water movement across cell membranes is related to ion movement, scientists

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    Statistics. Name: ___________________ AP Statistics B Experimental Design Bingo 071416 University of Texas at Austin UT High School 1 Experimental Design Bingo The goal of this assignment is to review these concepts and think critically about each. You'll do well on the FRQ section if you recognize these different situations and use the ...

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    Question 1: Interpreting and Evaluating Experimental Results with Experimental Design 9 points In eukaryotic microorganisms, the PHO signaling pathway regulates the expression of certain genes. These genes, Pho target genes, encode proteins involved in regulating phosphate homeostasis.