Grade 11 Physical Sciences Examination Guidelines

These flashcards encompass key concepts, terms, and definitions related to the examination guidelines for Grade 11 Physical Sciences, assisting students in understanding important vocabulary and core topics for their studies.

Basic Education

The fundamental level of education that includes primary and secondary schooling.

National Curriculum Statement (NCS)

A policy document that outlines educational goals and guidelines for all subjects in South Africa.

Assessment Policy

Guidelines on how learners are assessed in South African schools, including the types of assessments and their structures.

Cognitive Levels

Different levels of mental processing involved in learning, including remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating.

Weighting of Content

The distribution of marks allocated to different topics or areas of study in an examination.

Internal Assessment

Assessment conducted within the school environment by the teachers, usually contributing to the final grade.

Multiple-choice questions

Questions with several answer options, where students must select the correct one.

Structured Questions

Open-ended questions that require detailed answers and often involve calculations or analysis.

Prior Knowledge

Concepts and skills learned in previous grade levels that are expected to be applied in current assessments.

Physics Paper 1

The first examination paper focusing on physics concepts for Grade 11.

Chemistry Paper 2

The second examination paper focusing on chemistry topics for Grade 11.

SBA (School-Based Assessment)

Assessment that takes place in schools and contributes to the overall learner's grade.

Qualitative coverage

The depth and thoroughness with which topics are taught and assessed.

Graphs

Visual representations of data that show relationships between variables.

Investigative Question

A question that directs a scientific investigation, focusing on testing a hypothesis.

Hypothesis

A proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.

Variables

Elements of a study that can be changed or controlled.

Component Method

A technique used to determine resultant vectors by breaking them down into their horizontal and vertical components.

Closed Vector Diagram

A graphical representation in which vectors form a closed loop, indicating equilibrium.

Newton's First Law

An object remains at rest or in uniform motion unless acted upon by a net external force.

Inertia

The tendency of an object to resist changes in its state of motion.

Normal Force

The supportive force exerted by a surface against the weight of an object resting on it.

Frictional Force

The force that opposes the motion of an object in contact with another object.

Static Frictional Force

The force that must be overcome for an object at rest to start moving.

Kinetic Frictional Force

The force opposing the motion of a sliding object.

Force Diagram

A diagram that shows all the forces acting on an object.

Free Body Diagram

A diagram showing all the forces acting on a single body isolated from its surroundings.

Resultant Force

The overall force acting on an object when all the individual forces are combined.

Newton's Second Law

The acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass.

Weight

The force acting on an object due to gravity, calculated as w = mg.

Electrostatics

The study of electric charges at rest.

Coulomb's Law

A formula that describes the force between two charged objects.

Electric Field

A field around a charged particle that exerts force on other charged particles.

Ohm's Law

A law stating that the current through a conductor is directly proportional to the voltage across it.

Power (in physics)

The rate at which work is done or energy is transferred.

Molar Mass

The mass of one mole of a substance, often expressed in grams per mole (g/mol).

Stoichiometry

The calculation of reactants and products in chemical reactions.

Bond Energy

The energy required to break one mole of bonds in gaseous molecules.

Endothermic Reaction

A reaction that absorbs energy from its surroundings.

Exothermic Reaction

A reaction that releases energy to its surroundings.

Arrhenius Acid

A substance that increases the concentration of hydrogen ions in aqueous solution.

Arrhenius Base

A substance that increases the concentration of hydroxide ions in aqueous solution.

Oxidation State

A number that represents the total number of electrons an atom either gains or loses in a compound.

Reducing Agent

A substance that donates electrons in a chemical reaction.

Oxidizing Agent

A substance that accepts electrons in a chemical reaction.

Periodic Table

A tabular arrangement of chemical elements organized by their atomic number and properties.

Empirical Formula

A chemical formula that shows the ratio of elements in a compound, rather than the actual numbers of atoms.

Molecular Formula

A chemical formula that specifies the actual number of atoms of each element in a molecule.

Kinetic Molecular Theory

A theory that explains the behavior of gases based on the concept of particles in motion.

Ideal Gas Law

The equation of state for an ideal gas, represented as PV = nRT.

Avogadro's Law

A principle stating that equal volumes of gases, at the same temperature and pressure, contain an equal number of molecules.

Intermolecular Forces

Forces that occur between molecules, which affect their physical properties.

Hydrogen Bonding

A strong dipole-dipole attraction between molecules that contain a hydrogen atom bonded to a highly electronegative atom.

Chemical Change

A change that results in the formation of new chemical substances.

Physical Change

A change that affects one or more physical properties of a substance without altering its chemical composition.

Quantitative Aspect

The measurement and determination of chemical quantities involved in reactions.

Limiting Reagent

The reactant that is completely consumed in a chemical reaction, limiting the amount of product formed.

Concentration

The amount of solute in a given volume of solvent or solution.

pH Scale

A logarithmic scale used to specify the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution.

Safety Precautions

Measures taken to ensure safety when conducting experiments or handling hazardous materials.

Energy Transfer

The process of transferring energy from one form to another or one system to another.

Exothermic Process

A process that releases heat, causing the temperature of the immediate surroundings to rise.

Thermodynamics

The branch of physical science that deals with the relationships between heat and other forms of energy.

Catalyst

A substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without being consumed in the process.

Ionization

The process in which an atom or a molecule acquires a negative or positive charge by gaining or losing electrons.

Chemical Equilibrium

A state in which the concentrations of reactants and products remain constant over time.

Chemical Reaction

A process that leads to the transformation of one set of chemical substances to another.

Reaction Rate

The speed at which reactants are converted to products in a chemical reaction.

Stoichiometric Relationship

The relationship between the quantities of reactants and products in a chemical reaction.

Molecular Geometry

The three-dimensional arrangement of atoms in a molecule.

Isomerism

The presence of two or more compounds composed of the same atoms but in different arrangements.

Hybridization

The concept used to describe the mixing of atomic orbitals to form new hybrid orbitals.

Valence Shell Electron Pair Repulsion (VSEPR) Theory

A theory used to predict the geometry of individual molecules from the number of electron pairs surrounding their central atoms.

Dipole Moment

A measure of the polarity of a chemical bond within a molecule.

Gibbs Free Energy

A thermodynamic quantity that represents the maximum reversible work obtainable from a thermodynamic system at constant temperature and pressure.

Calorimetry

A technique used to measure the amount of energy released or absorbed during a chemical reaction.

Thermal Energy

The energy that comes from the temperature of the matter.

Percent Yield

The ratio of the actual yield to the theoretical yield, expressed as a percentage.

Systematic Errors

Errors that consistently occur in the same direction, leading to biased results.

Random Errors

Errors that lead to inconsistent results; they can be caused by a variety of unpredictable factors.

Valency

The combining capacity of an element, often determined by the number of electrons in its outer shell.

Electrode Potential

The potential difference between a metal electrode and its ions in solution.

Reversible Reaction

A reaction that can proceed in both forward and reverse directions.

Rice Table

A tool used to track the concentrations of reactants and products in a reaction system at various stages.

Concentration Gradient

A difference in the concentration of a substance across a distance, affecting diffusion rates.

Molarity (M)

A common measure of concentration, calculated as moles of solute per liter of solution.

Equilibrium Constant (K)

A ratio of the concentrations of products to reactants at equilibrium, raised to the power of their stoichiometric coefficients.

Colligative Properties

Properties that depend on the number of solute particles in a solution and not on their identity.

Phase Diagram

A graphical representation of the physical states of a substance under varying conditions of temperature and pressure.

Ion Exchange

A process where ions are exchanged between a solution and an ion exchange resin.

Saturation Point

The point at which a solution can dissolve no more solute at a given temperature and pressure.

Dilution

The process of reducing the concentration of a solute in a solution, typically by adding more solvent.

Solubility Product (Ksp)

An equilibrium constant for the dissolution of a sparingly soluble salt.

Reaction Quotient (Q)

A ratio used to determine the direction a reaction will proceed, comparing the current concentrations of products and reactants.

Biomolecule

Any molecule that is produced by living organisms, including proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids.

Thermodynamic Stability

The propensity of a chemical system to remain in its current energy state.

Bonds

The connections that form between atoms in molecules, influenced by electromagnetic forces.

Electrolytes

Substances that dissociate into ions when dissolved in solvent, conducting electricity.

Fractional Distillation

A process used to separate components of a mixture based on their boiling points.

Crystal Lattice Structure

The symmetrical three-dimensional arrangement of atoms inside a crystal.