Biology

subject outline

Topics

• Living Organisms

  Differentiate between characteristics of living and non-living things. Identify the structures of plant and animal cells, analyze functions of their components, and compare and contrast their structures. Trace the levels of organization among organisms in their logical sequence: Cell (e.g. euglena, paramecium), Tissue (e.g. epithelial tissues, hydra), Organ (e.g. onion bulb), Systems (e.g. reproductive, digestive, excretory), Organisms (e.g. Chlamydomonas).

• Evolution and Diversity of Organisms

  Analyze external features and characteristics, apply knowledge to demonstrate increase in structural complexity, and trace life histories of Monera (e.g., bacteria, blue green algae), Protista (e.g., Amoeba, Euglena, Paramecium), Fungi (e.g., mushroom, Rhizopus), Plantae (Thallophyta, Bryophyta, Pteridophyta, Spermatophyta including Gymnosperms and Angiosperms), and Animalia (Invertebrates including coelenterate, Platyhelminthes, Nematoda, Annelida, Arthropoda, Mollusca; and Multicellular animals including Pisces, Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves, Mammalia). Trace the evolution of plants and advancement of invertebrate and multicellular animals, and determine the economic/environmental importance of studied organisms.

• Structural, Functional, and Behavioural Adaptations

  Describe how various structures, functions, and behaviours adapt organisms to their environment and way of life. This includes adaptive colouration (e.g., countershading in fish/toads/snakes, warning colouration in mushrooms), behavioural adaptations in social animals (e.g., castes in termites, basking in lizards, territorial behaviour, hibernation, aestivation), and structural adaptations for obtaining food (e.g., beaks, insect mouthparts), protection/defence (e.g., stick insects, praying mantis, toad), securing mates, regulating body temperature (e.g., skin, feathers, hairs), and conserving water (e.g., spines, scales).

• Internal Structure of Plants and Animals

  Identify transverse sections and relate the structure to functions of flowering plant organs (root, stem, leaf), including supporting tissues (collenchyma, sclerenchyma, xylem, phloem fibres) and their distribution. Examine the arrangement of mammalian internal organs and describe the appearance and position of digestive, reproductive, and excretory organs.

• Nutrition

  Compare autotrophic and heterotrophic modes of nutrition, providing examples from flowering and non-flowering plants. Compare photosynthetic and chemosynthetic modes. Differentiate holozoic (sheep, man), parasitic (roundworm, tapeworm, Loranthus), saprophytic (Rhizopus, mushroom), and carnivorous plant (sundew, bladderwort) feeding. For plant nutrition, determine nutritional value, differentiate light and dark reactions of photosynthesis, determine necessity of light, carbon (IV) oxide, and chlorophyll, detect starch, identify macro/micro-elements, and recognize deficiency symptoms of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. For animal nutrition, indicate sources, determine nutritional value, relate importance and deficiency of food classes (carbohydrates, proteins, fats/oils, vitamins, mineral salts, water), determine balanced diet importance, detect food types via tests, describe mammalian tooth structure/types/functions, compare dental formulae (man, sheep, dog), relate alimentary canal component structures/accessory organs (liver, pancreas, gall bladder) to functions, identify digestive enzyme characteristics, associate enzymes with carbohydrate/protein/fat digestion, and determine end products.

• Transport Systems

  Determine the relationship between increasing size/complexity and the need for transport systems in plants and animals. Determine sources and forms of transported materials (excretory products, gases, manufactured/digested food, nutrients, water, hormones). Identify organs of the plant vascular system (phloem, xylem) and their specific functions. Examine the mammalian circulatory system (heart, arteries, vein, capillaries) and compare specific functions of hepatic portal vein, pulmonary vein/artery, aorta, renal artery/vein. Identify media of transportation (cytoplasm, cell sap, body fluid, blood, lymph), state composition and functions of blood/lymph, and describe diffusion, osmosis, plasmolysis, and turgidity as transport mechanisms. Compare open circulatory systems in animals, and transpiration pull, root pressure, and active transport in plants.

• Respiration

  Explain the significance of respiration, describing a simplified outline of chemical processes (glycolysis, Krebs cycle with ATP production). Deduce gaseous exchange and heat energy production during respiration from experimental setups. Describe respiratory organs and surfaces (body surface, gill, trachea, lungs, stomata, lenticel) and their organisms. Describe the mechanism for stomata opening/closing. Determine respiratory mechanisms in plants and animals. Examine oxygen's role in energy liberation and explain effects of insufficient oxygen on muscles. Use yeast cells and sugar solution to demonstrate fermentation and state the economic importance of yeasts.

• Excretion

  Define and state the significance of excretion. Relate characteristics of excretory structures (contractile vacuole, flame cell, nephridium, Malpighian tubule, kidney, stoma, lenticel) with their functions. Relate kidney structure to excretory and osmo-regulatory functions. Identify functions and excretory products of lungs and skin. Deduce the economic importance of plant excretory products (e.g., carbon (IV) oxide, oxygen, tannins, resins, gums, mucilage, alkaloids).

• Support and Movement

  Determine the need for support and movement in organisms. Identify plant supporting tissues (collenchyma, sclerenchyma, xylem, phloem fibres) and describe their distribution in root, stem, leaf. Relate plant responses to stimuli (light, water, gravity, touch) and the roles of auxins in tropism. Relate the location of chitin, cartilage, and bone to their supporting function in animals. Relate the structure and general layout of the mammalian skeleton to its supportive, locomotive, and respiratory functions. Differentiate types of joints with examples. Apply protective, supportive, locomotive, and respiratory functions of the skeleton to animal well-being.

• Reproduction

  Differentiate between asexual (fission, budding, natural vegetative propagation, artificial vegetative propagation) and sexual reproduction. Apply natural and artificial vegetative propagation in crop production and multiplication. Relate floral parts to their functions and the reproductive process. State advantages of cross pollination. Deduce different types of placentation that develop into simple, aggregate, multiple, and succulent fruits. Differentiate male and female mammalian reproductive organs, relating their structure and function to offspring production. Describe gamete fusion as fertilization. Relate effects of maternal health, nutrition, and indiscriminate drug use on embryo development up to birth. Explain modern methods of regulating reproduction (e.g., invitro fertilization, birth control).

• Growth

  Apply the knowledge of conditions necessary for germination on plant growth. Differentiate between epigeal and hypogeal germination.

• Coordination and Control

  Apply knowledge of the structure and function of the central nervous system (components, structure, functions) in the coordination of body functions. Illustrate reflex actions (e.g., blinking, knee jerk) and differentiate between reflex/voluntary actions and conditioned reflexes (e.g., salivation, riding a bicycle, swimming). Relate sense organs (skin-tactile, nose-olfactory, tongue-taste, eye-sight, ear-auditory) to their functions and apply knowledge to detect and correct defects. State the location of animal endocrine glands (pituitary, thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal, pancreas, gonads) and relate their hormones to functions. Examine effects of phytohormones (auxins, gibberellin, cytokinin, ethylene) on growth, tropism, flowering, fruit ripening, and leaf abscission. Relate hormone function in homeostasis (body temperature, salt, and water regulation).

• Factors Affecting Organism Distribution

  Relate the effects of abiotic factors (temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, wind speed/direction, altitude, salinity, turbidity, pH, edaphic conditions) on organism distribution and use appropriate equipment to measure them. Describe how activities of plants/animals (particularly human) affect the distribution of organisms.

• Ecological Interactions and Nutrient Cycling

  Determine appropriate examples of symbiotic interactions (symbiosis, parasitism, saprophytism, commensalism, mutualism, amensalism, competition, predation, cooperation). Explain the distribution of organisms with food chains and food webs in particular habitats. Define chains and webs. Describe the carbon cycle and its significance (including balance of atmospheric oxygen/carbon (IV) oxide and global warming). Assess the effects of the water cycle on other nutrient cycles. Relate the roles of bacteria and leguminous plants in the cycling of nitrogen.

• Natural Habitats

  Associate plants and animals with aquatic (e.g., ponds, streams, lakes, seashores, mangrove swamps) and terrestrial/arboreal (e.g., tree-tops, abandoned farmland, dry grassy field, burrow or hole) habitats. Relate adaptive features to the habitats in which organisms live.

• Nigerian Biomes

  Locate biomes in regions and apply knowledge of their features to determine characteristics of different regions of Nigeria, including Tropical rainforest, Guinea savanna (southern and northern), Sudan Savanna, Desert, and Highlands of montane forests and grasslands of the Obudu-, Jos-, Mambilla- Plateaus.

• Population Ecology

  Determine reasons for rapid changes in human population and consequences of overcrowding. Compute/calculate density as the number of organisms per unit area. Relate increased population, diseases, shortage of food/space with intra- and inter-specific competition. Determine niche differentiation as a means of reducing intra-specific competition. Relate competition to succession. Deduce the effect of these factors on population size. Determine the interactions between biotic (food, pest, disease, predation, competition, reproductive ability) and abiotic (temperature, space, light, rainfall, topography, pressure, pH) factors. Trace the sequence in ecological succession (primary, secondary) to the climax stage of stability in plant population.

• Soil Science

  Identify physical properties of different soil types (sandy, loamy, clayey) based on particle size, porosity, or water retention. Determine the amounts of air, water, humus, and capillarity in different soil types experimentally. Relate soil characteristics, types, and components (inorganic, organic, soil organisms, soil air, soil water) to the healthy growth of plants. Relate factors causing loss of soil fertility (loss of inorganic matter, compaction, leaching, erosion of top soil, repeated cropping with one variety). Apply knowledge of contour ridging, terracing, mulching, poly-cropping, strip-cropping, use of organic/inorganic fertilizers, crop rotation, shifting cultivation, etc. to enhance soil conservation.

• Humans and the Environment

  Identify ecological conditions favoring the spread of common, endemic, and potentially epidemic diseases (e.g., malaria, meningitis, dracunculiasis, schistosomiasis, onchocerciasis, typhoid fever, cholera). Relate the biology of the vector or agent of each disease with its spread and control. Use knowledge of causative organisms, mode of transmission, and symptoms of easily transmissible diseases/syndromes (poliomyelitis, cholera, tuberculosis, sexually transmitted disease/syndrome like gonorrhea, syphilis, AIDS) for prevention, treatment, and control. Apply principles of inoculation and vaccination on disease prevention. Categorize pollution into air, water, and soil. Relate the effects of common pollutants to human health and environmental degradation. Determine methods for controlling each pollutant. Explain the importance of sanitation with emphasis on solid waste, sewage disposal, community health, and personal hygiene. Assess the roles and functions of international and national health agencies (e.g., WHO, UNICEF, IRCS, ministries of health and environment). Apply various methods of conservation of renewable and non-renewable natural resources for environmental protection for present and future generations. Outline benefits of conserving natural resources and preventing desertification. Identify bodies responsible for resource conservation at national and international levels (e.g., NCF, Federal Ministry of Environment, Nigeria National Parks, WWF, IUCN, UNEP) and their activities. Identify, state location, and importance of game reserves and National parks in Nigeria.

• Variation in Populations

  Differentiate between continuous and discontinuous variations with examples of morphological variations (size, colour, fingerprints). Relate the role of environmental conditions, habitat, and genetic constitution to variation. Measure heights and weights of pupils of the same age group and plot frequency distribution graphs. Observe and record various colour patterns. Apply classification of fingerprints in identity detection. Identify specific examples of physiological variation (ability to roll tongue, ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC), blood groups) and categorize people according to their physiological variation. Apply the knowledge of blood groups in blood transfusion and determination of paternity. Use discontinuous variation in crime detection.

• Heredity and Genetic Principles

  Determine heritable and non-heritable characters with examples. Illustrate simple DNA structure. Illustrate segregation of genes at meiosis and recombination of genes at fertilization to account for the process of transmission of characters from parents to offspring. Deduce that segregation of genes occurs during gamete formation and recombination of genes at fertilization is random in nature. Analyze data on cross-breeding experiments. Apply the principles of heredity in the production of new varieties of crops and livestock through cross-breeding. Deduce advantages and disadvantages of out-breeding and in-breeding. Analyze elementarily the contentious issues of genetically modified organisms (GMO) and gene therapy and biosafety. Apply the knowledge of heredity in marriage counseling with particular reference to blood grouping, sickle-cell anaemia, and the Rhesus factors. Describe the significance of using recombinant DNA materials in the production of important medical products such as insulin, interferon, and enzymes. Identify characters that are sex-linked (e.g., baldness, haemophilia, colour blindness).

• Theories of Evolution

  Relate organic evolution as the sum total of all adaptive changes that have taken place over a long period of time resulting in the diversity of forms, structures, and functions among organisms. Explain the contributions of Lamarck and Darwin to the theory of evolution. State the evidences in support of organic evolution.

• Evidence of Evolution

  Mention the evidences for evolution such as fossil records, comparative anatomy, physiology, and embryology. Trace evolutionary trends in plants and animals. State the evidence of modern evolutionary theories such as genetic studies and the role of mutation.