Department of Education
Plant Disease: Teaching resources for GCSE Biology
From September 2016, all students in England are required to study common plant diseases as part of their GCSE Biology courses.
Alistair Moore from the University of York Science Education Group worked with Science and Plants for Schools (SAPS) and experts in the field to develop practical activities and other teaching and learning resources for this new area of the biology curriculum.
According to the 2016 Key Stage 4 subject content criteria, GCSE Biology students are required to:
- describe a minimum of one plant disease
- explain how communicable diseases (caused by viruses, bacteria and fungi) are spread in plants
- describe physical plant defences (including leaf cuticle and cell wall)
- describe chemical plant defence responses (including antimicrobial substances)
- describe different ways plant diseases can be detected and identified, in the lab and in the field
- explain how the spread of communicable diseases may be reduced or prevented in plants.
Activities and resources
Identifying the cause of brown rot
Observing violet bramble rust
The Powdery mildew survey
Plant disease detective
Poster: The battle for fortress plant
