What do you mean ... ? (Part 1I)
Adrian Whyte and Joanna Johnson, Contributor

Schoolboy hockey final at Mona on February 9. - Rudolph Brown Photo

LAST TIME we looked at the terms describe, discuss, distinguish between (contrast) and compare. Today, we are going to discuss a few more commonly-used terms that could appear on your examination paper: annotate, illustrate, explain, suggest and state.

1) By means of a fully-labelled and annotated diagram, describe the structure of an unspecialised plant cell.

2) Illustrate, by means of a fully-labelled diagram, the structure of a molar tooth of man.

3) Explain, in details, how the food a person eats may affect the composition of his/her urine.

4) Suggest, in terms of respiration, why rigorous training programmes are important for athletes.

5) State the function of three minerals which are essential for healthy growth of green plants.

TIPS FOR ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS

1. Annotate - To annotate a diagram means to give brief descriptions to the labels of the diagram.

In the example you would draw a generalised plant cell and next to the labels on your drawing you should give brief notes as to the function(s) of the labelled parts.

2. Illustrate - This refers to the drawing of a diagram or even the use of examples to clearly bring about a point.

In this question, illustrate refers to drawing a representative diagram of the molar tooth in man. It should be noted that any diagram that you draw should be clearly labelled.

3. Explain - To explain is to account for the facts, giving reasons.

For the associated question, a suitable answer would be:

"Excess amino acid from a person's diet is not stored; it is deaminated in the liver. The product of deamination, namely urea, is excreted in one's urine, therefore, the amount of protein in a person's diet would affect the amount of urea in a person's urine?"

Notice from the excerpt that the answer did not simply state what happened but gave a detailed account of why it happened.

4. Suggest - This requires you to give an idea or plausible belief as to why.

For the above question, the candidate is expected to use knowledge of respiration to give plausible reasons as to the importance of training to athletes.

5. State - This is to write down or list the important points.

Many candidates tend to waste time in giving explanations for each item on the list. This is not necessary. In the example given above, all that is needed is to identify three minerals and their function to plants.

* Adrian Whyte and Joanna Johnson teach Biology at Ardenne High School
masterbio@gmail.com.