How to Get a Band 6 in HSC PDHPE

Focus on Key Topics

Prioritise these high-weighting topics:

• Health Priorities in Australia – Understand determinants of health, health inequities, and priority population groups
• Factors Affecting Performance – Know skill acquisition, biomechanics, and exercise physiology
• Sports Medicine / Improving Performance – Master injury prevention, rehabilitation, and training methods

Understand Acronyms

Use syllabus-specific acronyms to structure answers quickly and effectively:

• COPS – Continuous, Overload, Progression, Specificity (training principles)
• SLAPD – Speed, Location, Age, Policies, Determinants (health priority questions)
• RICER – Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation, Referral (immediate injury management)

Acronyms help you recall content under pressure and demonstrate structured knowledge in your responses.

Practice Data Interpretation

Part B of the exam often includes graphs or tables. Learn to:

• Describe trends – What patterns do you see in the data?
• Suggest causes – Why might these trends be occurring?
• Make recommendations – What interventions could address the issue?

Always link your data interpretation back to syllabus content. For example, if a graph shows increasing obesity rates, connect it to determinants of health like socioeconomic status and access to healthcare.

Study Marker helps by building quizzes from past papers and generating scaffolded writing tasks to practice data interpretation skills.

Final Thought

Achieving Band 6 in HSC PDHPE requires mastering key topics, using syllabus acronyms effectively, and developing strong data interpretation skills. With structured revision and consistent practice, you'll demonstrate the depth and application markers are looking for.