How to pass A/L Chemistry in Sri Lanka
Written by Idasara Academy (drafted by AI agents from the cited sources).
To pass G.C.E. A/L Chemistry in Sri Lanka, work through the National Institute of Education (NIE) syllabus unit by unit: 14 units across Grades 12 and 13. Practise each unit's questions as soon as you finish it, check what you got wrong, and fix it before you move on. Give Unit 12, Equilibrium, the most time: the NIE gives it more teaching time than any other unit. And do the practical experiments: the NIE calls them "an essential component of the syllabus" (NIE syllabus, p. ii). This is the Sri Lankan G.C.E. (A/L), not Cambridge or Edexcel A-Level Chemistry.
"Practise, check, fix" is Idasara's method, not an NIE statement. Every fact on this page names the page of the NIE A/L Chemistry syllabus it comes from.
How do I pass A/L Chemistry, step by step?
1. What do I actually have to learn for A/L Chemistry?
The NIE syllabus: 14 units, implemented from 2017, taught over Grades 12 and 13 (NIE syllabus, title page and p. ii). Learn the unit list before anything else, so you always know which unit a lesson or a question belongs to.
→ Free: the A/L Chemistry hub: every unit and its teaching time
2. Where do I start in Grade 12?
With Units 1–3: atomic structure, structure and bonding, and chemical calculations. The NIE places them in the first term of Grade 12 (NIE syllabus, p. viii).
→ Free: Unit 1 notes: Atomic structure
3. Do I have to follow the NIE order?
No. The NIE presents the units "in a sequence appropriate (but not mandatory) to be followed during teaching" (NIE syllabus, p. ii), so your school may teach them in a different order. Find the unit you are on in the table below and work from there.
→ Free: all A/L Chemistry notes, by unit
4. Which unit should get the most time?
Unit 12, Equilibrium. It has more teaching periods than any other unit and runs across the first two terms of Grade 13 (NIE syllabus, pp. vii–viii). Idasara's suggestion: start practising it early in Grade 13 rather than leaving it for the end.
→ Free: an Equilibrium model question with "Check my answer"
5. How do I handle organic chemistry?
As one block, in order. The NIE puts all four organic units, Units 7–10, in the third term of Grade 12, starting with basic concepts and ending with nitrogen-containing compounds (NIE syllabus, p. viii). Idasara's suggestion: do not start Units 8–10 before Unit 7 is secure, because they use its naming and reaction ideas.
→ Free: Unit 7 notes: Basic concepts of organic chemistry
6. How do I know my answers would earn the marks?
Attempt a question before you read the solution, then compare your working line by line. Idasara's suggestion: keep a list of the steps you missed and re-try those questions a week later.
→ Free: A/L Chemistry model questions, by unit
7. How do I revise when I am sitting the examination again?
Unit by unit, starting with the units you lost marks on. Read the unit's revision notes, then do that unit's practice questions before you move to the next one (Idasara's suggestion).
→ Free: A/L Chemistry revision notes
How the exam works
G.C.E. A/L Chemistry is set by the Department of Examinations in two papers (the structure for the examination from 2019 onwards). Paper I takes 2 hours: 50 multiple-choice questions with 5 options, all to be answered, at 1 mark each — 50 marks. Paper II takes 3 hours, plus 10 minutes' reading time, and has three parts, some questions based on the practicals in the syllabus: Part A, 4 compulsory structured essay questions (general, inorganic, physical and organic chemistry) at 100 marks each; Part B, answer 2 of 3 essay questions at 150 marks each; Part C, answer 2 of 3 essay questions at 150 marks each — 1,000 marks. The final mark is Paper I (50) plus Paper II divided by 20 (50), out of 100. (Department of Examinations structure booklet, p. 31.)
Where is my unit?
Your school may teach the units in a different order (step 3). Teaching time per unit is on the A/L Chemistry hub, not repeated here.
| Grade · term (NIE) | Unit | NIE name | Free pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 12 · Term 1 | 1 | Atomic structure | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 1 | 2 | Structure and bonding | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 1 | 3 | Chemical calculations | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 2 | 4 | Gaseous state of matter | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 2 | 5 | Energetics | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 2 | 6 | Chemistry of s, p and d block elements | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 3 | 7 | Basic concepts of organic chemistry | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 3 | 8 | Hydrocarbons and halohydrocarbons | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 3 | 9 | Oxygen containing organic compounds | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 12 · Term 3 | 10 | Nitrogen containing organic compounds | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 13 · Term 1 | 11 | Chemical kinetics | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 13 · Terms 1–2 | 12 | Equilibrium | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 13 · Term 2 | 13 | Electrochemistry | Notes · Practice |
| Grade 13 · Term 3 | 14 | Industrial chemistry and environmental pollution | Notes · Practice |
Unit names from the NIE syllabus, p. vii; terms from p. viii (Grade 13 Term 1 is competency levels 11.1–12.2 and Term 2 is 12.3–13.4, so Unit 12 spans both terms). The site's pages for Units 11 and 12 are titled "Reaction Kinetics" and "Chemical Equilibrium".
Which path fits you?
- Starting Grade 12 — Units 1–3 first (step 2). → Unit 1 notes
- In Grade 13 — Equilibrium early (step 4). → Equilibrium practice
- Sitting the examination again — unit by unit, weakest first (step 7). → Revision notes
- Studying in Sinhala → සිංහල
- Studying in Tamil → தமிழ்
- A parent — what your child gets, and what it costs. → Pricing · For parents