ISC Class 11 Biology Syllabus

ISC Biology Class 11 Syllabus

There are two papers in the subject: Paper I is Theory of 3 hours and 70 marks. There are five units in the syllabus.

1. Diversity of Living Organisms

(i) The Living World

What is living? Need for classification; three domains of life; taxonomy and systematics; concept of species and taxonomical hierarchy; binomial nomenclature; tools for study of taxonomy museums, zoological parks, herbaria, botanical gardens, key.

(ii) Biological Classification

Five kingdom classification; salient features and classification of Monera, Protista, Fungi, Plantae and Animalia. Lichens, Viruses and Viroids.

(iii) Plant Kingdom

1. Algae
2. Bryophyta
3. Pteridophyta
4. Gymnosperms
5. Angiosperms
6. Comparison of life cycle patterns of different plant groups

(iv) Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom: animal construction – body plan (cell aggregate plan, blind-sac plan and tube-within-tube plan), symmetry (spherical, radial and bilateral symmetry), coelom development (diploblastic and triploblastic organisation in animals, acoelomate, pseudocoelomate, coelomate and haemocoelomate), segmentation.

2. Structural Organisation in Animals and Plants

(i) Morphology of Flowering Plants

(a) Morphology and modifications of root, stem, leaf.

(b) Morphology of flower, fruit and seed. Structure of a typical flower, types of inflorescence (racemose and cymose).

(ii) Anatomy of Flowering Plants

(a) Plant Tissues: types of plant tissues: Meristematic tissues: classification of meristematic tissue. Permanent Tissues: structure and function of simple tissues (parenchyma, collenchyma and sclerenchyma) and complex tissues (xylem and phloem), tissue system. Internal structure of root, stem, and leaf.

(b) Secondary growth in dicot stem and dicot root

(iii) Structural Organisation in Animals

(a) Animal tissues

(b) Cockroach

3. Cell: Structure and Function

(i) Cell – the Unit of Life

Cell theory and cell as the basic unit of life: Structure of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells; Plant cell and animal cell; cell envelope; cell membrane, cell wall (including definition of plasmodesmata); cell organelles – ultrastructure and function; endomembrane system (endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi bodies, lysosomes, vacuoles), mitochondria, ribosomes, plastids, microbodies; cytoskeleton, cilia, flagella, centrioles; nucleus, nuclear membrane, chromatin, nucleolus.

(ii) Biomolecules

Proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, enzymes.

(iii) Cell Cycle and Cell Division

Cell cycle, mitosis, meiosis and their significance.

4. Plant Physiology

(i) Transport in Plants

Movement of water, gases and nutrients; cell to cell transport, diffusion, facilitated diffusion, active transport; plant-water relations, imbibition, water potential, osmosis, plasmolysis; long distance transport of water – absorption, apoplast, symplast, transpiration pull, root pressure and guttation; transpiration, opening and closing of stomata; uptake and translocation of mineral nutrients – transport of food – phloem transport, mass flow hypothesis; diffusion of gases.

(ii) Mineral Nutrition

Essential minerals, macro- and micronutrients and their role; deficiency symptoms; mineral toxicity; elementary idea of hydroponics nitrogen metabolism, nitrogen cycle, biological nitrogen fixation.

(iii) Photosynthesis in higher plants

Photosynthesis as a mean of autotrophic nutrition; site of photosynthesis, pigments involved in photosynthesis (elementary idea); photochemical and biosynthetic phases of photosynthesis; cyclic and non-cyclic photophosphorylation; chemiosmotic hypothesis; photorespiration; C₃ and C₄ pathways; factors affecting photosynthesis.

(iv) Respiration in Plants

Exchange of gases; cellular respiration – glycolysis, fermentation (anaerobic), TCA cycle and electron transport system (aerobic); energy relations – number of ATP molecules generated; amphibolic pathways; respiratory quotient.

(v) Plant Growth and Development

Seed germination; phases of plant growth; differentiation, dedifferentiation and redifferentiation; sequence of developmental processes in a plant cell; growth regulators – auxin, gibberellin, cytokinin, ethylene, ABA; seed dormancy; vernalisation; photoperiodism.

5. Human Physiology

(i) Digestion and Absorption

Alimentary canal and digestive glands, role of digestive enzymes; peristalsis, digestion, absorption and assimilation of proteins, carbohydrates and fats; calorific values of proteins, carbohydrates and fats; egestion; nutritional and digestive disorders.

(ii) Breathing and exchange of gases

Respiratory organs in animals (recall only); Respiratory system in humans; mechanism of breathing and its regulation -exchange of gases, transport of gases and regulation of respiration, respiratory volumes; disorders related to respiration.

(iii) Body fluids and circulation

Composition of blood, blood groups, coagulation of blood; composition of lymph and its function; human circulatory system
– structure of human heart and blood vessels; cardiac cycle, cardiac output, ECG; double circulation; regulation of cardiac activity; disorders of circulatory system.

(iv) Excretory products and their elimination

Modes of excretion – ammonotelism, ureotelism, uricotelism; human excretory system – structure and function; urine formation, osmoregulation; regulation of kidney function, renin – angiotensin, atrial natriuretic factor, ADH and diabetes insipidus; role of erythropoietin; role of other organs in excretion; disorders of the excretory system – uraemia, renal failure,
renal calculi, nephritis; dialysis and artificial kidney.

(v) Locomotion and Movement

Types of movement – ciliary, flagellar, muscular; skeletal muscles – contractile proteins and muscle contraction; skeletal system and its functions; joints; disorders of muscular and skeletal system.

(vi) Neural Control and Coordination

Neuron and nerves; nervous system in humans – central nervous system; peripheral nervous system and visceral nervous system; generation and conduction of nerve impulse; reflex action; sensory perception; sense organs; elementary structure and functions of eye and ear.

(vii) Chemical Co-ordination and Integration

Endocrine glands and hormones; human endocrine system – hypothalamus, pituitary, pineal, thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal, pancreas, gonads; mechanism of hormone action (elementary idea); role of hormones as messengers and regulators, hypo – and hyperactivity and related disorders; dwarfism, acromegaly, cretinism, goitre, exophthalmic goitre, diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus, Grave’s disease, Addison’s disease.