HSC PDHPE (legacy 2012) 2024
Walkthrough of the 2024 HSC PDHPE exam: what the paper assessed across both core modules and the five options, timing advice, five original exam-style worked questions (including a prevalence table and a training heart-rate zone calculation) and common errors drawn from the marking guideline criteria.
- Marks
- 100
- Time
- 180 min
- Authority
- NESA
- Updated
What this paper assessed
The 2024 HSC Personal Development, Health and Physical Education paper covered both compulsory core modules and then the five options, of which candidates answered two.
- Core 1: Health Priorities in Australia
- Questions tested the measures epidemiologists use (mortality versus morbidity style measures), how priority health issues are identified (with a short-answer question on why the prevalence of a condition matters and another on the community costs that flow from a chronic disease diagnosis), trends in cancer deaths shown on a graph, cardiovascular disease terminology, the pressures that a growing and ageing population places on carers and volunteers, the Ottawa Charter action areas, health promotion partnerships, private health insurance, the range of primary care services, complementary health care, and groups experiencing health inequities, including an 8-mark question weighing how far socioeconomic factors shape the health of one chosen group.
- Core 2: Factors Affecting Performance
- Questions tested training methods and repetition maximum ranges, the principle of reversibility, physiological adaptations of slow twitch fibres, a comparison of energy system by-products, psychological strategies and sources of stress, nutrition for a multi-day endurance event, the benefits of vitamin supplementation, the characteristics of the learner, skill acquisition stages, feedback types, the nature of the skill, how technique can be used to appraise a performer, and an 8-mark assessment of neural recovery strategies.
- Section II options (answer two)
- Each option had a 3-mark and a 5-mark part (a) and a 12-mark part (b):
- The Health of Young People: youth culture, how the developmental stage shifts motivation and values, and an evaluation of legislation plus health promotion aimed at one major youth health issue.
- Sport and Physical Activity in Australian Society: sport as a commodity, how advertising has shifted as sport became a business, and the extent to which constructed ideas of masculinity and femininity have shaped participation.
- Sports Medicine: eating disorders and pregnancy in female athletes, and an evaluation of warm-up and psychological readiness checks for return to play.
- Improving Performance: phases of competition in a training year, tapering, and the extent to which sporting technology has improved performance.
- Equity and Health: access to health services and social justice, community empowerment, and how useful health data is for gauging inequity for one group.
Structure and timing
The cover gives 5 minutes reading time and 3 hours working time for 100 marks, so the whole paper runs at
| Part | Questions | Marks | Suggested time on the paper | Minutes per mark |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Section I Part A | 1 to 20 (multiple choice) | 20 | about 40 minutes | |
| Section I Part B | 21 to 27 (short answer) | 40 | about 1 hour 10 minutes | |
| Section II | two of 28 to 32 | 40 | about 1 hour 10 minutes |
A practical split:
- Part A (40 min): aim to finish in about 30 minutes and bank the spare 10 for the 8-mark questions.
- Part B (70 min): roughly 5 minutes for the 3 and 4 mark items, 8 to 9 minutes for each 5-marker, and 14 minutes for each 8-marker (Questions 26 and 27). Plan the 8-markers in dot points before writing.
- Section II (70 min): minutes per option question, split about 5 minutes on (a)(i), 8 minutes on (a)(ii) and 22 minutes on the 12-mark (b), including 3 minutes of planning.
- Use reading time to choose your two options and to scan the 8-mark verbs ("assess", "to what extent"), since those set the depth the top band needs.
Worked practice questions (exam-style)
Question 1 (5 marks): A regional health district of 250 000 people collected the hypothetical data below. Calculate the prevalence of each condition per 100 000 people, then use the criteria for identifying priority health issues to justify which condition should be the district's top priority.
| Condition | People currently living with it | Largely preventable? | Trend over 10 years | Annual cost to district |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A: Type 2 diabetes | 20 000 | Yes | Rising | High |
| B: A rare genetic disorder | 3 000 | No | Stable | Moderate |
| C: Asthma | 12 500 | Partly | Stable | Moderate |
Step 1: Prevalence per 100 000
Step 2: Apply the criteria
- Prevalence of condition: A is highest at 8000 per 100 000, so it affects the most people and places the greatest demand on services.
- Potential for prevention and early intervention: type 2 diabetes is strongly linked to modifiable behaviours (diet, physical activity, weight), so health promotion can change outcomes. Condition B is genetic, so prevention is limited.
- Costs to the individual and community: A already carries the highest cost and, because it is rising, that direct cost (hospital care, medication) and indirect cost (lost productivity) will grow.
- Social justice principles and priority population groups: chronic diseases like type 2 diabetes fall more heavily on disadvantaged groups, so prioritising it also reduces inequity. B still deserves specialist care, but ranking a priority is about where resources change the most outcomes.
Final answer: Prevalence rates are 8000 (A), 1200 (B) and 5000 (C) per 100 000. Condition A (type 2 diabetes) should be the top priority because it has the highest and rising prevalence, is largely preventable, carries the greatest community cost and disproportionately affects disadvantaged groups.
Question 2 (5 marks): A 17-year-old rower wants to build her aerobic base. Using to estimate maximum heart rate, calculate a training zone of 70% to 85% of maximum, then explain TWO physiological adaptations she could expect from 12 weeks of continuous training in this zone.
Step 1: Maximum heart rate
Step 2: Training zone
So she should keep her heart rate between about 142 and 173 bpm, where the aerobic system is the predominant energy supplier.
Step 3: Two adaptations (explain, do not just name)
- Increased stroke volume and cardiac output. Sustained aerobic work enlarges the left ventricle, so more blood is pumped per beat. Resting heart rate falls and more oxygen reaches the working muscles at the same effort, delaying fatigue in the middle of a 2000 m race.
- Increased capillarisation and mitochondria in slow twitch fibres. A denser capillary network and more mitochondria raise the muscles' ability to extract and use oxygen, so more ATP is produced aerobically and less reliance is placed on the lactic acid system, which delays hydrogen ion build-up.
Final answer: MHR is 203 bpm, giving a zone of about 142 to 173 bpm. Training in this zone increases stroke volume and cardiac output, and increases capillary density and mitochondria in slow twitch fibres, both raising oxygen delivery and use so she can hold a higher pace for longer before fatigue.
Question 3 (4 marks): A netball goal shooter performs poorly in a semi-final after appearing flat in warm-up, then poorly again the next week while visibly anxious. Using the relationship between arousal and performance, explain both results and outline ONE strategy for each situation.
Step 1: The model
The inverted-U relationship holds that performance improves as arousal rises to an optimal point, then declines as arousal becomes excessive. Fine, closed, precision skills such as shooting have a lower optimal arousal level than gross power skills.
Step 2: Apply to each game
- Under-aroused (semi-final): attention was low and focus drifted, so she sat on the left side of the curve. Strategy: a psyching-up routine, such as energetic self-talk and a short high-intensity warm-up drill to raise arousal toward the optimal zone.
- Over-aroused (following week): muscle tension, a faster heart rate and a narrowed, distracted focus disrupted the fine motor control needed for a shot, placing her on the right side of the curve. Strategy: a relaxation technique such as slow, controlled breathing or progressive muscle relaxation before each shot routine.
Final answer: She was below optimal arousal in the first game and above it in the second, both of which lower performance on the inverted-U; psyching-up routines would lift arousal in the first case and relaxation techniques such as controlled breathing would lower it in the second.
Question 4 (8 marks): Assess how the Ottawa Charter action area of reorienting health services could reduce the health inequities experienced by people living in rural and remote areas.
This is an "assess" question, so the top band needs a judgement about how much the action area helps, supported by specific examples and a limitation.
Plan
- The inequity: people in rural and remote areas generally face poorer health outcomes than people in major cities, linked to distance from services, fewer health professionals per head, higher exposure to injury risk (farm work, long road travel) and later diagnosis of chronic disease.
- What reorienting health services means: shifting the system from hospital-based treatment toward prevention, early intervention and services that reach people where they live.
- Example 1, outreach and mobile services: the Royal Flying Doctor Service provides primary care clinics and emergency retrieval, and mobile breast screening vans bring prevention to small towns. Benefit: earlier detection and less travel. Judgement: highly effective for access, but visits are periodic, so continuity of care is limited.
- Example 2, telehealth: video consultations let patients see specialists and mental health clinicians without travelling. Benefit: reduces cost and time barriers. Limitation: depends on reliable internet and digital literacy, which are weaker in some remote communities.
- Example 3, workforce and community partnerships: training and retaining local generalist doctors, nurses and Aboriginal health workers makes services culturally safe and sustainable, especially when combined with community-controlled health services (links to strengthening community action).
- Judgement: reorienting services is effective at addressing the access and early detection causes of the inequity, but on its own it cannot fix underlying socioeconomic and environmental determinants (income, employment, housing, road conditions), so the greatest gains come when it is combined with the other Ottawa Charter action areas.
Final answer: Reorienting health services substantially reduces rural and remote inequities by improving access, prevention and early intervention through outreach, telehealth and a local workforce, but its impact is limited unless it is combined with action on the socioeconomic and environmental determinants that also drive poorer health in these areas.
Question 5 (12 marks, Improving Performance option): A state-level swimmer has 24 weeks until a national championship. Evaluate how a coach could use periodisation, including peaking and tapering, to prepare the swimmer to perform at their best on the day.
"Evaluate" requires a judgement of how effective the approach is, with criteria and specific examples, not just a description of phases.
Plan: a hypothetical 24-week macrocycle
| Phase | Weeks | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| General preparation | 6 | high-volume aerobic base, technique, general strength |
| Specific preparation | 6 | race-pace sets, anaerobic intervals, starts and turns |
| Pre-competition | 4 | lead-up meets, race tactics, speed work |
| Competition (includes a 2-week taper) | 6 | maintain fitness, peak for the championship |
| Transition | 2 | active rest, recovery, reflection |
Check: weeks.
Body of the response
- Periodisation structure (macro, meso and microcycles): progressive overload builds the aerobic base first, then converts it to race-specific fitness. Evaluation: effective because it matches the principle of specificity and reduces the risk of overtraining, but only if the plan is monitored and adjusted when illness or poor results occur.
- Peaking: the coach schedules lead-up meets as rehearsals but peaks only once for the national championship. Evaluation: trying to peak for every meet would compromise training volume, so prioritising one event is more effective for a single major target.
- Tapering: in the final two weeks weekly volume might drop from 50 km to 30 km while race-pace intensity is kept, a reduction of
Evaluation: cutting volume lets muscle glycogen stores refill and micro-damage repair, so the swimmer arrives fresh, while keeping intensity avoids losing the fitness gained (reversibility). A taper that is too long or cuts intensity heavily risks detraining.
4. Balancing factors: psychological readiness, sleep, nutrition and recovery must be built into microcycles. Evaluation: the best plan fails if recovery and mental preparation are ignored.
5. Overall judgement: a well-structured periodised plan with a single planned peak and a short taper is highly effective, but its success depends on individualising the plan and monitoring the athlete's response.
Final answer: Periodisation is a highly effective way to prepare the swimmer because it sequences base, specific and competition training, and a single planned peak with a roughly 40% volume taper (intensity maintained) lets the swimmer arrive rested but fit; its effectiveness depends on monitoring and individualising the plan rather than following it rigidly.
Common errors students made
NESA did not publish a marking feedback report for the 2024 HSC PDHPE paper, so the points below are drawn only from what the marking guidelines' criteria separate between mark bands, not from any claim about how students actually performed.
- Describing instead of comparing (Question 22). Full marks needed an actual comparison of the by-products of two energy systems; showing sound understanding of each system separately capped a response one mark lower. Use linking words such as "whereas" and "both".
- Leaving out the example (Questions 24 and 25). The top two bands for both 5-markers required an example. For the complementary health question, simply listing reasons or showing basic understanding of these products or services sat at 2 marks; the upper bands needed a sound to thorough explanation of why their use has grown.
- Missing the judgement in "assess" and "to what extent" questions (Questions 26 and 27). The 6 to 8 mark bands required an assessment or a judgement with relevant, detailed examples. Responses that only showed sound understanding of recovery strategies or socioeconomic factors sat in the 4 to 5 band.
- Answering only half of a two-part focus. In the Health of Young People 12-marker, the top band needed an evaluation of both legislation and health promotion initiatives, whereas only the 3 to 4 mark band accepted an understanding of legislation or health promotion on its own. The Sports Medicine and Improving Performance (a)(ii) parts similarly required examples to reach the top band.
- Weak structure in Section II part (b). Every 12-mark band description moves from "structured" to "logical" to "logical and cohesive", paired with a range of relevant examples at the top. A list of facts without a sustained judgement will not reach 11 to 12 marks.
How to use this paper
- Download the official 2024 paper from the link above and sit Section I Part A in 30 minutes, then check your answers against the multiple-choice key in the marking guidelines.
- Attempt each Part B question under the 1.75 minutes per mark pace, then compare your response to the band descriptions in the marking guidelines, asking which band's wording your answer actually satisfies.
- For your two options, write at least one full 12-mark part (b) response in 22 minutes and highlight each sentence that contains a judgement; if there are fewer than three, rework it.
- Redo Questions 1 and 2 above with new numbers (a different population or age) until the prevalence and heart-rate zone calculations are automatic.
- Build a bank of two or three specific examples for each dot point in your options (programs, campaigns, technologies, athletes), since the top bands consistently require a range of relevant examples.
Use this paper well
- Sit the paper under exam conditions (180 minutes, 100 marks).
- Mark yourself against the official NESA marking notes.
- Compare against the PDHPE (legacy 2012) hub to find the syllabus dot points this paper tested.