Alternatives for Science Education was produced and published by the Association for Science Education (ASE) in 1979. Its sub-title, A Consultative Document, indicates its aim and status. In addition to being a document of considerable historical interest, it contains arguments of continued relevance.

The...

The main purpose of this booklet is to provide a tool for analysing science practicals to clarify their objectives, highlight main features, and evaluate their effectiveness.

The Practical Activity Analysis Inventory (PAAI) is intended to be a useful tool which will stimulate thought about practical...

The aim of this Children’s Learning in Science Project (CLIS) research study was to describe aspects of secondary school students’ ideas about light and to set these in the context of results from other studies in the area and of the history of ideas about light and...

The report from the Children’s Learning in Science Project (CLIS) gives an account of a number of aspects of students’ ideas about energy including:

*Do students use ideas about energy spontaneously to help them interpret phenomena?

*When students are ‘cued’ that energy is involved in a situation,...

The report from the Children’s Learning in Science Project (CLIS) gives an account of a number of aspects of students’ understanding of plant nutrition including:
*To what extent do students understand that plants carry out autotrophic nutrition and not...

The report from the Children’s Learning in Science Project (CLIS) gives an account of a number of aspects of students’ ideas about particles including:
*What do students understand about the particulate nature of matter?
*Do they understand the scientific...

Published in December 2013.  The ASPIRES study sought to shed new light on our understanding of how young people’s aspirations develop over the 10-14 age period, exploring in particular what influences the likelihood of a young person aspiring to a science-related career.

This report presents key findings...

This report, published in 2009, is based on a seminar held in London in 2008 at the Nuffield Foundation. It discusses why teaching ethics in science is important and examines approaches to the assessment of ethics in science considering key issues, such as the importance of ethical debate in science classes, the...

This resource is a summary of a seminar organised by SCORE (Science Community Representing Education) in November 2009. The seminar aimed to discuss the purpose and methods of assessment of practical work in science. It also looked at the current GCSE specifications and the key philosophical differences of the...

This report from Ofsted looks at low level classroom disruption. Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector (HMCI) raised concerns about low-level disruption in schools in his Annual Report 2012/13. As a consequence, guidance to inspectors was tightened to place greater emphasis on this issue in routine inspections. In addition...

The Beyond 2000 report was the outcome of a seminar series initiated by Rosalind Driver and Jonathan Osborne at King’s College London. The series was funded by a grant from the Nuffield Foundation. There were four closed seminars and two open seminars. The report was edited by Robin Millar and Jonathan...

This report, commissioned by the Wellcome Trust, evaluates Big Picture, its free publication on bioscience, and explores ways in which it could be developed. It was hoped that this summary of the main findings would be of use to other organisations developing materials for teachers and students, particularly those...

From The Centre for Industry Education Collaboration (CIEC), this information booklet is useful for those wishing to develop successful partnerships between schools and local science-based industries. It is a collection of papers that describe how different groups have encountered and handled major issues and...

A Catalyst article about how catalysts affect the rate of reactions and why catalysts are important in nature and in industry.

This article is from Catalyst: Secondary Science Review 2008, Volume 18, Issue 3.

Catalyst is a science magazine...

Published in June 2002. Dyslexia affects a significant proportion of the UK population and can be a barrier to learning in science for those afflicted. There are a number of techniques teachers can employ to alleviate the problems dyslexic students face with both practical and written work in science. These have...