Monthly Archives: July 2009

Simon Hammond: thinking of going into the private sector

Simon Hammond is a PGCE student I’m partway through a science PGCE and am seriously thinking of going into the private sector having seen the present and impending assessment methods in the state sector. As well as the obsession with... Read More »

Mark Jones: this country is truly in a mess regarding Science education

Mark Jones is a Science Teacher and Education Consultant I am a Science teacher who returned in 2008 after a break since 2000, and also specialise in Physics having taught to A level for 16 years. I left Science teaching... Read More »

David Mingay: experience of an alternative approach

David Mingay is a science teacher in Kent I spent a couple of years teaching in Washington DC recently. I was working in the private sector, which operates a system that we would do well to emulate in both the... Read More »

Arkady English: in trying to make science more vocational, more applicable to the real world, we only patronise those who really want to do it

Arkady English is currently studying for an MPhys. at University of Sheffield. I was blessed at my local all-boys comprehensive school with some exceptionally good science teaching, and some exceptionally bad. I was fortunate that the good outweighed the bad... Read More »

Steven Chick: in an attempt to please everyone...they please no-one

Steven Chick is young student who is about to start a degree in Physics I’ll be starting University in September to do a Physics 4-year degree, with the aim to go on and do a postgrad. This of course means... Read More »

Jamie: nothing to indicate the government will listen

Jamie is a Physics Teacher I’m afraid I agree with Rick on the front page, I see nothing to indicate that government will listen to us at this level, which is very worrying. I’m new to teaching and teach Physics... Read More »

Another official report finds numerous flaws with GCSE science exams

On Wednesday 15th July at 2pm, The Science Community Representing Education Group (SCORE) published its report on the 2008 GCSE science papers. You can read the full report here. In my opinion, this report confirms what many science teachers have... Read More »

Rick: "Noddy" approach to science driving away knowledgeable teachers

Rick is a former Head of Science & Physics The new GCSEs are basically political rubbish. I quit my post as a Head of Science & Physics in disgust, and I’m now emigrating. Who on earth is going to fill... Read More »

Chris Benson: We need to be certain that there is a syllabus that is sufficiently rigorous for those wishing to study pure sciences

Chris Benson is a Year 6 Teacher I am very concerned that science has been removed from the core curriculum at primary level. I have heard the hour allotted to science will be halved in several schools. This will have... Read More »

Jeremy Stone: the Triple Science specification is superb, even though the assessment is still weak

I have some sympathy with the comments [so far]. The Core science was always supposed to be about educating the future citizen rather than developing future scientists, which I think it does rather well. The Additional science is good... Read More »

Siobhan Costello: Edexcel course lacks practical work

Siobhan Costello is a Science Teacher in Birmingham I have completed 2 qca questionnaires (physics and science) and boy are they long, and actually quite vague. My feeling is it is like the consultations we have in our school, where... Read More »

Katie Totten: exam questions are often too easy, vague and do not require much science knowledge

Katie Totten is a Biology Teacher at a comprehensive school in London In general the biology content of both core and additional 21st Century Science course is good. It is pitched at the correct level for most students, covering some... Read More »

Marjorie Coulon: High ability students felt that they had wasted their time

Marjorie Coulon is a Chemistry Teacher at a comprehensive school in North London. I have been responsible for teaching the Chemistry part of the (21st Century Science) course to the higher ability students. Apart from drawing a few molecules in... Read More »