This resource provides a lesson plan showing how to use system thinking to teach about ecosystems. The approach used in the lesson is based on education research which is summarised in a separate research summary document.

The lesson includes an activity where individual pupils are given an organism. They...

This activity sheet is based on the Inventive Podcast.  It introduces electrical engineer Jack Howarth, and links his work to a physics topic. The activity sheet also supports Careers Benchmark 4: Careers in the curriculum by introducing a career and role model. There are also links to short audio clips of Jack...

This report by HM Inspectors begins by outlining the history of the British School Technology (BST), its terms of reference and the extent of the operation in terms of the numbers of teachers trained. Details are given of inspections carried out and a more detailed description of the work carried out by BST at...

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) established an independent Commission on assessment following the Secretary of State’s decision to remove levels and their associated descriptors from the National Curriculum from September 2014. The Commission, comprising a panel of experienced practitioners, met...

The purpose of the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Mapping Review, published by the Department for Education in 2004, was broadly to:

• investigate whether STEM initiatives currently being taken forward address the concerns raised about the decline in demand of university places in...

This booklet contains all the research informed secondary science lesson plans produced as part of the Research-2-Practice project undertaken by research teams at the University of Roehampton, University of Lincoln, York St John University and KYRA research school, between 2020 and 2021, which was funded by...

Published in late 2013, this report contains the findings of a research study which looked into the use of electronic books (e-books or i-books) within continuous professional development (CPD).

The research looked in particular at the way that teachers on the 2013-14 National STEM Learning Centre and...

These two reports were published by SCORE (Science Community Representing Education), in response to two commissioned reports - Under the Microscope: the...

Published in 2017 by the National Audit Offcie, this report examines whether the Department for Education is (was) supporting the schools sector effectively to retain and develop the teaching workforce.

This review, published in 2012 by the Wellcome Trust, characterises the value of informal science learning to science education in the UK. Focusing on children and young people aged up to 19, the study sought to provide:

* a better understanding of the scope of informal science learning, its theoretical base...

Published in June 2013, this report from the  National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) sets out the findings from a review of Myscience’s (STEM Learning) partnership activity with school groups. The aim of the study was to identify any opportunities that exist, and the changes and challenges that are...

This report, by Dr Alison Wolf and published in March 2011, was commissioned to investigate the state of vocational education for young people aged 14 to 19. It was found that many courses offered very little value, offering no route to further education or prospects for meaningful employment.

Many...

A good report to show senior leaders in order to gain the necessary support to allow students to carry out extended projects and independent research projects (IRP).

The evidence shows gains in students’ learning, improvements in students’ attitudes to science, suggestions that increased numbers are...

Written by Oxford University Centre for Educational Assessment, this March 2009 review of teacher assessment was commissioned by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). The review looked at teacher assessment in practice in a number of countries to see what works best and to consider the implications for...

A Catalyst article comparing mobile phones and UV sunbeds. Mobile phones emit radiofrequency (RF) radiation. Tanning beds emit ultraviolet (UV) radiation. These are both types of non-ionising radiation. In recent years both have received considerable media coverage and they are emotive topics for the general public...