practical work: the essence of school science john holman national science learning centre
TRANSCRIPT
![Page 1: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Practical work: the essence of school science
John HolmanNational Science Learning Centre
![Page 2: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
Improving Practical Work in Science
![Page 3: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
Sputnik 1, Launched by USSR, October 1957
![Page 4: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
Practical work survey
•Carried out by the Science Learning Centres as part of the ‘Getting Practical’ project with the Association for Science Education
•Published March 2010
•1339 responses from science teachers and technicians
•Analysis and report by Kirstie Hampson
![Page 5: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
Top reasons for doing practical work
•Helping learners to understand scientific concepts (88%)
•Making phenomena more real i.e. linking theory to practice (84%)
•Helping learners to develop skills e.g. observation, using
equipment (82%)
•Motivating learners (81%)
•Helping learners to develop understanding of scientific enquiry
(80%)
![Page 6: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
![Page 7: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
Percentage of teachers undertaking practical work for more than 40% of
teaching time
• Key Stage 3 63%
• Key Stage 4 43%
• Post 16 28%
![Page 8: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
What factors hinder you from undertaking practical work?
•Curriculum pressure i.e. curriculum too full (69%)
•Curriculum pressure i.e. assessment demands too frequent (41%)
•Poor learner behaviour (29%)
•Lack of funding for or availability of suitable equipment (25% and 20%
respectively)
•Lack of time to research suitable ideas for practical work (21%)
•Health and safety (<10%)
![Page 9: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
‘Pressure from timetabling and results precludes practicals
unless they are directly related to coursework’
![Page 10: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
Factors contributing to effective practical work
•The availability of quality equipment and good laboratory layout
(33%)
•Learner engagement and good behaviour (23%)
•Time to plan and prepare beforehand and time to carry out the work
(21%)
•Support from technicians and teaching assistants (20%)
•Clear purpose for the practical, strong links to theory and relevance
to the topic or curriculum (20%)
![Page 11: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/11.jpg)
![Page 12: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/12.jpg)
What additional support would make your practical work more effective?
•Smaller class sizes (67%)
•More time for planning (57%)
•A less content-heavy curriculum (43%)
•Easy access to new ideas (43%)
•More technicians and teaching assistants (19%)
![Page 13: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
‘Can I make a plea for better pay and conditions for
technicians so we can keep them?
Teacher Respondent
![Page 14: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/14.jpg)
Professional development in practical work
•45% of respondents wanted more CPD
•30% specify CPD relating to subject knowledge
•15 % specify CPD relating to classroom management
![Page 15: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/15.jpg)
For a good overview of the purposes of practical work in school science
Robin Millar, for the US National Academy of Science: Millar, R. (2004). The role of practical work in the teaching and learning of science
Available at: http://www7.nationalacademies.org/bose/Millar_draftpaper_Jun_04.pdf
![Page 16: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/16.jpg)
Science without practical work is like literature without books
![Page 17: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/17.jpg)
![Page 18: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/18.jpg)
Science Learning Centres survey on dissection
•Published Summer 2009
•Responses from 242 institutions
![Page 19: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/19.jpg)
![Page 20: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/20.jpg)
![Page 21: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/21.jpg)
Science Learning Centres survey on dissection
•95% of institutions do some form of dissection• - KS3 79%• - KS4 94%• - Post 16 91%
•Only 19% of institutions do whole animal dissection
•Two thirds of respondents feel they do not do enough
dissection
![Page 22: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/22.jpg)
How the world’s best-performing school systems come out on top
McKinsey, September 2007
‘Above all, the top performing systems demonstrate that the quality of an education system depends ultimately on the quality of its teachers’
![Page 23: Practical work: the essence of school science John Holman National Science Learning Centre](https://reader030.vdocuments.mx/reader030/viewer/2022032517/56649cc25503460f9498987c/html5/thumbnails/23.jpg)
Future challenges
•Trend to shorter lessons and compartmentalised curricula - militates against longer learning experiences
•Keeping up with developments in modern biology
•Pressures from exams and ‘rarely cover’ on field work and CPD
•Economic pressures, leading to reductions in technicians, staffing and equipment budgets and increase in class sizes.