The APU report number 4 for teachers presents, in concise form, some of the data and findings of the APU surveys of students aged 13. It includes an outline of the assessment framework, some of the questions which were written to match it, a description of how well, and...

The APU report for teachers presents, in concise form, some of the data and findings of the APU surveys of students aged 15. After outlining the assessment framework (see also...

This APU report for teachers describes the aspect of the science surveys where the science project broke new ground. The reason for including practical tasks was the emphasis placed on practical work in science, requiring a range of skills.

It was considered that science performance could not be adequately...

This APU report for teachers focuses on the performance of students aged 15 in a range of test questions concerning electricity. It presents the findings in a sequence in which it suggests that different activities are generally encountered by students. An...

This APU report for teachers focuses on students’ planning of investigations. Although considered important in several respects, Rep...

This report highlights students’ (aged 15-16) opinions regarding their experiences of careers education and work experience. The findings highlight low levels of careers education and work experience taking place: fewer than half of all students surveyed took part in work experience and  fewer than two-thirds...

Published by the Wellcome Trust in October 201, this report looks at how one-year postgraduate Initial Teacher Training (ITT) courses in England and Wales support trainees’ acquisition of subject knowledge and topic specific pedagogy across the sciences.

The study, which was the first of its kind to look...

Published by LSIS, these booklets summarise the STEM action research projects carried out by 16-19 institutions across the UK. They include a brief summary of the research and findings on topics such as: using electronic notebooks, electronic learning, peer review, computer-based assessment, kinaesthetic techniques...

Published in May 2011, this report from the University of Southampton, school of education  is an evaluation of the Action Research for Physics programme which was organised and managed by the National Network of Science Learning Centres between September 2009 and February 2011....

Produced by the Learning Skills Improvement Service (LSIS), this case study looks at the theme of harnessing technology. It describes how Sussex Downs College set out to show students how to use more innovative features of technology to support collaborative and active learning. To begin with, this involved...

A Catalyst article about using the ISIS accelerator to study the structures of materials. ISIS is one of the UK's world leading research centres and this article explains how the centre uses neutrons to study materials at an atomic level. Acting as a super microscope the ISIS accelerator can be used for physics,...

A Catalyst article about the life and ideas of Albert Einstein. He is most famous for his ideas on relativity which formed the theory of general relativity, in which he showed that gravity could be explained as the effect of large masses on space. After the Second World War he also worked with other scientists and...

A Catalyst article about alchemy, the study of eternal life, salvation, and the answer to the ultimate questions about life, the universe and everything. It flourished for more than 1500 years until, in the late 1600s, the beginnings of modern, scientific chemistry edged it aside. The article looks at what was...

The aim of this Ofsted survey was to analyse the elements of successful alternative provision. Alternative provision has been defined as education outside school, arranged by local authorities or schools. For the purpose of this survey, alternative provision was defined as something in which a young person...

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...