Send your pupils into the autumn term half-term holiday with a task that requires them to explore more about the biology associated with Halloween. This article offers a fun approach, with a pub quiz format based on bats, skeletons, pumpkins and witches, that is suitable for lessons following the end-of-topic test, for STEM clubs or for PTA…

Speculates on the value of science education research and outlines various factors underlying the dissemination of research. Makes some suggestions for better implementation of research results. (DDR)

Describes two novel teaching ideas based on tabards. Discusses a visual aids model on the digestive system, and the uterus and a developing embryo in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy. (Author/ASK)

Describes the use of plastic bottles in making science models and displays, including wall displays of leaf structure and function, model teeth, and a model villus. (WRM)

Explores whether there are problems with A-level biology that are broadly shared by teachers. Addresses five major areas of concerns: (1) teaching and learning, (2) practical work, (3) subject content, (4) assessment, and (5) initial teacher training. (DDR)

Reports on a way in which student teachers are given the opportunity to work with partially hearing pupils in the context of environmental education outside the science laboratory. Focuses on student investigation of moss on trees. (DDR)

Outlines alternative approaches to the teaching of difficult concepts in A-level biology which may help student learning by making abstract ideas more concrete and accessible. Examples include models, posters, and poems for illustrating meiosis, mitosis, genetic mutations, and protein synthesis. (DDR)

Focuses on the advice and support from science inspectors or advisers with respect to the use of living organisms in schools. Reports that advice, support, and encouragement in the use of living organisms in teaching was widely available at the time of this study and schools have a great deal to lose from the shrinkage in the advisory service.…

Presents teaching and learning strategies that can add to the aesthetic value of school labs and contribute to the ambiance of the workplace. (Author/JRH)

A collection of creative pupil activities in science lessons is presented, discussed, and illustrated. The activities include drawing, acting, gaming, and modeling. The relative merits of work of the types described are analyzed. (KR)

A range of alternative approaches to student work in science is presented. The approaches are illustrated by examples of students' work including cartoons, cards, poems, and posters. A number of audiences other than the teacher is identified as a potential focus for students' written work. (KR)

Definitions for the terms open-ended, problem solving, and investigations are considered. The interaction between these terms and teaching styles are discussed. Student influences over the learning process in this type of investigation are examined. (CW)

Ways in which linear lesson sequences can be modified to provide increased opportunities for open-ended activities especially with problem solving are considered. Examples drawn from chemistry and plant reproduction, seeds, and germination are given. (KR)

Questionnaires from students passing the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) that explored attitudes to dissection and using animals in product testing administered to (n=469) students ages 14-15 showed a high level of support for peers who object to dissection, although objectors are likely to be met with derogatory comments,…