The science curriculum to age 16 should be judged on how well it meets the needs of students who progress to A-level science courses and those (a larger number) who do not. To address the diversity of students' interests and aspirations, we need a clear view of the purposes of science education rooted in a view of the purposes of education…

A key challenge in designing a teaching programme on energy is in deciding how best to deal with the differences in how the word "energy" is used and understood in everyday discourse and in science. Many of the most important decisions and choices about energy matters, both for individuals and society, can be adequately understood from…

This article presents the author's Presidential Address delivered to the Association for Science Education Annual Conference, University of Liverpool, January 2012. "Science for all" has been an aspiration of the Association for Science Education and the organisations from which it evolved for almost a century. It has, however, proved an elusive…

This article discusses the findings of a survey of centres using the "Twenty First Century Science" suite of GCSE courses, focusing on the impact of its introduction on the number of students beginning AS-level courses in the sciences. The data indicate increases of 24% to 38% in the numbers beginning AS-level courses in the three main sciences in…

Suggests that teaching should be informed by research and reports interim findings from three of the four projects from the Evidence-based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) Research Network. (Author/DDR)

Reports on Project 1 from the Evidence-based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) Research Network. In this project, a group of teachers develop banks of diagnostic questions in four science topic areas: electric circuits, force and motion, matter and chemical change, and biochemical life processes. (DDR)

Reports on a study by the Evidence-based Practice in Science Education (EPSE) Research Network that explores practitioners' views on the nature, use, and potential of science education research. (DDR)

Describes the AQA AS-level course 'Science for Public Understanding' and explains its underlying rationale. Shows how a topic-based course can be used to consolidate students' understanding of some scientific explanations and ideas-about-science in a systematic manner. (Author/MM)

Summarizes the principal arguments and recommendations in the report "Beyond 2000: Science Education for the Future," funded by the Nuffield Foundation. Presents a new vision of science education and offers 10 recommendations for change. (DDR)

Explores the reasons why science should be taught to all school students and what the science curriculum should look like. Discusses three aspects of an understanding of science: understanding of science content, understanding of the methods of inquiry used in science, and understanding of science as a social enterprise. (JRH)