Harnessing energy from the tides is a much-promoted but rarely realised way of generating electricity. This article examines some of the systems that are currently in use or under development, and outlines their economic, environmental and technical implications.

This article describes a game designed to help Spanish high school students (grade 10, age 15-16) understand the periodic table. It combines some features of bingo and a puzzle in the same pedagogical game, making it an engaging approach for learning about this important teaching tool. Students are given a verbal clue -- the name of a chemical…

People use many different products made from plastics every day. But conventional plastics such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) do not always have a good reputation in society at large. Bioplastics such as thermoplastic starch (TPS) promise to be better alternatives but are they really better than conventional plastics? This article presents a new…

A three-year project aimed at embedding seismology into schools in northern England to support the teaching of the earth science strands in the National Curriculum for England and Wales is described. Seismometers were deployed in a range of high schools across the Yorkshire and Humberside region. Deployment was supported by a programme of staff…

This article describes a field course in Cornwall looking at mineral processing with the focus on the chemistry involved. The course was split into two parts. The first looked at tin mining based around Penzance. This involved visiting mines, hunting for mineral samples, carrying out a stream survey and visiting the Camborne School of Mines…

If a programme were to be devised for the early-career development of science teachers, what might such a programme look like? This was the focus of a meeting of science educators interested in developing such a structure, from the start of initial teacher training onwards. The contributions, modified and written up here, include a suggested…

The physics curriculum is usually defined by content but this does not provide students with an authentic experience of the subject. An alternative is that physics is defined more as a way of thinking and this idea is explored in terms of the purposes of physics education, assessment and the relationship of the subject with other disciplines. A…

From September 2015, schools in England will be teaching new A-level science specifications that have been developed by examination boards to encompass new higher levels of demand developed by the Department for Education. Integral to these new specifications is a radical change to the contribution of practical science to the A-level grade of the…

This "Science note" examines the bromination of phenol, a reaction that is commonly taught at A-level and IB (International Baccalaureate) as an example of electrophilic substitution. Phenol undergoes bromination with bromine or bromine water at room temperature. A white precipitate of 2,4,6-tribromophenol is rapidly formed. This…

In this "Science Notes" feature, Duncan Short, from Inverkeithing High School in Scotland, describes how his school has created a wildflower meadow that is doubling up as an outdoor research laboratory. With guidance, pupils are using the new meadow to monitor what bumblebees are present, thus taking part in real and useful research. Two…

The Biological Sciences Curriculum Studies (BSCS) 5E Instructional Model (often referred to as the 5Es) consists of five phases. Each phase has a specific function and contributes both to teachers' coherent instruction and to students' formulation of a better understanding of scientific knowledge, attitudes and skills. Evidence indicates…

This "Science Note" presents a study by Christopher Talbot and Lydia Yap, who teach IB Chemistry at Anglo-Chinese School (Independent), Republic of Singapore, to pre-university students. Pre-university students may postulate the correlation between the magnitude of the lattice enthalpy compound and its melting point, since both…

This article describes how the Science Department at Shoeburyness High School in Essex introduced a space-themed year 8 (ages 12-13) science course to increase student engagement and motivation. As well as discussing the rationale for such curriculum change, it describes the processes of planning and resourcing the course, and the barriers that…

The development and delivery of an Earth-science-focused short course designed to prepare Hong Kong students for university level study is described. Earth sciences provide an inspirational and challenging context for learning and teaching in Hong Kong's increasingly skills-based curriculum. (Contains 3 figures and 4 online resources.)

Success in any relay race depends on the speeds achieved by the individual runners and the successful handover of the baton from each runner to the next. Choosing top sprinters is the easy part but there are many ways for the passing of the baton to go wrong. In this article, the knowledge and judgement required by the coach for a relay team are…