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Science in School Failing Pupils

Posted on: Saturday, 19 March 2005, 09:00 CST

MINISTERS were last night urged to carry out a radical overhaul of how science is taught in Scotland's schools after a report identified "significant weaknesses" in the way lessons are being delivered.

The study, by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education [HMI], also said pupils continued to under-achieve at the upper stages of primary and the first two years of secondary, while Standard Grade science courses were "out of date".

Graham Donaldson, the HMI's senior chief inspector, said: "Too many pupils leave school with little interest in science and insufficient awareness about its influence on their lives. Science itself is constantly growing and evolving.

"More needs to be done to enthuse all young people about science and to make sure that courses are updated to reflect and excite interest in the latest developments and discoveries."

The HMI report said: "There continues to be significant weaknesses and some of these are long-standing.

"Pupils continue to under-achieve at the upper stages of primary and at S1 and S2, and continuity and progression between primary and secondary is still often poor. Too many pupils are either under- challenged or fail to see the relevance of the science they are studying to their own lives.

"The content of many science courses, particularly Standard Grade science, has increasingly become out of date and is not meeting the needs of all pupils effectively."

Earlier this week, Sir James Black, Scotland's only living Nobel Prize winner, said not enough students were being encouraged to study science. And last night another leading science figure said that radical measures were needed to make the subject more interesting to youngsters.

Dr Simon Gage, the director of the Edinburgh International Science Festival, said: "I fear we are not taking this problem very seriously.

"If Scotland wants to have a scientifically literate population, it has really got to sort this problem out because the country will be left behind otherwise. The current approach to updating scientific education is rather piecemeal and slow and it is not one that's going to make any substantive difference."

The Executive is carrying out a review of the science curriculum. Peter Peacock, the education minister, claimed that review, along with extra investment, would lead to an improvement in science lessons across Scottish schools. He said: "We know that the current science curriculum needs to be updated and improved. That is why it is a priority for the curriculum review.

"This review, coupled with continued training for teachers and better facilities, will make science a more attractive choice for pupils."

Source: Scotsman, The

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