1 Introduction
About this book
This book has been written to support the needs of all primary trainees on all courses of initial teacher training in England and other parts of the UK where a secure subject knowledge of science is required for the award of Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or its equivalent. This book will also be found useful by Newly Qualified Teachers (NQTs), mentors, curriculum co-ordinators and other professionals working in education who have identified aspects of their science subject knowledge which require attention or who need a single resource to recommend to colleagues.
The Coalition Government that took office in May 2010 reformed the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) (DfE, 2012) and changes came into force in September 2012. The Department for Education (DfE) undertook a review of the primary National Curriculum and published the revised National Curriculum in 2013 (DfE, 2013a) which became mandatory for all year groups from September 2015.
This book includes information on the statutory programmes of study for the 2013 National Curriculum science and on the 2012 EYFS. In any transitional period, you will need to understand what curriculum requirements were in place before the new arrangements; teachers you work with may retain in their practice elements of the earlier ways of working. You will certainly hear colleagues discussing the differences between curriculum initiatives and referring to former frameworks ā for example, the Primary National Strategy for Teaching Literacy and Mathematics. Schools may also still be using units of the exemplar scheme of work for science produced by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). More details about this are provided in the section on curriculum context later in this introductory chapter.
Features of the main chapters of this book include:
- clear links with the Teachersā Standards;
- information about the curriculum context, including the science National Curriculum for England and the EYFS;
- science knowledge and understanding;
- reflective and practical activities for you to undertake, many of which are related to pedagogy;
- research summaries that give additional background insights into how childrenās understanding of science develops;
- Key Knowledge Checklists and Audits;
- details of publications referenced in the chapter;
- suggestions for further reading on the aspect in question.
The Key Knowledge Audits at the end of chapters include self-assessment questions so that you can check on how well you have assimilated the knowledge and understanding.
NOTE: Throughout this book, technical terms are often used before they are fully discussed in a later section. We therefore suggest that when you come across a word in bold (indicating a glossary reference) you look up its meaning in the glossary before continuing with your reading.
Science subject knowledge really does matter!
A secure subject knowledge of science is widely acknowledged as a critical factor at every point in the complex process of teaching science itself. Few nowadays would argue that planning, teaching and assessing science lessons, setting learning outcomes, choosing appropriate activities and resources, identifying childrenās errors and misconceptions, asking and handling questions could be achieved without knowing some science in the first place. Some research goes so far as to suggest that a lack of science subject knowledge combined with a lack of confidence in how to teach science may have a severely limiting effect on childrenās learning. Knowing about science (science content knowledge) and knowing how to teach science (science pedagogical knowledge) are inextricably linked. One of the keys to classroom success is making these connections in science teaching. Readers interested in finding out more about the role of science subject knowledge in teaching are directed towards the references in the Further reading section at the end of this chapter.
The content of this book may go beyond the requirements for teaching in the primary phase; however, this is deliberate. It is important that you understand the ābig ideasā in science (energy, life processes, particulate theory, etc.) and the ways in which primary science contributes to childrenās developing understanding of these ideas. For example, while energy is not identified as a concept for us to teach in the primary phase there are many areas in the primary science curriculum which will contribute to childrenās growing understanding of energy such as work on food chains, nutrition, sound, light, etc. An overview has been provided on page xii to help you find the sections in the book you should refer to when preparing to teach each element of the National Curriculum. This will help you to prepare fully for teaching the ābig ideasā in science. It will also help you to identify links between different areas of the curriculum when planning in science. The revised curriculum has separated some of the big ideas in science into smaller areas which makes it more difficult to identify continuity across and within year groups. By looking at which chapters you should refer to when planning lessons you will better understand the relationships between areas of knowledge and understanding and be able to help children make these connections.
The Teachersā Standards for primary science
The Teachersā Standards in England (DfE, 2013b) came into force from 1 September 2013, replacing the standards for QTS, the Core Professional Standards and the General Teaching Council for Englandās Code of Conduct and Practice for Registered Teachers. These standards define the minimum level of practice expected of all teachers from the point of being awarded QTS. This book refers mostly to the science-related subject standards you will be required to demonstrate in order to be awarded QTS. (See Sharp et al., 2021, for pedagogical and professional theory and practice.)
By reading all of the chapters in this book and successfully completing the practical tasks within them, trainees will have begun to address the standards.
Curriculum context
We have focused in this book on the core areas of science subject knowledge and understanding that you will need to develop the science knowledge and understanding and investigative skills of the children you work with, so that you can use this to underpin your planning for whatever curriculum is in place. However, you will need to know about the context of the curriculum prior to any new initiatives so that you can understand how your children have been taught and why. A recent addition to this book is Chapter 2, which focuses on how to engage and build childrenās knowledge and understanding in primary science. While procedural development in science has always been a focus within the National Curriculum for science, it has not always been a focus for explicit teaching within the curriculum. It is essential that children are taught how to work scientifically in the same way as they are taught the ideas of science which build into an understanding of the concepts of science. It is only when procedural understanding and conceptual understanding develop together that children will learn to work independently in science.
Science in the National Curriculum
Science in the National Curriculum (DfE, 2013a) is organised on the basis of four key stages. Key Stage 1 for five- to seven-year-olds (Years 1 and 2) and Key Stage 2 for seven- to eleven-year-olds (Years 3 to 6) are the primary key stages. The components of each key stage include programmes of study for each year group, which set out the science that children should be taught. The revisions to ...
